The inspector buried his head in his hands. "So - the Phantom escaped again?"

"Yes, sir."

"Alright. Give me your report."

"We followed your plan exactly, sir. The diamond was in place, the area surrounded. Every escape route was covered."

"What went wrong."

The agent hung his head. "We were waiting for the Phantom to show when we received a call that the van that had brought the stone had been found a kilometre away, the driver bound and gagged. When we released him ... "

"Let me guess. The Phantom had already got there and taken the real diamond?"

"Leaving behind a fake, sir."

The inspector groaned.