Page 23 of At Midnight

Piano

Flicka von Hannover

I couldn’t believe it.

The next day after lunch, a ruckus occurred outside the double doors of the guest suite.

Flicka scooped Alina off of the floor, shoved her into her bedroom, and told her to hide under the bed and not make a sound, no matter what she heard.

Flicka’s heart hammered in her chest. Alina hadn’t been trained to hide inthe face of danger, to secret herself in a niche and be entirely silent or, if the situation called for it, to sprint to safety.

They needed to do better. By the age of two, Flicka had known how to hide. Her mother had seen to that. The nannies had drilled her until she could practically crawl into a crack in the sidewalk and cover her mouth so no one could hear her breathe.

Flicka swore theywould do better, and she grabbed a vase that would do absolutely no good against armed attackers, but there was nothing else in the suite to throw.

The doors flung inward.

Flicka stretched herself across the door to Alina’s bedroom and hoisted the vase in her hand, readying herself to heave it. The first guy was going to get beaned hard before Flicka went down.

Moving men walked in, carryingan electronic piano between them.

Flicka lowered the vase. “What’s this?”

One of the housekeepers, the stout blonde named Kyllikki, held the doors back for the men. With a furtive glance out the doors, she whispered, “Mr. Mirabaud said that you were to have a piano immediately.”

“Which Mr. Mirabaud?”

“Mr. Raphael Mirabaud.”

Interesting. He could give orders now, at least orders for a piano.“Thank you.”

Kyllikki said, “This electronic one is for practice in the suite. The accessories will be brought up in a moment. A baby grand will be installed in one of the sitting rooms downstairs tomorrow morning for your amusement.”

Flicka placed the vase, which was probably a priceless work of art, on its pedestal. “We’ll be here that long?”

“I haven’t been informed, ma’am,” she said.

Flicka stilled her shaking hands and went into the bedroom to tell Alina that all was clear now.

A piano.

Her heart lifted a little.