ENDING OF PREVIOUS POST:

As the men parked in front of the house, Anderson took out his phone and then shoved it in his pocket. "I'm not going to check on her. Let's get inside."

"How much trouble could she get into in a few hours?"

"Would you like me to list the issues I've already dealt with concerning Shana?"

"No." Jeff grinned and then walked over to a worker and started a conversation.

After a lengthy conversation with the foreman and on-sight checks and corrections made on the security system, Anderson and Jeff headed home. They traveled about three quarters of the distance when Jeff received a phone call. "What? How did that happen?" He hung up.

"What trouble is Shana in now?" Anderson glanced toward his friend.

"No I told you so?" Jeff's eyebrows rose. When Anderson didn't reply, he continued, "The dogs have her cornered in the kitchen. They won't allow her to move or security to enter."


"What? That doesn't make sense."

"You heard me."

"This I've got to see."


TODAY'S POST:

Chapter 31 part 1

When Anderson and Jeff entered the house, Anderson immediately called the dogs off, praised them, and put his arms around Shana. "I'm sorry." They, indeed, had Shana backed into a corner. They each had stood guard in front of her with their hind-ends touching her. Nobody or nothing was going to enter the kitchen.

Anderson faced Oscar. "What happened?"

"Sir, I have no clue. I heard Ms. Kohlberg yelling for help and me and two other men rushed in to check. These two dogs snarled and bared teeth. They wouldn't allow us anywhere near her. The rest of the team surrounded the house but couldn't find anything. I have no idea what upset the dogs."

A member of the security team entered. "Boss, I think we discovered the problem." He pointed toward the lake. "There are new footprints leading toward and away from the house. Somebody was heading here but got spooked and left."

"Drew, stay with Shana. I'll check it out." Jeff left the room.

Anderson nodded before he glanced around the kitchen. "What's going on?"

"I was preparing dinner and then these two pushed me into that corner." She pointed to the area.

"Have a seat." He held a chair. "Jeff will figure out what happened. What were you preparing? I'll finish."

Jeff stepped back into the room and cleared his throat.

Anderson faced his direction, before he turned back to Shana. "Why don't we finish it together? How can I help?"

Jeff grinned and left.

"A little birdy told me that you liked chicken fried steak with milk gravy and mashed potatoes. So I thought I'd make it and a surprise for dessert."

"Those are my favorites, but who told you?"

"I'm not revealing my sources." Shana laughed.

Studying her, Anderson's eyebrows rose. "Oh, I see you can be very resourceful."

Both turned their heads as a knock sounded at the front door. "I'll get it." Anderson used hand signals to the German Shepherds, before he added, "Boys."

They both moved closer to Shana. "Great, now I'm under dog arrest, again."

Anderson chuckled as he left. "I'll be right back. It won't be that bad."

When Anderson returned, Shana was kneading dough and stopped. "By the look on your face, whoever that was didn't bring good news."

"It was Agent Ryan. Patricia died this afternoon."

Shana placed both hands on the counter, and her shoulders slumped. "How did that happen? Her head didn't hit that hard. I'm sorry." Tears welled in her eyes.

Putting his arms around her, Anderson said, "It wasn't your fault. The FBI had placed a man at her hospital door, and he left to get coffee. Kuznetsov's men got to her."

"Why?"

"I'm guessing, they wanted to make sure she didn't talk." Anderson tightened his hold of Shana. "This morning, Ryan was able to get some information. He'll follow up."

"Should you contact her family? What about Emily?"

"Ryan already contacted her parents. I'll send something. Right now, I'm not sure what." Anderson released a deep breath. "I don't want Emily attending the funeral."

"I don't understand. Why? Patricia was Emily's mother."

"Because Kuznetsov will expect her to be there."

"I hadn't thought of that, but you're right."

Jeff stepped inside the kitchen door. "Drew, I want you to see this." He faced Shana. "Nothing to worry about."

Anderson followed Jeff but over his shoulder said, "Shana, I'll be right outside if you need anything."

Shana watched him leave as she continued kneading the biscuits. She turned her head when she heard a commotion. "I wonder what's going on." She took a few steps in that direction.

Both dogs surrounded her.







Characters so far:

Shana Kohlberg -- a 25 year old high school English literature teacher -- she's trying to get her family's painting back
Anderson Sharp -- often called Drew -- 31 years old -- works part-time on Wall Street -- a billionaire from Texas oil wells
Dmitry Bezrukov -- one of three Russian men in black suits
Jeff Burk -- takes care of Anderson's cars and important security details.
Helen -- Anderson's cook
Jane -- Anderson's housekeeper
Philip -- Anderson's butler -- close friend
Kyle -- Anderson's dog walker
Axel -- Anderson's lead German shepherd
Thor -- Anderson's second German shepherd
Romeo -- Anderson's third German shepherd
Aaron Kohlberg -- Shana's older brother
Ivan Kuznetsov -- formally Ivan Morozov, I accidently chose a real person, so I have changed it present day owner of the painting.
Patricia -- Anderson's ex-wife
Emily -- Anderson's five year old daughter
Isaiah Glassberg -- Anderson divorce/custody attorney.
Jeremy -- Jane's second-cousin twice removed, NYC undercover cop.
Hannah Jacobs -- Shana's cousin, the same age and best friend. Married within the past year and just had a baby, Sarah. Her husband, Paul. Sarah was just diagnosed with Tay-Sachs disease.
Joshua Colton -- Art Museum's curator
Benjamin Kohlberg -- Shana's father
Eliana Kohlberg - - Shana's mother
Maxwell Gaines -- Lawyer hired to retrieve the painting
Erich Berger -- Manager of the Dorotheum art auction house in Austria
Mary Pritchard -- The lady Anderson hired to help Hannah while she's in Boston with Sarah.
Zachery Sharp -- Anderson's younger brother
Michael Sharp -- Anderson's father
Susan Sharp --Anderson's mother
Leon Sharp - - Anderson's grandfather
Grandma Sharp - - Anderson's grandmother
Oscar - - Team Leader of the security detail
Detective Rollins - - Austin police detective
Agent Allan Ryan - - FBI agent