Rarities Unlimited 03 - Die in Plain Sight

variation of the my-cock-is-longer-than-your-cock game.”
    She gave him a dark sideways glance. “Just little boys in thousand-dollar suits and million-dollar expense accounts, huh?”
    “Pretty much.”
    The receptionist was a guard dressed in a uniform suit that might have cost a few hundred bucks. Her hair was short, her makeup minimal, and she must have been a cop in her previous life. It took her less than five seconds to spot the harness under Ian’s dark denim jacket. Behind the chest-high desk, her foot moved just enough to hit a button.
    “Give her the card, Lacey,” Ian said. “I don’t want the boys who are going to show up real quick to be nervous.”
    Lacey handed the guard Savoy Forrest’s card.
    “Mr. Forrest invited us to tour the museum anytime,” Lacey said. “His private number is on the back. You can check with him.”
    As the woman called the number, two men came out of a side hall and walked quickly to the desk. The first guard held up a cautionary hand. The two men flanked Ian and Lacey and waited.
    “Mr. Forrest? Sorry to bother you, sir. A man and a woman—”
    “Lacey Quinn and Ian Lapstrake,” Ian cut in loudly enough to be heard on the other end of the line.
    “—say that you’ve invited them to view the museum after-hours.” She relaxed visibly as she listened to Savoy Forrest. “Thank you, sir. I’ll tell them.” The guard hung up and smiled. “Sorry about that. We’ve had so many threats from eco-terrorists that we have to treat everyone as an enemy.” She looked at one of the guards. “Show them up to the museum, would you? Mr. Savoy will join them up there if his meeting ends before they leave.”
    Lacey retrieved the business card that was the key to the kingdom and followed the guard into a nearby elevator. Ian was with her every step of the way. His jacket was open and his eyes never stopped moving and never truly looked away from the guard. She supposed that trick was part of the Advanced Paranoia training he’d talked about with Susa.
    “You don’t think,” she said in an undertone, “that we’ll have a problem here?”
    “I think there’s only one of me, and one is never enough to do a decent job of guarding anything.”
    “I’m here, too.”
    The line of his mouth softened. “You going to guard me, darling?”
    “Yes.”
    The elevator door opened. Ian held Lacey back and gestured for the guard to go first. He led them down an office corridor with doors opening off both sides. Other than a hall carpet and a sign on the wall that simply said MUSEUM , the place obviously had been constructed originally with private business rather than public art in mind.
    The guard unlocked a door that had the museum hours painted in discreet black on frosted white glass. Inside, the feel of the room changed dramatically. Business was just a memory; art ruled here. An oriental carpet in rich, age-muted colors warmed the room. To one sidewas a modest museum gift shop with art books, videos, and posters from previous shows prominently displayed. The rest of the space was given over to white walls holding plein air art painted by southern California Impressionists. The lights were turned off, leaving the exhibition room in a gloomy kind of twilight.
    “Hello?” said a voice from the back of the museum shop. “I’m sorry, we aren’t open today.”
    “Mr. Jordon?” the guard asked. “That you? I thought you weren’t in today.”
    “I’m not,” Jordon said, walking into view. He was middle-aged, with a graying, thin ponytail going down the back of his old sweatshirt halfway to his equally old jeans. “I’m doing inventory.”
    “Mr. Forrest told these folks that the museum was open anytime they wanted to visit and that we’d help them any way we could.”
    “Mr. Forrest,” Jordon repeated.
    “Yes, sir. Savoy Forrest.”
    Jordon looked at his grubby hands, sighed, and put a good face on it. “Of course. Welcome to the museum.” He stepped over to a master switch and threw it. Light flooded the room. “If you have any questions, you’ll find me in the shop counting books. Enjoy.”
    With that, Jordon vanished back into his inventory.
    “Will you lock up after they leave?” the guard called out.
    “Yes!” Jordon called back impatiently.
    The guard went out the hall door, leaving Ian and Lacey alone. She looked at him, shrugged, and walked toward the paintings. The lighting was excellent and cleverly positioned to bring life to even the