Chapter 28: Diamonds
Chloe woke up early the next morning and hit the ground running. After feeding the chickens she went up into the loft and drank her morning coffee, looking out over the land as the world woke up. It was calm this morning, and she loved the peace of a new day. She drained the last of the coffee and headed back into the house and dove into work.
Her plan was to research Anneke Johannsen, Rygata's mother, and see what she could find out without having to just present herself and possibly cause trouble. She found the modeling agency's website and started looking around. After some quick math decided a call could go out so she called the agency. She introduced herself and told the agent that she was doing a story on the world of modeling, and had seen a picture of Anneke and knew she had a young daughter. She thought that a story on modeling and raising a family would be interesting. When she hung up the phone she was ecstatic. Not only was the agency behind the article, they wanted her to see how the agency worked as well. The real coup was that they told her that Anneke was scheduled to be in the U.S. next week – New York City as a matter of fact. She would be working on several photo shoots in conjunction with a fashion show for a new designer. They were going to allow her to shadow Anneke and give her total access. Absolutely perfect timing.
She called the jewelry stores to set up the appraisal appointments for Tuesday and Wednesday, and called the Ritz to extend her reservation into the end of the following week. She grabbed a sandwich and headed to Metropolis. Perry was very surprised to see her when she entered his office.
"Sullivan! I thought you were supposed to be working from home. Is everything alright?" He asked.
"Yes, Mr. White. Everything is fine. Really fine, actually. Do you have time for me to fill you in?" She asked.
He looked at his watch and buzzed his assistant to tell her to hold all calls for the time being. "Most definitely. Take a seat, Sullivan. You've got my full attention," said Perry. The assistant had seen Chloe arrive and entered a moment later with coffee.
As soon as the assistant excused herself, Chloe outlined everything to Perry, starting with her trip to New York next week to get the diamonds evaluated. Then she told him of Lionel's offer to fund the Lana story. He wasn't wild about it at first, saying he did not want to let Lionel have any control over the press. She told him what Lionel had assured her – that it would be as if Lionel had approached her first to find Lana and offered her any stories in exchange. Chloe also pointed out that it could get expensive because there was no guarantee that Lana was even in Denmark much less Europe. "I'm not sure what kind of budget the Daily Planet has to fund one story but if you approve this, Lionel promises to stay out of it as long as I keep him informed and your budget won't take a hit. Don't get mad at me but I tentatively approved on your behalf but can take it back if you say the word."
Perry sat back and thought about it for a minute. "I know you seem to trust him, but based on his past performance, and my personal past with him, I am not quite that far yet. If you get a contract in writing saying he'll be totally hands-off I'll go for it."
"Super, Chief!" She smiled at him as he winced at that title. "I'm headed to Luthorcorp after I am done here. There's more." She proceeded to fill him in on plan to learn more about Anneke by interviewing her for the story about modeling. "After I get done there, depending on where Operation Sparkle is headed I'll go to Odense and get the rest of the story about the agency and be able to hopefully look for Lana. It doesn't get any better than this."
Perry was very enthusiastic about the story and really impressed with Chloe for coming up with such a creative cover for wanting to meet Anneke. She was definitely aimed at moving out of the basement and into the light of the bullpen with the big boys. "I'm assuming you want to see Lois and Jimmy to fill them in?"
"Yes, I am headed downstairs right now," she answered.
"Never mind. I am headed out." He picked up the phone and punched a number. "Lane! You and Olsen get your butts up here." He looked at Chloe and said, "You stay here and meet with your team. My office is quiet and you won't be disturbed. Keep me in the loop as always."
He went out the door and Chloe heard him tell his assistant that nobody except Lane and Olsen were allowed in and she was to keep everyone else away. Five minutes later Lois and Jimmy came in.
"Hey Chlo. Where's the Chief?" Asked Jimmy.
"He's gone. He called you up here so I could give you an update. First, though, update me. Do you have a job, Jimmy?"
"Yes I do! You haven't noticed my new duds? Lois is making me wear them all the time."
"You look quite dapper. I noticed. Congratulations. You start next week, right?"
Lois answered this time "Yes. So…what do you know?"
Chloe spent the next few minutes telling them about her upcoming trip and Lionel's offer to finance the efforts to find Lana. "So, Cuz, I need to go shopping in a hurry. Are you free on Saturday?"
"You bet! I'll pick you up at 10am. We'll get you set up and have lunch and a fabulous girlie day. Sound good?"
Chloe laughed. "Sounds perfect. I'll see you then. Get back to work and go find the bad guys." She picked up her purse and headed downstairs and across the block to the Luthorcorp building. She rode the elevator upstairs and asked Lionel's assistant if he was available to see her. She waited only a few minutes before being ushered into his office.
"Chloe! I trust you are well?"
"Hi, Lionel. Yes, everything is fine. I probably could have called but I was next door so I figured it would be just as easy to stop by. I'm not interrupting anything am I?"
"No, not at all, I was alone in my office when my assistant told me you were here."
"I just wanted to let you know that Perry is officially on board with your financing the search for Lana, as long as you stay out of it, and let us do it all ourselves unless we ask for help. I get full rights to any stories that develop. I'll present you with timely reports so that you are totally in the loop, and as much as I can I will let you know in advance of any travel. All of the above needs to be in writing signed by you. Is that acceptable?"
