Chapter 120: The Artist VIII
Modern Contemporary Art Gallery, Central London
That evening, Sam stood waiting outside the address Levi sent her hours previous, her long black coat wrapped around her. It was oddly colder than she expected it to be; she should have brought a thicker coat, she thought, looking at her cold hands.
Moments later, she sees the familiar blue with white stripes Shelby cobra park on the street opposite the gallery, and steps out of the car were the duo; Levi Jackson and Marco Evans.
They spot her immediately, her hands tucked inside her coat pockets, crimson hair shimmering under the moonlight.
"You should’ve went inside," the slicked blond berated, seeing her subtly shivering. He could tell she’d been waiting for at least 15 minutes. Her punctuality had always been admirable and dependable, but at the same time in times like that, he found it annoying. "Im fine." she answered. And the three entered the gallery, they all shrugged their coat by the door.
Minutes later, Leo Burton entered the lobby to greet them; he was wearing a frightening amount of neon orange. He smiled at the two familiar faces, shaking their hands and then turning to Sam when Levi introduced her. "Pleasure to meet you, Dr. Gray." he said, offering his hand and her taking it with hers. "Nice to meet you, Mr. Burton."
The flamboyant man ushered them towards the gallery; several different paintings and sculptures adorned the large room. And even before Leo could lead them to Michael’s artwork, Sam recognized one hanging to her left. She made her way towards it, a magnificent abstract painting, filled with waves of colors. Teal, blue and yellow swirled together in both harmony and chaos.
"Have you seen this before, Dr. Gray?" Leo asked the redhead while Levi eyed the small paper with the artist’s name on it. The title part is empty.
"No, but I recognized his strokes." Sam said, earning a nod of appreciation from Leo. He thought she must’ve been a fan, being able to recognize an artist easily through his work. He was far from the truth. As Sam said, she recognized the strokes of the paintbrushes; the style was particular with Michael’s previous work.
Levi shifted towards Leo, "No name yet?" he asked; Leo sighed, "Were still working on it. He was supposed to give us the title of his work. But he passed before he could tell me." the man said, his eyes starting to water yet again. He took a deep breath reigning his emotions in; he will not break; he kept repeating to himself.
"He is a loss to the community." Leo said, earning the three’s attention. "He may not be mainstream popular. But he was highly respected, and he has a number of loyal fans." the beefy man added.
The group turned when security called the curator; he excused himself and left the three to observe.