“For what?”
Daniel looked up.
“The diamond wasn't the only thing missing.”
Everyone became still.
“What else?” Officer Grant asked.
Daniel swallowed.
“Money.”
Julian's face hardened.
“How much?”
Daniel whispered a number.
Julian's expression changed.
Marcus watched him carefully.
The amount was large enough to ruin a company.
Daniel had been stealing from the store for months.
Small amounts at first.
Then larger ones.
He had manipulated inventory records.
He had created false returns.
He had used fake customer accounts.
But something had gone wrong that morning.
An internal audit was scheduled.
Daniel needed a distraction.
Then Marcus Ellison's appointment appeared.
A wealthy Black man arriving alone.
No assistant.
No security team.
No one expecting him.
Daniel thought he had found the perfect target.
He could claim Marcus had stolen the diamond.
The police would arrive.
The investigation would focus on Marcus.
The missing money would disappear beneath a much larger scandal.
Daniel had expected Marcus to panic.
Instead, Marcus had remained calm.
That was what Daniel hadn't anticipated.
Julian sat down.
His hands trembled.
“You were going to frame a client.”
Daniel whispered:
“I didn't think it would go this far.”
Julian looked toward Marcus.
“They put you on the floor.”
Daniel lowered his eyes.
“I know.”
Marcus stood silently.
The room was quiet for several seconds.
Then Marcus asked:
“Who was the man in the gray coat?”
Daniel looked up.
He hesitated.
“I don't know.”
Marcus stared at him.
“You know.”
“I don't.”
Julian looked toward the security footage.
“Find him.”
The search took another hour.
The gray-coated man had entered through a side door.
He had no employee badge.
He had not signed the visitor log.
He had been carrying a case.
Eventually, police located the name attached to the building's delivery system.
Samuel Pike.
But Samuel Pike wasn't a courier.
He was an accountant.
And he had been working with Daniel.
The diamond had been intended to disappear permanently.
The police found records connecting him to the stolen funds.
By evening, the story had become much larger than a jewelry theft.
But Marcus wasn't interested in the headlines.
He was sitting alone in the private showroom.
Julian approached him.
“I owe you an apology.”
Marcus looked up.
“Yes.”
Julian nodded.
“I also owe you something more than an apology.”
Marcus waited.
“I should have recognized what was happening.”
“You weren't here.”
“That isn't an excuse.”
“No.”
Julian looked at him.
“I've spent forty years building this business. I told myself reputation was everything.”
Marcus nodded.
“Reputation matters.”
Julian sighed.
“But judgment matters more.”
Marcus looked through the glass toward the street.
People were still gathered outside.
Some had filmed what happened.
Some had already posted it online.
By tomorrow, millions might know about the Black billionaire who had been thrown to the floor inside a luxury jewelry store.
Marcus knew what would happen next.
Some people would focus on the money.
Some would focus on the police.
Some would focus on race.
Some would argue about whether the officers had acted appropriately.
Others would ignore everything except the humiliation.
Marcus had lived long enough to understand how stories worked.
People often wanted a simple villain.
Reality was rarely simple.
Officer Torres approached him.
“Mr. Ellison?”
“Yes?”
“I want to apologize.”
Marcus looked at her.
“You followed the information you were given.”
“I should have questioned it sooner.”
“Yes.”
She nodded.
“I should have.”
Marcus didn't make it easy for her.
He didn't make it cruel either.
He simply told the truth.
“That's why people need accountability.”
She looked down.
“I understand.”
Marcus stood.
He reached for his jacket.
Then he noticed something on the table.
The emerald necklace.
The one he had originally come to see.
Julian picked it up.
“You still want to buy it?”
Marcus looked at the necklace.