“Are we sure someone didn’t off him and dump his body somewhere?”
“Possible, but unlikely since he put a hold on his mail.”
He knewhe’d be leaving then.
“Lark got access to his search history. It’s almost all about Chloe Powell. The bastard’s been searching for her, and he found her.”
There was some tapping in the background before the general said, “I’m forwarding you this article. It was the last thing he accessed on his computer before he went missing.”
“I’ll take a look at it.”
“He knows about the opera house, Erik. By this point, I’m sure he probably knows where she lives as well. Lark’s running facial recognition, but Savoy isn’t stupid. The chances of us catching him that way are slim. Stay sharp.”
“Yes, sir. Do you need me to pass this on to Jayla?”
“I’ll call her myself.”
Ending the call, Erik pulled up the article General Davies had sent him. It was a small piece in the entertainment section mentioning that Prima Donna, Chloe Powell, may have come out of retirement. There was a little bit about her history with the Metropolitan Opera House, her unexpected exit from the stage a year and a half ago, and rumors that she may now be performing once again, headlining at the opera house in Norfolk, Virginia.
His eyes went to the journalist’s name. It was tempting to contact him, interrogate him to find out the source of his information, since Erik knew damn well Lattimer had been keeping Chloe’s participation under wraps. But the damage was already done.
Tossing the phone aside, Erik looked at what he’d drawn. At a glance, it was a simple bouquet of hyacinths, but if someonelooked closer, they would see that every petal, leaf, stem, and ribbon was made of music notes. Cocking his head, he examined it with a critical eye. He had to admit, it was a pretty piece. Closing the cover on the sketch book, he set it on the table before he snatched up his phone again and grabbed his keys. Jayla was going to be pissed, but with this new information, there was no way in hell he was going to leave her or Chloe unguarded.
Chapter Five
“Gather round, everyone,” Lattieannounced, walking onto the stage, clapping his hands together. “Gather round.”
Chloe was already on stage, flanked by Danny and John, and Danny rolled his eyes as they waited for everyone else to join them. From the side of his mouth, he murmured, “Oh, goody. Team building time.”
Right on cue, Lattie called out, “Team building time!” leaving Chloe trying to stifle her laughter with her hand.
Despite her humor, she was pretty sure there was a very serious reason behind why Lattie had chosen to do this today. The fear underlying the rumors about Erik, paired with Chloe’s outburst and the resulting animosity, had left a certain level of tension in the air that he probably hoped to dissipate.
Once everyone was on stage, Lattie held up a black bag and gave it a shake. “Who would like to choose?”
When one of the stagehands stepped forward, Lattie eagerly trotted over to him and held out the bag for him to reach inside. Pulling out one of the slips of paper, he handed it to Lattie, who announced, “Opera trivia!”
“Ugh,” John muttered. “Why couldn’t it have been one of the fun games? No one gets the trivia questions right.”
“Well, at least it’s not the sharing circle,” Danny replied, and Chloe had to agree with him. She found standing in a circle to share a fact about herself that no one knew, embarrassing.
Lattie held up a hand. “For a chance to win a hundred-dollar gift card…”
“Yup, it’s going to be a stumper,” John quietly griped.
“Answer this question: In Alban Berg’sWozzeck,” Lattie began, turning a circle and projecting his voice so everyone could hear him. “What compositional technique is used in the orchestration of Act III, Scene 4, to represent the rising tension and Wozzeck’s descent into madness after the murder?”
With a bright smile, Lattie looked around expectantly. When no one jumped in immediately with an answer, his smile dimmed, and he rocked back on his heels. “Right then, I’ll just give you a minute or two to think about it.”
There were a lot of low murmurs and some shuffling feet before an unexpected voice in the back answered, “Berg uses a technique that takes a single rhythmic pattern and develops it throughout the scene, creating a relentless, obsessive quality that mirrors Wozzeck’s psychological unraveling.”
Everyone turned to look in surprise, including Chloe, even though she knew exactly who’d come up with that answer.
“Yes!” Lattie shouted. “Bravo, my boy! Come and collect your prize.”
Erik straightened up from where he was leaning and stuffed his hands in his pockets. “Naw, I’m good. Use it to buy some coffee for everybody or something.” Turning away, he headed off stage.
While Lattie was saying, “You heard the man. Give me your drink orders, and I’ll have it delivered,” Chloe followed Erik, needing to hustle to catch up with his long-legged strides.
