Five hundred Carats. Brilliant white-blue. Only as big as the palm of as a hand, but worth millions and millions of dollars. It was such a shame to just leave it on a plush cushion in a glass prison. That little thing could pay off loans a dozen times over. The Cullinan diamond may not be as huge as some people would like it, but it was worth its purity in gold.
And by pure, dumb luck, it found its way into a gemstone exhibit at the Augusta Meuseum. Brian Goodman, or, as he was called by the police, "The Shadow", wasn't going to complain. With his wife spending money like a frat boy chugs several liters of booze, the thief was more than willing to end his financial issues once and for all. Who cares if he stole several other gems before? Those were chump change compared to this beauty. The police? Enough sleeping gas through the air vents knocked out any security that would even think of calling the police. As an added bonus, whoever was watching the security footage was knocked out colder than drunk during the Super Bowl.
Blending in with the darkness, the Shadow crept towards the glittering prize, ignoring the brilliant white pearl necklace that was said to adorn the neck of a Queen suspected of having fey blood, scoffing at the opal that was said to be a deterterant of plague and evil in spite of its size, choking back laughter at the microscopic sapphire that adorned a ring belonging to some random rich family who adored the small. He took out a key he snagged from from the security, eager to open up the cage and free the brilliant prisoner.
Brian ignored the mechanical eyes that followed him. He could simply go back and erase the camera data before security had a clue. Maybe he could dress up as one of them and pin the crime on an innocent. He wasn't too worried though. When he finally reached the cage, all his worries drifted away as he opened it up and reached out for the prize-
"I wouldn't take that if I were you, my dear thief," said a voice. Brian slipped and nearly dropped the diamond. That voice was too close for his own comfort. "Careful! We wouldn't want you to hurt yourself. Now, dear thief... the Shadow, was it?" the voice asked. Brian looked under the cushion and spotted a little speaker underneath. "Don't look at me like that with those eyes. Hardly befitting of a man who shamelessly stole gems and stones right underneath the noses of men. Now, put that diamond back where you found it, my dear. Didn't your mother tell you not to steal? Oh, she must be turning in her grave!"
The Shadow smashed the speaker with a balled fist. Who was she to talk about anything? How'd she find out he was here?
How did she know he was looking at the speaker?
Suddenly, there were flashes of light. He shielded his eyes and cursed under his breath as he realized everything was turned on, every security camera pointed towards him. It was too late to duck under a blind spot, and he could hear footsteps getting louder and louder. The whole damn thing was a trap, he realized too late. To his great disbelief, the Shadow's streak was broken, his prize placed back into the cage he freed it from. The cold, hard steel snapping around his wrists only cemented the horrible job into his mind.
And somewhere, somehow, he could hear the dramatic, overblown laugh of the girl he spoke to, ringing through his ears.
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