“I swear I had it somewhere,” a man in a gray uniform mumbled as he emptied his pockets. When nothing came out, he began to look around his waist frantically. In front of him stood a metal door with a badge scanner.

Suddenly, he heard a click. When he looked up, he saw another person had scanned their badge and opened the door for him.

“Oh, thank you so much,” he said, full of relief.

“No worries mate,” the other man said. He looked rather youthful but tanned. His face carried a look of both maturity and friendliness. His voice carried a distinct Southern Yorkshire accent. As he walked in with a heavy backpack, he held the door for the other man.

Following the other man, he slowly trailed behind. The other man could see the hesitation in which he had taken his steps. “I don’t think I’ve seen you around here before.”

“I’m a new hire,” he said while extending his hand and arm out for a shake. The man looked at the hand for a moment before shaking it. “Arthur Fritzgerald. Pleased to meet you-”

“Robin Fitzooth,” the man completed. “Pleased to meet you Arthur.”

“Likewise,” he said. “Are you a bit lost?”

The man sheepishly rubbed his head and gained a flushed quality to his face. “Yeah mate, I am. Sorry for following you but I didn’t want to look like a git on my first day.”

He chuckled. “Ah, no worries. I was nervous on my first day too.”

“So it’s not uncommon innit?”

He shook his head. “All the blokes here were the same.”

The man placed his hand on his chest and gave a sigh of relief. As they navigated through the complex maze of the Tower of London. The man couldn’t help but have an uneasy feeling of being watched.He felt as if eyes were focused on him. However, when he turned back, he saw nothing.

The man behind him looked down to his watch for a few moments. In an act of clumsiness, he bumped into the man. “Oh, I’m so sorry. Are you okay?”

“No worries, I’m fine,” he said as he slightly rubbed his arm. They continued on their long walk through the halls, making small talk. “So when were you born?”

“November 14, 1989,” he responded. “And you?”

“April 20, 2000,” the other man responded.

“Twenty three? You’re quite young,” he commented.

“That I am,” he agreed with a playful laugh. When it subsided, he slowly looked down towards his pants. “Mate, do you know where the loo is?”

“We passed by it when we made a turn. Just go back and take a left.”

“Ah, you’re a lifesaver,” he praised with a slight bow before running off rather quickly. The guard couldn’t help but shake his head in a humorous manner before continuing his route. He felt a sense of loneliness as he continued to walk. Remembering that he had lost his badge earlier, he looked down in one last attempt. Yet, he still couldn’t find a badge. With an exasperated sigh, he kept on walking.

As the other man turned the corner, his pace quickened as he entered the privacy of the bathroom. He suddenly closed his eyes. With a deep inhale and slow exhale, he once again opened his brown eyes. Instantly, his posture and body language completely changed as if he was a completely different person.

“Heh, that was wild!” I said shakily. My voice switched back to its good old western American accent. I took out his phone and put in his birth year. When that had failed, I put in the month and day of his birth.

“Oh shit, they write their dates differently,” I grumbled as I realized that. Switching the order, I typed it in and it successfully unlocked. As the saying goes, hope for the best and expect the worst. It would’ve taken more time to crack it than guessing it.

Looking through all his contacts, I was looking for two things. One: a direct line to Scotland Yard. Second: the number to the Tower of London crisis line. Something kept hidden and reserved for an agency like Scotland Yard or the NCA to call.

Once both numbers were located, I took out a second burner phone and dialed Scotland Yard. As the phone rang, I closed my eyes again and switched my persona.

I present to you a problem. The Crown Jewels is under armed guard, so how can you take it without getting shot?

And now, I present to you the solution. You make them leave.

“Officer Michael speaking,” the Scotland Yard operator said. “What is the issue?”

“Mr. Michael,” I said in a commanding and frantic voice. It was deeper than my usual one with different intonation. “I’m Agent Isaiah Cabrera with the Federal Bureau of Investigation for the United States.”

“The US?” he asked. “What interest do you gentlemen have with the Tower of London?”

“We’ve been tracking a terrorist and just received highly credible intel that he’s in the Tower of London. There’s devices all around the Tower that are programmed to release cyanide in mere minutes,” I opened the stall door to add different noises for them to hear. “We’ve been able to confirm the varsity of these facts. Completely evacuate as soon as possible.”

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

“U–understood sir,” the officer answered. “What’s the terrorists’ name?”

“George Notingham,” I said. I quickly played a ringing sound that imitated one that would come from a call. “Okay, I have to coordinate my task force, so I’m afraid I’ll have to leave you now. Make sure to call the Tower’s crisis line.”

Before he could answer, I ended the call. My job wasn’t done yet, however. I dialed the number to the Tower’s crisis line. After just two dings, it answered.

“Hello?” the voice on the other end asked. I recognized it as Arthur’s.

“Hi. To keep things brief, I am Agent Isaiah Cabrera with the FBI. Evacuate immediately as there is a terrorist attack in progress. Scotland Yard should be calling you with more information.”

“I-is this a joke?” he asked with both fear and skepticism. Before I could respond, as if on cue, I heard the phone ring.

“I’ll leave you to the evacuation,” I said as I hung up for the final time. Closing my eyes once again, I went back to my original identity. Zack Zephyr.

