GALLERY OF SINS

Chapter One

I plaster on a dead smile, using a pair of sun glasses to hide the dead look in my eyes as I approach the door to the board room.

"Sorry I'm late. My alarm didn't go off because I didn't set it because I don't like coming here," I say with a sarcastic smile as soon as I step in.

The displeased members spare me irritated glances and I earn a few sighs and eye-rolls as I take a seat.

"As I was saying," my father continues, looking even more annoyed than everyone else seated around the huge round table. I take off my glasses, twirling the plastic between my fingers.

"I understand your concern. But the person that has hired us would like to remain anonymous and we're going to have to respect that. Besides, they're paying us a s**t load of money and I've already signed the deal," he adds with a grin.

"Who?" I ask suddenly, interrupting again. I regret it immediately as he glares at me all the way from the end of the table where he stands, looking down at all of us as he speaks.

"Well if you'd been responsible enough to show up on time, you would've discovered that we have a new job. And this one is... important," he replies.

Oh.

I fold my arms and lean back in my seat.

"Mr. Miller if I may," Lily starts, and I can't help it but roll my eyes.

The pick me girl strikes again.

"I have a few suggestions concerning this case," she says with a proud smile.

Of course she does. Look at her. Always seeking my father's approval as well as everyone else's. I'm not buying that Little Miss Perfect act.

"Well, I don’t know if this is as obvious to everyone else as it is to me, but we need to send someone undercover if we want to dig deeper."

I hear a few gasps and whispers from around the room before my father speaks again. "That's an interesting contribution, Miss Peterson." He smiles genuinely at her.

Ah yes. So smart Miss Peterson.

"The suspect is, however, the most dangerous man in this city. It would take a lot to bring him down. No matter how good our agents are," he adds.

I look up behind him to see a picture of a man on the flat screen. He has unruly dark hair, cold steely eyes, and a lot of good looking tattoos. That must be him.

"But I doubt that anyone would take this up willingly and I'm not ready to force any of you to go out on a suicide mission. However, it’s up to you."

I look around the room. Judging by the tension and awkward glances here and there, he's right.

"So who has the balls for this one?" He asks.

I shrink into my chair, knowing that I'm one of the agents that this question has been thrown to.

"You mean go undercover?" Lily asks with a frown.

"What else would he be talking about?" I mumble under my breath.

She lets out a small laugh and I can just tell that she’s about to mock me

"Oh, I’m sorry. I'm asking because it’s quite obvious that we only have two agents that are suited for this job which are Ian and David."," she says, then she smiles smugly.

My hands form fists under the table. It becomes clear to me that she's trying to get under my skin again and I would really like to get under hers if that's what it takes to shut this disrespectful b***h up.

I clear my throat loudly as I sit up straight.

"Umm excuse me," I start, raising my hand in fake courtesy.

"Last time I checked, I was also an agent," I state.

"Well when was the last time you checked?" She counters.

"Ouch," Ian says, wincing to worsen the impact of her insult on me. Yeah, I bet this is a spicy moment for everyone.

I smile, keeping my chin up.

“Well I don’t see any of them rushing to take the job,” I reply.

“Neither are you. I mean, you literally do not have the balls to meet the most dangerous man in the city,” Ian says, and everyone seems to find this funny.

Well, neither does he apparently. I roll my eyes.

“I’m sorry for assuming there were only adults at this table. That said, I will accept this task," I say looking at my father. He stares back in shock.

I watch in hidden irritation as Lily scoffs.

"Is this a joke to you?" She asks tilting her head to the side.

"No, but you are," I reply tilting my head in the same manner, staring into her eyes.

She blinks, taken aback by my response.

The tension is higher now but not even the heat can make me back down.

Of course I've never been made to handle a case as important as this but hey, I'm trying to prove a point here. I shrug.

"Just because I haven't been on any of the intense missions, doesn't mean I can't handle this one." They're all just staring.

"Lily is right," Father begins. My nails dig even harder into my palms.

"David and Ian are more experienced and that's what makes them better agents than you. But this, this is so much more complex and delicate. We need fresher minds, newer faces."

I'm not sure where he's going with this...

“Cassie is on this case, and she will also be leading the investigation. Effective immediately.”

My eyes widen and I can hear their jaws drop to the table as he concludes his statement.

My heart sinks. It's like I've been sucked into a horror movie. I put my glasses back on to hide the horror in my eyes and flash them an intentionally faked grin.

"What!" Lily screeches.

"Sir, this is outrageous," Ian objects.

He completely ignores them.

"Meeting adjourned."

With that, he leaves.

* * *

I find myself pacing his office, trying to stop the anxious feeling in my chest.

"You said you could do it," he says dryly from behind his desk.

"I know what I said, Dad. But I was only trying to win an argument," I reply.

He sighs.

"Get a hold of yourself. I don't know the last time I saw you like this. Besides, you're my smartest agent. And you're the one I need," he says sternly.

I stop pacing and look at him.

That can’t be his reason for risking my life without a second thought.

At this point, I can sense that something's up. He would never encourage me like this. Hell, he could always do it himself if he thought it was so important. But I choose the easy way.

I take the seat at the other side of his desk.

"Fine," I say.

"Just tell me what I need to do."

He smiles.

"The suspect owns an art gallery. We think that might just be a cover. Nobody earns that much money just from selling art especially not in this city. We’ve also gone through the records, and the amount dumps in his bank account every week is a lot more than the value of what he sells. You need to get close enough to discover everything about him, especially when and how he gets his hands dirty."

