Another disembodied voice came over the phone. It was Isabelle this time. “Do you think he’ll go for it?”

“I am certain that Mrs. Marcus would be thrilled to show off her new friend, Countess Anna Ryland de Silva, to her group of dilettantes,” Myra said confidently.

“Myra and Charlotte can distract them while I go to their apartment and pick that safe,” Annie exclaimed with gusto.

Hoots and laughter bellowed through the phones. “If anyone can do this, we certainly can!” Myra said.

“Do we have our endgame planned yet?” Nikki asked.

“We need to find out what Marcus is up to and what’s on that property. We’re working on our plot for Corbett, and with the information from Avery about Steinwood, I’m formulating an idea,” Myra said.

“That’s my cheeky girl! If we can gather the missing pieces, we should be able to accomplish this very soon,” Charles interjected. “Should we alert Pearl?”

“We still have a few more loose ends, but yes, we can let her know we will be needing her help.” Myra continued, “Kathryn? Can you let her know?”

Kathryn groaned. “Sure. Okay.” She still had a thing with Pearl, and it was not necessarily a good thing. Myra kept assigning Kathryn to Pearl, hoping they could mend fences.

Charles wrapped up the conference call, informing them they would reconnect the following evening, after Myra, Annie, and Charlotte had met with Marcus. Perhaps Eileen would have more info by then, as well.

* * *

The next morning Byron served up a typical English breakfast for the women. “I didn’t know your schedule and wanted to be sure you were well nourished before you left.”

“Do all English gentlemen have a knack for food? I never thought of the British as being culinary experts,” Charlotte remarked.

“They. Are. Not. It doesn’t take a lot of expertise to fry up bacon, mash potatoes, and spoon out jam.” Annie laughed. “Take it from me. That’s the only wizardry Fergus can conjure in a kitchen.”

They helped themselves to the buffet and chatted about the day ahead.

Charlotte was getting giddy again. “What if I blow it? I might burst out laughing at some point.”

“We’ll blame it on the drugs!” Annie smiled devilishly.

“You can do this.” Myra placed her hand on Charlotte’s. “You don’t really have to say anything. Just remember to turn on the recording device on your phone. Obviously, without Dr. Marcus seeing you.”

“What about the shot?” Charlotte asked. “I don’t know what it was, and I absolutely do not want to get another one.”

“Just simply tell him you want to skip it,” Myra suggested.

“I don’t think he’ll go for that. He’ll want his five thousand dollars,” Charlotte said, dismayed.