“I am so sorry for disappearing like that,” Tanya started the second I walked into the room. “I just had a hunch and Eric seemed nervous so I decided to take the initiative…”

“Easy there, Tanya. It's okay. Everything worked out fine. Just give us a heads up next time, alright?”

“I will, and next time I go on a stakeout I'll be sure to have my phone.”

“You found it,” Eric exclaimed, staring at the bags in my hands.

“I assume so, and I already checked that this stuff can't be tracked. Still would rather go through it in a clean room.”

Maguire nodded, leading the way to the workshop designated as the clean room. The setup was similar to the room we had worked in at the Pole, only bigger. The Nerdlettes followed close behind us, Sarah and Lenny looking very much like they wanted to keep fussing at Tanya.

“You all are welcome to head out if you want. Maguire and I can handle this,” I offered.

“We want to see this through,” Tanya protested. The other two nodded in agreement.

“Alright then. Let's get to work.”

We methodically worked our way through the bags, unpacking everything and arranging it all on the table. Maguire took the bags themselves over to another table to examine them with a magnifying glass, looking for traces of magic with Lenny while Sarah, Tanya and I examined the contents. Eric snatched the heart the second it touched the table, clutching it close to his chest with a happy sign.

“Thanks, Claudia,” he said. The tension melted from his shoulders. The heart looked almost like an antique metal compact, but the real treasure was what lay inside. I had never seen it. I don't think anyone outside of the family had.

Aside from the heart we found a few sets of lockpicks and some rope, a wallet full of false IDs, some clothing and some cash. Useful leads, but the most promising were the phones.

“Lenny?” I asked, looking at him hopefully.

“Burner phones and they look like they've been used,” he said excitedly. “Communication will probably be in code or encrypted. Here, gimme”

I slid them across the table so he and Sarah could start pouring through the contents while I turned to Maguire. He shook his head. Nothing of note on the bags. He had a glint in his eye, though, and I waited to see what he had to say.

“Eric, how many people knew you were going to be performing at the bar?” Maguire asked.

“It was pretty publicized. Why?”

“And who all was involved in planning it?”

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

“The owners, some of the staff. My manager and our social media person, maybe a few others on my side.”

“And who all knows where you went afterwards?”

“I gave my manager a heads up that I was staying with some friends so he wouldn't worry. I didn't give him any details.”

“What are you onto, Maguire?” I asked.

“I found a note tucked in one of the pockets. It's a drawing of the heart. The thieves knew what they were looking for and they knew when and where to find it,” he explained.

“This was no accident, then,” I muttered. “Not overly surprising, but also not great. Lenny, Sarah?”

“We are still working on cracking their communications, but I've got a few phone numbers,” Lenny offered. I nodded and he read the numbers hout while Sarah continued scribbling in her notebook.

Eric went deathly pale when he heard the third number, which belonged to the first person contacted after the theft. “That's my manager. But…”

“There's still more to the story, Eric. Don't fall down the rabbit hole. We will figure this out.”

“I know. It's just…what's next?”

“Go get your laptop. I think it's time we do some poking around in your company communications and finances. See if there's any fire to go with the smoke,” I said.

Eric grabbed his laptop and we dove in, going through his files with Sarah leaning over our shoulder. We took notes and chased threads until we had enough to paint a picture. And it wasn't pretty.

“How do you want to handle this?” I asked Eric after he had sat in a stunned silence for several minutes.

“Let me sleep on it,” he said softly. “We can break the news in the morning.”

“Okay. I'll make copies of this information and maybe do a little more digging.”

Eric nodded blankly and shuffled out of the room. No one really knows what to say, so we stayed mostly silent and gradually wandered off to bed.

The next morning we made a plan over coffee and we broke the news at noon. Eric's manager was arrested that afternoon, charged with multiple counts of embezzlement and fraud. While the Nerdlettes returned to their lives, Eric ended up staying with us for a few nights while he figured out his next steps.

“You're going to be alright,” Maguire said. “You have talent, you have a following, and aside from your manager you have good people surrounding you. You'll figure it out.”

“Thanks. Logically, I know that, but it's nice to hear it. And it's nice to know I can always count on the Jacks, even though there are only two of you,” Eric said. He turned to face me. “I owe you for this one. I may not know what you've got going on, but I know there's something. If there is anything I can do to help, don't hesitate to ask.”

“Always happy to help, Eric. If you're feeling particularly grateful, you can always toss us some tickets to your big show.”

“Oh, you can count on it.”

The concert was nothing short of amazing, but it did little to quell the questions dancing around my mind. From what Sarah had been able to figure out, the heart hadn't been the only artifact stolen.

“What are the odds that this is all connected?” Maguire asked.

“There's definitely something going on here. Not sure what. Not sure why. But we need to pay more attention.”

“I'd like to shift my focus to combat and espionage, at least for the short term. I want to be able to protect myself and you in case next time the kidnapping is real.”

“That can be arranged.” I smirked. “First lesson, always stay alert.”

His brow furrowed briefly before he caught sight of me swinging a book at his head. He ducked with seconds to spare, and I laughed.

Sometimes, the best way to learn is trial by fire.