If I could live your life Chapter 2
By Star

Stephanie groaned as she sneezed for the fourth time in a 
row. Holly grinned as she looked up at Stephanie from the 
books she was examining. She shook her head with a smile at 
the sight of Stephanie's dirt smeared face.

"You look like a street urchin." Holly teased, and 
Stephanie sighed, wincing when Holly threw a first edition 
Charles Dickens "Great Expectations" on a pile.

"Could you be more careful with that?" She said and Holly 
shrugged "God it's only a book. A smelly and ugly look one 
at that too. Why don't you get books that are interesting? 
These are so dull!"

Stephanie rolled her eyes "Because I specialise in 
classics. Books that are originals, and pieces of art…"

Holly held up one hand "Okay I get the point. You like old 
books."

Smiling she said "Well Paul Stanley definitely would never 
believe you were Madelyne O'Neil now that's for sure."

Stephanie sighed, as she took a quick glance at herself in 
the mirror. Ruefully she realised that Holly was right. 
Dressed in an old pair of black jeans, an oversized 
sweatshirt and a black bandanna covering her fiery red hair 
she definitely would never be taken for Madelyne O'Neil. 
Grimly she doubted Madelyne O'Neil had ever worn a pair of 
jeans in her life, and if so they would definitely be 
designer and not Levi's.

"Speaking of Paul you didn't ever tell me what happened 
between the two of you…" Holly began and Stephanie 
interrupted her "And I'm not going to. It was a complete 
mistake on my part, and I still can't believe I let you 
rope me into doing something like that."

"I don't know you didn't look too unhappy about it when he 
was kissing you." Holly teased and Stephanie blushed "I 
didn't say that I didn't like it. It's just something 
private I want to treasure that's all. Somewhere I can go 
when I'm down. Especially since I know it's not going to 
happen again. I left him while he was sleeping. Wrote a 
note saying that I was needed back in England and I would 
see him when I got back. Madelyne will come back and the 
two of them will live happily ever after."

Holly nodded and said with a resigned sigh "And I don't 
think that I'll ever see Gene ever again either. It was 
nice while it lasted but lets face it he's so out of my 
league."

Stephanie shook her head and gave an exaggerated shudder 
"And what was up with that? Since when have you ever wanted 
to sleep with Gene?"

Holly shrugged "Hey it wasn't that bad actually. He 
certainly has the moves down pat."

Stephanie put up her hand "Please don't even give me 
details. It's enough to make me shudder."

Holly rolled her eyes and made a funny face "Well it could 
have been worse you know. Tommy Lee was making eyes at 
little ole me. I could have gone home with him…"

"Now that's just plain scary." Stephanie said with a 
genuine shudder. Smiling she said "As much as it was nice 
to see what the life of the rich is like I think I prefer 
my little shop."

"Yeah there's no doubt that this place with its musty books 
is so much better than say a house in Beverly Hills with 
more money than you can spend, expensive cars, maids….Oh 
yeah you're right much better." Holly said sarcastically.

Stephanie shook her head "It's not me. I tried the fortune 
thing once and didn't like it. There's nothing more dreary 
than the country club or those social lunches."

"So if say Paul decided that you were the one for him and 
wanted to sweep you off to live with him you wouldn't?"

Stephanie shook her head "You know that's not an issue. Now 
can you pass me that book? Raven is going to be here soon, 
and I want to clear the table so she can have room for her 
equipment. She's going to show me the plans she has in mind 
for the bookstore web site."

"I don't know why you just don't design it yourself. It's 
not like your dumb or anything. It would save you money." 
Holly grumbled, scrutinising her nails with a look of 
boredom.

"You know if you're bored you could always go back next 
door to your salon. After all aren't you supposed to be 
working?" Stephanie said in frustration, and Holly sighed 
"I'm sorry I'm being a true bitch today aren't I? It's just 
I'm getting restless again. Hey maybe next time you go book 
hunting I'll come with you. Where was it last time? Italy?"

Stephanie nodded. "It's one of the perks of travelling. A 
business acquaintance mentioned that there were some 
scrolls that I might be interested in."

"Scrolls?" Holly said puzzled, and Stephanie nodded "Yeah 
they were found in Brazil. I might fly down there next week 
if I have the time. I want to inspect them."

Holly shook her head "You and your books and papers. I 
guess it's really true when they say one man's junk is 
another man's treasure."

Stephanie smiled "I love finding new things. There's 
nothing more exciting than finding a first edition of a 
book, or some ancient scroll."

Holly cocked her head "Shouldn't they be put in museums?"

