“No, they did not. Other than inquiring if they could view it and when it may be completed, they have been very mum about the entire subject. It almost seems they are avoiding the subject.”
“What information did you give them?”
“None. We went to Mr. Abbott’s, but he was not home. I informed them he would not wish the painting to be viewed unfinished and he had no estimate on completion.”
“Do you believe that wise? Letting them know the location of the painting?”
“That is information they could receive from any member of this household or staff. I gave them no other information.”
“I recommend we continue that trend.”
“Really? Are you sure we shouldn’t question them further on it? Try to determine what they know and why they seem so sure my portrait will not remain in this house? And why they suppose it’s the Duke’s doing? They must have more information. They must have facts.”
“Do you imagine anything they say will be the truth if they offer us any information at all?”
“I am not positive, but it can’t hurt to ask, can it? I held off from discussing it at length this morning with them. I would much prefer you listen to their responses also.”
“All right. Agreed. We’ll ask them about it following dinner.”
“It is likely a fool’s errand but perhaps we’ll glean some detail from their responses that can help in some small way. We need to be as prepared as possible with Marcus arriving soon.”
Gray rose from the couch, stalking a few steps away toward the room’s massive fireplace. “I hate even hearing that man’s name.”
“I hate that he’s tracked us here, but it was inevitable, I suppose. I’m sorry, Gray.”
“Don’t apologize. It is not your fault. He’s a madman.”
“Of course it’s my fault. He’s obsessed with possessing me. I am the only reason he’s traveling here.”
Gray shook his head. “It’s no one’s fault but his.” He rejoined her on the couch, taking her hand in his, kissing it. “Let’s not speak of him when we don’t have to.”
She smiled at him. “Agreed.”
Chapter 22
Michael and Damien met in the hall prior to dinner. They made their way to the sitting room where they were told the family gathered prior to the evening meal. They entered the room finding another family member already waiting inside. Damien smiled at him, recognizing Alexander at once despite the different clothing.
“Hello! You must be Michael and Damien Carlyle, Mina’s cousins,” Alexander said as they entered the room.
“Yes, that’s correct,” Michael said, also recognizing him but not giving it away.
Alexander extended his hand toward them. “I’m Alexander Buckley, Grayson’s cousin. It’s such a pleasure to meet you.” They all shook hands, exchanging pleasantries. “May I offer you a drink?” Alexander asked.
“Thank you,” Michael said, accepting the offer. Alexander poured drinks for both of them, handing them out. As Michael sat, sipping his drink, the sitting room doors opened. Celine rushed in, followed by Gray.
“Alexander!” she exclaimed, dashing to him and wrapping him in a friendly embrace.
“Mina!” he greeted her with equal enthusiasm. “It’s good to be home. Although,” he said, standing back from her, “I’m sorry the news is not better.”
“Do not trouble yourself about the news. It is not your fault and I thank you for tracking him and reporting to us so we may prepare.”
“Cousin,” Gray said, shaking Alexander’s hand, “yes, I quite agree with Mina. Thank you. Have you met Mina’s cousins, Michael and Damien Carlyle?”
“Yes, I have. How delightful to have your family visit. Oh, please, gentlemen, excuse our private moment earlier.”
“There is no need to conceal any details, Alexander,” Gray replied, closing the doors to the sitting room. “Michael and Damien are well-versed in the troubles of this family.”
“Oh?” Alexander asked.
“Yes,” Celine responded. “Michael and Damien assisted me the night of the ceremony. The night I became what I am. They are the two who helped me remove the book from Marcus’ possession.”
“Oh! This is THE Michael and Damien. Well, it is my good fortune to meet such brave men. Celine has told us of your part in that unfortunate night.”
“We were happy to help her,” Damien said, smiling at Celine.
“It seems they have returned to assist again,” Gray said, pouring himself a brandy.
“I wish you both would abandon your scheme of assisting and return to wherever you came from. Marcus is a dangerous man. You cannot risk crossing his path again,” Celine said.
“Sorry, Celine, eh Mina,” Michael answered, “we can’t.”
“Then perhaps you can tell us what you know,” Gray said.
“We have,” Damien said.
“You’ve told us nothing,” Gray pressed. “According to you, Mina’s painting, that is to remain in this house to protect its inhabitants, is stolen by the Duke. We have no clue how you came to this conclusion or any details about the supposed theft.”
“The Duke plans to steal Mina’s painting? The Abbott painting?” Alexander asked.
“Yes, that’s correct. Other than that, we have few details,” Michael contended.
“I beg to differ,” Gray argued.
“I agree with Gray. Something drew you to this time. What do you know about the painting’s disappearance?” Celine added.
Damien covered the question, trying to appease Gray and Celine without giving away any information. “The painting has disappeared…”
“When?” Gray demanded.
“Inconsequential,” Damien commented.
“I disagree!” Gray barked.
“I can’t tell you…” Damien began.
“Look,” Michael interrupted, “do you want to hear what he has to say or not?”
“We do,” Celine said. “Please, Gray, let him finish.”
