Lorelei Chase was an enigma. The well connected, and well endowed, heiress to the vast Chase fortune was and, at the same time, was not known for being a party girl. She would show up to some of the right parties, but not others. No one knew why. And even when she did attend a party, she shied away from the attention, never doing drugs, or getting drunk, or having a wardrobe malfunction.’



She partied, yet managed to maintain an air of respectability. Some of this restraint was justifiable due to her role in life. She was, after all, head of the Board of Directors of the mighty Chase Foundation, thus, Lorelei had to maintain a certain sense of decorum.







The Chase Foundation was founded in 1930 by John Chase, who passed control on to his son John Chase, Jr. His children, John Chase, III and Meridian Chase Easterling were supposed to assume control next. Unfortunately, they and their spouses were killed in the tragic crash of their private jet during a winter storm in the French Alps.



So, control of the Foundation fell upon the grandchildren of John Chase, Jr., John III’s two daughters Lorelei and Kayla, and son Allan; and Meridian’s twin daughters Cheyenne and Shania.



So now the five of them, Lorelei, Kayla, and Allan Chase, along with their cousins, Cheyenne and Shania Easterling , suddenly found themselves as the entire Board of Directors of the mighty Chase Foundation. Of course like any multi-national, multi-billion dollar Foundation, day-to-day operations were run by the lawyers and accountants. This freed up the five to pursue other more interesting activities.







The enigma as to why and which parties Lorelei attended, though seemed to somehow be one of the incredible attractions about her. For the more she seemed to shun the party crowd, the more she was sought after as the person to have in attendance.



With her stunning looks, her rich, red burgundy tresses, and her gorgeous endowments, no event seemed complete unless Lorelei made an appearance.



She would loved to have been able to go to every party that was held, but what the public didn’t know and nobody as of yet had made the connection, was that every time Lorelei missed a party, that same night the superheroine known as Scarlet Lass was making an appearance, and breaking up some nefarious criminal activity. You see, Lorelei Chase and Scarlet Lass were one in the same.







But there was one event that she was not going to miss, the opening of the Chase Diamond Collection in the Chase Museum. This was in celebration of the Diamond Jubilee of the Chase Foundation.



It had been planned for over a year, but at the last minute, Lorelei wanted to display some of her personal collection. This was a surprise to everybody who worked at the Foundation, and was met with resistance by her insurance companies, but the Board of Directors agreed and insisted on the addition.



Her insurance companies were reluctant because they knew that the exhibition alone would bring out every criminal element there was in the city. Then to add part of her personal diamond collection would just be asking for trouble, especially after the incident at the Easterling Estate last month. Nothing was stolen but, still it was a strange incident none the less. Things were broken and security systems didn’t work.



They reasoned that every criminal from the lowest con artist all the way up to the mightiest supervillians would love to steal those diamonds, especially Jewell, the well known supervillianess and jewel thief. She loved diamonds more than anything.



And that’s precisely why Lorelei insisted on the addition to the exhibition. She thought that this would be a great opportunity to set a trap for Jewell.



Lorelei relieved some of the insurance company fears by assuring them that Scarlet Lass would probably be around to help with the protection.







At the Chase Museum:



The Invitation Only Gala was an extravagant affair, and like anything that the Chase Foundation had anything to do with, it was spectacular.



There were search lights at the entrance, limos, red carpet, even the obligatory press line with Inside Edition, Entertainment Tonight, Access Hollywood, and even Ross the Intern from the Tonight Show, and so many photographers you would have thought that strobe lights had been set up.



It seemed that every A list celebrity had accepted the invitation and showed up. Even some politicians in the area were invited. Nobody wanted to be left out in the cold on this one. Nobody that is except her siblings and cousins. They gave the appearance of being quite bored with all the hoopla. (“Why are people interested in bits of carbon that our great-grandfather dug up? they told the press.) And besides they had other more pressing matters to attend to.



On the night of the gala, security was tighter than a presidential visit, but remarkably invisible. The heightened security had nothing to do with who was in attendance, but rather what was on display: an estimated 200 million worth of jewelry. The large value was based on not only what was on display within the Museum, but also all the bling worn on the wrists, ears, and around the necks of all the celebrities.



But as always happens, no matter how tight the security, there are always holes, and Jewell knew how to exploit holes.



Since practically every caterer in the area was hired for the event, it was simple enough for Jewell to contact one of her friends to arrange to have two of her personal assistants help work the event. That’s how Jewell had been able to steal all of those diamonds from the rich and famous.



