Chapter 14: Mr. Keller

OLLIE

“Are these the jewels that belonged to Alexander’s grandmother?” Sarah asked, her excitement barely contained.

“Yes, these have sentimental value,” Maxime Keller, the Rothschild family jewel keeper, replied with elegance and charm.

Of course, they had a ~family jewel keeper~. This family was so obnoxiously funny.

I did my best to take the process of picking jewels seriously, since they had a security protocol.

I didn’t realize I was standing and keeping my distance until Mr. Keller extended his cordial attention to me.

“Please, sit down, Miss Summer.”

Sarah’s hands were glued to the glass, displaying some of the jewels: rubies, emeralds, diamonds of all colors and shapes, sapphires, and more.

“These are highly valuable jewels. I must extend the notice that they will only be worn for the night.”

“Of course,” Sarah agreed, her mood improving.

Before, I could have thought vanity and luxury were pointless, but after seeing my sister’s meltdowns, having something external to herself bring her so much joy—well, hooray to these Grannie’s jewels.

“What is inside the briefcase you are keeping behind?” Sarah asked.

“This one?” Maxime Keller asked, moving his eyes from left to right.

Shit, Sarah, leave the briefcase alone; it is closed for a reason!

“Yes,” Sarah beamed. “Alexander said I could pick what I wanted for this evening.”

“I am glad you ask,” he smiled, bringing the high-security briefcase forward, yet still holding it closed to his chest. “These jewels are not to be taken lightly,” Maxime stopped, his hands on the suitcase. “Having access to them is a big honor.”

~Oh, a big honor. Kill me now.~

“I am sure you are right,” Sarah said.

“I have been the keeper for over a decade. They’ve been locked away all these years.”

~All right, jewelry guy, cut it with the bullshit and show us the goods.~ The anticipation was building, and I never thought I’d be this intrigued to see what was inside.

The jewel from the Titanic? For sure my heart will go on. Haha.

The man didn’t utter a word as he finally opened it.

I stopped laughing. My heart did go on but skipped a beat.

Oh, shit, those rocks were big. Huge.

“I was surprised when I received Alexander’s call. You are a very special lady.”

“Thank you. It is also a very special night. I want to extend that honor to my sister if that is okay. I’m sure Alexander won’t have a problem with that.”

What honor? The honor to be killed by the Rothschilds on the spot? I don’t volunteer as tribute.

“Forget it. I am not wearing anything,” I said.

Was Sarah that nuts?

Sarah ignored me, reaching for the box. “Oh, that bird is so cute!”

Mr. Keller’s eyes widened in what looked like genuine concern.

I didn’t know if it was because of Sarah’s choice or because she was making me wear jewelry, too.

It was probably because of me.

“You mean the peacock brooch, ma’am?”

Did his voice tremble?

He pulled the box slightly out of Sarah’s reach.

She took the hint and nodded.

The jeweler wore white gloves and gently lifted the peacock figure from the briefcase.

Oh, it glimmered.

We were all living a ~Princess Diaries~ moment, starting with Mr. Keller over here, who was obsessed with his job.

I could see him all Gollum-like with his ~precious.~

We stared silently at the bird, hypnotized by its feathers, twinkling from blue to yellow to pink.

It ended in a soft white, with a blue pear-shaped diamond in the middle as the peacock’s body.

It was captivating.

I’d never seen such delicate yet powerful jewelry.

It had a palpable presence.

“Wait, we are missing the matching earrings.” Maxime placed the peacock on a velvet tray and held a blue diamond earring in each hand.

~Holy moly.~

I’d never seen diamonds so big; each was the size of a whole thumb.

I would have thought they were fake in any other circumstance.

“Thank you, Mr. Keller,” Sarah said. “I think these two will do the part for tonight.”

Which part? The one where we exchange the jewels for copies and run? Hell no.

He nodded. “We will provide the jewelry before the event starts. I’ll make sure the arrangements are made. My men will escort both of you throughout the night to ensure they are protected.”

“Protected? You mean like someone following us around?” I joked.

“Exactly.” He excused himself and left the room.

My sister looked at me expectantly. “The night of the Gala is special for me, Ollie. Please let me do this for you. Please, wear these jewels.”

Had Sarah gone cuckoo? She’d been acting strange since I got here.

She was delusional.

Just thinking of Anna’s murderous eyes on me was reason enough to say no.

“That is very generous, but I don’t like wearing million-dollar jewelry.”

~Plus, upsetting their grannie ghost for wearing them.~

“Oh, you silly! I don’t know how much they are worth, but I guess a lot.”

Yeah, she wasn’t the smartest.

I only got that in our DNA.

“I won’t enjoy myself. What if I accidentally drop one?” I asked.

“Ollie, you won’t,” she pouted. “These jewels are important to this family, Ollie. It’s my way of showing them how important you are to me. Please, do this for me.”

“This is such a bad idea,” I insisted.

“It is just a piece of rock. Relax. Besides, this peacock brooch is so small, don’t you think?” she asked absently.

“It’s not small. It is the size of a golf ball.”

