Chapter 34
34
Their short trip to the museum timed well with Princess Astrid’s arrival. Her car pulled up just as they walked to the entrance stairs. The paparazzi snapped photos while shouting for her to walk slower and pose. Celeste and Magnus allowed her to make her entrance before following her with their invitations.
The first part of their plan started at the door, convincing a young woman who handled the guest list. While Magnus retrieved his invite from his jacket, Celeste unclasped her flat clutch and extended it to the woman. “Thank you, Dr. Jeremy Pierson. Thank you, Mrs. Linda Pierson,” she said as she scrolled through her electronic tablet. Once she was satisfied with their credentials, the woman extended her hand past the threshold. “Enjoy your evening.”
Magnus murmured his thanks. “Tack s? mycket.”
Magnus kept his eyes forward and began counting the security personnel. There was one unarmed police officer at the left stairwell. He was stone-faced and uninterested in the festivities, but alert all the same. Beside him, the Interpol agent they knew as the “nasty little Belgian inspector.” He surveyed the space with a hard, cold eye. His gaze settled on the princess and seemed to stare there. Every once in a while his dark eyes would flicker to the other two guards who stood near the café. Magnus was surprised to see that they were also unarmed.
They nonchalantly pushed forward, trailing those who took time to admire the foyer and collect flutes of champagne. The double stairways leading to the second floor were roped off, so the crowd that milled around flocked to the princess near the museum’s Sculpture Courtyard. “You get all of that?” Magnus murmured to Beatrice.
The young lady made a hum of affirmation. “One guard at the left stairwell, two near the café. Everyone is surprisingly unarmed. Vermeulen is staring hard at someone. The princess?”
“Exactly.”
“This security is shockingly paltry,” Celeste said in a low voice. “After what happened to Santiago, I really expected an entire precinct guarding the entrance.”
They might be posted out of sight from the attendees. If Magnus had to guess, the museum staff probably didn’t want a heavy police presence distracting from the princess and her jewels.
“They could be in the back watching this whole thing unfold,” Magnus whispered.
“Drinks are up ahead and the café is serving finger food directly behind the Sculpture Courtyard... You’ve got a while before they open the second floor to the partygoers. Sit back and enjoy a lecture about crown jewels.”
“Don’t mind if I do,” Magnus said, taking Celeste’s arm and steering her to the nearest waiter. He plucked two flutes of bubbly and extended one to her. “Mrs. Pierson?”
“Thank you,” she said with a grin.
He watched her take her first non-sip of her drink. The liquid touched her pursed lips while she admired the open space of the foyer. Magnus smiled at the small action as he sipped on his own. A little alcohol didn’t bother him. In fact, it helped loosen him up.
“Would you like to take a stroll?”
“That would be lovely,” he said, his eyes on the back stairway she’d have to traverse within the hour. “I think they have some pieces near the gift shop you might like to see.”
She followed behind him, squeezing his arm. “This reminds me of Sanderson’s party,” she whispered.
Magnus glanced down at her; the wrinkles around his eyes creased as he smiled. “I hope not too much.”
“You looked very handsome that night.”
“You looked perfect,” he replied, rubbing small circles on her knuckles with his thumb. “I hope that’s where the similarities end.”
They stopped at two medium-size canvases from the Swedish artist Torsten Andersson. He pretended to examine them closer, but his attention was mostly on his periphery. The inspector was approaching them at a steady clip, hard and determined to speak to them.
“Act natural,” he whispered to Celeste. “The Belgian is on his way.”
Celeste nodded. “Yes, I enjoy the Impressionists, but I think this is a bit precious for my taste.”
Magnus smiled. “You’ve never enjoyed the Impressionists. They’re too cynical for you.”
“Are you enjoying yourself this evening?” said a voice from behind them.
Magnus sucked in a breath before turning on his heel. Upon closer observation, the inspector, Hugo Vermeulen, was shorter than he thought. His face shined with an unsightly sheen of perspiration that made his overall appearance greasy. His rumpled navy blue suit and scuffed brown shoes stuck out in a sea of pressed tuxedos. Not that the man seemed to care. He held himself with the same authoritative confidence that any man on the right side of the law would.
“Good evening,” Magnus said with a smile. “I don’t believe I know you.” When in doubt, fall back on what people perceived him as: an arrogant prick. He gave him a scrutinizing stare as he looked him up and down. “Staff?”
The inspector met his smile with one of his own. “You could say that.” He took an uncomfortable step forward. “But it is I who should say that I do not know you, sir. You see, I have studied the guest list for the past two weeks and you...and your wife? You are quite new to the list.”
Celeste sidled up to Magnus, placing her hand on his back. “We didn’t know if we would attend,” she said. “The princess was lovely enough to save space for us at the last minute.”
Vermeulen raised a brow as his eyes cut to her. “Making it difficult to perform a background check on you, Mrs. Pierson.”
“A background check?” Magnus scoffed. “For a geologist?”
“Yes...indeed. How does a geologist become acquainted with a member of the Swedish royal family? Princess Astrid, specifically?”
