Free Eye of the Beholder by Jayne Ann Krentz Page B

Trask.
    He stood on the thick carpet that had swallowed the sound of his approaching footsteps. He looked very large and very solid in the expensively cut tuxedo. The muted glow of the hall lamps gleamed on his dark hair and glinted on the icy shards at his temples. There was no expression at all in his eyes.
    She sighed. “Nice party.”
    He glanced meaningfully at the statue. “I’m surprised to hear you say that. I assumed that since you’re up here rearranging the furniture, you must be bored.”
    She followed his gaze to
Dancing Satyr
. “It’s a long story.”
    â€œWhy don’t you give me the short version?”
    Damned if she would allow him to intimidate her, she thought. “I wasn’t trying to steal it, you know.”
    â€œCould have fooled me.”
    â€œI only wanted to get it out of sight before anyone sees it.” She waved a hand at the closet door. “I was going to stash it in there until later.”
    He gave that a moment of what appeared to be thoughtful consideration.
    â€œWhy?” he asked eventually.
    She hesitated. This was the tricky part, but the entire project had been a calculated risk from the start. Now she had no option but to fight for her future.
    â€œThere’s been a mistake.
Dancing Satyr
should never have been installed. It’s not a genuine Icarus Ives piece.”
    â€œAre youtelling me that I paid big bucks for a fake statue?”
    â€œIt’s just a little mix-up,” she said smoothly.
    â€œI don’t like mix-ups that cost me money.”
    â€œI’m sure everything will be straightened out very quickly after the reception. But in the meantime, I don’t want it in my, uh, I mean, in the
hotel’s
collection. At least not tonight when there are so many people from the art world here.”
    â€œYou
don’t want it in the collection?” Trask eyed her with grave interest. “Why do you care what the art crowd thinks about
my
collection, Ms. Chambers?”
    â€œBecause I assembled it.” The fat was in the fire. There was no point playing any more games. “I was Edward Vale’s special Deco consultant on the project. I did not approve
Dancing Satyr
. Obviously there was a failure of communication somewhere along the line.”
    â€œThe same sort of communication failure that took place at the McClelland Gallery two years ago?”
    Alexa was stunned into silence. Her mouth opened but nothing emerged. This was worse than she had imagined. He knew about the McClelland scandal.
    He pinned her with cold eyes. “Well, Ms. Chambers? Do I have to wonder about the authenticity of any of the other items in my very expensive new collection of Art Deco?”
    Fury flared, white-hot and intense. “Gee, I don’t know, Trask. Maybe you do. Just like I have to wonder whether or not you’re here in Avalon to open aresort or because you intend to take your revenge against Lloyd Kenyon.”
    His brows rose. “So you do remember me. I couldn’t be sure the other day when we met at the Point. You played it pretty cool.”
    â€œSo did you.”
    â€œGuess we’re both cool. Let’s return to the subject of your reputation, which is not so cool. I understand that it was shredded two years ago when you were involved in that art forgery scam in Scottsdale.”
    She held his gaze. “I had nothing to do with the McClelland forgeries. As a matter of fact, I was the one who blew the whistle.”
    â€œGot any proof?”
    â€œProbably not the sort you’d accept. There was no criminal investigation because none of McClelland’s clients wanted to press charges.”
    â€œConvenient.”
    â€œIt’s a common enough reaction in the art world.”
    He gave her an expression of polite disbelief. “What the hell kind of client would sit still for being conned?”
    â€œThe kind who values his or her own reputation,” she