In the world of diamond dealers old money reins supreme. The Oppenheimer family and their De Beers corporation, the Cartier family, and various European royalty tended to acquire all the best that money could buy and make display of them for publicity and prestige. Lately though, an American newcomer by the name of Harry Winston had surprised the diamond world with his acquisition of the Lucky Baldwin collection and even more recently a gem that caught attention worldwide: The Jonker. Weighing in at 726 carats uncut it was the fourth biggest diamond ever found and Mr. Winston had chosen to have it cut in the United States which caused a huge stir. The clamor raised even more when he announced that he would take the resulting thirteen gems on a tour of the country where celebrities and the wealthy from all corners could be a part of history.

Having heard of Mr. Winston's interest in an exhibition in the city of Philadelphia, William Bowden couldn't let the opportunity pass. This could represent an enormous financial opportunity for The Race St. Operation and, as a bonus, a chance for him to keep a promise he'd made. Working with his associates and with several business connections in the area he was able to construct a front company, the Aide the Hindmost Charitable Foundation. In the name of helping those made most desperate by the Great Depression this new entity put forth an offer to the diamond dealer to make his showing as part of a fundraising event downtown.

Indeed, the money raised at the door from wealthy socialites and businessmen would go to the stated cause of helping the poor. However, a great deal of money would change hands besides through the activities behind the scenes. The guests would have pockets of money and valuables, the museum's stock of artifacts and jewels would be out of the evening's focus, and for the boldest of all there was the siren's call of the thirteen guests of honor in their secure glass cases.

The Philadelphia Museum of Art had been an ideal place to host such an exhibition and had wasted no time advertising and decorating to ensure that everyone who was anyone knew what was coming. Invitations went out to celebrities, socialites, and people in high places both above and below the legal line. The entry hall was redesigned in all the brilliant colors of the gems and jewelry it would soon display and crystalline chandeliers hung reflecting light in beautiful cascades across the floor. Postings were placed across the city seeking those willing to work to protect the museum, its guests, and most of all the priceless displays.

If anyone were able to get their hands on it all they would have wealth enough to rival any king or queen in the world!

But with security being supplied by the museum, the city, and Mr. Winston himself bringing the finest professionals money could buy from New York, certainly no one would be crazy enough to try anything so brazen.

Or would they?

The museum had pulled out all the stops to kick off the exhibition night counting on Philadelphia's rich, famous, and hangers-on to make an appearance. The red carpet was rolled out at the entrance with a doorman checking invitations to keep out the undesirables. Spotlights shone across the front of the building casting the image of a grand hollywood style premiere, which looking at the line at the door wasn't far off from the truth. The most well known would of course wait until they were fashionably late so they didn't look too eager for the attention that they all so desperately craved.

Then there was William Bowden. At six foot one and over two hundred pounds of muscle he stood out like a sore thumb, and that was before taking into account the fading bruises across his face. He had bought a tailored suit for the occasion which only accented the issue, however the invitation he held in his hand was more than enough to assuage the doorman. He had no doubt that the guests would be forcing him to repeat his story of 'being mugged' dozens of times by the end of the night.

"William Bowden, sponsor, and these are my partners in the good work of the foundation." William smiled and gestured at the three figures who were arrayed alongside him. Roger Coniglio, Gavin Byrne, and Yvette were all dressed to the nines and looked far more fitting to the occasion than William. Each smiling face concealing a dangerous storm of trouble that would soon turn this place on its head. But not yet. Too many pieces remained to be set.

The doorman frowned suspiciously but found no flaw with the invitation. Having done his duty and allowed the guests passage the doorman again returned to staring out at the gathering crowd and wishing he were one of them instead of a well-dressed human padlock.

Upon passing out of earshot of the door, William nodded once to his co-conspirators. "Let's have a look around and see where we can liven things up around here shall we? I'll be chatting up the museum side of things until I can put some kick in the punch. If anybody sees Tara and Tenkai come in, try to let the others know so we can kick this party off." He silently hoped that things would stay to schedule up front, otherwise Ralph and SotirisG would end up with more than they bargained for. He also knew that nothing ever seemed to work smoothly in his life.

A few moments later, he had crossed the room to meet with director Fiske Kimball, who was personally overseeing the event. The director's face fell as soon as it lit on William's "My God man! What happened to you!"

It was going to be a long night.