Gray sighed but acquiesced. “Please, continue,” he said to Damien.
“Thanks. Like I said, the painting disappeared. The Duke is the obvious suspect. The question was when.”
“And how,” Michael interjected.
“Right. We searched for the painting for months but found no trace of it. I did a tremendous amount of research and couldn’t find a reference to your painting anywhere. It was as though the painting vanished before it was ever painted. That’s when we put two and two together and came up with the theory that the Duke stole the painting upon its completion.”
“Or destroyed the painting before or shortly after it was finished,” Michael added. “Although we were assured by… someone very trustworthy that he wouldn’t have destroyed it since it held a piece of Celine’s soul.” Michael was careful not to reveal the person who surmised the last part of his statement was Alexander himself.
“This is all conjecture. You have no proof of anything,” Gray accused.
“We have proof that the painting is gone, that is a fact,” Michael said.
“Even if this is conjecture, cousin, the threat of the painting being stolen, at any point, is serious enough to garner action,” Alexander said. “You commissioned this painting for a reason. It serves as far more than a wedding present.”
“I agree, but with no other information it may prove difficult. I prefer not to waste resources protecting a painting when my wife will need our protection. Are you sure you possess no other information?”
Damien shook his head. “Sorry, we don’t. We’re in the dark too and just trying to prevent this from happening.”
“So noted, we will do all we can to prevent it. Thank you,” Gray said, dismissing them.
“Gray is right. We thank you for the information. We’ll handle things from here,” Alexander agreed.
Celine also concurred. “I agree. You should return to your time.”
“No,” Damien disagreed, shaking his head.
“I’m with Damien on this,” Michael said. “There’s no way we’re leaving until we know that painting is secure.”
Gray opened his mouth to answer but the doors swung open to the room before he could. “Good evening, everyone. I am so terribly sorry. I have kept you all waiting,” the woman at the door conveyed.
“Good evening, mother,” Gray said, approaching the woman and giving her a kiss on the cheek.
“Good evening, Gray. Alexander, welcome home,” the woman said.
“Aunt Elizabeth, thank you,” Alexander said, also giving the woman a kiss on the cheek. “It’s wonderful to be home. Aiden and Leigh send their love. They hope to be home within the month.”
“Oh, how lovely that you saw them while in Boston,” Elizabeth said. “Good evening, Mina.”
“Good evening, Mrs. Buckley,” Celine answered, taking her hands as they kissed each other’s cheeks.
“Mother, I’d like to introduce you to some of Mina’s family,” Gray said, leading her to Michael and Damien. “May I present Michael and Damien Carlyle, cousins of Mina’s.”
Elizabeth extended her hand to them. “Delighted to meet you both,” she said.
“Likewise. The pleasure is all ours,” Michael said, bowing to her. Damien followed suit, greeting her in a similar manner. “I’d like to extend our gratitude for your hospitality.”
“Not at all. We are so pleased to welcome guests in our home. How long will your plans allow you to stay on with us?” she asked.
“We have no firm plans, but we will be careful not to wear out our welcome,” Michael said.
“Impossible!” she answered. “How charming your cousins are, Mina. What good fortune for us to welcome them into our home.” She gave them all a wide smile. Amos entered the room. Everyone exchanged sentiments before Elizabeth suggested they enter the dining room.
Everyone filed out of the room, Elizabeth and Celine leading the way, followed by Amos, Michael and Damien. Gray and Alexander brought up the rear, pausing for a moment before following the group out.
“You don’t trust them, do you, Gray?” Alexander asked.
“No, I don’t. They possess too much information yet no answers to our questions. They are also the two who disappeared with that book and no one has found it since. At least no one we know of. I appreciate why Celine wants to trust them, but I do not.”
“I’ll keep an eye on them.”
“I appreciate that, cousin. Shall we?”
Gray and Alexander followed the group in for dinner. Michael and Damien retired for the evening following dinner, declining nightcaps with the family. Before going to bed, the two compared notes about their discussion before dinner. They determined that any chance they had to retrieve the painting would fall on their shoulders. It didn’t appear that anyone, including Celine, would assist them with their plans. They seemed intent on handling the situation on their own. Though Celine seemed more intent on sparing them any confrontation with the Duke rather than refusing their help with the painting.
Without a plan in place, they decided to sleep on the issue and hoped to talk through a plan the following day. The painting was nearing completion according to Benjamin Abbott. They had little time to create a workable plan. Without an idea of when the theft occurred, they were also working in the dark. Still, with the Duke’s arrival imminent, they realized time was not on their side. They went to bed frustrated but determined.
The following morning brought a dreary day to the Buckley estate. Michael and Damien met in Michael’s room before breakfast to discuss plans for their day.
“We’ve got to figure something out fast,” Damien said pacing around the room.
“Yeah, but what? Short of waiting around for that Abbott guy to finish the painting then stealing it first, what options do we have?”
“No idea. And what do we do with the painting if we manage to nab it? Celine will not send us back to our time with the painting.”
“Hide it?”
