Helena glanced at Nicole when Nicole asked that question and immediately her phone beeped. She checked her phone to see that it was a text message from the anonymous contact who had been texting and calling her since the previous day.

"I think I have somewhere to be," Helena said to Nicole in a calm voice.

" I thought as much as Lena, I can see how unsettled you are" Nicole announced.

" Unsettled?" Helena asked with a look of surprise on her face. She had no idea she was looking unsettled. Parts of her wanted to go and help this fellow but she was scared because she did not know who he was and what he wanted her to do for him.

The world's crime had increased and she did not want to be a victim to some bad predator.

" Yes you look very unsettled Helena, I have always told you not to worry about your mother she will be fine. She is a strong woman and I am sure that she will come out of this stronger" Nicole said with a tone of concern.

Helena smiled broadly when Nicole said that to her. Her words felt strangely like therapy and it seemed to be all she needed at that time.

She had been thinking very much about her mother's health and she was scared because she did not want to lose the only person she had left in the world.

Five years ago she had lost her younger sister and that situation seemed to be what started the illness for her mother. Her mother was very healthy and she was working as a nurse in the general hospital but she stopped working when the illness became too serious and she could no longer go to work.

" Nicole, have I ever told you how much I love you?" Helena acts with a broad smile on her face.

She felt happy because Nicole always had a way of making her smile whenever she was having a gloomy day. They were not so close as friends, they only met at the coffee shop every day she came to work but Nicole had managed to gain a spot in a heart that made her very special.

" Oh dear, must I tell you I love you too. Now you need to hurry and go see your mother, I will cover up for you. You shouldn't be wearing that gloomy look on a beautiful day like this" Nicole said to Helena and Helena nodded her head in appreciation.

" I will always remember this," Helena said as she took off the apron and the tag that was pinned to her dress.

Immediately she stepped out of the coffee shop, her phone suddenly began to ring again.

It took Helena about 5 seconds before she picked up the call. She placed the phone slowly to her ear as she waited for the caller to say something first.

"Helena Kent" The unfamiliar voice called out her name from the other end of the phone.

" Look stranger, I wish I could help you but I do not know you, and wait. How did you know my name?" She asked when she suddenly remembered that he had just called her full name.

" Do not worry about it Helena, some things are not difficult to get" The male voice said.

" Why are you calling me?" Helena asked with a tone of curiosity.

" I explained the reason I have been trying to reach you for a very long time yesterday and you said you were going to think about it, I was expecting that you were going to at least respond to my so many text messages," The male voice said.

" That is the problem, Mister, I do not know who you are, how do you expect me to treat you like someone I know?" She asked him.

She was standing outside the coffee shop, right beside the signpost that read "Best Cafe In Town". Unbeknownst to her, Nicole was watching her from the shop as she answered that call.

Nicole had noticed the strangeness in Helena as she spoke to the person on the phone. She was acting weird as if she was scared, occasionally glancing behind her to see if someone was watching.

" What if I tell you Helena that this is not just about you helping me?" The male voice said.

" Then be specific with your explanations, what else is in here?" Helena asked.

" We are going to be signing an agreement in both our favor and I guarantee you that you can leave if you want to, " The voice said.

" An agreement about what?" Helena asked.

" Stop being too curious Helena. Just show up at the address I sent to you a few minutes ago and you'll find me there" The voice said.

" You mean now?" Helena asked.

" It came to my knowledge that you are free now and you might not be so free after now," He said again.

Helena was silent For some seconds. She knew that whoever this person was he had more knowledge about her than she thought.

" Fine, I'll meet you at the address but," She said and took a pause.

" But what?" The voice asked.

" We will be speaking outside the bar, I will not come in," She said with an authoritative tone.

"Anything you want," The voice replied.

The call ended and Helena let out a sigh. She glanced at the coffee shop again and noticed Nicole coming out of the door.

" Hey Helena, is everything okay? Was that the doctor you were speaking to?" Nicole asked as she stared at her warmly.

"Yes, I was speaking to the doctor. He had a few things to report about my mother's condition but it's fine, I'll go and see him now" Helena said and flagged down a taxi.

