by Tyora Moody
“I’m intrigued. I would love to see your collection.” Olivia turned to Annie. “If you do get that call I’m looking for can you forward it to my cell phone? I would like to show Ms. Reed the gallery.”
Annie’s eyes opened wide, but she seemed to think about how her face must have looked. She blinked and said, “Do you think that’s a good idea right now?”
Olivia stared back at Annie. “It’s what I always do. No need to stop the routine.” Turning back towards Toni, Olivia said, “Why don’t you walk with me for a minute? I’d love to show you our gallery. It’s a source of pride for me.”
Toni caught Annie’s face, which appeared too pale. “I appreciate your time, Ms. Niles, but I can come back another time.”
“Oh, no. I insist. And please, call me Olivia or better yet, Liv. Besides, I haven’t been inside the gallery in a few days. I usually visit at least once a day.”
As Toni walked behind Olivia, she observed the woman’s sophistication. She glided down the hall like a beauty queen. Really, Olivia and Paul were a beautiful couple.
Olivia turned and smiled. “My mother spent her life as an artist. Our foundation was established for her. I like to visit our gallery because I keep some of her artwork here. It’s a way for me to be close to my mother even though she’s not physically here anymore.”
As they approached the gallery, Toni noticed there was a door on the right roped off with yellow police tape.
Was this where Jade was attacked?
Toni pointed. “Did something happen here?”
Olivia’s face appeared flushed. “There was an incident here after our fundraiser the other night.”
An incident.
Toni inquired. “I thought I saw something on the news the other night. There was a person of interest sketch.”
Olivia eyed Toni for a moment. “Yes, there was someone here that shouldn’t have been here. That person managed to get into my gallery too. We’re leaving it to the police to figure out what really happened.”
Toni frowned.
There was a robbery.
She wanted to ask more questions, but realized she was already in a precarious situation by coming this far.
What would Cam think of her being here?
Chapter 7
Friday, June 9 at 11:03 am
She followed Olivia into a breezeway. The sun felt warm against her chilled skin as they walked towards the gallery entrance. Toni looked behind her recalling the details of Jade’s story during their session. Toni agreed with Cam’s observation. With enough light Jade could have seen her attacker’s face.
Olivia punched numbers on a keypad by the door. A click echoed into the hallway indicating the doors were unlocked. When she pushed the double doors open, Toni caught her breath. As she stepped onto the hardwood floors, her eyes fixated on a sculpture more than six feet in height. The piece depicted a woman holding a baby.
Olivia raised her arms. “Isn’t this stunning? This was one of the last pieces my mom did before the cancer took her. It was a massive undertaking for her. Took her three years to complete.”
Toni stared. “It’s beautiful. Now that I look at it, the foundation’s logo has the shape of the sculpture etched in the middle.”
Olivia beamed. “Yes! You are an artist. Many people never recognize that.”
“So this gallery is used for fundraisers. Is it open to the public?”
“The gallery was built two years ago as a labor of love. We hold two fundraisers a year here. And yes, we open it to the public on Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday afternoons.” Olivia’s smile faded. “Unfortunately after this week, we may need to keep it closed to the public for a few weeks.”
Toni looked around and her eyes fell on a painting on the wall to her right. “I recognize this artist.”
Olivia nodded. “Yes, Gloria Anderson. She painted that portrait of the pink roses for the fundraiser we had Tuesday. We sold it. ”
Even though she came today for one purpose, Toni thought it would be nice to have her artwork featured here. She’d worked with galleries in the past, but the commission didn’t make it easy to sell her paintings. Establishing her own business had been the best move for her.
As they continued walking Toni noticed there was a bare area on the wall. There were marks on the wall indicating the size of the painting.
Where was the painting? Was this the stolen painting?
Toni bent to read the white card that remained. The missing painting, titled Rose Garden, was also a Gloria Anderson original. It was painted in 1996. Twenty years old. Wow. Probably worth a lot of money.
