Deceit. [COMPLETED.]

Chapter 36

"The Namuesis"
[SEVEN YEARS AGO.]

Adam Stamford struggled to hold back on his excitement.

'Oh just think of it sis, our own paddle steamer and,' he said sweeping his arms enthusiastically around the room, 'just look at all these people.'

Jennifer Stamford painted on the same smile that she had been rehearsing over the past few years and yes the room was indeed packed with important clients and for one very brief moment she actually did warm to the splendour of what she was witnessing but then the matter of what lay ahead tightened her stomach and her smile faded slowly as she started to think of what was going to happen over the next few hours.

Next to her, dressed immaculately in a dark suit and tie, was the young Mr Uri Takiyoma of Takiyoma Industries. As the son of one of the main investors of the new paddle steamer his attendance had been a gilt edged invitation.

'Bravo,' he said calmly. 'You should be a very proud man Adam. I think my father would be most impressed by what you have done.'

Huge pyramids of chocolate profiteroles adorned the four corners of a banquet hall full of ice sculptures on every table. Large bouquets of flowers rose from vases partially obscuring priceless paintings of world famous artists such as Van Gogh, Matisse; Rubens and high above the throng of guests, a net full of balloons waited to be unleashed from the ceiling.

No expense had been spared. So much money, time and effort had gone into making this a day to remember and Adam Stamford was a man on the rise within his father's company.

But underneath the facade Uri Takiyoma was busy running over the plan.

A quick scan of the room told him everything was in place.

In one corner a young Japanese woman stood behind the roulette wheel. She was smiling. She was gifted. No doubt a lot of money would be taken.

As for the paintings, all had been sold except one small one that he would keep for himself. A Turner. It had delicate brush strokes, soft colours that he liked. Such a painting was always pleasing to the eye and Uri Takiyoma thought it would look good in his private drawing room next to one very expensive scene of a painter on his way to work by Van Gogh.

All the paintings had been hung so they could be quickly and expertly removed. It would be the same with the expensive medium sized marble statue of a young maiden dancing, one worth over fifty thousand dollars. It was heavy and mounted on a plinth with casters. If they were to do this quickly then that one needed to be moved first.

A game of pontoon was in full swing, the proceeds from that and the roulette wheel were both going to charity but not, he smiled to himself, until the ship had safely sailed across the Atlantic something that was never going to happen.

He glanced down at his watch. The chosen time was drawing near. The Captain was instructed to catch the morning tide. It left only three more hours to make sure everything was in place. A visit to the engine room beckoned. He caught sight of two more of his men all neatly attired in suits and ties and nodded to them both to get on with whatever they had been instructed to do. He watched them leave and made his excuses shadowed at all times by a rather small but stocky individual with cropped hair and a bulging face.

Adam Stamford ignored Uri Takiyoma and turned instead to his sister. He continued to talk but he was of course wasting his breath. Jennifer Stamford wasn't the slightest bit interested. Not that you would have noticed. She had learnt a long time ago to live like a chameleon; smile at all the right times, go to all the right places, be the person everyone wanted her to be when all the time she planned endless ways of killing every last one of her family for what they had done to her.