Something wicked this way comes.
— The Wicked Bitch Of The Heist
We left the Lakeside Saloon and went to The Bitter End. Even in Gary, there's haves and have-nots. I wanted her to see how the other half lives.
"We need to sit down," I said, "because the room is starting to spin a little."
"We are sitting."
"Then we really need to sit down."
Going from one bar to another was a mistake. I thought if she was surrounded by rich people it'd be easier to convince her she could be one of them. But we left a dark bar for an even darker bar, which defeated the purpose. Everyone disappeared in the shadows. I forgot that's why I liked the place.
Didn't matter.
I had to give up on my pitch for a while so I could pretend to be having fun. I've never been good at the friends thing, but I needed this to work. I needed her to feel like we were making a connection.
I'd already tried with too many partners. I always failed for the same reasons. They didn't understand why it had to be the right marks and done the right way. And they didn't need it like I did.
For me, it wasn't about the money. It was about the get.
Guys like The B needed to get got, and I needed to be the one to get 'em. I knew how to do it. My plan was perfect, but it was a plan for two. I knew this girl could be the one, because she wasn't stupid, and she needed it too, for different reasons.
I said, "I'm serious about before. The stuff I was telling you? I've got a plan. I need a partner."
I showed her the pictures again. The marks I'd been saving.
"Look at these guys. Every one of 'em has something that's worth a lot of money. I know how to get it without them knowing."
"What are you stealing?"
"A piece of paper."
"What's on it?"
"Words."
"Obviously. Come on. What is this, a blackmail thing?"
I had her on the line. I could feel it.
Time to reel her in.
"Take another swig of that drink and hit it hard, because we're about to get... technical."
As she took a huge gulp, I took a deep breath.
This was the moment I'd been dreading. I just needed her to understand the money involved, and how it would be easy to get if we did it my way.
I said, "Are you familiar with Bitcoin?"
"Oh shit. I knew you were wasting my time. Hey, thanks for the hooch. This was fun, but..."
"Listen. Bitcoin is easy to steal, it's easy to sell, and it's worth a lot of money. Each of these guys has a piece of paper with a bunch of words on it. They're called Seed Words. I can explain it all if you want, but here's what you need to know. Their words give me their Bitcoin. Watch. I'll show you."
I held up a picture of a post-it note with 12 words.
rhythm agree hockey discover gift symbol walk opera patrol north cargo maze
"Those words belong to this guy," I said, pointing at a picture of a mark as I reached for my phone. "Watch this."
I tapped on the screen a few times and laid it on the table, so she could see. "I just sent his Bitcoin to myself. It'll show up soon. Meanwhile, he's in Oak Lawn. His wallet is about to go to zero and he'll have no idea what just happened."
My phone vibrated when the Bitcoin arrived, and her eyes got wide. The app showed a balance of $50,015 in Bitcoin, in my wallet.
"It's done," I said. "His coins are mine now."
"Hold up. You just stole fifty grand?"
"Fifty grand and change. Pretty sweet."
"How. How?!? How the fuck did you do that?"
"Like I said, his words give me his Bitcoin. I found them written on a sticky note. Dumbass stuck it to the bottom of his keyboard, like a thief isn't gonna look under there."
"I don't understand that crypto shit. You're saying, words on a sticky note are worth fifty grand?"
"And change."
"That's insane."
"That's how Bitcoin works. The coins are online. The words give you access to the coins, from anywhere. With Bitcoin, the words are the most important thing. People are supposed to keep their words somewhere safe. Most guys don't, and they don't even realize it."
"Why the fuck not?"
"Guys only think about online hackers. I'm not a hacker. I'm a chick who finds their words."
"Why would anybody buy this shit if it's so easy to steal?"
"That's the thing. Bitcoin is impossible to steal if you set it up right. But these guys? They think they're smarter than they are. They think their Bitcoin is safe because their phone is locked. But it's not about a phone or an app. It's about the words. Find the words, you've got the coins."
"Then why are their words on a piece of paper?"
"You're supposed to keep a copy of your seed words on paper as a backup. On paper, so online hackers can't reach them. But you've gotta store the paper somewhere safe. Most guys don't. And they make themselves a target by letting you know they own Bitcoin. That's how I get 'em. I search their homes and find where they wrote down their seed words. I don't even steal the piece of paper. I just take a picture of it. Now you see why I use a Polaroid? Instant film means I leave no trace."
"Wow. That's so fucked up. I don't even know what to say."
"Say you're in, and you get half."
"Whoa. I don't even know your name."
"I'm Shayna. And you are?"
"Skeptical."
I could tell she was in.
"So, Shaaayna," she said, knowing damn well that's not my real name. "You need me to fuck some guys..."
"You don't have to fuck anyone. That's the best part."
"Then, how does this work?"
"I'm buying a house and a hot tub. I'm offering you a place to live, and we're gonna live large. I'll cover all the expenses."
"And what do I do?"
"It's what we'll do. We'll go trolling for marks. I'll spot the guy. You'll flirt with him. Get him to ask you on a date. He needs to think it was his idea, so he won't realize it's a setup. You'll invite him back to the house. While the two of you are in the hot tub, I'll go through his pants to get his driver's license and keys. I'll make copies and put 'em back. He'll have no way of knowing some chick he never met has his address and the keys to his place."
"That's..."
"It's really good, right?"
She said, "It's wicked, bitch," and she smiled, though she tried to hide it.
I smiled too. "With the flapping of my gums, something wicked this way comes."
"What the...?"
"It's Shakespeare. I botched it."
I fucking NAILED it.
She grinned even wider, and that's when I knew. Hey girl, I gahchoo!
I said, "If we can get two or three guys a week, we'll be filthy rich by this time next year."
"Why me? Because you need a bad girl?"
"I'm bad enough for two. I need a good one."
"Seriously, cut the shit. Why me?"
"I need you because you need this."
"How do you know what I need?"
"I know because I've been you. Okay, maybe not the same, but close enough. You're trapped and I know the way out. I know because I've been there. I won't let you down."
"And if we screw up? Is one of us gonna end up in a ditch?"
"No. Here's why my plan is perfect. I never meet the mark. You never go to the mark's home. I never steal anything at his place. I just find his seed words and take a picture. He'll never know I was there. I'm a ghost. And I wait before I steal his Bitcoin so he'll have no way to connect when he got robbed to when he met you. He'll think he got hacked online."
"Wow. That's..."
"That's how it's done."
"And you're gonna pay me."
"I'm gonna pay you well. After expenses, you get half. One year or one million dollars, whichever comes first."
"Expenses? Like what?"
"Like, for starters, I'm buying a house and a hot tub. We need to get you some fancy clothes and a new look. And I wanna get started on all of it, tomorrow. You in?"
"Jesus. You always go so fast?"
"What, are you scared?"
"I didn't say that."
"You don't look like you're easily scared," I lied.
"I'm not."
She lied too. Good. Two liars are better than one.
Editor's Note:
The Bitcoin word list consists of 2048 words.
The words represent numbers which are converted to binary.
The binary is used as entropy to generate a unique Bitcoin wallet.
Bitcoin is not stored in an app or on a device. Bitcoin exists online, as entries on the blockchain. The wallet holds the keys to the coins. The seed words generate the keys.
For safety reasons, any seed phrase printed in this novel has been intentionally altered to be invalid and cannot be used to access a Bitcoin wallet.
And for the record, the correct quote from William Shakespeare is, "By the pricking of my thumbs, Something wicked this way comes."
In Macbeth, Act 4, Scene 1, the Second Witch speaks this line as Macbeth approaches.