Awestruck at first, Roger stood at the opening as the doorman stopped them. The museum was fancy enough without all the extra flashiness that came with the spotlights and a red carpet. But this, this was something to admire. Shaking his head and refocusing, Roger turned back to the doorman with a smile as William handed off their invitation. Fishing out some bills from his pocket and folding them in his palm, Roger nodded to the man that was the human padlock.

"Hey pal, you're doin' some solid work here, and I know you'd rather be inside. I'd like to offer a personal thank you for keeping out riff raff..." He thumbed over his shoulder to a gathered few down on the street. They looked like troublemakers, but Roger knew they weren't. Just a couple of kids wondering what the big deal was. So he'd let them know, and dropped them each a dollar to stay and talk amongst themselves for a bit until the group was inside.

"Keep up the good work..." He shook hands with the doorman, an exchange happening right then and there, as he followed William through the door. As he passed he smiled back to Gavin and Yvette, waving them on.

Once they had gotten far enough, William spoke. Roger grinned and pat the man on the shoulder. "Of course, I'll watch." With that, Roger split away from the group and began to look around. Stairs that led up to the next floors had the usual red rope blocking them off. Curiosity sat in on him, but he didn't bother heading up. He merely took note that perhaps there was something up there that could cause a distraction. Continuing on his way he worked through the crowds that had gathered so far. There were certainly plenty of people here that you could do the old bump and steal on... And so many people that it would be hard to pinpoint who was doing it! Especially if multiple people did it and deposited their lifts into another person's pocket.

Then, of course, there were the few exhibits that hadn't been put away. Some paintings, some old artifacts, a lot of things on pedestals that could easily be "accidentally" knocked over to cause a distraction. Lastly, in Roger's mind, there was always the option to start a disagreement which turned heated. As he slipped through the crowd, he continued to take note of the people. All high-rollers of some sort. Then it happened, he got stopped.

"Oh, hello handsome." That was certainly a man's voice, wasn't it? Roger turned and eyed the person up and down... No doubt that was a man.

"Heya pal. What can I do for ya?" he answered back with a nod of his head.

"Oh I just wondered how a good looking man like yourself was here alone?" The man was practically undressing Roger of his black three-piece suit and vest, which led him to quickly hold up his left hand that bore his family signet. Lucky him tonight.

"Sorry bud, I'm not alone. Just tryin' ta catch back up with my wife... Flattered though. I really am. However..." He grinned, almost devilishly, as his eyes caught a glimpse of Gavin. The other gentlemen seemed to be giddy at the look and was quickly slinking up next to Roger.

"Yesssss?"

"Well, ya see, I came with a few friends, too, and I happen ta know my buddy is alone." He got down to the man's eye level and pointed Gavin out in the crowd.

"See that fella? He might be more free ta give ya a tour if ya know what I mean?" He elbowed the man playfully, "Huh? Huh?"

"Ohhh! He might be even more handsome than you!!!! Hoohoo!" The man practically skipped off in Gavin's direction, leaving Roger blinking and in disbelief.

"Really?" was all he whispered. "Heh, have fun with that one, pal..."

Roger shook his head and disappeared into the crowd to continue looking for more things that could cause a distraction.

When Gavin saw the man coming for him, he thought he was made. Guy was practically staring a hole through him. Gavin glanced down to make sure that his pistol wasn't showing from its shoulder holster. Nope. What the hell? Gavin again resisted the urge to go for his gun when the man started walking towards him.

"Oh, hello handsome."

Well, that explained it.

"Hey bud."

"Ohhhh, I just wondered how a good looking man like yourself was here alone?"

Gavin smiled before responding. Whoever this guy was, he was certainly over the top.

"What's your name?"

"Steven."

"Gavin. Nice to meet you. You come to these things often?"

"Far too often. I could mostly die of boredom. Although tonight certainly seems more exciting, with so many diamonds around."

"You can say that again."

"Although tonight certainly-"

"Don't finish that sentence. You said that you could mostly die of boredom? What happened during the exciting times?"

"Would you believe that there was a fire here two months ago? No damage, thank God, but the second someone pulled the fire alarms the sprinklers went off- and the bells, God, the bells! You see, there's a sophisticated system where the sprinklers essentially create a wall of water around each potential exhibit, but without intruding inside a certain radius to avoid damaging the works themselves..."

