Page 36 of Mimosa

“We have a meeting tonight,” Murphy said as he got up and stretched. “If we can stay awake.”

“Turkey breast with cranberry glaze? Really?” Haze groaned. “Best meal ever, Eazy, but now we all want Thanksgiving naps instead of working.”

“Tough. Go to work. I’m gonna stay out here with the kids a while.”

“Ryan, you coming or not?” Murphy asked his son.

“I’m in. Let’s go,” he said, his energy suddenly revived.

The theft was happening the next night. Mims would be in enemy territory, watching them, assuring they didn’t know about the theft.

For the first time, he couldn’t be there to make sure his friends were okay, that they weren’t being discovered. He had to teach Hippy the computer, a three-hour crash course, on checking the security cameras, intercepting any security alarms they didn’t know about before the security companies got alarms. It was a pressing job, one that took split second timing, but he had to trust Hippy with it, as he was going to a barbeque.

As they all filed into the meeting room, Mims was staring into the computer room with longing. Abs saw and whispered, “He’ll be fine!”

“I’m a control freak when it comes to my computers and you guys.”

“That’s completely new information,” Abs snarked.

Mims laughed, as everyone knew how he was with the computers. “Sorry, but if something happens, I need to be there, to see it before it even happens.”

“Hippy can do it. Calm and get ready to do something even more nerve wracking!”

After they sat and Murphy stood at the head of the table, he said, “Okay, guys. We’ve got everything together for this job. Mims, how you doin’?”

“Not well. Not only am I not going to be there for you guys, I have to keep an eye on the cops without letting them know I’m keeping an eye on them, and without letting Sonny know too!”

“Honey, we just don’t want him culpable for any of our jobs. He’s a real cop, takes his oath or whatever it is, seriously. We don’t want him to feel like he’s in on these crimes anymore than we have to.”

“I know. I just don’t want to start off lying to him. That’s all.”

Abs held his hand and told the others, “We need to get used to this. If they’re together, Mims is going to feel like this a lot.”

Haze said, “We know, and we’ll help all we can to keep him out of it, Mims, and make it so you don’t have to lie. This time, well…you don’t have to lie, you know. Just don’t blurt out, hey, we’re robbing this really expensive painting and I’m only here to make sure the dirty cops don’t figure it out.”

Mims laughed a little and it did make him feel better. “That’s true. Okay, well, what do you think I should look for?”

Murphy said, “They’re going to be looking at you, honey. They’re going to be checking you out, seeing how you act. It’s fine, that is expected, but if there is excessive whispering, or if you hear anything, see anything, or if a few or a bunch of them suddenly take off around the times you know we’re going to be boosting the painting, then you give us a heads up when you safely can. Do not risk yourself anymore than you are.”

“I don’t know him, don’t trust him yet,” Hippy said, “but I think Sonny will look out for you.”

“I know he will.”

Abs smiled over at him and agreed, “He will. He’s crazy for our Mims.”

“Okay,” Haze said, bringing back the conversation to the job. “The house has only standard security that we can see. Abs has studied on disabling it, and Hippy will have the button to push to take the alarm if it does go off.

“I have mapped our route to the community and into the house. Goldie is staked out there whenever he’s not here, and he can tell you more.”

Goldie started with, “I gotta say, this guy is a dick. He hires hookers almost every night and all of them look like hell when they leave. I followed one back to the bar where the guy picked her up in the first place, and she wouldn’t talk about it much, but said he was a real bastard, but he paid up front, which, I guess isn’t easily done with a lot of those guys.”

“New money,” Mims said. “He had an uncle that made great money and lived simply. Saved all his life, and this guy was the only living heir. He’s throwing it around like an idiot, and he likely won’t have it long.”

“Why get the painting?” Murphy asked. “Seems kind of obscure for someone just showing off wealth. Why not go for a Rembrandt or something that more people know?”

Mims chuckled dryly. “His girlfriend loves Maxfield Parrish.”

“Girlfriend? But you just said he gets hookers!” Abs whispered. “What an ass!”

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