Thief!Spain x Reader Like a Thief in the Night (5)

Antonio fingered one of the detached sapphires in his right hand as he stood on one of the hacienda’s balconies, overlooking a sunset stained Bareclona,

“She’s very adamant on getting the necklace back...”

“Then perhaps you should have thought about that before hiring even more people when you came back!” Spat Lovi from behind the desk just inside the room.

“How could I turn them away Lovi? When we came from the same place, and have so much, how?”

At this response Lovino sighed and slumped back in his seat, “better get rid of it quickly then, before she and her tomato-faced friend come for a visit...stupid Feliciano.” He added on quickly, grumbling at his brother’s stupidity.

Earlier that day...

“...Slowly. I’ll make it that he screams my name in hell for all eternity when I am finished with him.”
Silence had then fallen over the group, most of which watched your back with shared pity in their eyes (even Antonio, who hid his growing fear of you behind it...you seemed so certain of getting it back that maybe you were going to get it back).

“No need to cry ____, how about you visit the plantation! I’m sure Antonio and Lovi won’t mind! And bring Marianne too!” Feliciano had darted around and took your hands in his, simultaneously bursting the air of all tension while causing a heavy knot of fear to drop deep into Antonio’s stomach.

“I don’t...I mean...” you stuttered at the surprising offer, “only if it’s alright with Senor Carriedo?” You looked over your shoulder, eyes red and watery, and your face almost as pale as Antonio’s had gone.

“Well I...” he then looked over at Feliciano, who’s wide grin and saucer-like eyes he could never resist, “si...si, do come. I’m sure you’ll find it relaxing.” He could just hear Lovino’s voice now when he got back and told him: he’d go insane, and maybe break something valuable.

“See! I knew Antonio couldn’t resist such pretty ladies!” Feliciano ran back to Antonio and put a brotherly arm around his shoulders, “such a ladies’ man!”

Antonio could only blush.

“What could I say Lovi? He is your brother and it’s rude to withdraw an invitation.”

“You could have said we were busy, and that’s not a lie either.” Lovi picked up one of the rectangle diamonds that had been prised away from the silver setting and tossed it, hitting Antonio’s forehead dead on target as Antonio walked back in from the balcony.

“Where are we meant to hide this, mm? And if she comes in the next few days when we have Torres over dismantling the rest of this gaudy piece and she finds out?”

“We’ll just have to make sure that she doesn’t find out, Lovi.” Antonio bent down and picked up the small diamond on the floor, “perhaps we should invite her over on a day that...” he trailed off and Lovi could see the light of a plan dawning in his green eyes.

“Well...what is it you bastardo!?” He picked up another diamond and bounced it off Antonio’s forehead again.

“We can have her and her red-faced friend visit with lots of other people, to make sure her attention is drawn away from looking for the necklace.”

“And how do you propose we do that, hum?”  

Antonio took a deep breath, a proud smirk crossing his face,

“She and her pretty friend are English; therefore we shall have a tea party, like the English do.”

There was only silence as the Spaniard’s plan sunk into Lovino’s psych and his mind worked the idea over and over until...

“We are Spanish and Italian! We do not do ‘tea parties’ and I have never been to a ‘tea party’ and they sound so fucking boring anyway and no I am not going over and asking that bastardo Arthur for help since he’ll try to poison us with his scones!”

Antonio just listened, a happy ‘this is the best plan ever!’ expression on his face. Having other English girls there (and there were plenty of English girls who had come for the season who had already visited the plantation) would distract ____ from wondering off into the hacienda and coming across the necklace while Torres worked on it. And maybe – if she made friends with some of the guests – the socialising she’d be invited to do would prevent her from continuing the hunt.

Antonio let his fantasies run wild for a moment, imagining that they got away with it and ____never found the necklace again. They’d be home free.

“Are you listening to me tomato-bastardo!?” Another diamond bounced off his cheek this time. He bent down and picked up the two that lay there on the carpet.

“Si si Lovi, I am.” He walked over to the desk and tucked the sapphire and diamonds back into the small black pouch they had been stashed in.

“How do we even go about throwing a tea party huh?” Lovi angrily crossed his arms and huffed. Antonio gave him a wide grin and his eyes sparkled evilly;

“I hate saying it Lovi...but I think writing to Arthur is the only way to find out...” he cooed, causing the Italian to go headlong into another rant about ‘silly Spaniards, and how all they wanted was for him to go on suicide missions to the English with their deadly pastries...’

Five days later...

“A letter for you Miss (surname), and for Miss Ellingham, from the Carriedo Plantation,” Ruiz held out a silver platter upon which two fine ivory envelopes sat. You lifted your own and turned it around to see if there was a seal print in the red wax on the underside, pinning the envelope shut. There was none. Passing a curious frown to Marianne as she sat across the small table from you at breakfast, fingering her own matching letter, you broke the red seal and lifted out a simple – yet elegant – slip of paper.