For the last time, I dialed one more number. It was to a different burner phone, one that belonged to Blake. As the phone began to ring, I began to change my clothes. My charcoal gray clothes turned into black pants and a white dress shirt. To complete the change, I put on a vest with a nameplate and a hat. A change that would aid my escape.

The phone stopped ringing. “Yo, did you do it?”

“They’re beginning evacuation now,” I answered as I kept on changing. “What about you?”

“I sent the letter and saw him read it,” Blake answered. A small grin crept on my face. It was a way to gain valuable time.

“Should I begin distribution of the money?”

“Yeah.”

“Alrighty Zacky,” he said playfully.

“Okay you didn’t have to say it like that!” I exclaimed. “That was zesty.”

“Well I think it’s better than Pearls,” he grumbled.

“Alright, goodbye now! Au revoir!” I said as I ended the call. With a small chuckle, I completed my disguise. I pulled out my laptop and opened up Project Archer. Checking all the cameras, I saw that everyone had begun to rush out of the building. It was like a moth to a flame.

As I kept checking the feed, I waited until all the security personnel exited. The room that was once filled with tourists was now empty. With a grin, I began to put away my laptop and spray a solution to get rid of DNA on my old clothes. I knew I had very little time to do what I wanted to do, so I sprinted across the many halls.

A picture of the hallways appeared in my mind as I took my best guess on where I was supposed to go. After a minute, I finally made it to the location that contained the Crown Jewels.

“Well here we go,” I grumbled to myself as I took off my backpack and began taking out some supplies. A stick of gum, a small diamond, and a hammer. The badge I had pickpocketed had allowed me to get in without going through extensive security.

The area that covered all my supplies was lined with barium sulfate, blocking X-Rays from seeing it. If I hadn’t pocketed it, it would’ve been subjected to a search.

But that’s besides the point. I looked over all the marvelous objects they had on display. It was filled with ancient and history-rich objects.

But therein lies an injustice. Several pieces didn’t belong to the British but rather they stole them.

I looked around the room until I spotted the first of my many targets. The Koh-I-Noor diamond.

Breaking the glass wasn’t as hard as people make it out to be. Sticking the piece of gum into my mouth, I chewed on it until it became wet with saliva. I took it out and placed it on the corner of the display glass, the weakest spot. Next, I placed the small diamond onto the gum. This would concentrate the force over a small area making it more effective.

Lastly, the hammer. Positioning my left side of my body to the gum piece, I swung as hard as I could with my dominant left hand. The glass fractured, but didn’t break. I repeated the process three more times before the glass finally gave in and broke.

But if you thought I could simply grab the diamond, then you’d be wrong. The Koh-I-Noor diamond, being fully diamond, made it an ideal candidate for a new state-of-the-art security measure. Electromagnetism. Inside the reinforced pedestal was a strong electromagnet that kept the diamond in place. A human wouldn’t be able to produce enough force to pull it out.

However, in the great words of Arsene Lupin, where force fails, cunning prevails. Taking out three of my many electromagnets from my backpack, I positioned it around the pedestal. I powered them on and waited for them to power up.

Down-time in a heist is something that should be minimized. So in the time I had been waiting, I smashed several other glass panes. No one expects you to take the lower-value objects so these have not undergone a security upgrade. It was simple to just take the The Sceptre with the Cross and the The Star of Africa Brooch off of their display.

Finally, I went to take The Stuart Sapphire. Repeating the same steps as before, I breached the display case. Shattered glass littered the floor as I retracted the hammer. With a delicate touch, I carefully removed it from it’s display case.

As I examined it, I noticed a peculiarity in the Sapphire; the transparency seemed off. It was hard to notice, but dealing with stones for a long time made me catch the small difference.

I brought out a loupe and put the sapphire part of the crown under it. Immediately, the internal structure of the gemstone jumped out to me. It was different from a sapphire! It was a fake!

The color zone was off. Whereas a sapphire has a consistent blue hue, this had delicate variations of blue from shades such as pale azure to deep indigo. It resembled the shades of a tranquil ocean.

Next was inclusions. It looked as if whispers of cloud formations were trapped in the gem. Last but not least was the transparency. It became more apparent under a magnifying lens. The transparency wasn’t as great as a sapphire.

As I brought the loupe away, I couldn’t help but feel angry. I had been let on based on a lie! This was a giant middle finger to me! The thief that was duped!

But if I lose, they’re going to lose too! I found a receipt on the floor and picked it up with my gloved hands. Looking around, I also saw a pen on the floor. With a smirk on my face, I wrote a quick message before putting the crown back. The amethyst was essentially worthless to me.

After that whole debacle, I went to check on the electromagnets. They emitted a controlled magnetic pulse that weakened the field. When I tried to lift it off, it still felt glued to the stand. I still needed time before it would weaken enough.

Suddenly, the burner phone rang. As I took it out, I saw that it was Blake

“What?” I snapped at him. My voice was filled with annoyance and contempt.

“They’re about to enter!” he exclaimed.

“Already?! I still need time!”

On cue, I heard a loud bang and a thud as what I presumed to be a door far away had been breached. With widened eyes and increased adrenaline, I began desperately to yank the diamond.

“Shit!”