Stephanie nodded again "Yes. Usually once I make sure 
they're authentic and buy them I contact the museum to see 
whether they are interested in buying them. If they are 
it's a bonus if not I sell to the highest bidder. You'd be 
surprised how ruthless buying books and antiques can be."

"Antiques?" Holly questioned and Stephanie smiled "I'm also 
branching out into buying antiques. Look what I found." 
Stephanie said, and she reached behind the counter and 
brought out a dirty looking dish.

"And you're showing me this because?" Holly asked, 
wrinkling her nose in disgust.

"It's from the Ming Dynasty. It's not chipped, and all it 
needs is cleaning. It's worth a small fortune." Stephanie 
explained and Holly gaped at her "You mean this piece of 
crap is antique?"

Stephanie grinned, "I found it in a garage sale yesterday. 
I also picked up a statuette that I am sure is the Greek 
Goddess Tyche. I'm going to get Raven to authenticate it 
for me."

"So who is this Raven? She seems to be a jack of trades. 
She designs web sites and authenticates antiques. She seems 
just a little strange to me." Holly said with a frown.

"Stick around you'll meet her, and I know you'll like her. 
I guess you could say she is a jack of trades in ways. 
She's officially a Professor and deals with designing web 
pages, but also has a degree in antiquity and a mutual love 
of history. I met her in Florence last year."

Holly shook her head "You have some strange friends."

Stephanie smiled "I know and you're one of them. But like I 
said you'll like Raven. She likes KISS too."

Holly rolled her eyes "Surprise, surprise. That seems to be 
a requirement with your friends. What do you ask them 
straight out if they like the band."

Stephanie grinned "Not quite. Besides not all of them like 
KISS."

"Oh yeah there's Melissa." Holly began.

"We met in the music store I used to work in. She bought a 
KISS album and we started talking." Stephanie protested her 
hands on her hips as she narrowed her eyes "Besides you can 
talk how about Shannon."

Holly shrugged "She came in the salon wearing a KISS T-
shirt. I needed to make conversation so latched onto the 
fact she likes them."

"Exactly." Stephanie said with a triumphant smile, looking 
up when the bell above the door signalled a person's entry.

"Raven you made it!" She greeted and Holly cocked her head, 
studying the slim figure dressed all in black.

"Sorry I'm late. You'll never guess who called me!" Raven 
said with a smile, noticing Holly and nodding her head 
towards her "So who's this?"

Holly held out her hand "I'm Holly. You must be Raven. 
Steph was just explaining to me how the two of you met."

Raven nodded, studying Holly behind her dark sunglasses, 
and surmising that she seemed okay before shaking her hand.

"So who called you?" Stephanie asked and Raven smiled 
"Peter Criss."

"Peter Criss…the kitty himself?" Holly interrupted and 
Raven arched an eyebrow and nodded towards Holly again 
"Another KISS fan then?"

Stephanie grinned, "Yeah so what did he want?"

Raven smiled "Well it wasn't quite him. It was his 
assistant. Apparently he's looking for someone to design a 
new page for him. Explaining to fans why he's left the band 
again, and I guess, keeping people updated on him. He's 
looking into learning basic html so he can update himself 
at the same time."

"So you set up a meeting for it?" Stephanie asked and Raven 
nodded.

"Wow I wonder where he heard about you." Holly said, 
slightly awed.

Raven shrugged "I'm well known in the industry. It's not 
like his is the first page I've designed, and I'm sure it 
won't be the last."

Stephanie nodded, explaining to Holly "Raven is pretty much 
in popular demand. The girl never sleeps." Turning to Raven 
she said "I've set a table up for you, and you can show me 
the goods. I've got a statue that I want you to check out. 
I'm pretty such it's Greek. I also picked up the original 
letters of Tolkien. I paid a pretty penny for them but 
they're worth it."

"Serge is going to be furious with you. He's been after 
them for 5 years, and was pretty sure they were his. I hope 
you didn't sell your soul for them."

Stephanie shook her head "No I just laid on the usual 
charm. Now tell me what you think this is?" She gently 
handed Raven the statuette.

Raven examined it carefully "It's a Michelangelo. My guess 
is around 1553 or earlier. Definitely the goddess Tyche." 
Pausing she looked at Stephanie "And where did you get 
this?"

Stephanie grinned "Would you believe some guy was using it 
as a paperweight. I offered him $100 for it."

"My god this is worth…" Raven began and Stephanie 
interrupted "I know so much more. So I was right then? I 
guess all those summers in France working at Aunt Melanie's 
art gallery paid off."

"You think she might be interested in this?" Raven asked 
and Stephanie nodded "Without a doubt. I could get a good 
price for it."