Gavin stopped listening as he glanced around, looking for the nearest fire alarm. There was one right near the bar, with a fire extinguisher as well. 

If they needed a big distraction, Gavin was ready to both hit the fire alarm and spray some foam into the crowd as an extra distraction. He might hit Tara... but, well, that wasn't really a negative as far as he was concerned. Gavin slapped Steven on the book.

"Come on, bud. I'll buy you a drink and you can tell me more of these crazy stories, huh?"

Yvette was wearing an elegant backless dress with a delicate chain which dangled lightly down her spine, which finished with a small emerald resting just above the lower curve of her back. Her hair was up with a few loose wisps of red curls shaping her face. Following William, Roger and Gavin into the museum could not help but be impressed by the place, it was stunning. Yvette watched as the three began to move around the room. Casually checking her bracelet, containing powder that could induce a heart attack, also began to wander in and around the throng of party goers. 

She glanced around, spotting a figure in the distance. Taking a predatory step closer, she realised that this could well be the next potential victim. Upon approaching the gentleman she lightly tapped him on the shoulder and then held out her hand to introduce herself . "Hello, Mr Cross I am Yvette. Its an honour to meet you. I've heard so many good things about your charity work." As they began to chat she slipped the powder into Mr Cross's drink and waited, for powdered concoction to take effect. All the while laughing at his jokes and occasionally lightly touching his arm. Looking up at the clock Yvette knew she had a good twenty minutes before the powder affected his body. Plenty of time for more chaos to surface.

Any score that could get Gavin Byrne into a tuxedo was worth getting involved in, thought Tara with a smile. Her brother, unsurprisingly, was on Team Chaos. As for her, she had to get into position to take advantage of any distractions. Her flowing black dress had secret pockets sewn into them to stash any potential loot, and she had a small extendable metal rod in her purse in case any glass needed smashing. 

Tara was no stranger to high society, and she adroitly maneuvered her way through several conversations as she drifted towards the main floor where the diamonds were gleaming in their cases. There were five cases housing the thirteen diamonds, spread out in the shape of a diamond across the giant floor. She drifted toward the case that held the III, VI, and IX. This seemed like the best possible haul. Ideally, she would have loved to take THE Jonker... but that was in the center of them all by itself. No, these three would be a fantastic payday...

There were two guards on either side of this particular case that would have to be dealt with... but for now, she simply started making small talk with some of the guests. When the distractions happened, she was close enough to make her move. 

Tenkai wearing a tux, but the back was long, showing he was a waiter, as he came around with a tray of glasses of fresh champagne, as he then started to make his way around the people, seeing if they wanted some, he looked around, shaking his head, his long, black, curly hair, was put up in a pony tail, his immortal eyes could see they were full of money, maybe could steel a watch here, and necklace there, thinking of it now, these people probably didn't care about others but their wallets and their guts, he sighed.

As looked around he wondered if he would see his team, they were probably doing their job as well, keeping out of sight like him, he hated all these rich people, that looked down apon him, but he wouldn't harm him, as he walked past a woman, ho had just barely touched his hair, he looked back, with his golden, purplish eyes, giving her a black expression, like don't ever touch me, but she seemed so lonely and young, he sighed, as he looked away, walking off, he could see why she had an appeal, he was muscular, and he has long hair, his eyes were of a different color, not of this world, he shook his head.

Going back to the kitchen to grab a new tray of food, he went back out there, as he saw the woman again, he raised a brow, as she stared right at him, he weaved through the crowd, offering food, as he walked by, and not caring, he could sense the female walk up to him, grabbing something, what looked like to be a thin piece of meet, he wasn't looking her way, trying to keep her at ax distance, he looked around to see if anyone was trying to grab his attention, he had to play the part, to keep everyone distracted, he looked to see they were looking for a piano player, he raised a brow, pointing at him, and he started to walk off, thinking they were pointing at someone behind him.

He hadn't played the piano in so long, the last time he played, was along time a go, in a past that didn't exist anymore, as he made sure the last of the food was gone, he went back to the kitchen, grabbing a tray, full of drinks this time, he went back to the people, trying to go around the over obsessed drunks, that was starting to get a bad oder.

"I've told the mayor time and again that the criminal element in this city is out of control but-"

Director Kimball had been at it non-stop since William had mentioned the word "mugging". Apparently he had very strong feelings on the subject and William was starting to get very tired of them. Fortunately, his injuries gave a solid excuse to get out of the predicament.

