Chapter 3
Nicoleta stomped the packed snow from her boots right inside the back door of her cottage. Since settling in over a week ago, the snow hadn’t stopped. She wasn’t used to snow like they had in Montana. It was hard work keeping her drive and walk clean, but she was enjoying it. Actually, she was enjoying everything about the little cottage. She got a thrill every time she walked in the door, even when it was coming in from shoveling snow.
The first couple of days she’d been worried the solitude would trigger flashbacks of her time being held by Craig. For ten years, she’d been isolated from everyone except those he chose to watch over or abuse her at his bidding. She needn’t have worried. The ladies in town, along with Oxana and Katy had been taking turns stopping by for coffee and to check on her. Amara made a point to call and stop by daily as well.
She was grateful for the company, but equally grateful when they left. Having been so isolated for so long, it was sometimes difficult for her to be around people and appreciated her solitude when offered the luxury of it. When alone, she was free to do as she pleased.
If she wanted to read a book, she could. If she wanted to bake, she did. If she felt like scrubbing the floors at three in the morning there was no one to stop her. And, if she wanted to go for a walk, all she had to do was open the door and go. Simple freedoms normal people took for granted were as thrilling to Nicoleta as winning the lottery was to others. At times, it brought tears to her eyes how she could do what she wanted, go where she wanted, feel what she wanted any time she wanted.
She slipped her gloves off, stuffing them into the pockets of her wool lined suede leather coat. Smiling at something Duncan had said when he gave it to her, she slipped out of it and turned to hang it on the peg by the door. Nicoleta clutched the coat to her as she looked at the three empty pegs drilled into the wall. She thought she had left a flannel robe hanging from the peg farthest from the door.
“You’re being silly.” She spoke aloud. At the moment, she needed someone’s voice, even her own, to dispel the feeling that something wasn’t right.
As she hung her coat on the peg closest to the door, she silently talked herself out of being afraid. There was no reason someone would take her robe. And who would do such a thing anyway? Amara had been the last one over yesterday evening around six. Nicoleta must have only thought she’d hung it out here. It was probably in her bedroom, hanging on the back of the bathroom door.
She bent down and untied her boots, slipping them off and placing them neatly on the floor directly under her coat. Looking around, she noticed her house shoes were not in their normal place. “What is wrong with me? Did I sleep walk and take everything back to the bedroom?”
Chilled from being outside, she checked the back door to ensure it was locked before hurrying through the cottage for a warm shower and dry clothes. There was no time to think about the past or missing items. Today was a celebration.
Today she was starting her new job.
She had a job! The concept of such a thing was frightening but so exhilarating she could barely contain her giddiness. It was like Yuletide as a child; the presents, merriment, lighting candles. She laughed out loud as she stepped into the shower.
“Today I start the next phase of my new life. Thank you, goddess for this gift of freedom.”
Nicoleta carefully picked her way around the icy spots on the sidewalk. She was nervous; a swarm of butterflies had taken up residence in her belly. Between the icy sidewalk and her nerves she was having difficulty keeping her balance. The low-heel dress-boots she wore might not have been the best choice for safety after a five-inch snowfall. Every time she took a step she slipped and wobbled.
Her foot landed on what appeared to be wet pavement and suddenly she found herself slipping and sliding; her arms flapping wildly in an attempt to steady herself. Suddenly a strong arm wrapped around her. Without conscious thought, her hand flew back smacking someone in the face.
Nicoleta knew the arm around her middle was that of a man. Her first instinct was to fight. Her only instinct was to fight. She would never be at the mercy of another man.
“Let me go!” She gritted out as she struggled.
The arm around her tightened, lifting her easily from the ground. Nicoleta tried to turn her head to the side to see him but all she could see was the faux ermine trim of her coat’s hood. The new coat was a present from Oxana. A gift for her first day as the new manager of the Sapphire Springs Art Gallery. The butterflies in her stomach turned to acid. Flashbacks of Craig forcing her to his will. Unknown men pawing at her flooded her mind.