“Dear Miss (surname),
   
         I cordially invite you to the Carriedo Plantation’s mid-summer tea party on the 23rd of June at eleven-thirty at the hacienda.
 
  Yours Sincerely,
    Antonio Fernandez Carriedo.”

You looked back at the envelope and found a smaller, though still as elegant, response envelope. You tugged out the tiny envelope and eyed the address of the plantation on the front in cursive handwriting before lifting the flap and finding a matching response slip;

 “I (full name),
               ____ accept your invitation with pleasure.
               ____ must regretfully decline your invitation.
                               
                           Response must be received by the 22nd of June.”

You sighed: it was the 21st of June already; he was leaving it late to be inviting them.

“Is your invite the same?” Marianne asked.

“For the 23rd? Yes.”

“Shall we go?”

“Do you particularly wish to go?” You lifted a fine white cup of lukewarm tea to your lips.

“I...” you frowned to see your friend blushing, almost indiscernibly, “I would like to go, very much.” You swallowed your mouthful of tea, your mind suspiciously working over your friend’s reaction.

“Very well then, we shall attend: it’s not like I’m making much progress with the hunt.” You rose from your seat and carried your tiny response slip to the bureau tucked away in the shadowed corner of the room and pulled down the lid, reaching for the small quill that rested by the silver inkwell.

“Senor Carriedo, I happily accept your invitation,” you ticked the space before ‘accept your invitation with pleasure,’ and dabbed the ink dry while looking over at Marianne,
“want me to tick yours as well?” This was met by Marianne holding out her own small slip which you strode two large paces to receive.

There was a knock at the front door, and you paused in reaching for Marianne’s slip.

“Who could that be at this time?” You mused aloud, even though the answer should have been apparent.

“Most likely the Bollinger-Smiths,” Marianne whispered as voices came from down the passageway. Scurrying footsteps were heard and Ruiz came in, giving a small curtsy to you before announcing;

“Mrs Bollinger-Smith and Mr Edward Bollinger-Smith,” she had barely time to finish the announcement when Mrs Bollinger-Smith swept in, wearing something horrendous in salmon pink.

“Miss (surname), it’s so good to see you again!” She gushed, somewhat uncharacteristically you thought.

“Indeed it has only been nine hours since we departed from your apartments last night,” you couldn’t help yourself.

“But I did so enjoy your company, Edward too,” your eyes glanced over at the military man standing to resolute attention by the door. His eyes were fixed on you in the most uncomfortable of ways.

“Would you please sit?” You motioned to one of the chairs sitting around the small table, and resumed your seat, hiding Marianne’s response slip in the folds of your skirt.

“We were planning on visiting the Kings this morning; they are newly arrived from London and have a daughter, Elizabeth, about your age who is in desperate need of society. Perhaps yourself and Marianne would provide?” She was fishing for a ‘yes’ and you saw no way of escaping, so you replied as expected.

“Good good! We hope to see the Kings settled down before the arrival of their aunt from Paris: she’s a marchioness and very rich. Elizabeth is expected to inherit her fortune.”

“How lucky for Elizabeth,” Marianne quipped, disguising it well: Marianne would not inherit a ‘fortune’ from her father, being both a daughter and second child to her first-born brother.

You couldn’t suppress your smile at Marianne’s comment, which seemed to pass Mrs Bollinger-Smith misinterpreted.

“Indeed, a vast fortune of around sixty-thousand pounds and an estate in England.”
Mrs Bollinger-Smith was being very gossipy today, you noted as you resumed drinking your now stone cold tea. Of course you would not have such a large fortune to look forward to, or a large estate back in England, but you were comforted to know that your father had been sensible enough, when your parents realised that they would not produce a male heir, to start saving for your future inheritance and a small, but by no means deplorable, dowry. It was assumed you’d marry...that you’d be married (or looking to be) by now.

“Oh!” Mrs Bollinger-Smith’s ejaculation ripped you from your thoughts, “you’ve been invited to a tea party at the Carriedo plantation.” She had – the abominable woman! – picked up your invitation and had read it!

“We have yes,” you replied cheerfully, trying to hide the anger at this woman reading your mail.

“You’re not thinking of going are you?” Edward interrupted, “Carriedo is nothing but a glorified farmer who has no family connections or fortune...Carriedo is a nobody.”

This got your blood riled: what he said may be true: Carriedo may have no family connections or fortune to inherit, but from what you understood he had built his business up from nothing, and appeared to be a decent, friendly man.

You bit back your response, digging your teeth into your lower lip and holding yourself back from slapping Edward with your fan.

“We declined our invitation anyway; we have other things planned for the 23rd.” Mrs Bollinger-Smith drew the attention back to her. The idea they were invited was hysterical, and the fact that they were declining the invite anyway made you look forward to this tea party more.

“Oh! But we shall have to go dress shopping for you if you are going! ____ dear, I found the greatest place for new English fashions the other day...”

TBC.