“She and I met in New York,” Celeste jumped in. “Last year during Fashion Week. She was absolutely stunning in a pale pink Saint Laurent suit.”
“Was she?”
Celeste continued with confidence. “I had to invite her for drinks after the Chuks Collins collection. I found it lovely that she appreciated his future-forward work. Are you familiar with Collins, Mr....”
“Vermeulen, Inspector Hugo Vermeulen, with Interpol.” The man made no attempt to extend his hand. “And as I’m certain you can tell, I’m not familiar with the goings-on of Fashion Week. When was that?”
“Early September.”
Magnus was impressed by her quick responses, but wondered if they were just a little too specific. When Hugo gave them a tight-lipped smile, his stomach fell. “ Early September?”
Celeste didn’t falter. “I believe it was.”
Hugo dug his hands into his pockets and rocked on his heels. “Fascinating...considering how Princess Astrid was spending her August and September in Bangkok with friends.”
Magnus pulled his shoulders back and straightened to full height. “I’m not sure what the interrogation is about, Inspector. My wife and I are here for a little history and free drinks. As a favor to Her Majesty.”
The height difference didn’t seem to make a difference to the dogged little man. “Perhaps I am mistaken—”
“It wouldn’t be the first time,” said a familiar voice at his side. Princess Astrid had joined the conversation, and two beefy private security men accompanied her. Her brown hair was swept up in a conservative bun and covered in a dainty tiara. No doubt, something from the royal collection. She wore a slinky black gown with a stylish shawl hanging loosely off her shoulders. “Inspector, surely you can find something more worth your time than harassing my guests.”
The quickest flash of rage showed up on Vermeulen’s face as he addressed Astrid. Although he suppressed it well enough, Magnus sensed something a little unhinged about this man. An obsessed man who hadn’t found anything more worth his time in five years.
“My apologies, Your Highness,” he said in a demure voice. “I was only curious about your acquaintance with these people.”
“These people?” Astrid said in a shrill voice. She turned to Celeste and said in a hushed tone, “My dear Linda, I’m so sorry you had to hear that. It was never my intention that your first visit to my kingdom be so filled with suspicion and—” she cut her eyes to the inspector “—bad vibes. You must forgive him. He’s Belgian.”
Magnus couldn’t help the undignified snort that escaped him as Hugo Vermeulen’s sweaty face darkened with rage-blush. “Princess Astrid, I must insist—”
“I must insist you move on.”
The man let his mask drop. “With all due respect to you and your family, I do not agree with this disgraceful display of arrogance. I do not know how you’ve managed this, but so long as my investigation goes unsolved, I will continue watching you.”
Magnus was stunned by the man’s brazenness. As were the princess’s bodyguards. They took an intimidating step forward, shielding Astrid from this small man’s quiet vitriol. When he realized this, he shrank back slightly.
“You are quite unpleasant, aren’t you?” Magnus said with a smirk. “Interpol is definitely not sending their fun people.”
Without another word, he excused himself and hurried back to the front of the museum. Celeste let out a sigh. “Is he always like that?”
Princess Astrid rolled her eyes. “For the last five years. Boys, can you give me some space?” Her two bodyguards backed away several feet so that she could speak to them privately. “Okay,” she said in a quiet voice. “Are you all set up tonight?”
“We are. You know when to exit stage left?”
“I’m going to give my talk, leave the event and depending how things go for you all... I’ll make a statement tomorrow.” She weighed her options with both hands. “Either I’ll say it’s a terrible shame that our jewels were left unprotected by the man who swore to obsessively hound me for half a decade or I’m thankful that the museum’s state-of-the-art security prevented another tragic loss for the kingdom of Sweden.”
Celeste smiled. “Hopefully it’s the former.”
“Either way, it sounds like you’re intentionally insulting our dear Hugo Vermeulen.”
She shrugged. “You saw him. He’s truly the worst. Whatever. Just make sure that I’m out of this building before you do whatever it is you’re planning to do. I’m scheduled for a red-eye to Miami, and I really don’t want to get held up by this huvud.”
“You’ve got a deal,” Celeste said, extending her hand. The women shook hands. “Have a good trip.”
“Have a good heist.”
The princess snapped her fingers and her men quickly surrounded her. As they walked off, Magnus caught a glimpse at Hugo watching them with a shrewd stare.
“So? You guys heard all of that?” he asked, addressing Lawrence and Beatrice.
“Oh, yeah,” Beatrice intoned. “What is that guy’s problem?”
“Celeste, be prepared to tussle with him,” Lawrence warned. “You are officially on the inspector’s radar.”
“That’s what I’m worried about,” Magnus said. “He doesn’t seem to like women and he seems like he’s coming unglued. Maybe I should take the run.”
Celeste shook her head. “I know you’re fast, but I have to do this. I need you to take care of the exits and clear the way for me.”
Magnus wasn’t going to argue with her. Not this time and not this far into the game. “If you’re confident.”
She looked up at him with a broad smile. “I’m going to try to be as confident as a Swedish princess who has never done anything challenging in her life.”
He laughed, thankful that she still had a sense of humor considering their circumstances. “I’ll take it.”