She tried to breathe through the post-traumatic flashback. She told herself it wasn’t Craig and she was not in his dungeon again. Clawing blindly at the arm around her, she only scratched at the front of her own coat. The arm was gone. Pushing the hood of her coat back, she fought to see who was right in front of her and not who her mind wanted her to believe was standing there.
“Forgive me, Ms. Davis. I saw you were about to fall. I shouldn’t have taken the liberty.”
Nicoleta’s vision began to clear as the barely familiar voice registered in her head. Standing before her was Viktor Mitchel with his daughter, Tia. Humiliated she turned her back to them. She had to regain her control. Nothing good would come from breaking down in the middle of town in front of her new boss and her boss’s father.
“Nicoleta, are you okay?” Tia asked. Cautiously, she made her way closer to the older woman but didn’t touch her. Before hiring Nicoleta, Cole had made sure Tia knew as much as she could about PTSD. Sudden movements, loud noises, even a caring touch could sometimes throw the individual suffering from an episode into a deeper sense of panic.
Nicoleta used the tools she was learning in therapy. She concentrated on her breathing; slow, steady breaths as she worked through the flashbacks and separated reality from the past. Once she had her composure, she turned back to face Tia and Viktor.
“I’m so sorry.” Her voice was unsteady as she spoke. Her eyes darted up and down the sidewalk looking for passersby who might have seen her hysterics.
“There is no need to apologize.” Tia smiled gently. “Let’s get inside where it is warm.”
“You mean you still want me to work for you? After that?”
“Of course I do.” Tia patted her bulging belly, “I need you to run the place when I’m off with this one.” She spoke of her impending paternity leave. “Now let’s go inside where it is warm and get you familiar with everything. I think Kylie and I are in a race to see who delivers first.”
Tia’s reassuring smile and natural friendliness went a long way in alleviating Nicoleta’s nerves. She was still embarrassed over the scene she’d made, but she wanted this job. Turning to Viktor, Nicoleta attempted a smile, “Thank you. I’m sorry….”
Nicoleta allowed her voice to trail off. She couldn’t think of the right words to convey what her chaotic mind was thinking. What was she supposed to say after attacking the person trying to help her from taking a bad fall on ice?
Viktor nodded his head once; a short acknowledgment of her thanks and apology. He couldn’t believe how drawn he was to this woman. Of course, he’d heard of Nicoleta Davis from the news reports about her life with her ex-husband. He’d met her briefly a week ago when he helped her move the bin into her shed. But try as he did, he could not find a valid reason to drop in on her again.
The news had speculated about this woman and made it seem they were reporting facts. All he really knew of Nicoleta Davis he had learned from eavesdropping on his daughter’s conversations. Nicoleta’s marriage to the ex-Senator had not been an easy one. She had been held prisoner by him for a decade and subjected to unbelievable horrors. The fact the woman was standing on the sidewalk about to start a new job and not in some mental hospital simply amazed him. Her strength was phenomenal.
It only made him want to know her more.
“Please, don’t give it another thought. I should be more sensitive to
the fact that I am a stranger in these parts. I am unharmed and should be apologizing to you for frightening you. Let us go inside where it is warm. I know Tia has been looking forward to you starting work today.” Viktor swept his arm out in a gentlemanly move allowing the women to precede him to the gallery.
As his daughter unlocked the door, Viktor searched for a more comfortable topic of discussion. He did not want to let an opportunity to know her better slip by. His body actually warmed at the idea of it.
He’d been with women since the death of his wife twenty years ago, but he couldn’t say he’d taken the time to get to know them. They were usually women of a certain caliber who had no compunction being with a wealthy, powerful man for a night or a little longer. Viktor had never paid for companionship, but the women in his past were only a step or two above a high price call girl.
They certainly weren’t in the same league of the beautiful, poised, but damaged woman walking in front of him. It struck Viktor then, how much they had in common.
