Sigmund Shaw: A Steampunk Adventure Read Online Free Page A

man of the house leave for work a few minutes before eight, his wife left around ten. Clearly to do this in the day time was bold but he didn’t think the home would be empty during the night. Sneaking around an occupied home was well beyond his skills – and courage.
     
    Waiting for the street to be clear, Sigmund ran across and went straight to the door. To his great surprise it was open! He often wondered what he would of done if it was locked – walk away and give up, smash a window, or something else entirely. What if…
     
    Opening the door, he slipped inside quickly. The immediate strangeness of being inside someone else’s house was both frightening and thrilling. Surrounded by smells and sights that belonged to someone else was almost disorienting. He knew that just his actions so far, entering the home, were far over the line of appropriateness. Second thoughts and doubts barraged him but he decided to continue on – as much for the sake of his pride as the desire for the jewelry. He headed up the stairs to the second floor rooms, assuming that the bedrooms were on that level and that the jewelry box would likely be there as well. His steps on the stairs sounded excruciatingly loud, his heart beats not sounding much quieter in his ears. His instincts were correct – after opening the second door of the hallway, he found the master bedroom. His feeling of discomfort, now that he was in a person’s most private room, grew even stronger. He was shaking, sweating, feeling cold and hot at the same time. Fear of failure drove him forward. Looking over what had to be a women’s bureau, an elaborate box stood to the side of the mirror next to several pairs of gloves and a white hat. Opening the drawers of the box, Sigmund was greeted with many pieces of jewelry – earrings, necklaces, rings, pendants, and other pieces. Already feeling overwhelmed at his actions, it wasn’t until this moment that the complete gravity of the situation fell hard on Sigmund’s small shoulders. He was about to take something that wasn’t his, put it in his pocket, and leave. He would be a thief, a person that society would not be proud of. His stomach growled and he knew that his sister’s stomach was equally empty. The thought of helping Alexis superseded his morals.
     
    He continued looking through the box until he found the piece that he was looking for. He picked up the broach, gold with embedded jewels – just as the man described – and it was now in his sweaty hand. His goal was realized. The choice made here would alter Sigmund’s life moving forward. If he put it back and left he would never consider anything like this again. To try and fail would be too much to overcome in order to try it another time. Sigmund stopped thinking, trying to not allow his conscience to rule his actions. He kept rationalizing that the good that would come out of this would be more than the bad. The end justified the means. He put the broach into his pocket and closed up the box. He thought of taking more but decided to stick to the original plan. He felt a little better knowing he was only taking something that the owner didn’t want anyway. Making his way to the bottom floor, he headed back to the front door. His heart pounded in his ears as he slowly opened the door a crack and looked around outside as best he could through the narrow slit. At what looked like an opportune moment, he stepped outside, closed the door behind him, and walked down the side walk as if he hadn’t a care in the world. He was then a thief. No matter what happened, he will always have stolen the broach. The label hung heavy on him but ultimately drove him on to other burglaries. He was a thief, whether he stole one thing or a hundred, he was still a thief.
     
    The next several years were dotted with other experiences in stranger’s unoccupied – and occasionally occupied – homes. The money he received from this allowed his family to stay warm and fed. He