Page 77 of Caper Crush
William raises an eyebrow. “Did you smoke?”
“No, but I had a crush on the guy one floor below, so I used to hang out with him on it,” I say. “He smoked.”
“Which one was that?” Uncle Tony asks.
“It never came to anything. We hung out all summer, but nothing ever happened.”
“I brought you up better than that,” Uncle Tony says. “You should have told him you liked him.”
I shrug. “It was right after the Weeping Willow incident. It didn’t seem fair to subject anyone else to that press attention. Sometimes I’d even leave via the fire escape in the back if someone warned me a lone photographer was out front.”
“We need to be able to communicate with you from the gallery, just in case. Did that phone app work well?” Uncle Tony sips lemonade. He’s also made a quiche, and there are cold cuts and bagels.
“Yes. How long will it take us to go through the storage room?” William asks.
“He organizes his art alphabetically,” I say. “But it would be weird for him to stick stolen paintings in among the rest.”
“Why do you think he took those paintings to the gallery?”
“To give them to Edmund in an unsuspicious manner. And I’m hoping that he doesn’t want anything to happen to them to diminish their value. That room is climate-controlled. Can we go to his gallery tomorrow?” I ask. “I’m waitressing in the afternoon and bartending that night, but I have the morning free.”
“I can’t get off,” Takashi says. “Also, Vinnie is usually there on the weekdays. Isn’t it better to go on a weekend when he’s not there and it’s only the gallery assistant rather than both of them? She may be less suspicious.”
“Yes, let’s go Saturday morning first thing,” William says. “I’ve got client meetings tomorrow morning.”
Time is ticking. Saturday will be two weeks since the paintings were stolen. But it would be better if Vinnie wasn’t there and it’s only the gallery assistant we have to get past.
“We have a plan.” I turn to William. “So how did you propose to your fiancée?” Okay, not the smoothest transition.
“My fiancée?” William asks. “I don’t have a fiancée.”
“Oh, Miju heard you introduce someone as your fiancée, but maybe she got it wrong,” I say very casually.
William frowns. “I referred to Kiyoko jokingly as my omiai fiancée to my friend Yoichi. My grandmother wants Kiyoko and me to get together, but we don’t feel that kind of attraction. He’s got the same situation, where his grandmother wants him to get married to the granddaughter of a friend here. And they don’t suit either.”
I feel such a burst of relief. I give William a big smile.
Chapter eighteen
It’sSaturdayandtimeto finally find those two paintings from Vinnie’s closet—and see if they are the Kimimoto andPlaying Around 1:30. It’s one of those muggy days when simply standing outside makes me sweat. It’s going to be a hot summer if this is only April.
We are in a narrow alleyway behind the buildings. Other than a few garbage cans, it’s empty. A fence runs alongside the passage, against which the gardens of the opposing buildings abut. The fire escape is rustier than it used to be. And the ladder is higher up than I remember. I was clearly in better shape when I was younger. I jump to reach it.
“Here, I’ll give you a lift.” William puts his hands around my waist and lifts me up.
“Thanks.” I get my foot on a rung and climb. I hold on with one hand and look down at him. “It’s still being used for socializing. See, they’ve even added a chair.”
“That should make it look less suspicious,” William says. “See you soon.”
He disappears around the corner, off to join our uncles in the gallery. If anyone can talk up a storm and keep a gallery attendant occupied, it’s those two.
I climb up the fire escape to the balcony outside the art studio window and pull a book out of my backpack to pretend I’m reading. That’s got to be nonsuspicious behavior if anyone looks out. My phone beeps.
Uncle Tony:Only 4 paintings in gallery!
Earpiece in, I turn on my app to listen in on their conversation. One painting is apparently all white, which the uncles are doing their best to discuss in depth. They have finished asking about the artist’s technique, and now they’ve moved on to meaning.
“What do you think he was trying to convey?” Takashi asks. Their voices come through clearly.
