The Titanic's Thief

Willow sauntered across the deck of the magnificent titanic. Her dark soil hair was flying with the wind. The moonlight reflected on her long black cloak creating an illusion of shadows. She had spent every last penny, pulled every last straw to get her on the Titanic and she expected nothing less than to get every single penny back. This was a gold rush thriving with rich people who were too busy sipping tea and stuffing their faces to feel a small smooth hand find there way into their pockets.

Willow was never too proud of her profession though she did fancy herself the best thief of all of England. She was lightning fast and quick on her feet. It also added that her looks weren't too shabby either. Her pale skin and dark hair made her piercing blue eyes almost frighteningly beautiful, the only gift she was left with from her despicable mother. Found abandoned on the streets of England, Willow was raised by the king of thieves himself. Though it was great kindness of him; nothing comes without a price and Willow, as she is always reminded, owes him a great sum of money. Thus, that is why she boarded the titanic for this was the price of her freedom; she was to collect a great fortune of money to return to the king of thieves in return for her freedom.

There was a rumor of a vault kept on the titanic belonging to none other than John Jacob; a man beyond riches. That was Willow's goal and she would stop at nothing to get it because she was Willow Smorgon and she ALWAYS got what she wanted. She had about 2 days until she would break into the vaults and receive her freedom, however until then who is to say she couldn't have a little bit of fun?

Willow tried not to shiver as the cold night air bit into her skin. She kept her breathing even and her pace steady as she slipped past the security guarding the upper level of the Titanic. She blended with the walls and entered the glittering gold rush. The chandeliers above sparkled while the chattering dining room was colossal and full of mouth-watering smells and much warmer than the unforgiving cold outside. She hated it already. Hated the fake people with fake smiles. She kept her head down as she slipped into the kitchen and just as she planned took off her cloak and put on the staff apron instead, a wicked grin on her lips. Tomorrow morning these idiots won’t know what hit them.

She barely took one step before a large man with a mustache looked her up and down. He started yelling at her in what could only be French, luckily for her that was one of the six languages she was fluent in. There wasn’t much to do than to smile and nod until he shoved a tray into her hands and off she went. No one looked twice at her disguise or not-so-innocent eyes as Willow's hand slipped into many pockets.

It was almost past midnight when Willow was still in the dining hall, her apron full of golden cash. Hours she had spent pick-pocketing these ungrateful wealthy people. One more, just one more she told herself for the hundredth time. She approached a table with a few middle-aged old men drinking whiskey.

“Excuse me, gentlemen, would you like a refill?” She asked sweetly. They looked at her with greedy eyes, drinking her in. One of the men, a bony blonde dude lifted his glass to her; as she took it he added,

“Can we get something else with that too?” winking at her.

She had to resist the urge to punch him as goosebumps trickled through her arms. She just smiled sweetly at them as the rest of the old men chuckled. She turned to leave and then ‘accidentally’ dropped the cup.

“Oh silly me,” she muttered, bending down to clean the mess. She was all too aware of the men devouring her from their chairs but soon they lost interest as they usually did, making it all too easy for her fingers to find their way into their wallets. In less than a minute she had robbed them all blind. A smile danced on her lips as she turned away, grabbed her cloak, and headed out. She had enough fun for one night.

She was almost out, almost to the doors before a handsome young man was in front of her. So easily, it would so so easy to slip her hand into his wealthy pockets. One more couldn’t hurt? They had just made it to the cold night air when her hand slipped in his pockets and–

In a lightning-fast movement, someone had taken hold of her wrist twisting her that she was now faced to face with the handsome stranger.

She barely had time to register her shock. No one in all her life had caught her before. The boy's green sapphire eyes reached hers. Fool, she’d been a stupid fool for not noticing those calculated smart eyes, the way he held himself up, the broad shoulders that implied he was strong, his tan skin and light brown hair. She hesitated for only a moment as she spat at him,

“Get. Off. Me.”

His grip released her and a smile played on his lips. If she was any other girl she would have melted but she was not, she was Willow Smorgon and she bowed to nobody. Silence wrapped around them like a blanket just as she debated bolting he spoke.

“You could have just asked.” His low voice filled with amusement as he got out his wallet and handed it to her. How ridiculous that he found this situation funny, it was completely humiliating!

“I do not want your money,” she snapped at him. She was not some peasant that needed charity.

“If my memory recalls correctly, you did a second ago as you tried to rob me,” he teased.

