"Timoteus Reed? The Timoteus Reed? He's kinda dead, Celeste. How am I supposed to steal from a dead guy?" Mil leaned across the bar and signaled the bartender for a fresh bowl of popcorn.
The dark skinned beauty patted his scruffy cheek and ran her fingernails through his chops. "Oh, darling, don't toy with poor Celeste. You know I don't like it."
For a long time the two of them just sat and listened to the bar's solo guitarist. Mil cleaned out a second bowl of salty snack. Celeste gently nursed a short glass corralling a blue and amber swirl. The old thief needed time to think it over and she prided herself on her patience. Especially with him.
"Alright. Tell your buyer I'm on the job. I'll locate and acquire Reed's portfolio. Assuming it still exists. I always figured that it went down with the aircraft that killed him, but I'll know for sure by the end of the week."
She stood up from her bar stool, retrieved her clutch, and bent down to give him a peck on the forehead. "Celeste has already transferred your deposit, lover. Be safe and keep in touch, baby." And, with a kiss blown over her shoulder, she was out the door and into the rain.
Mil signaled for the bartender again. Time enough for one more drink before he began hunting for a data store that belonged to a musician who'd been dead more than ten years.
