Sigmund Shaw: A Steampunk Adventure Read Online Free

finally, “Sigmund, your sister and I have thought a lot about this, and we need to ask something from you.”
     
    Sigmund nodded and waited for Jamison to continue.
     
    “We need you steal something.”

2.
     
     
    Steal something?
     
    This was not a request Sigmund thought he would ever hear from his sister and certainly not from her husband. Not that Sigmund wasn’t capable of stealing something, he was very capable, but it was always on his own terms with the goal of providing for his family. No one ever asked, they never had to. But to be asked, and asked so bluntly, was surprising and a bit shameful.
     
    He always assumed that his sister had shared his background with Jamison but it was never talked about openly, not even insinuated. But now it was clearly out in the open. Sigmund was a thief; well had been a thief. Since Alexis’ marriage to Jamison, he hadn’t needed to resort to it. He had even started to think he would be able to retire that part of his life for good. A nagging haunt to his conscience, he would love nothing better than to leave it behind now that he no longer had a family to take care of, Jamison was doing that for him.
     
    That was likely where most of the intimidation that Sigmund felt for Jamison stemmed from. The fact that the care that Jamison provided was through perfectly normal and legal means, able to give everything his sister and niece wanted without having to resort to stealing. In Sigmund’s mind, this made Jamison better than him. This, of course, is exactly what he wanted for his sister, but it still stung.
     
    Jamison’s care also left a hole in Sigmund’s self-worth. He had spent most of his life caring for his sister, then later his niece, and that care is how Sigmund measured success. He was successful as a man, successful in life, if he could provide for his family. When Alexis first married, Sigmund went through the same feelings, but when her husband left, he was thrust into the familiar, comfortable role of provider and protector. At times, he felt selfish. It was the distress of his sister that made him feel the hero.
     
    This role that he had played during much of his life was also an excuse to not focus on himself. He gave up on any kind of relationship, not wanting to threaten the balance he had created, and not knowing how he could possibly explain his thieving habits to a potential suitor. It was easier to just keep to himself. But now there were no excuses, Alexis and Sarah were provided for. She must have sensed it too, as through the years she never spoke of him not having a lady to court. But in recent months she had started to drop hints as to her desire for him to find someone.
     
    That immediately changed with the request, ‘We need you to steal something’.
     
    Sigmund’s thieving had started simply enough. By fifteen years old, his father was gone, his mother was sickly, and he and his sister often went to bed hungry. One day he overheard two men talking, one of them was complaining about how his wife did not appreciate the gift he had given her, a gold broach with small diamonds and emeralds. Sigmund was angry at how hard things were for his family and how much a piece of jewelry like that would help – and this woman evidently didn’t even like it! To have the means to purchase such superfluous things was almost beyond comprehension. The feeling of unfairness burned inside.
     
    He dwelled on these thoughts and was able to force the conclusion that this woman didn’t deserve it. It took only a few more thoughts to bring him to the idea of relieving her of the unwanted item. It was very robin Hood-esque he thought, take from the rich and give to the poor.
     
    A few more convincing thoughts and he decided that he would attempt it, he would steal this pendant. Sigmund carefully followed the man home to get his address. From there he would visit the home each day and wait until it was empty – it happened on the second day. Sigmund saw the