They were both in hiding, of sorts, starting a new life in Sapphire Springs. They had both been connected with powerful men who were now being held by the federal government. Viktor knew he had his own share of sins and demons to overcome and suspected she did as well. But more importantly, they each had a daughter they had been away from during the formative years of their lives, and they were both willing to do whatever was necessary to recapture a relationship with their girls.
Viktor had heard enough about Nicoleta from Cole and Tia and their friends to know that much was true. He had seen with his own eyes how much Nicoleta cared for Amara at the reunion. He thought how ironic it was for him to be drawn to this woman at this time. He’d never wanted to have a deeper connection with any woman after Elena.
“Tiana tells me you are an artist. What medium do you practice?”
Nicoleta was taken aback by the question for a moment. She had expected anger, or at least ridicule after assaulting him as she had done. She placed her purse on the counter and removed her coat, allowing her mind to calm a little more before engaging in normal conversation.
She slowly turned to face him. Only then realizing, to do this job she would have to interact with many people, some of them would be men. Taking a deep breath, she attempted another smile and prepared to answer him.
“Papa, allow Nicoleta to get settled before you start peppering her with questions.”
Viktor’s brow rose in query. He hadn’t known asking a single question was peppering.
“It’s okay, Tia.” Nicoleta’s smile felt less forced after hearing the exasperation in Tia’s voice. Her shoulder’s relaxed and the excited butterflies began fluttering in her belly again. The thrill of having a job was quickly overriding her fear of dealing with a man. “I mostly sketch, pen and ink or charcoal.”
Tia seemed to relax as she warmed to the subject. “You should see her drawings of Three Peaks, Papa. She captured them perfectly.”
Nicoleta felt her cheeks warm in a blush. “I wouldn’t say perfectly. Every sketch is imperfect due to it being the artist’s perception of the subject.”
Viktor nodded. That made sense. No two people ever looked at the same thing in the same way. “Well, I have to admit, I’m hopeless when it comes to artistic talent. I can appreciate art, but I am not the one to make it.”
His chuckle allowed Nicoleta to relax a little more. “Perhaps your talent lies in another medium. Have you tried photography or videographer? “
“Oh, now there is something, Papa. You haven’t tried either of those.” Tia lowered her voice to Nicoleta, “Trust me, you do not want to see his sketches.”
Viktor heard her and responded in Russian, his native language, saying something about bratty daughters.
Nicoleta laughed.
It startled them all, but Viktor was on a mission to make this woman as comfortable around him as possible and chose to talk over the moment of awkward silence. “You know Russian?”
“My familia is originally from the Eastern Bloc.”
“Aw, we have a Romani in our midst, Tia.”
“Romani? As in Gypsies, tramps, and thieves?”
Nicoleta scoffed. She was a tad insulted but tried not to let it show.
“Watch your manners, Tatiana. I know I taught you better than that.”
“It’s Tiana now, Papa. You must remember that.” She turned to Nicoleta. “Forgive me. I meant no offense.”
“It’s fine, my dear. Romani are a little uncomfortable with the term gypsy, but I know you meant nothing by it.” Nicoleta gathered her coat and purse, “Shall I put these in the office?”
“Yes, we should probably get to work. Cole will be by in an hour or so to check on me. Are you going to stay, Papa?”
“No. I think I will leave you ladies to it. I have some things to do in town. I only wanted to make certain you arrived safely with how icy it is out there.” He kissed his daughter on the cheek. “You won’t stay too late?”
“Cole made me promise to be home long before dark.” She shrugged. “Mondays are pretty quiet here. We shouldn’t be more than a few hours.”
“Okay then, I will bid you both a good day and be on my way.”
Nicoleta felt an odd sense of not wanting him to leave. She pushed the feeling aside, nodded to him, “Have a nice afternoon. And thank you for saving me outside.”
“It was my pleasure, Ms. Davis. I hope we can do this again, soon.” Viktor kissed Tia’s cheek again and left.
