Curious

Curious by Keith Trezise

Rebecca looked at the briefcase on the table in front of her and stared
at it intently as if this action alone would inexplicably reveal the
contents to her. It was locked and the 3-digit combination lock on each
clasp was a mystery to her. The briefcase looked important. It could
contain thousands of pounds in used banknotes; it might contain nothing
but the owner's half eaten lunch and a half forgotten memory of
considerable inconsequence. But Rebecca really felt that this time she
would find something important inside.

The handbag that had sat on that table in front of her earlier had
yielded very little of interest to her. She had searched it thoroughly
in the vain belief that concealed within she would find unuttered
secrets. The truth was that it was quite ordinary. A storage place for
the feminine accoutrements of life; a moth-eaten purse containing
twelve pounds in cash; a Calibri lighter and two cigarettes in a packet
which held the promise of adultery in the mobile phone number scribbled
hastily on the back; a mobile phone with a battery drained by a lover's
compliments; a sanitary towel for emergencies and all the things
necessary to draw beauty on the face of a woman who felt she had
none.

Rebecca liked to try and judge the person by what she found in their
possessions. It was a game to her. It lightened the burden of what she
had to do. She was usually very accurate too. It surprised her how
people thought their things would be safe if they hid them out of sight
in the linings of their bags, but they never remained hidden from
Rebecca for very long. Her skilful eyes and hands searched out the
craftiest hiding place for valuables.

Many people resented the way that Rebecca made her living out of
desecrating other people's belongings. She argued that if she didn't do
it someone else would and that seemed to be a reasonable assumption. Of
course, she would never dream of doing this unspeakable thing to
friends or members of her own family, but she happily took the luggage
of strangers and rummaged through it.

Her desire to perform this task with regularity was fuelled by her
curiosity. As a child her head was full of "what if's" and "why's".
Curiosity compelled her to search out the truth without compromise. Now
it meant that whenever she had someone else's bag in front of her, she
would not rest until she had found whatever items of value had been
hidden inside them.

There was a distinct difference between 'curious' and 'nosey' in
Rebecca's mind. 'Nosey' meant finding out no matter what the
consequences and 'curious' meant letting the consequences find out for
you.

Of course, Rebecca didn't always have things her own way and her
curiosity will punish her from time to time. Often whilst looking for
those hidden treasures she has injured herself on nail scissors or
needles or other sharp instruments that lurk unseen.

The briefcase seemed quite ordinary enough. Black, mocking
plastic-leather designed to look like something it is not. The gold
metallic components of the briefcase reflected the overhead lighting,
shining straight into Rebecca's eyes, which she had a little difficulty
with. Her mind raced through the many things she might find inside.
There might be a secret compartment stuffed full of jewels. Maybe she
would find thousands of pounds worth of drugs. Or what if the contents
were sinister. A bomb maybe. Curiosity engendered excitement and the
thought of discovering the briefcase's contents send a tingle through
Rebecca's body.

The combination locks were finally dealt with and the case opened up.
There was no explosion so the bomb theory went out of the window.
Rebecca sifted through the documents inside, scrutinised the calculator
and the personal organiser to make sure they didn't hide anything of
more intrinsic value. The contents were emptied out onto the table in
front of her one by one until the case appeared empty. This was the
clever part. This was where Rebecca usually discovered her most
exciting finds. She felt along the lining of the case with her fingers
caressing it like a lover. Nothing. Her search of the briefcase was
disappointing. Nothing of any significance had been hidden in it.

Rebecca looked at the man in front of her and said, "Everything seems
to be in order. I hope you enjoy your visit to the United Kingdom Herr
Schneider."

She turned to the next person in the queue and said, "Anything to
declare?"