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Chapter 5: The Reception from Alex's PerspectiveAlex came to the reception with many questions. He arrived at the gallery early, before the crowd, while he could still move through the space freely. Although he was taller than most men, he was able to blend into the background with his self-contained attitude and casual attire. He had already seen the exhibit a few days before, but he decided to browse through it once again and use the opportunity to observe the rest of the room. The gallery formed a large rectangular space, longer than it was wide, divided into two equal parts by a wall that went half way across its width. The receptionist's desk was in front, near the entrance. A door in the back wall led to Martha's office and storage space. The whole gallery had hardwood floors and the traditional white walls. Alex noted that the only position from which he could view the entire space was in the middle, beside the wall.
Although the paintings spanned a number of years, most of the exhibition held together with a distinctive style: basic realism softened by smooth color transitions and indistinct borders. No evidence of brush strokes existed on the jewel-like surfaces, created by the application of numerous paint glazes. Alex noted that the paintings had been re-arranged since his last visit. When he got to the back of the gallery, he was surprised to find that the three paintings which did not quite fit the style of the others had been removed.
The missing three had affected him so strongly at his last visit, that he remembered them clearly and felt that the exhibit had lost something without them. They were large paintings that depicted three views of a woman who strongly resembled the photograph Alex had seen of Nikola. A sequence of events was depicted: in the first she climbed stairs, in the second she was in mid-fall, and in the last she lay at the bottom of the stairs with an obviously broken neck. The colors, especially the red of her dress, were much brighter than those used in the other paintings in the exhibit; the three had looked sharper and more in focus than the others, they invoked a sense of urgency. Alex also remembered an eerie sensation when viewing them, as if their dimensions were slightly distorted. From the moment Nikola arrived, Alex's complete attention was on her. He had been studying her picture for the past two days, ever since he got this assignment, but this was the first time he had an opportunity to see her in person. He had expected her to be taller. He was surprised that such a small, frail-looking woman could create such large and, in many cases, powerful paintings. She was very beautiful, even more beautiful than he expected from the photograph. Her face was wide open, as if she had nothing to hide. She wore a minimum of makeup and seemed very approachable. Her deep blue eyes were the color of a clear afternoon sky, and so large that one could see their color from across the room. It was hard to reconcile the person before him with the prevailing sense of isolation he found in the paintings, but, when he moved a little closer to her, he noticed the network of lines around her eyes and mouth, and a certain fixity in her expression that told a different story. She presented an air of self-assurance and wisdom that Alex usually encountered only in much older people.
When she walked past him, apparently recognizing someone behind him, she seemed to glide. He was careful not to get too close, he didn't want her to recognize him in the future, so he hung back with the crowd. At least a hundred and fifty people filled the gallery by the time Nikola arrived, providing ample cover. For most of the reception, admirers surrounded Nikola like an entourage. Alex took note of every person she talked to as he mulled through the crowd. He also observed Martha, the other gallery artists, and the general social dynamics of the room. He briefly wondered if Nikola had any idea of the forces moving around her, but quickly dismissed the thought. Next Chapter Last Chapter Nikola's Nightmares Home ClaudiaM Home
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Her movements were so smooth and fluid that one was not aware of her individual steps - it seemed as if she were floating a few inches above the ground. She was dressed completely in white. She wore a long dress, almost to the floor, made from layers of some semi-sheer material. An incredible veil of platinum blonde hair fell from her head to below her waist, glistening under the gallery lights. She seemed almost ethereal. Alex couldn't help but wonder what this case was really about. She was nothing like his usual assignment.