Page 34 of The Collector's Temptation

“Where is the Manet now?” Rafa asked, leaning back in his desk chair.

“In the underground vault at Vellum & Vine. I didn’t want it at the gallery in case Ellis tips off the police and they decide to search it. I doubt they’d find the vault there either, but I decided to hedge our bets.”

“Bene,” Rafa murmured before he set the papers down and looked up at me. “What about?—”

My phone rang.

“Désolé,” I apologized as I pulled it from the inner pocket of my suit coat, intending to turn the device off. But Melanie was calling. Kerrigan had misplaced her phone a time or two, so I’d insisted she give my number to her best friend.

“It’s Kerrigan’s roommate,” I told Rafa with a deep frown.

He nodded his understanding and waved a hand, indicating I should pick up the call.

“Melanie,” I answered.

“Is Kerrigan with you?”

“No. She should be at work by now.”

“I know, but we were supposed to have lunch later today, and I called to see if we could move the time. They said she never arrived.”

My heart skipped a beat, but I tried to remain calm and not overreact. “You tried her cell phone?”

“It went straight to voicemail.”

Now, my pulse was racing.

“Have you checked to see if her car is in the parking lot at your apartment?”

I heard the sound of flesh being smacked, probably when she slapped a palm to her forehead. “Oh duh! I’m sure she just ran out of gas or something and walked to the station up the road.”

Her tone said she didn’t believe it any more than I did. But she was hoping.

After a minute, she gasped. “Oh no!”

She started to cry, and I became impatient.

“Melanie,” I growled. “Tell me what you’ve found.”

“Her car is here, but…her purse. It’s”—she hiccuped before crying harder—“it’s on the sidewalk by the curb.”

“Putain!” I cursed, fighting the urge to throw my phone at the nearest wall. But I took a deep breath, and though I was feeling anything but calm, I fought to keep the emotion out of my voice when I spoke again. “Don’t worry. I’ll find out what happened and take care of it.”

“Should I call the police?”

“No,” I said firmly. “I will handle everything. I promise, I will get her back.”

Then I hung up, my mind already shifting to possible plans.

“Kerrigan has been taken?” Rafa clarified, having only heard my part of the conversation.

I nodded, placing both fists on his desk, my head hung low as I breathed evenly, trying not to fly into a rage.

“Do whatever you need to get her back.”

My head flew up, and I met his gaze. It wasn’t his usual blank stare, instead, his eyes were full of determination and understanding.

“Do you love her?”

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