Behind her she heard someone clear their throat.
Toni stepped back to find Olivia watching her. She waited to see if Olivia would offer any information about the missing painting.
Olivia smiled faintly. “So when can I see your pieces?”
Toni took a deep breath. “You are so kind. I really just came here by chance to see if I could get involved. I can bring my portfolio next week if that’s okay.”
“Sure, setup a time with Annie at the front desk. I look forward to seeing your work.”
“Sounds like a plan.”
Olivia narrowed her eyes. “I am curious though. You mentioned an idea centered on domestic violence. Is this personal?”
Toni swallowed. The thought occurred again that Liv might already know who she was. If so, why wouldn’t she come right out and say something? “The collection is pretty personal. In fact, I haven’t shown anyone these pieces before, so you would be one of the first to see them.”
“Oh, well, I really can’t wait.” Olivia looked at her phone. “I have a lunch meeting I need to get to in twenty minutes. It was nice of you to stop by. Please feel free to check out the rest of the gallery. The doors will automatically lock behind you.”
“Thank you.” Toni watched as Olivia walked out. This was not a part of her plan, but she was willing to go with the scenario. If Cam knew what she was doing, he probably wouldn’t be too pleased with her.
She walked around the gallery, looking at the various artists. Towards the center of the gallery, a platform and chairs were set up. Toni recognized the set up from the photos she saw on the foundation’s Instagram page. With the various paintings and items in the gallery, there had to be a lot more security. She returned her gaze to the wall with the missing painting. She knew that Gloria Anderson painting had to be worth thousands of dollars. How did someone break in? They would’ve had to obtain the security code to enter.
Toni looked up and noticed several cameras. She wondered how many other places on the floor had cameras.
She moved towards the exit and walked out into the breezeway. The gallery doors clicked behind her. She tried to pull on the doors. They wouldn’t budge.
Toni viewed the Charlotte skyline from the windows. It would’ve been dark, but the windows would have let in a good bit of light from the sky and the surrounding buildings. Jade said she thought she saw a shadow in front of her. Toni noticed cameras on both sides of the walkway. She didn’t want Cam to know she was here, but certainly he had to have access to the camera footage.
After Toni entered the hallway, she stopped in front of the taped door. Jade said she was pulled into the office and assaulted. Olivia had described it as an incident.
Incident… That bothers me.
Cam claimed Paul had an alibi, but he didn’t elaborate about Paul’s whereabouts in Charlotte. People were known to lie to protect their loved ones. Suppose Olivia conveniently made Paul’s name disappear from the guest list?
She looked up towards the ceiling again noting there wasn’t a camera near the office door where Jade was assaulted. Toni hadn’t noticed before when she followed Liv to the gallery, but right across from the office door was a stairwell. She opened the door and saw the number three on the wall. She didn’t notice a camera on the stairwell. For a moment, she thought about exploring the stairwell some more, but changed her mind. There were a lot of q
uestions on her mind for Cam.
As Toni headed back towards the receptionist desk, she saw another camera. That camera was behind the receptionist desk and faced the elevator doors. She also glimpsed a monitor in the corner of the desk she hadn’t noticed.
With a security guard downstairs, there was no doubt about the level of security in the building. Surely the person who attacked Jade had to have been aware of the cameras. How did they get in and out undetected? Maybe they used the stairwell to enter and exit the floor.
Annie called out to her. “All finished with your tour?”
Toni smiled but noticed Annie’s smile seemed strained. “Thanks for the introduction. I certainly wasn’t expecting to meet Olivia Niles or get a tour, especially after the incident on Tuesday.”
The faint smile disappeared on Annie’s face. “Liv is dedicated to this foundation. Sometimes she doesn’t use the best judgment. She was impressed with you though. She mentioned you would want to make an appointment.”
Doesn’t use the best judgment. That was a curious statement.
Toni pulled out her phone. “When would be a good time? I’m self-employed so I’m pretty flexible.”
