Nervously, I pace around the art room, not able to get any work done as I wait to hear from Braxton. I know that Jeff and his team of lawyers were supposed to arrive in the office around 1:00 to sign an agreement that should end all of this madness, but at 1:30, my phone still hasn’t rang, and I have no idea what’s going on.

I am staring at a canvas that I’ve hardly touched today. It’s a piece I’ve been working on recently, so it’s not a stark white, barren landscape ...