“Yes, this is she.”
“I’m calling to report your business alarm has been triggered,” the person on the other end of the line reported.“Could you give the password, please.”
Once Quinn did that, the woman continued.“We’ve tried reaching Mr.Maxence Chevalier but he’s not answering his phone.You are listed as the second contact.”
“Yes, I am.”
“Would you like for me to send the police?”
She remembered Max unloading crates.“No, I’ll go check it out and if I need the police I’ll call them.”
“Very well.We’ll check back with you in half an hour.”
“Thank you,” she said and disconnected the call.For a moment, she wondered if it was Bryan, but she believed Max when he said Bryan wouldn’t be hurting her again.“It has to be Max.He must have triggered the alarm.”
She called him, but like the security agent said, Max didn’t pick up.She sent a quick text explaining what was going on.Rising, she dressed quickly and called up a ride share.Her car was still at the gallery since she hadn’t left Max’s penthouse, but the good thing about living in a huge city was easy access to transportation.
The traffic at 1:00 in the morning had thinned out, so she reached the gallery about fifteen minutes later.After thanking the driver, she exited and marched up to the front door.Unlocking it and punching in the security code.Nothing seemed amiss.
“Max?”she called out.
Still no answer.Then a noise came from the backroom, where the shipping crates were stored.At first, she didn’t register the noise until a large crash sent her heart shooting into her throat.Fear washed through her.Quickly, she went to hide behind one of the displays, trying to see the intruder.Several things came into her mind, trying to rationalize what she had just heard.Maybe itwasMax and he simply couldn’t hear her.Could it be mice?Ugh.They had had an infestation several months ago in the kitchen which still had her looking around daily to make sure there weren’t little mouse turds lying around.
Silence.No noise, no scurrying of little mice feet, no walking across the floor.
Slowly, quietly, she made her way toward the back, using the displays to hide behind.Straining her ears to hear anything more.She neared the storeroom and saw the flashlight.Fear paralyzed her.The intruder was not Max.Someone was there, in the gallery, trying to rob them.She heard the unmistakable sound of canvas being cut.
She didn’t know what to do.Logic told her to call the damn police, but her brain momentarily shut down.Her breath echoed shallowly through her ears.As she dialed 9-1-1, she thought she kept the flashlight beam in sight.Suddenly, the intruder was in front of her, and he knocked her cell phone out of her hands, and the front cracked.
Quinn jerked her head up and their eyes clashed.A scream tore from her throat.The intruder was a hellish brute the size of a tank.How he moved so soundlessly she couldn’t tell, but the wickedly long knife he held was unmistakable.
“There you are,” he mocked.The French accent was heavy in his words.“I’ve been looking for you.”
Quinn had moved beyond fear.Her heart thudded painfully and she desperately wished she had a gun.Her gaze kept flipping back and forth from the knife to his face.
“Who are you?”She tried to sound aggressive but fell far short.“What do you want?”
“I am the man your boss fucked with, and now, he’s going to pay the price.”
She had no idea what he meant by that.“A-are you an artist?”
He didn’t look it, but appearances could be deceiving.
“You’re in the wrong place at the right time.”He licked his lips.“I’m gonna enjoy breaking you in half.”
The evil intent on his face, however, terrified her and she took a step back.“Who are you?”He didn’t answer.Just took a step closer, and in response, she took another step back.“Get out of here.”
“You know that’s not gonna happen.”
His intent was crystal clear.“Take what you want.Please don’t hurt me.”
He raised a hand and cupped his ear.“What did you say?”
Alarm bells were blaring through her body.“Please.Don’t hurt me.”
“Oh, I like you begging.”He licked his lips.“Beg some more.”
“I am begging,” she whispered, backing up more.“I-I won’t say a thing to anyone.I promise.”