She looked him over, denying it would certainly not help while accepting it would be like accepting defeat and Willow was not one that took losing lightly.

“If I had robbed you, I would have your money by now and yet it is still with you.” She answered calmly.

He chuckled, just as the moonlight touched his beautiful features.

“What is your name?” She asked, curiosity taking over.

“It is nothing of importance,” the boy replied a smile still lingering on his lips. It looked as if he was about to ask more when another young man burst from the doors of the dining room. This boy had pale flaky skin, blonde hair and a rat's nose.

“Julian, you've made a friend?” The boy asked interested. Willow did not appreciate the way the boy looked at her as if Julian had just won a very special prize. She turned to walk away but in flash, Julian had grabbed her wrist once again.

“Wait, you still have not told me your name.”

She turned to him, mischief playing in her eyes.

“It is nothing of importance, Julian.” She smiled at him as she slid on her dark cloak and crept into the night.

The next day, the real fun began. She had tracked John Jacob all morning to no avail. It was only mid-afternoon when that stupid man led her right to the vault that held her future fortune. She tiptoed behind him as silent as a mouse; careful to keep a good distance to not attract any suspicion. John with his two bulky bodyguards put in a pin code, that unlocked a metal door. She sprinted towards it just as the three men went through and the door locked behind them. She hadn’t made it in time, she cursed herself for being so slow. She banged on the metal door in her anger.

“I’m sorry miss, am I disturbing you?”

She turned to see Julian behind her with that same stupid grin on his face.

“Ugh, you again.” She pointed at him with an accusing finger. “Are you following me?!”

He just chuckled, irritating her even more. “With the little tantrum you just threw, you weren't very hard to find?”

“How dare you,” she yelled at him.

He held up his hand in surrender. “I am not here to fight with you, I came to strike a deal.”

“A deal, what kind of deal?” She mused.

“I will get you through that door in exchange for two things. One, your name. Two, you return those wallets back to the poor men you stole them from.”

The first one, she could do but the second…

“Those men deserved it”– she began.

“No buts... Do you accept”? Julian challenged.

She groaned but nodded. She waited but he still made no sign to move.

“Your name… first,” He asked.

“Willow,” she spat at him. “My name is Willow.”

He gave her a boyish grin, “Cute name.”

He didn’t give her a chance to respond as he headed straight to the metal door and put in the pin, it immediately opened. She gaped at him.

“How did you–”

“John Jacobs is a close friend of my fathers,” was his answer. Before she could question more he strolled in, leaving her to follow.

“The deal was not for you to follow me,” she scolded him as they moved cautiously through what seemed like dimmed tunnels.

“Well, where the fun with that?” He turned to her with a mock pout on his delicate face.

Though she hated to admit it, she didn’t mind the company so she let him walk with her to whatever awaited on the other side.

It felt like hours had passed until they finally reached the end of the tunnel. Whispered voices were growing clearer as Julian and Willow crouched behind some cardboard boxes. A small vault was in the middle of the room standing out like a sore thumb.

“Make sure the vault is locked and ready for arrival, I am late for a meeting.” John Jacob said lazily, motioning to his two bulky guards to carry on. As he left the room, he didn’t bother looking back at the two small figures hidden behind the cardboard boxes.

The two henchmen were so huge that Willow could barely see as they put in the code to open the vault. She cursed under her breath. She needed to know what that stupid code was! Before she could react, Julian was on his feet moving toward the huge men as they put the code one last time to seal the vault. She started shaking her head frantically, motioning and mouthing for him to go back. He was either a damned fool, stupid, or just really really brave. This boy was going to get himself killed and she didn’t particularly feel like watching.

“Get back,” she whispered under her breath but it was too late.

The men spotted Julian just feet from where they stood, she had no time to panic or feel the terror that shook through her as Julian ran to her, grabbed her hand, and shouted:

“RUN.”

He didn’t have to ask her twice. She bolted beside him, hand in hand. The two men shouted and cursed behind them, only making her run faster. They may have been strong but they lacked in speed. It was easy for Willow and Julian to lose them as they slipped out of the metal door and back to the fresh- air of the titanic. Only when she was sure they were safe did she stop. They found an empty hallway where she panted, hands on knees, head-spinning, she was so sure she was going to vomit while Julian… Well, Julian… was laughing. His smiles and loud chuckles could have melted any girl's heart but not Willow. No, Willow’s nostrils flared as she marched right up to him and punched him. He just stared at her stunned and then… gave her one of the most devilish grins which only Infuriated her more.

