CHAPTER TWO: TAKING TWO ITEMS

"Let's see if you can get two items this time, Margalo," Falcon said.

"Two? Isn't taking one bad enough?" She still hated stealing. But she felt trapped now. She had now willingly stolen a necklace from a man who had done her no wrong. And she still was haunted by the guilt of her mother's death, which had made her feel worthless.

"She needs to lose that conscience of hers," Donovan Raven sighed.

"Why? Mom always said to follow it.
"Mommy is dead. If you're gonna be a thief, a conscience will get in your way," Cassandra Raven told her.

"Margalo will do well. I know she can get two items. She's got a decent brain in that head of hers," Falcon said.

"You think I could do it anyway? What if I get caught?"

"I might be able to rescue you/"

"Might?"

"I'll do my best, if you get into a pinch, to get you out. But, look on the bright side, you're young. They probably won't keep you in jail too long." Falcon said this, because he knew that Margalo would fear failure all the more and would double and triple her efforts, so as to not get caught. Fear was a good motivation.

"Where am I supposed to take from this time?"

"I'm going to let you decide this time."

"Me?"

"Yes. Be sure to pick a house that you think has good stuff in it to take. And take two items from it."

"How will I get in to their house?"

"Well, I wouldn't ring the doorbell and ask to be let in," Donovan suggested, giggling.

"But how will I get in, then?"

"Think of something."

"How about 'I'm Margalo, and I'm sad and alone. Please let me in.'?"

"No, that won't work," Cassandra laughed.

"Why not? It's true, well, mostly true, as I'm coming there to steal."

"People won't just let you in if you're sad and alone. You've got to make them feel like they need to let you in."

"How about 'Hi, my name is Margalo, please let me in and get me something to eat! Please let me in and get me some food!'?"

"A bit more appealing, but they'll just let bring food to you and then send you away," Falcon said. "And don't tell them that your name is Margalo."

"Why not? My name is Margalo."

"Yes, it is, but when loads of things go missing across the city, we don't want the police hearing of a Margalo going around every time that things go missing. That's what happened in the Hebron and Amston area and that's why we had to leave."

"What name should I tell them that I have, then?"

"Make them up. And don't use the same one too many times, or they'll also start to catch on."

"What will they catch?"

Falcon sighed at her taking his words literally. "They'll catch you if you aren't careful!"

"Yes, and after they catch you, they might not bother with the police. They might just toss you to their pet cat as a treat," Donovan said.

"No, I don't want to be eaten by a cat!" Margalo shrieked. Having lost her mother to the Angora cat, she had a great fear of being eaten by cats.

"Don't get caught then!"

"Now, get going. I'll order Chinese when we get back," Falcon said.

Margalo loved Chinese food. However, she wanted to eat first before stealing, in case it all went wrong and she went to jail. "Can't we eat it first and then I go?"

"Nope, take the items first and then I'll get you the food."

Margalo sighed. It looked like the sooner she stole the items, the sooner she would get her favorite food. "Ok, but get me lots this time. More than in Amston." She felt that if she was going to be taking a lot, she should get more.

"Fair enough. Now get going. If you take too long, we'll order without you and you'll get nothing."

Margalo flew off. She didn't want to go without food. However, she didn't like lying. It wasn't something she was good at, because her mother had taught her to be honest. On the other talon, perhaps she'd gone too far already, by helping, albeit inadvertently, Falcon and the ravens commit many heists as well as one unsuccessful theft. And there was also her recent deliberate theft. And she had left her mother to die, when she felt that she could maybe he saved her from the Angora cat, or at least died beside her. Maybe being a good thief and con woman was the best she could hope for now. It made her heart ache to think that that would now be her future.

Still, she needed to come up with something. Falcon wasn't helping her this time, like had had last time. She flew around, trying to think of a way to steal. She was disrupted from her thoughts, by almost being hit by a car, which was speeding down the road, the driver too focused on his cellphone. It was a nice cellphone too and a nice car. Margalo soon got an idea. "Ow, ow, you hit me!" she cried, acting like she was in pain.

The driver, hearing someone crying in pain, stopped his car. He turned around and slowly backed up, looking for the injured person. "Where are you?" he asked.

