Page 53 of Protecting Chaos

The small beach town had been perfect. Two months later, she’d found her place in the world—a place where no one knew her brother. No one even knew her last name. She liked the anonymity of it all. A fresh start from the cobwebs she’d left behind.

She’d poured her heart into painting when she’d arrived. She’d found a little studio apartment across the street. The sound of the beach was just beyond the art gallery where she sold her first piece. Grant couldn’t take credit for that sale.

It was the confidence booster she’d needed to keep painting.

She sold three more in the gallery under her new pseudonym. She was making a name for herself, even if it wasn’t her own name she’d been using.

The gallery owner didn’t know her background. He didn’t care where she’d hailed from, just that he’d liked her work, so she painted and then painted more.

Painting was her passion, even if her heart would never be whole again.

She grabbed the canvas and left the loft, crossing the street. She shoved open the door and smiled at Mad Dog as she approached.

Mad Dog wasn’t really his name. She wasn’t sure anyone in this town actually used their real names. Not that she could complain. She liked it that way.

“Sweetness.” His broad smile was warm and welcoming. He’d given her that nickname after he’d seen some of her other artwork. The ones he stored in the backroom for her after Avery had shipped some more of the pieces Stella had left behind.

“I brought you a new one,” Stella said, handing over the canvas.

Mad Dog moved behind the counter and took it from her, lowering the glasses perched on his head to get a better look. “This is brilliant.”

“It’s the park down the road. Nothing brilliant about it,” she said, moving around the room to look at paintings from other artists that were displayed.

“A tourist looking for a souvenir of his or her trip will snatch this up in a heartbeat,” Mad Dog said.

Stella paused at a painting she knew well. One that he’d been storing in the back room. There was a sticker on the wall next to it that said Pending Sale.

“What is this doing out here?” Stella asked as her heart tightened.

This painting wasn’t for sale. The street posts were similar to the ones outside. Those lights were what had drawn her into the neighborhood, to begin with.

“I had an inquiry come in. A man that was looking for that exact picture. I told him that we had it, but I’d need to ask the artist if she was willing to part ways with it.”

“No one has ever seen this picture. How did he know?” she asked.

“He had a rough sketch of it.” Mad Dog said and walked to the counter and grabbed it. He showed her the picture. It was an exact replica.

“Who is your buyer?”

He shrugged. “Not sure. A woman was the one who sent me this.”

A woman. Stella swallowed hard. There was only one woman that knew all. A Bennett that liked to get involved in her brothers’ personal lives. The same female Bennett that knew Stella’s brother.

She shook her head and lifted it off the wall. “No. Tell them no.”

“She said he’s willing to pay top dollar,” Mad Dog said. “I thought you’d like the extra cash.”

She frowned. “My brother found me, didn’t he?”

“Who?” Mad Dog asked.

“My brother, Grant. He somehow figured out where I was and he found me.”

“The man’s name wasn’t Grant, sweetness, but if you’re in some kind of trouble, maybe I can help.”

“It wasn’t Grant,” Ashton’s voice called out.

She spun around to find him standing just inside the door’s threshold.

---