“Must be nice. Well, her first available appointment next week is Tuesday morning at ten o’clock.”
“That works for me. By the way, I was asking earlier about Jade Lewis, your social media manager.”
Annie scrunched her nose. “Our social media person is Carol Landers.”
Toni froze. “Really? Is she new?”
Annie shook her head. “I’ve been here two years and Carol was already a part of the team. I think Liv and Carol have known each other since like college.”
Now Toni was puzzled. “Oh. Does Carol have interns or other assistants?”
“Sometimes. Yeah, I guess she does, but she’s pretty efficient with managing our social media.”
Toni asked, “So you don’t know a Jade Lewis at all?”
Annie narrowed her eyes. “She’s one of our volunteers. Why are you asking? You’re not some reporter, are you?”
“No. No. Jade told me about the Niles Foundation. She was the one assaulted here the other night.”
Annie narrowed her eyes. “You definitely sound like a reporter. Are you really an artist?”
“Oh, I’m definitely an artist, just naturally curious.”
Annie peered at her. “We’re sorry about what happened to Jade. I will say nothing like this has ever happened before. The detective thinks she got in the way during the robbery.”
Toni tried to process what she heard. “I’m sure the detective will find the culprit.” Toni smiled. “I’ll see you next week.”
Annie quickly smiled. “You have a good day and we’ll see you next week.”
Toni turned and walked over to press the elevator button. She glanced back at Annie who was staring at her, her smile gone. The woman turned and started tapping on the keyboard. Toni stepped onto the elevator.
Annie seemed almost hostile about Jade as if she blamed her for the entire incident as Olivia called it.
Toni wondered what really happened to Jade on Tuesday. Were Olivia and Annie trying to protect someone else by downplaying Jade’s assault?
Chapter 8
Saturday, June 10 at 1:10 pm
She had only been to Cam’s house once when he moved in about a year ago. Cori managed to recruit her to help with the move. It turned out to be a lot of fun that day. Today’s visit wasn’t going to be quite as memorable. She hated to bother him on a Saturday, but there was no way she could keep what she learned to herself all weekend.
Cam lived in a quiet neighborhood that was fifteen minutes from downtown Charlotte. She wasn’t too surprised that Cam became a cop. He’d hung over at their house on many occasions with Cori. Growing up without his dad around, Justice Reed became Cam’s surrogate father. Cam really was like another brother. He teased her just as much as her own brother, which she didn’t mind. She’d enjoyed his attention, but she never wanted Cam to know how much she really liked him.
When Cam went off to play football at Florida State, they all grew apart. Later when he returned to Charlotte after a short stint in the NFL, he and Cori picked up their friendship. She kept her distance mainly because Cam always seemed to have a girlfriend. Plus, Cam was just her brother’s best friend. Nothing more.
Right now as she rang Cam’s doorbell, Toni hoped she was not jeopardizing her own friendship.
Cam opened the door dressed in a Carolina Panthers t-shirt and jeans. “Hey, what a surprise.”
Toni smiled trying to keep from staring at Cam’s muscular arms. “I hope I’m not disturbing you.”
He frowned. “Not at all. I’m always happy to see you. Come on back. I’m working in my shop, if that’s okay.”
“I forgot you had plans to setup a woodworking shop in the garage. So, you did it?” Toni stepped inside. Cam’s style was contemporary. His dark wood floors stretched from his sleek living room back to his state-of-the art kitchen. She followed him through the kitchen out to his two-car garage.
On one side of the garage, his old Camaro sat covered. On the other side, Cam had built in shelves to hold his woodworking tools. Lined up on other shelves were various creations.
She nodded. “I’m impressed.”
He grinned. “I finished the setup about three months ago. Turned out to be a great winter project. Me and you really need to hang out more.”
Now, why would he say that?
