Syndicates //

xxii

Whatever I expected this gala to be like, was exactly what it was. We were some of the youngest people there, aside from a few people who were children of rich people attending.

The tricky thing was that we couldn't really stay together for most of the evening, so we spread out and mingled. Louis had been down on the floor for an extra hour already, preparing with things backstage. He was going to meet with some of the guys in the bathroom later.

I mostly kept to myself, eyeing the pieces behind velvet ropes that were being auctioned off. I knew eventually I'd have to branch out, though.

I went to the bar and asked the bartender if he happened to have some nonalcoholic cider, to which he actually did and poured me a champagne flute.

At the bar, I eavesdropped on the conversations around me. Nothing of interest, but I kept my ears open. Eventually, I gave up and started wandering. There were a lot of standing tables, so I grabbed an empty one and continued to survey the room.

I felt a gentle thud on the table of someone's drink. "Are you waiting on anyone?" He asks, an older man with salt and pepper hair, perfect straight, white teeth, and a suit that looks expensive and perfectly tailored.

"Yeah, my husband is in the bathroom," I respond with a smile. I thought about flashing the ring but I decided against it. He could see it wrapped around the glass of 'champagne.'

"Have a nice night," he curtly mumbles.

I laugh to myself. Unbelievable.

As the night passes, I wait to see when Liam, Niall, and Harry have disappeared, because that's when Louis is giving them the rundown of what's going on. Then, I'll approach one of them and strike a conversation.

This was definitely the scariest part because now I'm completely alone in this ballroom. I knew they were keeping an eye on me throughout the night in case of anything, but now I was on my own.

As they left one by one, so did they re-emerge and float back into the party. Instead of coming up to one of them, Harry started nonchalantly making his way to my table.

"I saw that guy try to talk you up," he says. "What a slimeball."

"Yeah," I laugh, "stormed off as soon as I said I was married."

"Who's the lucky guy?" he asks, completely as a joke.

I decide to play along with his act. "He's this wonderful man from Italy. I met him when I went cliffdiving during a semester abroad in college."

"Alright, enough of that," he leans in and speaks lowly. "Louis located the jewelry. There's absolutely no security around it right now because there's a bigger piece that they're focusing on."

"Is it something we should be interested in?"

"No. Doesn't serve a purpose for us except a good distraction while you and I go in and take what we really need," he explains. "As soon as the auction starts, you and I will float away together. Liam and Niall are going to stay and watch to make sure nobody follows us. Louis is working security cameras right now and has in-ear communication with Liam and me, so just follow my lead because I'm following Louis."

I nod, "Gotcha."

He leans off of his elbows and stands up straight, "you're not really drinking champagne are you?"

"No," I furrow my eyebrows and take a sip. "sparkling apple cider."

"I might have some of that too," he says. "Care to go to the bar with me?"

"Sure!"

I follow him to the bar I was at before. The bartender refills my flute and gives Harry one of his own. The drinks are free, probably to loosen people up into bidding higher. Harry tips the waiter in his jar and leans against the countertop on his elbow with his back arched. I lean into it with my side, contorting my hip out.