In October, the city L was often drenched in heavy rain, and this day was no exception. The streets, overwhelmed by the sudden downpour, appeared deserted, though one could occasionally spot people hurrying somewhere. The city, usually bustling with the noise of cars and voices, now seemed like a ghost town, ready to swallow anyone who ventured into it.
Despite this oppressive atmosphere, David Cottman, the owner of a three-story European-style house, was completely relaxed, lying on a sofa in the living room. His somewhat portly body, clad in black pajamas, slightly hung off the sofa as he gazed at a painting by a famous 21st-century artist with his brown eyes.
After an unknown amount of time, David suddenly stirred, breaking his concentration. He looked around. The living room, large enough to resemble an entire apartment, was filled with all sorts of luxuries—from paintings by various artists that many would pay a fortune for, to watches from renowned brands. Although such items might shock almost anyone, David Cottman seemed indifferent to it all.
With a sigh, he slowly rose from the sofa and walked moderately toward the bedroom. There was no visible disorder on the way; all items were harmoniously arranged as if the house was cleaned every day. The house's decor, like the house itself, could be considered a work of art, where each element of the interior only enhanced the beauty in the eyes of the beholder.
Finally reaching the bedroom, he opened the door and stepped inside. The bedroom itself was half the size of the living room, but this did not make it any less luxurious. On the contrary, all the furniture was custom-made, and the room was adorned with gilded, or even entirely golden, jewelry. Additionally, on the table opposite the bed were various accessories whose value could exceed many paintings in his home.
To the left of the bed was an unlocked wardrobe containing numerous outfits of the same style but different shades. Strict suits for all occasions, bought in stores or custom-made, attracted attention with their quality.
Sitting on the bed, he began preparing for sleep. A smile slowly formed on David's relaxed face, which seemed ugly compared to the surrounding decor.
"Finally..." muttered the half-asleep David in a rough and hoarse voice.
He thought about tomorrow's meeting with an important person. This meeting would allow him to step onto a white streak again after a series of recent failures, so David was a little nervous. At 51 years old, 10 of which he had spent in prison, there was little he worried about. Because of this, David couldn't even choose the suit he would wear tomorrow.
Lost in his thoughts, David accidentally glanced at the nightstand to the right of the bed and looked at a framed photograph of a blonde woman in her thirties holding the hand of a little boy. His mood immediately soured.
"Amanda," he said with dry lips.
After he was imprisoned for fraud, his family, including his wife, disowned him. David didn't even remember his family's faces and didn't want to recall them in the future, but he truly couldn't forget his wife.
To avoid sinking into further sadness and other negative emotions, David decided to go to sleep quickly, as tomorrow an event would occur that would likely change his fate for the better. Therefore, clenching his fists, after some time, he fell into a deep sleep to the ticking of antique wall clocks.
Tick, tick, tick.
Time passed unnoticed as deep night fell. The shadows deepened, and the clock hands in this reigning darkness sounded especially loud when suddenly faint extraneous sounds were heard.
Click.
At some point, the bedroom door opened. With each step, an unknown creature approached the bed of the house owner.
"Ha... ha..." David breathed deeply as if fighting some nightmare. Sweat trickled down his sorrow-filled face.
It didn't take a couple of ticks of the second hand before an unknown figure loomed over David.
Tick, tick, tick.
At some point, the figure retreated and, after a series of actions over several minutes, left the room. The rest of the night passed as usual.
***
David opened his eyes and looked at the clock. The time was approaching seven in the morning. The meeting was scheduled for lunchtime, but he had woken up much earlier to prepare for it.
Rubbing his eyes, David got out of bed, not even realizing what had happened that night.
"What?" David asked himself in surprise, noticing some inconsistencies in the room.
He began to carefully inspect everything and instantly realized what had happened.
He had been robbed.
"My... my jewelry... gold... watches... it's all gone!" David trembled every inch of his portly body.
Although he said everything was gone, in reality, slightly less than a quarter of everything in the room had disappeared.
The house owner immediately ran to inspect the entire three-story house. Despite his age, he ran quite fast. More than anything in the world, he feared that his hard-earned money would disappear, which is why he had such a violent reaction to being robbed.
"Who dared to steal my things?!" David said through gritted teeth, the convicted fraudster.
The bedroom was located on the second floor, as was the living room. He opened the door to the remaining room on the second floor and was horrified. Several expensive items had also been stolen here.
The attic, basement, and study remained untouched, which David sighed in relief. After inspecting everything else, he reached with trembling hands for his phone and called the police.