“We could have died!” She yelled at him. “That was the most reckless, stupid, most immature-”

“2968.” He breathed, barely more than a whisper.

“What.” She asked, not daring to believe her ears.

“2968,” Julian repeated. “The code.”

She stared at him, gaping. This guy was full of surprises.

“You crazy crazy son of a–” She didn't have time to finish her sentence as she leaned into him and their lips met.

She pulled back quickly, unsure of herself but the look she saw in Julian's sapphire eyes didn’t give her a chance to overthink as he pulled her into his arms, and once again she felt herself fly.

In the morning Willow awoke to a very special someone lying next to her on her bed. A smile crept on her lips despite herself. She looked down at the peaceful beautiful boy beside her and silently sent a grateful prayer to whatever God was up there for bringing this gift she never knew she needed. Consequences be damned, she thought she might be in love. Dawn had just come as she sneaked out quietly towards the vault. Today was the day. She would steal the money, earn her freedom and then and only then could she hope and dream of a future with this boy. The world felt lighter, happier today than it ever did as if God was smiling down at her. For once, she looked up and smiled back. The vault was strangely easy to get to, she put in the code from yesterday and entered the metal door where she walked for about an hour, and finally, there it was. Her freedom, hers for the taking. She couldn’t help grinning as she put in the code Julian had so wisely seen and there it was. She didn’t waste a second as she stuffed the cash into a small bag she bought.

It was only then that she felt something was off. Lights started flashing, alarms ringing, it all happened so fast; she couldn’t even react as guards from all sides appeared, twisting her hands behind her back and locking them. None of this made sense, she must be dreaming. John Jacobs suddenly appeared… yes she definitely must be dreaming, she thought to herself.

“Well well well, poor Willow.”

She tensed, he knew her name, this didn’t make any sense. Before she could ask, John continued.

“It is a pity my darling, that you might have gotten away with my fortune if it weren't for my son.” He gave her a sickening grin that told her he was enjoying this way too much.

It was only when Julian appeared out of the shadows did her heart sink. It took all her strength to keep her hands, knees, and lips from trembling. She cursed herself for being stupid, so so stupid, and now she would pay.

“I knew there was a thief on the titanic the second it set off, I asked my talented son to keep an eye out for you and it was all too easy when he found you, so naive and weak to his deceitful charm and good looks.”

She tried to make eye contact with Julian but his eyes were staring straight ahead. Plain and cold so different from how they were this morning. God, this morning, how had everything changed so fast. The betrayal stung and blinded her vision. He was in a new suit as if this morning never happened like she never happened. She couldn’t control the words or the tears as she began screaming, screaming as she’d never screamed before.

“LIAR, YOU'RE A LIAR JULIAN! I TRUSTED YOU!” The curses she screamed made her head spin and mouth taste foul but the anger clouded her eyes as she threw insult after insult at him until she was dragged away and chained to the very bottom of the titanic where she would rot and await her fate.

It must have been hours by the time she heard or more saw the water swimming beneath her ankles. She told herself not to panic and forced herself to calm down but the water just grew and grew. She tried yelling for help but her throat was sore from this morning. The water had no mercy as it withered its way to her head, where she would surely be silenced forever. She took one last breath as a hand grabbed her and she felt her chains loosening. Someone pulled her or rather dragged her through the water to a hallway. It was also flooded but only to knee length. She coughed out water as she looked at her saviour. She almost wished she drowned.

“Please, before you say anything, I swear it wasn’t me. It's true, I was sent to watch you but after yesterday... I never told him where you were or what you planned to do, someone else much have…”

She knew trusting him again would be stupid and reckless but one look into those eyes told her everything she needed to know. His eyes held such honesty it was all she could do was to kiss him gently and say;

“Let's get the hell out of here.”

They made their way to the top of the titanic, swarming with people. It was chaos. All the boats had gone by then, only a few remained. They were about to go on one boat when…

“Oh, I thought you would be dead by now.” She recognized the voice as the guy with the rat's nose. Well, now she knew who betrayed her. Before she could reply she glimpse the sharp dagger he hid behind his back.

“Julian,” she whispered. “When I say jump, you jump.”

He looked at her wide-eyed but nodded. Just as the rat dude charged with the knife aimed she yelled.

“JUMP!”

With Julian's hand in hers, it was up to fate now to decide whether they lived and made it on the boat below them or missed and fell into the shallow depths forever.