"You want me to get Mac…" Raven began at the same time 
Stephanie asked, "Could you get Mac." They both grinned and 
laughed.

Holly glanced at her watch "I've got to get back to the 
shop. Call me tonight Steph. You have to give me details 
about the scrumptious Mr Stanley, and I promise to tell you 
all the details about my evening."

Stephanie grinned "That's enough reason for me not to 
ring!"

Holly darted her tongue at Stephanie before turning to 
Raven. "It was nice meeting you Raven."

Raven nodded "Likewise." She glanced back to where she was 
setting up her computer.

Stephanie watched Holly leave with a sigh. As much as she 
adored her friend she didn't think she was ready to divulge 
any information about her night with Paul. There were just 
some things that were best not knowing.

"She seems nice. A little scatterbrained but nice." Raven 
commented as she logged onto her computer. "So how much did 
you tell her about me?"

Stephanie shook her head "Not much. Just that we met in 
Florence last year. I forgot to mention that this wasn't 
the first time we had met"

"She doesn't know what you were doing in Florence last year 
then?" Raven asked and Stephanie shook her head with a grin 
"Not quite. She knows I find and buy antiques and books and 
that's the way I want to keep it."

Raven nodded "I think that's a good idea. The least she 
knows about you the better. The same applies for me. Stick 
to the Professor story."

Stephanie nodded "Let me lock up the shop and you can show 
me the goodies that you've brought me."

Raven gave a slight nod of her head the only indication 
that she had heard Stephanie as she quickly typed 
information into her computer.

"So is your father still digging in Egypt?" Stephanie asked 
and Raven nodded "Him and his tombs. He's determined to 
find more Tombs in the Valley of Lost Kings. You know him 
it's his life work. And mom she will follow where he goes."

Stephanie nodded "Dad is in Brazil. He's just as determined 
to find a lost treasure. You know how it is."

Raven nodded. "Ah here it is. Botticelli's "Adoration of 
the Magi", stolen 5 years ago from an Italian Museum. Mac 
mentioned that an acquaintance of hers found it a couple of 
months ago. It's hanging on the wall of some rich tycoon's 
wall. The Museum would be very interested in getting it 
back and the reward is $5 million."

Stephanie nodded "So shall we draw straws over who should 
retrieve it?"

"It's not my turn. I did that Inca statue." Raven commented 
and Stephanie shook her head "And how did you think I got 
Tolkien's letters?"

"Isn't it my turn?" A cool voice and Stephanie and Raven 
both jumped "Damn it Shandi don't scare us like that." 
Raven snapped, and Shandi laughed "The door was locked."

"So you decided to pick it?" Stephanie grumbled and Shandi 
shook her head "Nope the window. You really need to get 
better security. That was too easy." Pausing briefly she 
smiled "So I hear you jumped Paul Stanley's bones."

"Who told you?" Stephanie demanded to know and Shandi 
shrugged "Hey you should know by now not to tell anyone. 
Jen mentioned it to me, and she found out from Holly. By 
the way I like Holly. Are you going to recruit her?"

Stephanie shook her head "No I don't think so. I wouldn't 
like to see her hurt."

"Oh and you're willing to let us get hurt." Shandi teased 
before saying seriously "So what's the job?"

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Stephanie asked and 
Shandi grinned, "Worried about me? I can watch after 
myself. Besides this is in my blood. I live for the danger 
baby."

"It's a painting. A very expensive one. You might need 
Mac's help on this one." Raven explained and Shandi sniffed 
"You don't think I can do this on my own. I was picking 
locks when I was still in nappies. I can do this by myself. 
Besides Mac has gone legit now."

Raven rolled her eyes "I mean you might need Mac's help to 
work out the security system."

Shandi nodded "Oh okay then. Should be a piece of cake 
though. Most the systems are the usual type. A little 
tricky but easy to work. I'm going to need to camp out 
first and check everything out. The amount of security 
guards. Get inside the house."

"I thought we might use Jasmine for that. She can say she's 
from House design or some kind of glamour magazine and 
wants to do a piece on the house. No wife can refuse 
Jasmine or the idea of being in a magazine for everyone to 
see. Stroke the vanity a little. I'll get Jen to design the 
ID she'll need" Stephanie said with a confident smile.

"Then it's set." Raven said and Stephanie and Shandi both 
nodded.

"We'll I'm going to bail and check things out with Mac. 
There are a couple of houses that Mac wants me to test. See 
how good the security is. After that's done we'll start 
working on this job."

Raven nodded "It's still 5% right?"