"Hello, this is the police, what..." Before the police officer could finish, an angry cry was heard.
"I've been robbed!!! Come to me and find the damn thief!" David commanded in an authoritative tone.
After giving the address, he hung up the phone and began pacing the living room. His thoughts were torn between forgetting the thief and preparing for the meeting or catching the culprit red-handed, for how dare he rob him.
His body was still shaking from what had happened.
"Inhale... exhale..." he tried to stabilize his breathing to calm down.
***
An hour later, the police arrived at the house. Two police officers pressed the doorbell and waited. One of the officers was in his late thirties, but his head already showed signs of gray. Behind him stood a promising rookie who had recently graduated from the police academy. With his blue eyes, the rookie looked at the other officer with clear anticipation. This was his first serious case.
"Uncle Tony, I'm a bit nervous, what should I do?" Alex asked with a smile, not looking nervous at all.
"I've asked you not to call me uncle when we're at work, Alex," Uncle Tony sighed as if tired of this.
"Sorry, sorry," Alex laughed, not sincerely apologizing.
When Uncle Tony wanted to continue the conversation, there was movement behind the door. He instantly turned his attention away from the conversation and became focused again.
The door opened, and in the next second, David's angry voice was heard:
"Why did it take you so long to get here?!"
Uncle Tony's lip twitched at the sight, and a slight contemptuous grimace appeared on Alex's face. David, who had previously tried to calm down, lost more patience and self-control with each passing minute of waiting.
"Well, why are you silent? Cat got your tongue?" David said in a displeased tone.
"Sorry, sir, the entire police station was particularly busy today, but..." Uncle Tony was suddenly interrupted.
"It doesn't matter! Follow me," the house owner dismissively waved his hand and called the police officers inside.
Tony and Alex exchanged glances; the old policeman's face showed helplessness, and the rookie looked questioningly at Tony, clearly puzzled.
After a few seconds, they entered the house and began inspecting it while David told them about the tragedy that had occurred.
"Just look at this mess! This audacious thief dared to touch my necklaces, rings, and other jewelry. Besides, he stole several watches that have accompanied me for a long time..."
Alex, occasionally shocked by the luxury in the house, carefully wrote everything down in a notebook he had taken out at some point, while Uncle Tony, listening to David's speech with one ear, pondered:
"The thief only took small items, so he didn't have the strength or ability to carry anything larger. Judging by the amount stolen, he worked alone. However, it could also be that several people deliberately took a small number of items that together were slightly more than one average backpack, to have the ability to quickly sell the stolen goods and not fear being caught due to greed, as even one such piece of jewelry could be worth as much as my half-year salary."
Snapping out of his thoughts, Uncle Tony looked at David. Of course, he knew what David had done in the past, so he had no desire to help him. Moreover, David always flatly refused to hire security to protect his home, even when he was robbed several times in one year, which gave the police station a headache.
The old policeman interrupted David's speech, cursing the thief and lamenting his loss:
"Sir, I would like to ask you a few questions about this incident. First, what time did you fall asleep yesterday?"
The house owner, though displeased at being interrupted, honestly replied:
"I don't remember the exact time, but probably around ten in the evening."
Alex wrote down his words in the notebook.
"Second, did you hear any strange noises in the middle of the night?" Tony continued.
"I didn't hear anything; I was asleep! If I had heard something, you would have arrived here much earlier, although I doubt that," David replied excitedly, gesturing with his hands.
Tony's headache intensified.
"Okay, one more question. After the last time your house was robbed, did you hire guards or install cameras?" Tony asked, hoping for an affirmative answer.
But the convicted fraudster did not meet his expectations.
"Of course not," David sneered contemptuously and continued: "I can't hire those who could rob me at any moment, and I installed cameras after the last time, but not in all rooms, of course."
Tony sighed to himself and thought:
"How did he manage to earn a huge sum of money with such a mindset?"
"Okay. Alex, did you write everything down?" he asked Alex, who nodded affirmatively, then Tony turned to David:
"I need you to come with us to the station and file a report; then, we will start investigating this case."
"No! I can't!" the house owner blurted out without thinking. "I have an important meeting in a couple of hours, and I haven't even had time to prepare for it yet!" His body trembled with excitement as he spoke these words.
Tony slapped his cheek, and David was torn with internal conflict.
The entire house fell silent for several minutes. Alex looked from the old policeman to the portly man, puzzled.
In the end, David missed the meeting that could have changed his life for the better.