She knew the layout because she had one of, if not both of her two assistants scoping out the inside. After the event, they would report back every detail about the place and the security precautions in question. The two could be very persuasive. All it took was a blow job or some rug munching here or there and they knew all they needed to know in order for Jewell to be able to come back at the time of her choosing.



And so it would be this time as well.







The Gala was a smashing success. Everybody loved it and it went on to the wee hours of the morning. Though bottles and bottles of Champaign and wine were consumed, Lorelei had very little. She knew that tonight would be the best time for Jewell to attempt to steal the diamonds.



The 6 00 (in heels) Lorelei looked radiant in her wispy, turquoise, taffeta designer dress, accented by matching blue crystal necklace, bracelet and earrings.



The halteresque dress was actually made of two pieces. The lower half was basically a waist wrap skirt that tied together at the hip and left a wide opening up the leg and was accented with ruffled and swirled edges. On the dance floor, the opening caught the air and the multiple layers, billowed nicely, making it look fuller than it really was. It made for a great party and dance dress.



The top piece wrapped around the neck like a halter, came down each side in the front to discretely cover her velvety, smooth, all natural 37C melons. (Chase women were blessed in that way.) The two ends then came together and were tied to the knot of the skirt. This left the back fully exposed, except for the single spaghetti strap that ran across the back and kept the material from just bunching up and being a dual piece of cloth laying down the center of her chest. It didn’t, thankfully, prevent the display on the sides of her ample endowments. And there was plenty to see in the front in the cleavage area. When she walked, it seemed that more skin was exposed than covered.



Everything was going along fine that evening; until Lorelei sensed that something wasn’t right. She got the feeling right when a waiter was offering her an hors d’oeuvre. She looked up and saw his face as he turned to offer the plate to the gentleman who was talking to her. She froze as the recognition of who the server was sank in: Tazman. The memories of last month at the Easterling Estate came crashing back. . . . . . .







The previous month at the Easterling Estate, there had been an incident at a cocktail party where some of the diamonds were on display. Well, it wasn’t really in their mansion there; it was in the Chase Foundation House. The Easterling’s became part of the Chase Empire when Phillip Easterling married Meridian Chase, thus the Chase Foundation House was on the property of the Easterling Estate.



When someone mentioned Foundation House, there was no question as to what they were referring to. It was an old historic, original Victorian styled house that Meridian had expanded and converted into a party house. That way they could throw a party but still have their own private house to retreat to. And once the Foundation took over operating and maintaining the building, it became a great tax write off.



They threw parties for everything and everyone: Make-a-Wish, Cancer Society, Diabetes Foundation, etc. And lots of fund raisers for the local symphony, Arts, and cultural activities. There were also Easter egg hunts, 4th of July fireworks, Concerts in the Grove (an outdoors, summer concert series) and Halloween parties for the under privileged kids in the city. Even if the Easterling’s or the Chase’s, when they were alive, or their children didn’t make an appearance it was still a thrill to say you went to a party at Foundation House.



Tonight was no different. Tonight there was a concert at the Easterling Concert Hall in town and a pre-concert cocktail party was being held at Foundation House for the Diamond Circle, the organizing committee for the Diamond Jubilee.



Included in the night’s activities was a preview of some of the diamonds from the Chase Diamond Collection that would go on display the next month at the museum.



Lorelei Chase, as the honorary chair of the Diamond Circle, sent her regards saying she had another commitment, that commitment being to patrol the area as Scarlet Lass. The other Chase and Easterling children were off gallivanting somewhere, who knew where.



The party was an intimate affair with only a few dozen people in attendance



Scarlet stayed hidden on the grounds so that she could observe all of the attendees and caterers as they arrived and as they left. Except for the caterers, she knew all of them, so she wasn’t that concerned that any of them would try to steal any of the jewels. She was on the look out for any uninvited guests.



Nothing happened during the party, and soon all the patrons had left in their limos for the concert. Since all but one of the catering trucks had left, Scarlet Lass thought it would be a good time to make an appearance and check in with security to let them know that she had been there.



She walked up the front steps, into the reception lobby, and toward the little security desk where there sat a lone security guard.



Leaning back in a chair behind the desk with a little color TV on it, was what looked like an 18-year-old kid, wearing headphones, chewing gum and looking through a copy of the latest issue of Scarlet Lass, The Comic Book.”



“ahhh, hummm, said Scarlet, clearing her throat as she approached. Nothing.



“AHHHH, HMMMM, she said louder standing right in front of the kid.



The security guard looked up startled. Standing before him was the one and only, real live, Scarlet Lass.