Shandi smiled "That's right. 5% for me and 5% for Mac. I'll 
be expecting it in crisp $100 bills, and I know Mac will 
want hers wired to the Swiss account."

Stephanie shook her head "I can't believe you want it in 
cash. Don't you want to save it?"

Shandi shrugged "Why? I want to live now not later." She 
waved to them before beginning to walk away.

"Shandi don't you have something for me?" Stephanie asked 
testily. Shandi turned and grinned "I was wondering when 
you might ask me for that. Here." She tossed over a velvet 
bag and waited patiently while Stephanie examined the 
contents.

"All there?" Shandi asked and Stephanie nodded. "I take it 
I can go now. I'll stay in touch." She quickly scrambled 
away and Stephanie watched her climb agilely up a post and 
disappearing out an open window.

"She's going to kill herself one of these days." Stephanie 
said, shaking her head in amazement. 

Raven smiled "That girl has more lives than a cat. Relax 
she's good at what she does. So want to show me those 
jewels?"

Stephanie nodded, tossing the velvet pouch to Raven who 
caught it easily. Opening it she whistled slowly, as she 
opened the bag and shaking the bag lightly scattered some 
diamonds into her palm.

"You're looking at 11 million in diamonds right there." 
Stephanie said "Courtesy of the LAPD."

Raven looked at Stephanie "Shandi broke into the LAPD to 
retrieve these? Is she nuts?"

Stephanie grinned "You know our Shandi, she likes a 
challenge. Apparently she overheard a couple of cops 
mentioning the big diamond heist they busted, and managed 
to find out who stole them, and who they were stolen from. 
I then managed to track down the owner, who was very 
interested in getting them back."

Raven nodded, closing the velvet bag and slipping it in her 
pocket. "So I'm assuming the party was a success?"

Stephanie smiled slightly "Would you believe that the 
painting is hanging in full view for everyone to see. The 
guy either has no clue it's stolen or just has balls."

"And Holly still thinks it was her idea to gatecrash the 
party and for you to masquerade as Madelyne O'Neil?" Raven 
asked cautiously and Stephanie smiled "I made sure she 
thought it was her idea. Relax no one knew any differently. 
They all thought I was Madelyne. Even her boyfriend thought 
I was."

"Speaking of which I can't believe you did something so 
stupid." Raven said, shaking her head in disapproval. 
"That's so out of your character. What got into you? Apart 
from Paul Stanley that is?"

Stephanie shook her head "I don't know. Call it a moment of 
weakness. One that won't happen again. Besides it's not 
that a big deal. I knew what I was doing, and would have 
dealt with it if anyone had realised that I wasn't her."

Raven cocked an eyebrow "Would that include killing Paul 
Stanley if it came down to him knowing the truth? Do you 
think you could have done that? Because I don't think you 
could have"

"It wouldn't have come down to that. Besides I couldn't see 
you doing it either, especially if it was Peter Criss" 
Stephanie said calmly and Raven shook her head "You've been 
in this business for so long now and you're still naïve 
sometimes. It always comes down to that. No one must ever 
get in your way and if they do you eliminate them. It's the 
way our lives are. The same goes for Holly. You either 
recruit her or get rid of her."

"So now I have to kill my friends…" Stephanie began 
angrily, before Raven interrupted her "I meant end the 
friendship. Its not safe being friends with people who 
don't know about you, your past or what you do. You should 
know that."

Stephanie nodded "I know but I like her. She accepts me the 
way I am."

"It's a lie though Stephanie. It isn't you. She likes your 
façade." Raven said with a sigh.

"Lets just drop it okay. Everything worked out fine. I know 
where the painting is, and I've got the details needed to 
retrieve it. Just take them and get out of my face." 
Stephanie said tiredly, handing Raven a sheet of designs, 
and roughly sketched maps.

Raven nodded, opening her mouth to say something but 
decided against it and started packing up her case.

"I'll be in touch with you." Looking at Stephanie's tired 
expression she added, "You might want to get some sleep. It 
doesn't look like you got much last night."

Stephanie nodded "I'll let you know how Shandi goes with 
the painting." She said, opening the door to let Raven out.

She closed and locked the door, pressing her forehead 
against the doorframe. Thinking back to last night she 
recalled Paul waking her up twice during the night. The 
last time asking her softly whom she was before falling 
asleep. No one must ever know that he knew that she wasn't 
Madelyne O'Neil. She knew that he would never link the 
robbery of the painting to her, and if so he would never 
find her. They lived in different worlds, worlds they had 
both chosen to live in. The likeliness of ever coming face 
to face again would have to be one in a million.