Helena was pacing outside the bar, glancing around to see if she would find anyone who looked like the person who had been calling her but she didn't.

"I knew you would come," The voice said and Helena turned around immediately.

Helena was surprised when her gaze met with a man who looked like he was in his early forties. He had a cream colored shirt on and brown trousers. He looked cool and wore a straight look.

" Are you the person that has been calling me?" Helena asked.

"Yes, my name is Walter Smith but you can call me Walt," The man said as he extended his hand for a handshake.

Helena glanced at his stretched-out hands and shook her head. " No need," She muttered. " I am here because you will not stop disturbing my phone," Helena said trying to wear a straight face but his response to her caught her.

" No Helena, I will tell you why you are here," Walt said as his two hands found their way into his brown trousers pocket and he turned his gaze to the tarred road.

" You are here because I mentioned that there is something in this for you to gain. I am certain that if I had not said that you wouldn't come" He said.

" Whatever, just so you know, I do not have all the time to spend here with you" She replied.

" Of course, I know more than you think." He remarked.

Helena triggered her look when he said that and asked him in a low voice " What was that supposed to mean?"

" Helena, I mean that I know much more about you than you think I do," He replied.

" What do you think you know about me? You think because you know my full name, that is everything?" She asked with a tone of anger gradually building up in her throat.

" No, it is not just that. I also know that you are a sophomore and that you have a sick mother in the hospital whose treatment has not yet commenced because you have not been able to make a good deposit for her" The man said.

" Who are you?" Helena asked.

" I think this is the part where I politely invite you into the bar so that we can have a proper conversation like twenty-first century evolved human beings," Walt said and without waiting for a response from Helena turned around and began to walk towards the entrance of the bar.

Helena felt goosebumps on her skin as she watched him walking into a bar, not having any more choice at that moment she followed suit.

Walter led her to a table and pulled out a seat for her. Helena, who was still feeling tense, did not move her gaze from him. She sat still on the chair with her two hands under the desk as she stared blankly at him.

Walter Invited the waiter and asked him to get them a drink. Helena was silent and just when the waiter left she asked Walter " What now?"

Walt opened the briefcase that was right beside his seat and brought out an envelope. He stretched the envelope over to Helena and said to her in a low voice.

" This is a contract we are going to sign. I want you to go through it and make sure you understand it properly before we sign them" He said.

Helena took out the file from the envelope and began to read through it.

" How can a piece of art be worth this amount, nine hundred million dollars? That is about a billion," Helena exclaimed when she saw the price of the artifact on the file.

" That is a rare piece of art and it is the only one of its kind. The material with which it was made can never be found on the surface of this earth and if we can get our hands on that artifact I guarantee you that our lives will change for the better, " Walter said.

" We? I'm sorry I do not understand you" Helena exclaimed.

" Just read up Helena, there is so much that you have not read," Walter said.

Helena moved her gaze slowly away from him as she fixed them back on the fill that was opened before her. It was at that moment that she saw what their agreement was about.

She leaned closer and read it out loud to Walter's hearing " Get close to the billionaire's heir and steal from him the only piece of art that would change our lives forever" She read out loud.

" I am sorry, you mean you want me to steal?" She asked in a loud voice.

" Helena, bring your voice down. It is not as bad as you make it sound, okay? All you have to do is get close to the billionaire's heir and find your way to where the artwork is" Walter said.

" And do what then, steal it?" Helena asked.

" That is the only thing you are required to do and everything would change," Walter said in a convincing tone.

Helena shook her head in disagreement and said to him in a deep voice " You want me to steal from someone for you. I cannot believe this is the reason I came out here to see you. You say you know so much about me and what do you think of me, a thief?" Helena asked

" No Helena, you are not getting this right at all. If you will just calm down and let me explain it to you, I do not think of you as a thief. I think you are very beautiful and you are the only one who we could collectively agree was good enough to go on this mission" Walter said.

" We again." Helena remarked "I see you're not working on this alone. Now I need you to go back to whoever your gang is and tell them that you picked the wrong person because I am never going to do this" Helena said as she stood up from her chair briskly and turned to leave.