"Quite. I anticipated the written contract and have it here already signed. I've taken the liberty of setting up the three of you with a credit card account and this," he passed the three cards plus one additional one to Chloe. "…is the number of the pilot. He is on standby for you out of Smallville Airport 24-hours a day and needs only a few hours notice to be ready to take off."
Chloe was stunned. "Wow. Thank you. This will work perfectly. All I do is call and the plane is ready in a couple of hours? Even in the middle of the night? – NOT that I will have my fabulous A-HA moment at 2am, but even?"
"Yes. Even at 2am." Lionel smiled back at her. "Are you still flying up to New York with me next week? The plane leaves from Smallville at 9am."
"Yes. I'll be there on time. Oh and by the way – I am doing a story on Anneke, Rygata's mother, and will be meeting with her most of next week and into the next. I took the liberty of extending my reservation at the Ritz but if you want me to pick a different hotel I can do that. I'll call the pilot to come get me when I am ready to return."
Lionel was impressed. She was already deep in the project and it sounded like she was making progress. "No, the Ritz is fine this time. Good work."
Thanks." Chloe looked at her watch and got up to leave. "I'd better head back. I have a lot to get done before the weekend. See you next week."
That night Chloe worked late into the evening researching all she could about the world of modeling. She wanted to be totally up to speed so that she could fit in and not be a pain during her meetings with Anneke. It was late when she climbed into bed and turned out the light, her button buzzed. She smiled and held it to her heart as she buzzed back
The trip on Saturday to get clothes was fun. She and Lois had fun playing Runway Model trying on dress after dress. They put together a very chic wardrobe and she was excited to wear the clothes next week. She had several nice dresses and slacks outfits and some executive wear to look professional when she was interviewing Anneke. As she packed on Monday night, she was excited about what the next week was going to bring.
The flight to New York was uneventful and Lionel dropped her off at the hotel on his way to a meeting. She found her room, unpacked and checked her watch. She had enough time to grab a bite to eat and it was off to Tiffany & Co.
The appraiser at Tiffany's was nice and let her stay with him as he examined the diamonds. He let her view the laser tag on the microscope and documented everything. He was so impressed with the stones he offered to buy them from her at more than he valued them but she politely refused. She thanked him for his time and headed back to the hotel. Once there, she dropped off the envelope containing the appraisal and headed to Cartier, where she was given the same treatment, including a tour of the design center where new designs were brought from inception to reality. She was fascinated at the process. The school had taught them something about design, but not to this degree. The jewelers who worked for Cartier were artisans. The manager also tried to purchase her diamonds, and she again politely thanked him for his interest and refused. She headed back to the hotel to dress. She was taking herself to see a show that night.
The next day she arrived at the third jeweler's shop and was introduced to the owner, a nice man named Mr. Meier. He'd run his shop in Manhattan for 50 years and had done business with Lionel for many years. He ushered Chloe into the back and began his assessment of the gems. He was stunned at the quality and size of each of them but also was a very observant man. He guessed immediately that they were special to her and knew better than to offer to buy them from her.
"Miss Sullivan. These are among the finest diamonds I have seen in my career. I have only one question for you, if I may ask it."
"Oh, no, Sir, they are not for sale," Chloe started to answer and held up his hand to stop her.
"Ah, no, Miss. That was not my question. I could tell by the way you handle them and the special mark they bear that they are quite dear to you so buying them was not my question. I wanted to know why they are loose stones instead of in some sort of setting. Fire like this should be shown off and admired. You must wear them!"
Chloe sat back thunderstruck. Why hadn't it occurred to her to have that done? It was a great idea, really. She'd definitely know where they were all the time – but did she have the nerve to wear…15…33…HOLY COW – nearly $45 THOUSAND in diamonds and be casual about it? Probably not, but playing the part of a wealthy socialite (or whatever she was) called for it. "That's why I came to you last. Lionel Luthor highly recommends you and I want to have them mounted simply yet securely. I took some jewelry making classes just out of curiosity a few months ago but am not ready to undertake mounting my own stones."
Mr. Meier was impressed with the young woman who sat before him. "I'd be happy to design something for you and you can help me mount them. Do you have time to do it today? I have assistants who will handle the customers so I am yours for the day."
Chloe smiled. "I sure do!" and followed him over to the design table where he worked up some sketches. He envisioned earrings and a pendant, all simply but elegantly set. Chloe was worried that the diamonds would come out of a basic prong setting so he used a bezel setting; a circular ring that went around the edge of each stone and was a much more secure setting. It also really accented the sparkle of each stone and they looked like stars in the sky.
They went to work making measurements and casting the settings. They worked through the day and finally finished toward the evening. Mr. Harris sat back, pleased with his work. He motioned for Chloe to come over and fastened the necklace around her neck as she put the earrings in her ears. She turned around to face him and he gasped at the sight and clapped his hands like an enthusiastic child. "My dear you are just lovely. You do excellent work, too. Your solder work is spot-on and you have an eye for what looks right. Are you sure you don't want to move here and work for me? Go! Look in the mirror!"
Chloe removed her smock and walked into the shop and looked at herself in the mirror. She'd worn one of her new dresses and knew she looked pretty good, but the addition of the diamonds took even her breath away. WOW. "Thank you so much. They are perfect!" She looked over at Mr. Meier and smiled. She helped him clean up the workspace and they settled the bill. Her savings account took a hit, but it was totally worth it. Her stomach growled and reminded her that she'd not eaten all day. "May I buy you dinner?"
He smiled and said that dinner would be lovely. He helped her into her coat and locked up as she hailed a cab.
