Now I just had to figure out how to get in.
I began rummaging around on the floor, pulling at any cracks I could find, thinking maybe there was a hidden panel beneath the desk that opened to some sort of keypad or lock. But that turned out to be a bust.
So I began to search through Miles’s desk. I looked inside every drawer, practically emptying them out, hoping to find the lock that would gain me entry. But again, there was nothing.
How the heck was I supposed to get in there?
I collapsed back into Miles’s chair, noticing almost instantly how comfortable it was. I rocked back and forth a few times as I racked my brain to figure out where the keypad might be hidden. It had to be easily accessible to him. No way would a guy like that be willing to jump through hoops to get to his own treasure room.
No, it had to be nearby.
I glanced around absently at the things on Miles’s desk as I rocked back and forth. Finally my eyes fell on an iridescent envelope peeking out from a pile of papers on the corner. Pulling it free, I slid the card all the way out and read through the details that were printed across it in glittery script.
My excitement began to grow as I slowly traced my fingers along the raised writing. As I came upon the last letter, I tapped the card on the desk happily, placed it back in its envelope, and hid the whole thing inside the pocket of my jumpsuit.
Leaning back in the chair once more, I redirected my attention to Miles’s hidden treasure room. My time to gain entry was quickly running out, and while I had the where, I still hadn’t figured out the how.
What I did notice was that in all my rocking, I’d moved the chair a few feet away from the desk. With a sigh, I leaned forward to grip the edge of the desk and pulled myself back again.
That’s when one of my fingers slid across something on the underside of the desk. Something that shouldn’t have been there. Something round and buttonlike.
As I pushed it, I let a smile grow across my face.
A small whooshing sound cut through the air and I watched with widening eyes as the top of the desk began to separate in the middle, revealing a small control panel the size of a book.
It contained just a speaker and a black square of glass.
“That’s what I’m talking about,” I whispered, glancing back up at the door to the room as if someone might walk through it any minute.
“Prepare voice recognition and fingerprint scan,” a computerized woman’s voice said with a British accent.
I wondered if Miles had had his choice of accents when it came to his computerized security, and then I speculated on why he’d chosen a British one. He was famously known for not particularly liking countries other than his own, so it was curious that he’d want a British-sounding voice talking to him every day.
“Voice recognition and fingerprint scan about to commence,” the same voice said, this time a red line appearing and lighting up the black glass above it.
Without hesitating, I pushed the button underneath the desk again and watched as the whole table closed back up, concealing what was hidden within.
I glanced back down at my watch and shot up out of the chair.
I had everything I needed, and now I had to get moving.
Placing everything back where it had been, I raced across the room and listened at the door before sneaking out and back up the stairs. I didn’t run into anyone. If I had, I could’ve just said I was looking for Mrs. Bailey and had gotten turned around. It would’ve been a plausible excuse, but not having to make one in the first place was even better.
One of the double doors to Miles’s bedroom was slightly ajar as I tiptoed up to it, and I paused midstep before going in. I had definitely closed the doors all the way before going on my search around the house. So either Ollie had opened the door at some point while I was gone or…
“And then we just take this little brush here—it’s actually called a bushy prickle, just a fun little fact there—and I run it across the sides here with the organic adamantium solution I was telling you about earlier, and it disintegrates any subatomic particles that might have adhered themselves to the surface.”
I could tell at once that it was Ollie who was doing the talking, but I had no idea what he was talking about.
As he rambled on, I snuck across the room and into the bathroom, flushed the toilet, and threw my hands under the faucet for a few seconds before heading straight for the closet where I’d left Ollie an hour before.
“Sorry about that,” I said, breezing into the room like I’d never left. I faked surprise at seeing Mrs. Bailey standing there next to Ollie, who was holding up one of the watches for her to see.
I cast my eyes down at the floor like I’d just been caught.
“Bathroom break,” I explained, trying to look embarrassed. “Sorry, I wasn’t sure where the guest bathroom was…”
“Not at all, dear,” Mrs. Bailey said, so thoroughly enthralled with what Ollie was saying that it was as if she’d forgotten I was supposed to be there at all. “Stu was just telling me all about your fantastic company and how you get these watches so clean. I was hoping to get a few pointers for when Master Miles wants me to polish them up between cleanings.”
“But—but as I was explaining, it—it’s our company’s patented cleaning solution that really makes the difference,” Ollie said, stammering slightly as he tried to bring me up to speed on the lies he’d been telling Mrs. Bailey.
“You didn’t tell her about the organic adamantium solution, did you?” I asked, trying to sound alarmed even as I raised an eyebrow at him.
Mrs. Bailey was still staring at me, so she didn’t see Ollie blush bright red.
“Oh, I’m afraid he did,” Mrs. Bailey said, looking like she’d just gotten her new friend into trouble.
“Stu, you know that’s a company secret,” I scolded lightly. “If Bob were to find out—”
“Oh, dear, I promise I won’t say a word,” Mrs. Bailey insisted earnestly.
I could tell she meant it. I almost felt bad about lying to such a sweet lady, but we needed to get out of there without suspicion. And soon. Before the security team came looking for the reason that the cameras had been acting up.
Namely, me.
“Okay,” I said, making it seem like I still wasn’t sure. Finally I just waved my hands in the air like I’d given up. “Well, I guess what Bob doesn’t know won’t hurt him, right?”
Ollie had already begun to place the watches back in their designated spots in the drawers, and I walked over to pack up the bag.
“Well, we’re all finished here, Mrs. Bailey,” I said, zipping up the cleaning tools and heaving the whole thing over my shoulder. “No need to see us out.”
Ollie and I began to walk away and had already made it halfway across Miles’s bedroom when Mrs. Bailey’s voice suddenly called out behind us.
“Wait right there,” she said, the words coming out like a command.
We both stopped cold in our tracks, and I closed my eyes while taking a deep breath.
Had she somehow figured out we weren’t who we said we were? Did she know that I’d snuck out of the room and had been gone for over an hour? Were we about to be caught?
I turned around slowly, prepared for the worst, and caught the look on Ollie’s face.
It was pure terror.
“Yes?” I asked, forcing my voice to come out calm and even.
Mrs. Bailey walked over to me and stopped just a foot away, holding out her hand expectantly.
“Your business card?” she asked finally. “I’d like to pass it along to Master Miles and tell him what a wonderful job you did. After he sees the work, I imagine we’ll be having you back around.”
I let out a breath but hid it behind a warm smile. Then I slid my hand into one of the many pockets of my uniform and presented her with a card.
“Thanks so much, Mrs. Bailey,” I said, already feeling guilty that if all went as planned, she’d never see us again.