CAPTURE THIS (Updating regularly)

Chapter 16

"I'm Ruthie," she said with a genuine smile. "You'll be seeing a lot of me as the Artist Liaison. I make sure everything works for you and the gallery." 

She looked like Amber's mother. But then she would move and any trace of Mrs Riley would vanish. It became evident to Amber that her nose was sharper than her mother's and her cheekbones were not as high. It was not her mother sitting in the corner of the room now scribbling something in her journal, but it was a sign. A good omen. 

Amber felt a calm settle over her as she glanced at Alex who was watching her carefully. He waited until her caught her gaze to pass her his special crooked smile that seemed to be reserved just for her. 

She waited for the board the settle down and felt a smile rise to her face. She was pleasantly surprised to find it wasn't forced. 

"Before I start, I just wanted to thank you for this opportunity." 

Most of them smiled in response to her remark. Nari had already scribbled something down on her clipboard. Amber tried not to let this trouble her. 

"My painting is called 'At Your Own Peril' and I think the name is quite self explanatory." 

Amber followed the gallery's representatives' gazes to her own painting that Alex had placed on the easel that the gallery had provided for them. 

It was a simple painting. A dark haired woman is a passionate embrace with a fiery figure with the same silhouette as a normal man. It was almost as though the viewer had intruded on an intimate moment shared between a couple. The woman's pink mouth was wide with a silent scream. 

"The woman is essentially playing with fire, a figure of speech that I'm sure you all have heard before. There's no doubt that she's placed herself in this position," Amber explained, gesturing to the painting, "as you can see by the way her hands are lost in this figure's hair. This is an embrace between a woman and her lover." 

Nari was no longer the only one taking notes. Amara had strangely adopted a smug expression but Amber didn't have time to ponder why. 

"These little burn marks here on the woman indicate the shared intimacy that can be seen in the larger picture is actually damaging her, hence the title 'At Your Own Peril'. As for us, who are viewing the painting, we're viewing it at our own peril, so to speak. By witnessing this moment between this couple, we are complicit in the damage that is caused by this toxic relationship. We bear the burden of being a witness." 

Amber paused to allow the words sink into her listeners. Mr Riley's advice echoed in her head as she reminded herself to slow down. 

"Her 'scream' as I call it, can either be of pain or pleasure - or maybe even both. That is entirely up to you." Amber smiled. "Of course, everything that I've just told you is entirely my interpretation." 

They were still watching her expectantly and Amber felt the panic prickle her skin as it dawned on her that they did not know that she had finished. She glanced at Alex who was frowning at her audience, his lips pressed in a tight line. 

Carl was the first to realize that she had finished her pitch and quickly smiled at her reassuringly. Amber found herself momentarily distracted from her panic as the warmth of his smile ran through her. 

"Well, that was certainly one of the most compelling pitches I've seen here at The Hollow Paintbrush," Amara said, a pleased grin breaking out onto her face. "When Alex recommended you, I worried that perhaps it was foolish of me to accept a meeting with you without ever having heard of you before." 

Alex rolled his eyes. "I told you." 

Her grin widened. "Yes, I should have known better than to doubt you, Alex."