Page 74 of Evidence of Deceit

Hillary finally got control of herself and shook her head. “I went inside and found his body in his office. Blood everywhere and I called the police.”

“This is awful. I can’t believe he’s dead. He was such a nice man, and this is generally a safe neighborhood,” said Claire. “I wonder if this was a robbery or random act, and why was he here so early?”

She looked around the alley. A few pieces of paper were floating around, although the building’s owner kept it relatively clean. A high steel fence separated the alley from their back neighbors. Other stores on the block shared parking back here. A couple of cars were parked farther down, but it was still early enough that most employees hadn’t come in yet. It looked like Roman got there early or maybe never left. Who would do this to him?

“Maybe the security camera caught whoever it was that killed him,” Claire said. She hoped that was the case.

An officer came over and asked themquestions. Neither had information to add. He took their names and walked away.

Another car pulled up; “coroner” written on the side. Déjà vu. Wasn’t it just a short time ago she and Joe were talking to the police when the coroner pulled in? Claire took Hillary’s arm and walked into the gallery. There was no reason for them to stand outside with the cops. Plans had to be made to cancel the show.

“So,the security cameras didn’t identify the person who killed Roman?” asked Joe. He had been shocked to learn of Roman’s death when he arrived home. She and Hillary never opened the gallery for the show and had gone home after the police checked the gallery and questioned them. But there was still work to do, so here she was, back at the gallery. Joe came with her for moral support. Or maybe he wanted to protect her. Either way, she was happy with the company.

“Yeah, that’s what the police said. Roman only had security cameras upstairs and out back, not in his office or the main floor,” replied Claire. “I had complained to him about that, and Roman was in the process of getting more installed.”

It had been a couple of days since Roman’s murder. The police had no suspects, no reason why Roman was killed—nothing.

Claire and Joe had stopped by the day after Roman’s death to console Roman’s fiancée, who was devastated. The fate of the gallery was up in the air. Claire talked with clients and bill collectors who were anxious for news. There wasn’t much she could tell them because she had no idea what was going to happen to the gallery.

The bell on the door rang while Claire was taking down a painting. She saw Roman’s fiancée, Chloe, walk in.

“Claire.”

“Oh, sweetie, what are you doing here? Have the police found out anything?” asked Claire.

“Unfortunately, no. That isn’t why I came in.” Chloe motioned for Claire to follow her into Roman’s office. She sat at Roman’s desk.

“Pull up a chair. I want to pass something by you.”

Claire sat down and looked at Chloe’s face. She looked pale and had deep bags under her eyes.

“What’s going on?”

Chloe sighed. “I know Roman was a shameless flirt. But I trusted him, and I trusted his ability to make this gallery work. We both had a fifty-fifty interest in the business. I don’t want to close the gallery, so I was wondering if you would stay on for the time being and continue with the shows.”

Oh my. That was not what Claire was expecting her to say. She thought maybe they would be closing the gallery. She loved working here, and it was sad to think of not coming here every day.

She sat back in her chair. “Wow. I wasn’t expecting that. I thought the gallery would close. Are you going to sell it? How long would you expect me to stay on?”

“I’ll probably sell it at some point.” Chloe’s eyes filled with tears. “I can’t think about selling right now. I need the income, and the only way to make money is to sell art.” She shrugged. “As long as it’s here, I’ll feel close to Roman.”

Claire thought about the future. She and Joe were getting closer. She wanted more from their relationship, but Joe was still holding back. If she put roots down, she would want him by her side. But would he be? Now that she had a taste of Joe Harkin, if he wasn’t in her life, she wasn’t sureshe wanted to stay in Black Pointe. Too many painful memories.

“I’ll stay for a while. Can I ask Hillary to stay on?” She was sure Hillary would be glad to keep her job.

“Of course. Thank you, Claire. I’ll let you know about selling the gallery, but that won’t be for a while.” Chloe got up, hugged Claire and left.

Joe was nothappy when he heard the news about Claire’s boss. This was the second time that violence had hit the shop—that he knew of. The car incident might have been a coincidence, but he didn’t believe Roman’s murder was just a fluke.

“The police don’t have any leads in Roman’s murder. Has Sam been able to find anything?” Claire asked.

“Nothing that I know of.”

Claire was sitting at the small table in his kitchen, finishing her breakfast. He looked at the sunlight filtering through the window, highlighting every lock of her hair. She looked like an angel sitting there.

However, Sam called and said she was coming over and would be there in about fifteen minutes. Hmmm, maybe if he was fast… Nah, even he wasn’t that fast. Making love would have to wait.

He sat down across from her. He hesitated to ask her, but he was concerned about her safety. She was a strong, independent woman now that she didn’t have to worry about Keith hurting her, and he didn’t want her to lose that. But her safety came first.

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