Bill Smart picked this bank because the safe deposit boxes are in two large cabinets that meet at a corner of the vault, creating a dead space behind. Now, as the security guard leaves him alone, Bill waits a little, closes his deposit box, then quickly climbs into the hidden corner.
He knows this guard’s shift will end soon. When the next guard notices that a checked-in customer vanished, he will simply assume that his colleague failed to see the person leaving. All appears to go as planned and, hours later, the vault is time-locked for the night.
Over many previous visits, Bill succeeded in disabling the sound sensors that could trigger an alarm, by puncturing them. And piece by piece he collected in the dead space all the tools now needed to break into the deposit boxes, then carefully replace all the broken locks.
Morning comes and the employee who reopens the vault sees nothing amiss. Bill soon emerges from his hole with a rucksack full of jewelry and leaves the bank discreetly, dressed as a maintenance worker.
He looks both ways before crossing the street, not realizing he just made the worst decision of his life.
The previous day, the second guard was puzzled enough by the disappearing customer that he contacted his colleague. The two men arranged to meet first thing in the morning, to review the security tapes together. It is one of them who now points a finger at Bill from across the street.
(Contribuição para um desafio do Riga Language and Literature Group do Internations em Maio de 2021.)