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She’d never wanted to do the job of an archivist—arranging and describing collections wasn’t her thing—but she loved having access to the end result.
It was unusual to be called and asked for an in-person meeting at a moment’s notice, then to be left waiting after she hurried across town and over the bridge to FMV’s office in Virginia. The clock ticked by, twenty minutes passing.
Kira could have enjoyed an actual breakfast instead of grabbing an apple and eating it while driving. Finally, thirty minutes after Kira arrived, the admin popped into the waiting room and led Kira to the conference room that was all couches and comfort and no cellular or WiFi.
Before she took her seat, she shook hands with Morgan and Freya and one of the most handsome men she’d ever seen, who was introduced as Ian Boyd. His handshake was firm and professional, and he freaked her out by saying, “I’ve been following your work for some time, Dr. Hanson.”
She blurted out the first words that came to mind. “Why on earth would you do that?”
“I’m in private security, and occasionally my company is approached by clients seeking protection for items, not people. The first rule of taking on that kind of job is making sure the item is authentic from the start. So far, none of those jobs have come to fruition, but you were on our shortlist as a potential consultant if they did.”
“And why did those jobs not come to fruition?”
“I believe the client balked at bringing in an outside expert, but naturally, that wasn’t the excuse given at the time.” He shrugged. “They went elsewhere, I would imagine.”
Kira turned to Freya. “So what have you got for me this time?” Friday Morning Valkyries didn’t usually deal in art. The job would probably be antiquities, not a painting by an old master, which was a shame. Not that she didn’t appreciate antiquities, it was more that there was a certain thrill to being in the presence of something that she knew had been touched by da Vinci, Michelangelo, or Raphael. Their DNA had mixed with the paint, or their sweat had dripped on the marble. These singular men, the greatest minds of their time, had infused their work with their beings.
Not that people didn’t do that with their work every day, and she had nothing against modern art, but like the Renaissance masters, there were only a handful of modern artists whose names would be remembered five hundred years after their deaths.
“We’re looking at a collection from the Middle East,” Freya said.
“That’s not really my specialty. There are a half dozen others who would be better suited for this job.”
“But I need someone I can trust, and I don’t need specific authentication so much as access.”
“Why is that?”
“A shipment of stolen artifacts are in the process of being sold by Gillibrand in a preempt. We need to disrupt the close of the sale to give us time to gather the proof we need.”
“And how am I supposed to do that?”
“The provenance is fake. We need you to prove it.”
“You make that sound…easy? I promise you, it’s not.”
“It’s harder, though, if you don’t know it’s fake. In this instance, we’re certain.”
“The provenance is going to be written in Arabic. Which I can’t read.” She could read and write in Italian, Greek, German, and Latin, but her Arabic was limited to numerals.
“We expect some of it to be in English,” Freya said. “We even know the exact phrases you should look for, but it will probably be buried in the Arabic paperwork.”
“Which is where I come in,” Ian said. “I’m fluent. But…I can’t approach Gillibrand directly. If you can get copies, I can translate for you.”
“You’re working for FMV on this?”
He shook his head. “Consulting with, in a coordinated investigation.”
She looked to Freya who gave a sharp nod. Not that she expected the woman to deny his claim. It was just odd. This arrangement was quite different from the work she’d done for FMV in the past.
“There’s one more thing. Well, two, actually.” This came from Morgan, who’d stayed out of the discussion until now. “You can’t tell Gillibrand that you’re working for us. It’s extremely likely they wouldn’t let you in the door if you name us as your client. So we’ve made arrangements for a man who is unaffiliated with FMV and Raptor—Ian’s company—to play the role of client. The delay in bringing you in for this meeting was getting that part lined up. He’s on his way to the office now.”
“Now? Why now?”
“We need this done today. Within the next hour. The deal can’t close until the artifacts clear customs—which could happen at any time. While the artifacts remain on the market, we want your client to make Gillibrand a better offer. He just needs to vet the provenance first, which is where you come in.”
“You want me to lie to a major auction house that is my bread and butter and claim I’m bringing them a buyer who can afford to outbid a preempt that has already been announced?”
“When you put it that way, you make it sound like it’s a bad thing,” Freya said.