"Excuse me Director, but I'm beginning to feel a bit faint. My injuries leave me light-headed at times. Is there somewhere I could find refreshment away from public eye? I'd hate to cause a stir among all this fine company and I'm sure I'll be fine if I can get some water or perhaps something more restorative." William grabbed on to a nearby table as if to help his balance and looked to Mr. Kimball with pleading eyes. If a sense of charity and goodwill didn't get the desired results than the impropriety of a guest possibly passing out in the middle of the hall would. Kimball looked around as if to seek help, but the way his manner softened only after seeing no other eyes on them suggested a different motive.

"Why of course Mr. Bowden. I'll have one of the wait staff show you to what we've set aside for the staff. I'm sure they'll take good care of you." The man flagged down one of the waiters passing by with a tray of appetizers for the guests and soon enough William found himself moving through restricted hallways to a small table of water, tea, and juices. The waiter, busy with a dozen other tasks, moved on once reassured that William would be fine. William waited for the server to round a corner and pulled the two bottles from his inner suit pockets. The phenobarbital he poured into the juice pitchers in equal amounts, and the cough syrup he began pouring into the pitchers of tea hoping to hide the lemon flavor. Before he could finish, a man in a dark suit with the obvious bulge of a shoulder harness rounded the corner and began to approach. He'd obviously seen the bottle in William's hand so he'd have to think fast. Before he could think what to say the man approached with a suspicious expression.

"Excuse me, sir. Are you Mr. Bowden? Director Kimball told me about your problem. I was going to see if I could be of any assistance." The security officer looked pointedly at William's hand and the unmarked bottle he held. William smiled and didn't have to do much acting to put on an air of discomfort as he spoke. "Yes, I appreciate the help but I have something for it already. You see I was given a prescription for a tonic to invigorate me if my injuries should cause me any discomfort. It's a bit strong though, so I thought that a bit of tea would help make it more tolerable."

With quick hands William poured a glass nearly full of tea and added a splash of the 'cough syrup' to the mix before taking a sip. The sour taste of the syrup coated his mouth and nearly puckered his entire face. Even with the small splash he'd used a strange tingling numbness lingered behind after the taste had faded. For a moment the guard's expression remained hard and William thought he was done for in more ways than one. He saw the man's nose wrinkle as the odor of the fluid hit him and after a moment the guard started to laugh. "Mr. Bowden, I'd say your doctor has the right idea if that's what I think it is. I'm sure your prescription is valid, so I won't trouble you to see it. However I'd be much obliged if I could get a nip for myself and a couple of the other boys. We've had a long day already dealing with a couple of trouble makers who tried to get in the door out back. Looked like they brought tools to try and break in. They managed to skulk off before we could get our hands on them but I wouldn't count on them trying again."

With a huge smile born of relief for himself, and excitement for the opportunity to move things along more easily William quickly nodded and pressed the bottle to the man's hand. "I think I'll be fine for the evening with what I've got. With all you fine gentlemen do for us I only wish I could do more. I'll just go speak with my doctor in the morning if I haven't recovered." With that, William took his cup and meandered his way back through the hallways to the main hall. He hoped to see one of his conspirators so he could warn them what was coming. It would also be a comfort to have a little assistance with the growing fuzziness in his head. At least the lights reflecting off the chandeliers seemed terribly interesting in the meantime...

Roger continued to make his rounds, noting that one of the Detroit contacts had shown up. That probably meant the other one was here, maybe... And Tara too. Things were moving along as scheduled. Though it was probably best it he still waited for a signal from William that it was time.

He'd noticed Gavin take their 'happy' friend to the bar and couldn't help but chuckle to himself a bit. "Touche, amico. Touche." Something about the surety of Gavin's movements told Roger that the other man was giving Gavin ideas about the place. That was an angle he'd not considered, which was honestly surprising considering his care-free attitude most of the time. Though the fun of putting it on Gavin was enjoyable in it's own right.

He chuckled again and then continued slipping through the crowd. He'd already started lifting a few easy items that people would have no reason to notice until someone else started making a scene. The more fun part however, was placing those items in the pockets of others. If things went well enough, he'd slip either his engraved lighter or possibly his own pocket watch into someone else's pockets and then start the panic with a cry of thievery. Soon enough, the whole room would devolve into a he-said-she-said festival of finger pointing. The best part of it all was that he could then lift his own item back from his patsy and watch the party implode on itself.

