Chapter 28

The moment Tristan stepped into the bar's entrance, he almost turned around and left. The only thing that stopped him was that Monica had already spotted him and was waving him over to her table.

He swore under his breath and joined her.

"Thank you for coming. Please, have a seat."

"I—I can only give you five minutes. That's it."

"I'll take it."

He reluctantly sat.

"Something to drink?" she asked. "My treat?"

"Um, thank you. Wine."

"Any preference?"

He shook his head.

She asked the waiter to bring him a glass of chardonnay.

"How long have you worked at Duchamp Gallery?"

"Why is that important?"

"It isn't. I'm just asking."

"Oh. Sorry. Uh, almost two years."

"Do you enjoy it?"

"It's okay, I guess. I like meeting the artists and talking to them about their work."

"What about your job don't you like?"

Tristan was saved from answering by the return of the waiter with his wine. "Thanks," he said, then gulped down half in one go.

"Are you all right?" Monica asked.

"I'm fine. Why?"

She looked pointedly at his glass.

"I—I was thirsty."

She nodded as if that was an acceptable answer, then her expression softened. "I should have said this first. I'm sorry for your loss."

"My loss?"

"Joshua Paskota. I assume he was your friend."

"He was."

"I was supposed to talk to him in Santa Fe, but I didn't get the chance before the accident."

Tristan huffed. "Accident. Right."

"You know something about it?"

He hadn't realized he'd said that out loud. He shook his head. "No, nothing."

"You know, he gave me your number because he thought you could help me."

"He actually told you that?"

She pulled a piece of paper out of her purse and showed it to him. It was a note that included Tristan's name and number. Tristan recognized Joshua's handwriting.

"When you called me, you said this was about an art theft?"

"Several actually. I believe they are being carried out by the same group. Anything you may know would be a great help."

He downed the rest of his wine and glanced toward the bar's entrance to gather his thoughts.

At first, he didn't notice the man sitting on a chair outside the bar, but then the man shifted his position, drawing Tristan's attention.

It was Phillip.

"Why don't you start at the beginning?" Monica said. "When was the first time—"

Tristan shot to his feet. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have come."

He scanned for an alternate way out, but there was none. Head down, he walked briskly to the exit, then hurried out of the hotel.

As soon as he was outside, he broke into a run and didn't glance back until he reached his car.

But before he could open the door, Phillip clamped down on his shoulder and whirled him around. Tristan would have opened his mouth to scream, but Phillip's fist smashed into his face before a sound could leave his lips.

Monica watched Tristan all but sprint from the bar, then she turned to Stone and Dino. "What happened?"

"I've seen that look before," Dino said. "He was spooked."

"Was it something I said?"

"Everything you said spooked him," Stone said. "But I don't think that's why he left."

"Neither do I," Dino said.

"What then?" she asked.

Stone tapped Dino on the arm and stood. "How about we find out?"

"I'm coming, too," Monica said.

After dropping money on their tables, they exited the bar. Tristan was nowhere in sight.

"You check the exit onto Hollywood Boulevard," Stone said to Dino. "We'll take the parking lot."

They parted ways in the lobby.

When Stone and Monica reached the passenger drop-off area, Stone caught the attention of a valet. "Did a guy just come through here? Late twenties, thin, a few inches shorter than me."

"Yeah. He ran that way." The valet nodded toward the street.

"He wasn't parked here?"

"If he was, he left without his car."

Stone gave him a ten. "Thanks."

Before he and Monica could take a step, the valet said, "There was a guy chasing him, too."

"What guy?"

"A big one. Wore a suit and moved great for his size. Didn't see his face, though."

"Which way did they go when they reached the street?"

"To the right, away from the boulevard."

Stone and Monica raced from the parking lot and turned down the sidewalk. Parked cars filled nearly every available spot for as far as they could see, but the sidewalks were empty.

At the end of the block, they stopped. Stone scanned both ways down the intersecting road but saw no sign of either Tristan or the other man.

Stone's phone vibrated. It was Dino.

"I'm betting you didn't find him," Stone said.

"Did you?"

"No, but the valet told us he came this way. He also said Tristan was chased out of the parking lot by what he called a big man."

"And do we know who this man is?"

"We do not."

"I see two cameras from where I'm standing. I'll bet you there's some in the parking lot. May I suggest a visit with hotel security?"

"Excellent idea."

"I'm sorry," the nighttime security manager said. "Without a warrant, I can't allow anyone to view the footage."

"Even if a person might be in danger?" Stone asked.

"In danger how?"

"He was chased from your parking lot by someone. When we looked for them, they were both gone. Keep in mind, we were no more than a minute behind them."

"A minute is a long time."

"It is. Which is why we are concerned. A lot could have happened to our friend in that time."

She grimaced, unsure what to do.

"If something does happen to him," Stone said, "the police will find out his attacker chased him from here and will wonder why you didn't report it."

Her discomfort grew but she still didn't relent.

"As a member of law enforcement, I can confirm what my friend has said," Dino chimed in.

"You're LAPD?" she asked.

"New York City."

"He's the commissioner," Stone said. "That means he's the top cop."

"But not here," she said.

"That's correct," Dino said. "But I know the top cop here. Would you like me to call him?"

"Oh, for heaven's sake," Monica said. "A man is in trouble. Please, just let us look at your video."

The woman sighed. "Follow me."

She took them to a room where another security guard sat behind a desk, looking at several monitors.

"I need you to show us the main parking lot cam from about ten minutes ago," the head of security said.

"You mean when those two guys ran away?" he asked.

"You saw that?"

"Sure. I flagged it in case they were running out on a bill."

"Show it to us."

He tapped a few keys and the video popped up on the center screen. Tristan raced out of the lot first, and then the big man followed. The angle only provided views of their backs, however.

"Do you have another camera that could have caught their faces?" Stone asked.

"Sure," the man said. "I marked those, too."

The first clip he brought up was of Tristan sitting in the bar with Monica.

"And the other guy?" Stone asked.

The next clip showed the big man sitting in a chair outside the bar.

"Anyone recognize him?" Dino asked.

"Not me," Stone said.

"Me, either," Monica said.

"Is there any chance you can take a still of him and send it to us?" Stone asked.

"No problem," the guard at the controls said.

"Wait a minute," his boss protested. "We can't just—"

Monica leaned forward and took a photo of the screen. She showed the image to Stone and Dino.

"There. Nobody has to send anything."