“I think that is the most I’ve ever heard my father say to anyone in years.” Tia laughed. “Come on, let me show you around.”
Chapter 4
Nicoleta scanned the inventory list and then the log book again. The missing piece was listed on both. She remembered receiving it but the holder was now empty. The picture was missing. She really was losing her mind. She must have put it somewhere, but where?
Her troubling thoughts were interrupted by the bell over the door of the gallery. She laid the inventory list down on top of the log book, placed both hands on it and pushed down, as if that would make it stay put, before going out to greet her customer.
“Viktor?” The surprise in her voice could only be described as happy. What was wrong with her? She did not need or want to be friends with this man.
“Miss Davis, you are looking quite beautiful today.” He held out a to-go cup from KJ’s Sweets & Treats. “I was in the area and thought you might like a coffee, and maybe a little company to go with it.”
Nicoleta hesitated, but only a moment, before reaching for the cup. Her fingers brushed his in the exchange, surprising her that she did not feel revulsion but something far different. “Thank you, you’re very kind to think of me.”
“Nica, can we drop the formalities now?”
“Nica?”
“A little easier to wrap one’s mouth around, rather than your full name. You don’t mind do you?”
Nicoleta couldn’t suppress the smile curving her lips. She loved her name, but even she had to agree it was a mouth full. “Nica is fine.”
Viktor smiled. It was an easy smile. It wasn’t goading or leering or menacing. If she had to describe it she’d have to go with friendly. He had a friendly smile. One that put her at ease. Which was just plain silly, she was never at ease around a man. She was barely at ease around women.
A comfortable silence fell between them. However, the comfort of it made her nervous. She moved behind the counter, searching for something to say when her eyes landed on the corner of a teak wood frame. Nicoleta placed her coffee carefully on the counter before bending down to take a closer look.
“It’s here.”
“Pardon me?”
Pulling the framed photograph out from the shelf, she examined it for damage before placing it on the counter. “I’ve been searching for this piece all morning.” She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw it was fine. “I remembered logging it in, but it wasn’t with the other items in the shipment.” She glanced aroun
d. “I wonder how it got to be up here?”
“Perhaps you were holding it when a customer came in?”
Nicoleta shook her head. “We’ve been oddly slow this morning. You are the only person who has stopped by.”
“Tia then?”
“Tia hasn’t been in this morning,” Nicoleta answered absently.
Viktor could see how upsetting this was to her. “There is an explanation, Nica. There always is. Why don’t you walk me through since receiving the shipment? Together we can figure this out.”
“Tia called me this morning at home. She said she wasn’t feeling well, her back was hurting, and she was feeling tired.” She looked up at him. Not thinking, she reached over and patted his hand. “Don’t worry, it’s like that toward the end of pregnancy. You feel like a walking whale. Your ankles tend to swell and your lower back hurts like the dickens. She’s fine, I’m sure.”
Viktor smiled. More so over her nature to ease his mind more than his worry for his daughter being assuaged. He’d stopped in at Cole and Tia’s before coming into town. It was how he knew Nica would be here alone.
“Tia asked if I minded handling the gallery today by myself. Of course, I didn’t, but she was concerned because of the shipment coming in today. I told her I could handle it and hurriedly dressed so I could be here when it arrived.”
“So you were here when they delivered the pieces?”
“Yes. I let Tommy and, oh what was the other man’s name? Dale? David? It started with a D. Anyway I examined each piece to make certain there was no damage during transport before checking it off the inventory list. They placed each piece carefully in the storage room and then I signed the delivery slip and sent them on their way, making certain I locked the door once they were gone.”
Viktor nodded. He knew she would have made certain the back door was locked and the security for the door set before doing anything else.
“I went to the storage room and began logging each piece into the book. I had just finished logging the last piece when the phone rang. It was a customer needing directions.”
Flawed Perfection: A Collection of Winter Wishes Page 29