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‘That was the right one? You’resure?’

Ari shot her a look.

‘OK, fine. You’re sure.’ Nancy sighed. ‘So, shedidtake it.’

‘You didn’t believe me?’ Ari said though she didn’t sound all that surprised.

‘I felt there was some room for error,’ Nancy pointed out as gently as possible. ‘Which is not the same thing.’

‘Well, no errors now. Just a thief and a liar,’ Ari said.

‘Yes, she is,’ Nancy agreed. ‘But that door is locked.’

Ari frowned. ‘I know.’

‘But it’s just a lock. And locked doors unlock eventually,’ Nancy said casually.

Ari looked at Nancy in astonishment. ‘You’re cool with me trying to get the necklace?’

‘It belongs toyou,’ Nancy said.

Nancy felt the weight of Ari’s hand on her wrist. ‘Thank you,’ Ari said, her voice steady but quieter than usual.

The words settled into the space between them, and for a moment, Nancy wasn’t sure how to respond. Most of the time, Ari was a whirlwind of confidence, always the one holding things together, but in that moment, she looked… different. Vulnerable.

‘Yeah, well,’ Nancy finally said, trying to shrug off the big moment, ‘you’re a bloody menace. But you’re in the right.’ She paused. ‘Do you want some help?’ she added casually.

Ari’s eyes widened. ‘What? Really?’

Nancy shrugged. ‘That’s my job, right?’

‘It’s really not,’ Ari said emphatically. She took out her phone.

‘Is this the moment to check Instagram?’ Nancy asked, confused.

Ari put her phone away and smiled. ‘The money we talked about is in your account. You don’t have to do anything beyond this point. The contract is fulfilled. You can leave right now, and I’ll see you for the drive home. No harm, no foul.’

Nancy baulked. ‘You didn’t have to…’

‘I absolutelydo,’ Ari cut in.

Nancy’s gaze drifted to the floor, her mind racing. She had always prided herself on being responsible, the voice of reason. But as she stood there, watching the excitement flicker across Ari’s face, a flicker of something else ignited within her.

‘You sure you don’t just want to report the theft to the police?’ Nancy checked.

‘I don’t see a world where they get that necklace back. The second they show up, that necklace gets moved. And this place is huge. They wouldn’t find it ifshedidn’t want them to.’

Nancy nodded. ‘I’m inclined to agree. With that in mind, I think we have to do this quietly and carefully. We work together and walk out of this place with your necklace.’

Ari’s eyes sparkled with a mixture of disbelief and gratitude. ‘Are you serious? You’d really help me?’

‘Yeah,’ Nancy replied, a smile breaking across her face. ‘If you’re going to take this chance, I might as well be there to make sure you don’t get caught.’

Ari laughed, the tension lifting from her shoulders. ‘You’re a bad influence, Nancy Doyle.’

‘I’m an idiot,’ Nancy told her—and she meant it.

She knew this was dumb. But for Ari, this was about more than a trinket. She wanted to correct a mistake, maybe even claw back some missing self-esteem in the process. Nancy wanted that for her. It surprised her just how much.