Flirting With Disaster

“The vault’s secure enough,” Maggie insisted.

“And the rest of this place? If he can’t get to Ellie’s work, he might take it out on the gallery.”

“I don’t think he’s that stupid or that crazy,” Maggie said, though her certainty was shaken by Dinah’s concern. “This is personal between him and Ellie. He’s jealous of her talent.”

“Really? Her paintings are that good?”

Maggie’s enthusiasm for the paintings overcame the last of her irritation at Dinah for shutting her out the night before. “They’re fabulous,” she confirmed.

Dinah’s eyes gleamed the way they did when she was on the scent of a great story. “May I peek?”

Maggie grinned. “Are you asking as a reporter or as a friend who’s capable of keeping a secret?”

“As long as you promise me an exclusive when the time comes, I’ll keep your secret,” Dinah bargained.

“Okay, then,” Maggie said, knowing that she could trust Dinah’s promises. They’d both kept silent about an awful lot of youthful misadventures. “Come with me.”

She opened the vault and switched on the overhead light, then gestured at the individual storage bins. “The paintings are in those.” Then she waited, holding her breath for Dinah’s reaction.

The hundred-watt bulb in the humidity-controlled vault was nothing compared to what the gallery lighting would be when it came time for the show, but Dinah gasped at the first painting she pulled out to view.

“Oh my, she really is talented, isn’t she?” Dinah said in a hushed voice, stepping closer to the still life. “Not that I’m half the expert you are, but this is amazing.”

Maggie beamed as relief flooded through her. “Don’t sell yourself short, Dinah. The art collection your folks have is nothing to sneer at. You grew up being able to tell a masterpiece from junk the same way I did.”

Dinah gently retrieved each painting from its protective bin. At last she turned back to Maggie. “When’s the show?”

“I want to take my time planning it, so I’m thinking September at the earliest, maybe October,” Maggie replied. “That will give me time to create a certain amount of buzz and maybe lure a few art critics down here from New York.”

Dinah regarded Maggie with evident curiosity. “What did Josh think? I assume you paid close attention to his reaction.”

“He seemed impressed,” Maggie said carefully. “But he was more interested in getting these things out of Ellie’s place and tucked away here than he was in examining them.”

“So he’s not an art lover.” Dinah studied her. “Is that a problem?”