Chapter 4-Charlotte, NC

The large two story colonial brick house was shrouded in darkness. There was but one dim light moving in the upstairs master bedroom. From the street side of the house, no one could see the light, Gabe was sure of it. However, if a person was standing in the woods behind the house they might cause trouble.

Ha, that'll never happen. The only people who would be in those woods this time of night would be teenagers. Plus, they'd be so drunk or high they'd never go to the cops.

Dressing the part of a TV thief, with the black knit cap, the all black shirt, pants, and shoes, and even the black gloves, he knew even if people did see him, they'd never be able to identify him.

Gabe Grace knew how to pick the perfect houses to rob; he'd been doing this for 10 years now and had come up with a few rules:

1) Make sure you know the people aren't going to be home.
2) Stake the place out so you know where the valuables are kept.
3) If possible, get the floor plans of the house.
4) Know exactly what you're going for when you get in the house. This makes your job quicker and easier.
5) Most important of all: Know the people you're robbing. Personally, if possible!

Gabe had known the Harrisons for about six months. That's how long it usually took to get know a family before he could rob them. The good thing was they were away for a nice three week vacation in Bermuda and had asked him to look after their house while they were gone.

The flashlight shown on the far wall near the spacious walk in closet. Beside the door was a large vanity where Misty Harrison always did her make up and pampering before going anywhere, even downstairs. In the vanity, on the left hand side was a large door with a key hole. Before the Harrisons left Gabe had taken Misty's necklace out for a little duplication. The gold key which hung from the gold rope chain was not just the key to her husband's heart, but the key to this vanity as well.

Gold would have been too expensive to make the key in, but Gabe knew a guy who could fashion it out of bronze. It was a perfect duplicate and Misty never even missed the necklace. Unfortunately, there was one thing Gabe didn't count on.

He had never witnessed Misty or her husband Mark open the vanity. The only way he knew about the key and what was in the vanity was because Misty had gotten a little drunk at the Providence Country Club New Year's party and began talking about all the jewelry she could have worn for the 1920's themed event which was stored in her house. Mark had shushed her before she could divulge the value, but Gabe knew it had to be a lot for Mark to shush her.

Once the vanity was unlocked, Gabe realized this wasn't going to be as easy as he thought. There was a small safe inside the vanity.

"Shit! What the hell? They aren't this careful with anything. Dammit!"

As much as this frustrated him it was really of no consequence because he was a master safe cracker. He pulled out a stethoscope from his bag and listened very carefully to the click inside the combination style safe. Within moments it was open.

"Hello nurse! Come to poppa."

The jewels inside the safe had to have been from the late 1800's or early 1900's and there were a ton. Ruby necklaces, emerald rings, more gold than he needed.

There must be about two million dollars worth of gold in this safe, he thought.

Knowing how devastated Misty would be at losing her priceless family heirlooms, and the fact they would get all of it back from the insurance company, Gabe only took half of what he saw. One million he knew would be enough to last him for at least a couple of years. He had been doing this long enough to know not to go through money like a hurricane. Spend it nice a slow and act like you don't have a dime, that was his motto.

Of course, as much as he loved Charlotte, his hometown, he knew he had to get away for a while.

Luckily, he had already planned ahead. Two days ago he had called the Harrison's to let them know his grandfather was sick and he was going to have to make a quick trip up to West Virginia. He would leave their house key in the house, go out the garage, and set the alarm system from the keypad beside the garage. The Harrison's wouldn't think a thing of it.

The only thing left to do was to trash the bedroom, do some damage in the living room, and tear up some stuff in Mark's office. He had to make this look like a real break in. Then he had to actually break a door and set off the alarm, and make a clean getaway. He knew the police would take at least five minutes to get to the house. By then he would be on his way down I-77 South.

Once he was outside on the back deck, he kicked in the wood and glass door, shattering the glass and busting the frame of the door. The alarm system went wild. The noise was unbearable. Running to his car out front, one nobody in the neighborhood had seen before, he saw neighbors lights come on, dogs barking, and heard police sirens beginning to wail in the distance.

Jumping into his Lexus hybrid, he pushed the start button and put the car into gear in one swift motion. The car tore out of the neighborhood and was on I-485 just as the police were pulling off of the interstate belt loop which ran around Charlotte.

Easy as pie. I love my life. Now for a nice relaxing ride down to Charleston.

Feeling as though his life was about to change for a reason he couldn't figure out, Gabe clicked on the radio. One of his all-time favorite songs was blasting out of the speakers and he truly felt, on this night, that he was the "King of the Road."