"I don't want to assume that the only reason you're bent on risking my life on this is because I'm the only one that knows anything about art, but it seems so," I say smoothly.

He smiles again. That’s absurd, Cassie. I meant what I said. You’re my smartest agent and I trust you," he replies.

I get up, ready to leave.

"You probably shouldn't."

"Don't you want to know who your partner is?" He asks, stopping me from opening the door. I freeze as my fingers reach the handle.

I turn around slowly. “I thought you said I was in charge,” I protest. He shrugs.

"If you say Ian I swear-"

"David."

I blink at him.

"He already has the paperwork. You will begin discussions on the case immediately. That will be all. Goodluck Cassie," he concludes before returning to his laptop screen like I'm not even there.

I scoff and walk out, finding David's office and storming in.

He looks up at me.

"Don't you knock?" He asks dryly.

"It’s a glass door. I could see that you weren't doing anything unusual in here,"

I reply. He shakes his head.

"I know you, but it doesn’t feel like we've met before. I barely notice you around here," I state.

"Wish I could say the same for you. You're loud and dramatic, and reckless. All that is hard to miss."

"Hmm," is all I say as I plop down on the leather seat on my side of the desk.

He has a slander figure and the most beautiful green eyes, and they complement his dark brown hair quite nicely.

"I think you should get used to it, David," I reply sweetly with a smile.

"And I think we should get to work," he says.

"Of course. That's the only reason I'm here."

He opens up a file.

"He's having an art exhibition on Friday night and you're going to be there. All you have to do is look rich and interested in nothing but the art, and at the same time, survey the area, take note of as much as you can and watch out for any suspicious activity," he explains.

I nod. “Say less. I got this," I reply. He quirks an eyebrow at my confidence.

Well, how hard could it be.

***

I've picked out an expensive black dress with spaghetti straps that clings onto me quite nicely, stopping just above my thighs and some black heels. Simple but effective.

I clutch my purse tightly as I step out of the car door that my chauffeur - David - has opened for me.

I smile at him. "This job suits you," I tease as he closes the door behind me.

He rolls his eyes.

"Ready?" I run my fingers through my hair and make sure that the wireless earpiece is well covered.

"Yeah."

And in a few minutes, I am through the double doors and into the building.

I notice a lot of middle-aged men and women at the scenery.

The room is dimly lit with red lights that deeply accentuate the gallery. It feels like being transported into a world that is both classy and accommodating. Calm but sophisticated. Captivating to say the least. There is classical music playing in the background, and a soft chatter coming from all the people around.

And to top it all up the pictures. The art. It's overwhelmingly beautiful in a uniquely sober way.

I've never seen anything like this.

Taking a closer look, I immediately become distracted by their morbidity. They are just so... deep.

I am completely absorbed by their magical mystery as I stroll past them. They hang squarely on the walls giving so much away and holding back a lot more.

After a while of staring, I almost want to reach out and touch-

"Cassie!"

I jump as I hear David call out to me through my not-so-fancy spy gadget rather loudly. I look around to see if anyone noticed me freak out and thankfully, no one has.

"Scream in my ear again and I'll bite your head off," I hiss into my wired dress.

"Sorry, you've been quiet. How does it look?"

I look up and around again.

"All I see is art, people and drinks," I reply when I'm sure that no one is looking at me.

"And him?"

"No. Now shut up so I can concentrate."

I glance at the far end of the room and see a flight of stairs on each side with a hallway leading elsewhere under each of them.

I stop to wonder where they lead when a voice comes from behind me, laced with a soothing accent. "I've never seen you around here,"

I turn around hesitantly to see a man dressed in a very nice dark blue suit.

I flash him my best smile.

"I only heard about this place last week," I reply.

"I see my brother's reputation only grows," he replies with an unreadable tone in his voice.

"Your brother?" I ask. He returns my smile. "Yes. The owner," he replies.

He's definitely talking about the suspect. And I can almost see the resemblance.

"So, what do you think?" He asks gesturing towards the pictures.

I stare at them, trying to find an answer.

"My brother sells some of his own work and the others are originals of other artists like him," he explains. "Well, they’re very strange. I've never seen anything like this," I reply honestly.

"Isn’t that why your here? To explore the uniqueness of this exhibition?"

"Of course," I blurt out.

He smiles, and I conclude that he’s either very polite or just amused.

"I mean, I can sense that the artists are open minded and maybe fragile," I add.

"But they really are beautiful," I conclude.

"It was nice to hear from you..."

"Cassie," I say introducing myself.

"Right. I must leave you now."

With that, he walks away. I wonder for a while why he didn't introduce himself too, but I assume it’s because he didn't feel the need to. I notice the ring on his left hand as he walks away.

He's married.

I must keep my head down now.

And I know it’s a bad idea, but I find myself going in search of the mystery behind this entire exhibition.

There must be something hidden behind all of this.

I stalk through the hallway by the left end of the room just below the staircase. No one seems to notice so I go even further until I find a row of doors side by side.

I try to open the first two but find them locked. The third one, however, is ajar.

I push slowly, peeking in. There's no one there so I walk in.

It is only slightly brighter than the main gallery.

I look around in disappointment. It's empty except for a few empty frames and pictures leaning against the wall. The tiny voice in my head won't stop reminding me that I can't be in here.

I shake my head and turn around to leave. This is stupid. I could get caught. I feel the sudden urge to run before I get caught.

Halfway through my second step on my way back to safety, my body meets a fleshy wall. My soul almost leaves my body. I stumble back and look up. My eyes meet a pair of steely, stone cold orbs. My breath hitches in my thorat.

SHIT...