Legendary // H.S

6.

'Rock on Ancient Queen,

Follow those who pale in your shadow'

*

I can't be complicit in a crime. I can't allow myself to be pulled into a world like this. Looking for adventure is one thing, actually doing something illegal is another. Dad was referring to going on an eat, pray, love sort of trip when he told me to take more risks, not steal some jewellery. This wasn't just any jewellery either, he was asking for my help in stealing a diamond, though I was still unsure what one. It had to be of extreme value, especially if he has a whole team behind him. I doubt he'd plan this much for a generic one found in any old bracelet.

I'm still wearing the one he slipped on my wrist in the gallery. I'd stared at it for hours on end once I got home that day, but I still hadn't removed it. It's like it was glued to my wrist. Of course, I know it's wrong, but part of me enjoys the thrill of wearing it.

People look at you differently when you're wearing diamonds. It's like you matter more, you have added value to your being. You're worth talking to or even walking on the same side of the road as. It's powerful, and I'm starting to realise I like it.

Having this level of authority just because I'm wearing a bracelet makes me dizzy, somehow. Like the weight of it is knocking me out of consciousness. There's a new influence within me, people want to look at me.

When I walked into work the next day with it on, Cathy assumed I'd stolen it myself. If only she knew. I made up a story about Joe buying it for me to apologise for harassing me. She berated me for an hour about accepting gifts from him when he hadn't moved on. It wasn't my best excuse, but it would do for now. She'd asked about Harry too, wondering what he wanted that lunch time he whisked me away. Again, I told more lies. This time I said that he was a creepy customer that enjoyed my company a bit too much. Cathy didn't buy it, but when it became apparent that I wouldn't tell her, she dropped it.

I could easily tell someone what I know. I could walk into a police station right now and give a statement. But I don't want to, and while I'm still trying to figure out why that is, I have to focus on what I'm going to do with the information. He recruited me, specifically, to join a team that are probably experts in this sort of thing. It's obvious I've never done anything remotely illegal in my life, I've always stuck to the rules, so why did he single me out? There are hundreds, probably thousands of jewellers in this city that could do it. I'm good at what I do, that's no secret, but how did he find me?

There are too many unanswered questions for me to make a decision like this. I'd be selling myself to the Devil if I agree, wrapping myself up in a life that few rarely get out of. I've heard horror stories about people involved in crime; the news always reports the victims of it. I could be another statistic.

But there's a part of me that knows it's unlikely. This man has openly admitted to stealing multiple items of extreme value, and yet he's never been caught. Even when someone saw him walk away with a painting by the most famous artist in history, he still got away with it. I'd be working behind the scenes, I assume, so it's unlikely that I'd ever be linked to it. It's just one thing. One project that I can spend my time on for the next few months until I'm ready to move on.

The fact that I'm even considering accepting the proposition is ridiculous. Yet, the potential to be involved in something truly exciting, truly legendary, it fills me with adrenaline that I've never experienced. Like I've been electrified back to life. I'm Frankenstein's monster, a creature born again thanks to the ambition of another. The creature is the victim of that story though, is that the fate that awaits me?