Taking a detour to head toward the restrooms Roger noticed William wandering the halls and approached.

"You okay there pal? Lookin' a little spacey." He chuckled as he got near, patting Billy's back before noticing the visible sway and changing his tune... "No really, you okay Billy?" This time the question was more sincere and Roger led him off toward the restrooms he'd been heading for so he could assess William's situation. Looking over his head he attempted to catch Gavin's eye and jerk his head as if saying, 'Come on!'...

Steven had had a couple drinks and was leaning on Gavin's arm.

"Alright, Steven. Let's say you hated this party-"

"I do, it's dreadful."

"- and wanted to shut it down. Any other ideas?"

"Oh, well one could release a herd of stampeding wildebeest. Think of the magnificent carnage amongst these desperate, rich-"

"I was thinking something more practical."

"Well... you could turn off the lights. It would probably cause people to panic before the found the switch. A bit adventurous, too, what happens in the dark."

Gavin nodded, glancing around. He supposed he could hit the lights right before Tara made her move, keep anyone from noticing. There was a set right near the fire extinguisher. She wouldn't know the lights would go- but he trusted her to adjust quicker than the rest.

The sound of the champagne glass hitting the floor and shouts for a doctor, was Yvette's cue to begin moving. First of all she checked the room for the rest of the group. William seemed to be looking a little odd but Roger was with him and appeared to be guiding him, Yvette was not sure if it was the beginnings of a distraction. Tara appeared comfortable while probably getting ready to get as much loot as possible and then spotted Tenkai moving easily around the room. Casting an eye around the room again Yvette spotted Gavin, he looked to be deciding his next move too.

Yvette had calmly walked over to the buffet table and slipped her hand into her purse, removing a matchbox. Sliding open the matchbox, tapped out the cockroaches by the large display of flowers. Moments later they were seen scurrying across the table and over the food, screams and shouts brought staff towards the tables while guests started to blindly bunch together or run away. Looking over her shoulder she spotted her next target, the glass tower of champagne. At first Yvette was not entirely sure she could bring herself to waste all that alcohol but her love of breaking things won. Just a small knock was all that was needed to bring the entire display crashing to the floor, more screams were heard and more confusion ensued. Yvette smiled and headed towards the edge of the room hoping this was enough cover to begin with. 

As some sort of commotion happened over near the food- was someone screaming about bugs?... Gavin decided that it was time to get this show on the road. He patted his friend on the back and asked him to draw people's attention near the middle of the crowd. Leaning against the wall, in the span of two seconds, Gavin accomplished three tasks.

He smiled.

Then he turned on the fire alarm.

Then he hit the lights. 

As the deafening bells filled the area and the main lights died, the room was flooded with darkness and screams. Gavin chuckled lightly to himself as he made his way back. He'd keep an eye on things, but the ball was in Tara's court now.

***

Tara, as Gavin predicted, was a quick thinker. As soon as the fire alarm exploded, she got ready to move. When the lights kicked off, she smashed the glass and grabbed the three diamonds- slicing her right forearm on the jagged glass. She got the III, VI, and IX and tucked them into the secret pockets of her dress... but how the hell would she hide the blood? Grimacing, she held her arm against her side. At least she was wearing black.

At this point, someone had turned the lights back on, although there was still chaos from the fire alarm. She tried to walk nonchalantly toward the exit, but that was hard when you were bleeding as much as Tara was. The two guards who noticed her seemed off... woozy? But they weren't knocked out yet. One of them pointed to her and Tara pretended like she didn't see. Shit, if they saw her cut... how else would she explain that?

Instead, she turned and headed towards where she thought Tenkai, William, or Roger would be- and prayed that they could get the two guards off her tail.

And, depending on whether she passed out or not, that one of them could catch her and take her to a hospital.

Tara watched nervously as the guards eyed her, but sighed with audible relief as William Bowden and Roger Coniglio, in a "panic" knocked them over. The guards rose with anger, pushing back against her two friends, and Tara slid around the commotion.

She grinned as she reached the cool night air. Now it was time to head back and plan exactly how to turn the diamonds in her dress into zeroes in their bank accounts.