"Down here! I'm on the ground!"

The man backed up slowly, still looking around. "Where are you? I still don't see you!"

"I'm on the ground! You're about to run me over!"

The man immediately stopped his car and looked around behind the car. He soon found Margalo. "A bird?" he gasped.

"Yes, you hit me with your car while you were on your phone."

"I did? I don't recall hitting anything."

"Well, pay better attention next time. Right now, my wing is sore, very sore. I can't fly anywhere. And my left talon is bruised, so I can't walk anywhere either."

"Oh man! I'm so sorry!"

"I need a place to rest and heal. I can't just stay here or someone will run me over."

"I will take you home in my car and you can rest there for a while," the man said.

"Thank you," Margalo said, trying to sound and act like she was truly injured. It hurt her inside to be such a liar!

As she climbed into the backseat, she noticed, on the floor, a pearl necklace. It didn't appear to have been left there on purpose, as it was too nice to be left lying around. And, indeed, it hadn't been, for the man's wife and baby daughter had been in the backseat two hours earlier, and the wife had put it on the floor to keep it out of reach of the baby, who had kept reaching out and yanking on it. Discerning that the necklace may not have been left there on purpose and perhaps might not have been known to be there, Margalo decided to keep the man busy, while she came up with a way to get it out of the car without him noticing.

"I'm so glad that you're helping me," she said, slowly grabbing onto the necklace with one of her talons, lifting it gently as she talked.

"Well, I couldn't just leave you in the street after I hit you, now could I?"

"I guess not."

When they arrived at the house, Margalo kept the man busy, talking, keeping the necklace out of his sight. When he had his back turned for a moment after letting her out of the car, she stealthily let it fall to the ground, landing on the grass, not making a sound. She then went inside with him. "Let me get you comfortable. I'll have a vet go look at your wing."

"Thank you," the canary said. She felt so awful. How could she do something like this to a nice guy like this? Still, she wanted Falcon's approval. It seemed silly, as she knew him to be a liar and a bully, not to mention a thief. But, she didn't have her mother, father, or siblings anymore. And besides, she'd already stolen twice for Falcon, one by being tricked and once willingly. If turned away by Falcon, she didn't see how she could make it on her own. Her self-worth was so low, after Falcon's manipulation of guilting her into taking the blame for her mother's death at the paws of the Angora cat, that she didn't feel worthy of being adopted by the people. Her seeking help from them wasn't to truly find a better life, but only to scam them, to take something from them.

Margalo waited, nervously, he heart pounding in her chest, as the man called the vet. She didn't have much time.

"I've got an injured bird here. A canary...What happened to her? Well, I accidentally hit her with my car. She says she has a broken wing..."

While she could hear the man talking in the other room, she stealthily searched the house. She soon spotted a ring. Not too valuable, but it was the best she could do on such short notice. She seized it and moved silently toward the window. She was almost out it when the man came back into the room. "Well, Ms., er, what is your name, I have the vet coming and-" he paused, seeing her with the ring. "Hey, you rotten thief!"

Margalo made it through the window. The man, too big to fit through, was forced to go to the door, which was several feet away. As he dashed into the yard, shouting "Stop thief! Come back!" she picked up the necklace and grabbed it. She flew off, narrowly dodging the man as he dove at her.

"Come back here, you lying thief!" The accusation stung, and part of her wanted to give herself up. But she didn't want to go to jail. So she continued on, flying to the Pishkin Building.

"Ah, Margalo, we were just about to start dinner. Do you have the items?" Falcon asked, picking up an eggroll with his left claw.

"Yes, I did. Though it doesn't feel right."

"It was right. Humans have too much and they don't want to share. They don't see us as equals, because we're small. They owe us!"

"That man never took anything from me!"

"Look how much better off we are than other birds," Cassandra raven said to Margalo as she put a slice of spicy beef into her mouth.

"Yes, all this great food. You'd be eating stale soggy bread if you were on your own," Donnovan said, wolfing down lamb meat.

"I guess you're right," she said, starting to help herself to rice, beans, olives, eggrolls, and bread. And, as Falcon had promised, he'd given her extra food. Still, she wondered if a thief's life was worth all of this.