He heard soft footsteps behind him. That did not mean anything good. Who would follow him, late at night and in this narrow lane in the middle of the ill-famed waterfront?

Especially now that he had turned the thing of his life and wanted to disappear with the booty! Had one of his countless colleagues had the same idea, watched him and waited for him to relieve him of the fruits of his labors?

Or was the footsteps behind him one of the city’s countless law enforcement officers, and would the steel eight around his wrists snap shut? He could already hear the call to stay.