“I am talking about the diamond,” Sarah muttered, and then she smiled brightly—so big and so vast that I could only roll my eyes.

“This is a bad idea, Sarah.” She saw my disapproval and nodded.

“Yeah, maybe you’re right. We can pick something else,” she said, closing the briefcase.

Exactly.

I was giving her some common sense, but I had to admit I kind of liked how happy and excited she looked and, more importantly, the boost of confidence it gave her.

I didn’t want to see my sister feeling less or doubting herself again.

How she was crying in that horse stable on the outskirts of the polo game made me furious.

I knew she wanted to impress this family.

I knew she wanted to look right in front of those mean girls.

I knew all she wanted in this universe was to belong in Alexander’s world.

But this was not the way.

This was not the smart way to do it.

“Not even Anna Rothschild has had access to Sophia’s jewels.”

Oh, fuck me!

“She will take them.”

Sarah giggled. “We are?”

I was going to regret this so much, but I wanted to see that old smug face go blank, and wearing this nonsense was going to do the job; well, fuck it!

My mind worked diligently. The blue pear diamond in the brooch wasn’t as flamboyant as the earrings, but it sure did have a unique shape.

This bird had to be way less expensive. Please be less costly.

“I’ll wear it only if you wear the blue diamond earrings. I’m staying away from those,” I said.

“Talking like the true queen you are, sis. Sounds like a deal,” Sarah replied.

Sarah smiled, sealing a promise I could only hope not to regret.

“This is perfect to wear for Alexander’s announcement, he wants me to look my best.”

While Sarah got ready for the event, I hurried to the kitchen, hoping to avoid any interactions, specifically with any human whose last name started with an R.

The list was long.

Vivian leaned on the countertop.

~Shit.~ I almost jumped. Already found one.

Her silver bob haircut was styled in a low ponytail, with her bangs lying smoothly on her forehead.

She had this casual and chic air about her, cool without really trying.

She saw me, and her expression revealed nothing but accomplished boredom.

“Coffee?” she offered with a smile.

“American,” I muttered, wiggling my toes as I took in her immaculate outfit—a white dress with cream leather pumps.

At least she wasn’t giving me the up and down, but that didn’t make me less self-aware of my messy bun, dry lips, and puffy slippers.

“Guess I should change before she sees me.” I signaled toward the massive windows of the guest house.

The lawn was impressively large, wide enough for another polo field, and at the end, the grand manor stood imposingly.

Outside, Anna looked like she was enjoying herself ordering her servants around.

Of course she was. Maybe it was part of her routine, making people feel miserable and used.

Her crew of helpers moved like ants around a clear-top tent in the middle of the pasture; efficient and coordinated, they set up the event.

Mountains of white flower arrangements were being carried inside.

I raised my eyebrows at the sight.

Just another day at the Rothschild Manor.

“Oh, don’t worry about her. She’s harmless.” Vivian handed me a cup of freshly brewed coffee.

“Harmless as a barking dog that never bites?” I asked, sitting on one of the barstools.

I accepted the mug and took a sip, finally relaxing as I enjoyed the warm feeling of the cup between my palms.

Vivian moved differently. Her spine was straight, her posture flawless.

She pressed the handles of the espresso cup with two fingers, and I silently dared that tiny pinky of hers to flex. It didn’t.

“Oh, no. Anna can bite.” Her tone was serious. “But if you want to worry, you should worry about my father.”

She looked at her watch, a clear sign that the ~It Girl~ had better things to do with her time.

I sipped more coffee. “Luther?”

I pictured him, tall and skinny with those round-shaped glasses obscuring his intelligent eyes.

He had been nothing but polite to me so far.

Why was she warning me?

She nodded, passing me a couple of warm croissants on a round porcelain dish with a few gold details at the edges.

I bit into one, nodding thankfully for breakfast. A part of me enjoyed her company.

“He has a wicked mind.” She gave a small laugh.

That creeped me out a notch.

“Thanks for the heads up. I already thought everybody in this family had one,” I said, lightening the mood with my sassiness.

She looked amused. “Olivia! You really have a tongue.”

“I’ve been told,” I muttered.

I could hear Darius’s husky voice in my head. ~That dirty little mouth.~

“What about Darius?” I blurted, ready to extract as much information as I could.

~Why are you asking about him, Ollie?~

“Curious about him, are you? I felt some tension between you two yesterday.”

“Maybe.” I tried to be casual and give her my best poker face, but by the way she was inspecting me, she saw right through me.

~Dammit.~

She rolled her eyes. “Yes, my cousin. Don’t get your hopes high. He is an asshole.”

Great. Now she thought I liked him.

“An asshole? No kidding!” My sarcasm flowed freely.

“Okay, detective. Well, he is all about business, and he doesn’t have a heart, except for when it comes to my aunt, of course.”

Vivian delicately sipped her coffee before continuing.

“You are not very good at this, you know.” Everything she said sounded obvious, not that I cared that he was incapable of love.

“Wanna hear something funny? I have a theory that he is…” She giggled and covered her mouth, then whispered softly, “Gay.”