"What if we pay off your mother's medical bills, clear up the debt you owe in college and also make sure that you get a good stream of income, will you still walk away?" Walter asked.

Helena stopped and stood at the spot without turning around, she was shocked at what he said.

Helena turned around slowly to meet Walter's gaze on her. She glanced around the bar and moved her gaze to Walter again. " You mean that?" She asked him in a calm voice.

" It is written on this agreement form and once you sign, it is my obligation. So you see now Helena, the ball is in your court and this is an opportunity for you to make your life very much brighter than it is" Walter said.

Helena scoffed at his words, there was nothing bright about her life at that moment. If for any reason she was going to take the deal it was because he was going to be paying her mother's medical bill.

She had tried to do multiple jobs to raise at least half of the money that was required as an initial deposit but despite all of her hard work, she had not been able to raise a quarter of it.

She had no family members or friends to ask from and she had been skipping many classes in college because she could not also afford her college fees.

She was already expecting that the college would terminate her admission but somehow they were still hanging on with her.

" Will you take this deal Helena?" Walter asked as he stretched a pen to her.

Helena took the pen, slowly sat back on her seat, and began to flip through the file. It took her about ten minutes to finish reading up everything line by line and at the end, without any more words to Walter, she signed the agreement form.

Walter took the form from her and put it back into his briefcase. Helena could see the smile on his face as he closed up the briefcase.

" I am going to send you the data of the only son of the family who possesses this artifact in their home. It is said that the artwork is heavily guarded and we know it is not going to be an easy fit to go in there and get it but we are strongly behind you and we will always direct you on how to go about it" Walter said.

Helena nodded her head in agreement and finally took Walters's handshake when he stretched it out again. " To a successful business partnership," Walter remarked.

Helena returned to the coffee shop having a mixed feeling. She had wanted to go to the hospital and see her mother first before she returned to the coffee shop but when she checked her time she noticed that it was already too late and Nicole was supposed to be having her shift in a few minutes.

" Just on time," Nicole said immediately after she saw Helena walk into the coffee shop.

" Thank you so much, Nicole, I can't believe I made you work my shift when you were supposed to be relaxing," Helena said to Nicole.

" Well, I got the time to relax now that you're back. Tell me, how is your mother doing?" Nicole asked.

" She is" Helena wanted to respond that her mother was fine but the words were caught up in her throat and she could not say it. She had not gone to see her mother and she did not know how her mother was fairing at the moment. " She is the same," She said just to cover up the fact that she had been somewhere else.

" Oh dear, Do not worry about it, I am certain that your mother will be fine," Nicole said as she slowly took Helena's hands in hers.

Helena nodded her head and wore a fake smile on her face "Thank you, Nicole" Helena replied.

It had been a week since she met with Walter Smith and Helena met at the bar downtown and was expecting to get feedback from him like he said she would but since then she had not heard from him again.

After the first three days, she took her mind off the deal completely, thinking that something might have come up and he was not interested in working with her anymore.

Her life went back to its normal form, all the boring moments and days that she wished she was never born. Her mother had spent a month at the hospital yet there was no deposit for her treatment to kick off.

More than once she had gone to the doctor and pleaded with him to at least start the treatment but he insisted that the hospital could not sponsor such a level of treatment on its own and that was a reason the patients needed to make the deposits before the treatment began.

She was returning from the coffee shop after her shift which was the last shift for the day and it was already dark into the night as she walked down the street.

She had black trousers on, a timber shoe, and a hoodie. It was her signature way of dressing at night just so that she would scare the bad guys away from her.

She turned into the street when she heard a crashing sound behind her. She stopped immediately and she saw a man being beaten by a group of three guys.

She hid behind the street garbage box hoping not to be seen by them. It was already late and there was no vehicle running the streets anymore. The only source of light was the dim light from the street that could barely brighten her path.

She however could see the men clearly from the spot where she was hiding. She stayed there for about five minutes and finally came out when she saw them run away leaving the man who lay on the floor barely alive.

She rushed over to him and tried to help him up but he was too weak to get up. "I'm calling the police." She said to him aloud.

"No, do not call anyone" He replied but it was already too late because Helena's fast fingers had already dialed nine one one.