Toni’s face grew warm. She walked away from him to examine the items on the counter. Her embarrassment forgotten, she picked up a wooden train and turned around to face him. “This is gorgeous. Are you selling any of these?”
Cam shrugged. “Not really. I’ve been giving some of them away at Christmas and other times of the year to a few children’s charities.”
“These would sell well on Etsy.”
“Etsy?”
“It’s an e-commerce platform for people who like to create and sell handmade items. Really, you can sell a variety of things. My store is how I get a lot of customers.”
“Well, maybe you can help me get setup. It would be a good excuse to hang out.”
Toni’s face burned. Is Cam seriously flirting with me?
She placed the train back on the counter. He would change his tune soon. Toni crossed her arms and sighed.
Cam looked at her. “You didn’t come by today to talk about my side projects. What’s on your mind, Toni? You look like something is troubling you.”
“Yea. Remember the other day you mentioned Paul had a fiancée?”
Cam nodded slowly. “Yes.”
“I met her. Olivia Niles.”
He blew out a breath as though he needed to prepare himself. “Why did you go see Ms. Niles? Do you really think that was a good idea?”
Toni said, “I told her my name. She didn’t seem to make any connection, not unless she just didn’t know that I knew Paul.”
Cam’s eyes opened wide. “What if she shares your name with Paul?”
“It wasn’t my plan to see her. I went there to reach out to Jade.”
Cam rubbed his temple. “This is not sounding any better. Why would you want to see Jade? Wait, why am I asking? This kind of thing runs in your family.”
She ignored Cam’s sarcasm. “If you’re saying I’m having trouble letting go of what’s bothering me… Guilty. I don’t see how Jade couldn’t have known Paul due to the fact that she works for his fiancée.”
Cam frowned, “I don’t think Jade is on the payroll. She’s a volunteer. I’ve seen the volunteer list. It’s not a small listing.”
“Still, she should know something about Olivia. If Jade manages the social media, you can’t miss them as a couple.” Toni paced the garage floor with her arms crossed. “I also saw the area where Jade was attacked. Olivia kind of swept it under the rug.”
Cam grimaced. “I’m sure Ms. Niles didn’t want to draw attention to a stranger that a woman was attack
ed on the premises. Her foundation is about helping women. At this point, she’s protecting the foundation’s reputation. When we released the composite to the media, she requested discretion.”
Toni asked, “I understand all that. I just thought she still should’ve been more empathetic. Jade was volunteering at her fundraiser event. Speaking of the crime scene area, I assume there are DNA samples.”
Cam let out a deep sigh. “What is with the third degree here? Yes, we took Jade’s clothes. Unfortunately, the office was used by quite a few people so investigators had a hard time finding any distinguishing fingerprints that didn’t belong.”
“What about the cameras?”
Cam stared at her. “You really went to the Niles Foundation on a quest.”
“It wasn’t my plan. Remember, I’m used to listening to my siblings talk. It was natural to look for cameras. If the gallery had valuables, surely there would be security.”
Cam shifted on his feet like he didn’t really feel like talking anymore.
Toni knew she should probably stop with her questions, but she couldn’t resist asking. “What else do you know about Jade?”
Cam rubbed his hands across his head. “Did you seriously come here to ask me to look into the victim? You of all people should be on the victim’s side. The woman was assaulted. And a valuable painting was stolen.”
Toni paused. “I wonder how someone pulled that off.” She quickly added, “I’m not saying that something didn’t happen to Jade.”
“Then what are you trying to accomplish with your little investigation?”
She’d never heard that tone of voice from Cam before. Toni observed Cam before responding.
“I see I’ve stepped over the line here. I’m sorry. This was obviously as you said a robbery. I was just confused. Jade flat out told me she was the social media manager. The receptionist, Annie, said she was just a volunteer. She embellished her role at the Niles Foundation. Why?”
“Toni, that’s not a reason to be questioning the victim. It wasn’t her fault she left her phone and someone happened to be in the building up to no good.”