“Where?! You saw the size of that canvas. We can’t stick it in a closet or hide it under a bed. Besides, that leaves it open to be stolen again. All the Duke needs to do is search the property for it.”
“Even if we found a suitable hiding spot, we still need to grab it first.”
“There is no guarantee of that. According to Alexander, Abbott got his ‘special talent’ from the Duke himself. Which means they know each other. What if Abbott is indebted to him? He may give him the painting if asked.”
“He didn’t the first time around,” Michael countered.
“No, but when it first happened, he may not have known to ask for the painting.”
“Are we aware of WHEN the painting is stolen? Is it before it’s in this house or after?”
“No idea. I found no references to it anywhere. The picture we saw of it, the one that no longer exists, was taken in 1965. So, the painting could be stolen anywhere between now and 1965.”
“Well that’s just great. Celine will not allow us to take her painting with us and we sure as hell can’t stay here to protect it until 1965.”
Damien shook his head. “Ugh!” Damien sighed again. “We have so little facts to work with. It’s making creating a plan impossible.”
“Yes, and making it more and more likely that this trip was for naught and they’ll end up with Ships in the Harbor instead of the protectress painting.”
“Yeah,” Damien snorted. “Good old Ships in the Harbor. A useless painting compared to Mina’s.” Damien rolled his eyes, rubbing his chin in thought. His eyes widened and he glanced to Michael. “Unless…”
“Unless what?” Michael asked, scrunching his eyebrows in confusion.
“Unless Ships in the Harbor is the answer to our problems!” Damien announced, still parsing through the idea in his head.
“What are you talking about?” Michael questioned, still missing Damien’s point.
Damien stood for a moment, still pondering the idea, tying up the loose ends in his head. “Okay, just listen, this idea is rough but…” He paused, still mulling it over. “Even if we steal the painting before the Duke does, like you said, we can’t take it with us, and we can’t hide it.”
“Okay?”
“But what if we can hide it? What if we can hide it in plain sight?”
“What? Hide it in plain sight?”
“Yes! Instead of hiding the painting where someone could discover and steal it or removing the painting from the house it was meant to protect, what if we can hide it right in this house under everyone’s noses.”
“How?”
“By putting the portrait under another painting.”
“Paint over it?”
“Hmm,” Damien said, considering his answer. “No. We have no idea what that might do to any magical properties Mina’s painting may possess. No, what I’m suggesting is we wrap the canvas under another painting.”
Realization dawned on Michael. “So, when people look at it, they only see…”
“Ships in the Harbor instead of Portrait of Wilhelmina Laurent Buckley.”
“That might actually work, Damien,” Michael said, considering the idea. “It wouldn’t be obvious where the painting is, so it wouldn’t be easy to find. The painting could still hang right in the main hall, protecting the house and its inhabitants.”
“Yep. Like I said we may not have the best plan ever…”
“But it’s the best plan we’ve got,” Michael said. “It still relies on us stealing the painting first and on our ability to fit another painting over it so we better brainstorm how to make this work.”
“Well,” Damien began, “the reason this plan sprung to mind was because you mentioned Ships in the Harbor. A local painted that painting. It was around this time. If I’m not mistaken, based on conjecture from pictures and information I’ve found in my research, that painting would fit over Mina’s.”
“So Ships in the Harbor can solve our second issue. For the first issue, I suppose we need to keep an
eye on Benjamin Abbott and get our hands on that painting as soon as we can.”
“I agree. He said he would finish within the next few days. We will have to keep close tabs on him, so we have the best chance of taking the finished painting.”
“Sounds like we have our plan. Start first thing after breakfast?”
“Yes, no reason we can’t start on a full stomach!”
Chapter 23
With a full stomach, Michael and Damien informed Celine they planned to spend the day exploring the property and the town. Celine offered to accompany them, but they declined, trying their best not to generate any suspicion. They excused themselves from the house, leaving Celine in the foyer.
Celine watched them disappear down the path. Damien pointed toward Alexander’s house. His interest in the construction site had been apparent yesterday. Celine imagined he hoped to explore the house again. She smiled as she watched them disappear into the woods. It was good to see them again. Her smile disappeared as she recalled Gray’s reaction to them. What if he was correct? What if the gentlemen she trusted, the ones she assumed had helped her all those years ago, were agents of the Duke?
She couldn’t believe that, she wouldn’t believe that. Even if she didn’t, their presence still troubled her. If they were truly who they claimed to be, the Duke’s arrival in Bucksville placed them in grave danger. She resolved to convince them to go back to their time.
Celine turned from the window, making her way to the sitting room. She picked up the book she had set out earlier this morning. One chapter into her reading, a cool gust of wind swept through the room accompanied by the sound of a man’s shoes on the entryway floor.
“Gray? Is that you?” she called, setting the book down and approaching the foyer.
“No, mon chérie, it is not,” a voice answered. Celine froze as the sound resonated in her ears and the man came into her view. “Aren’t you going to welcome me, my dear?”
“How dare you come into this house!” Celine snapped.
“Oh, Celine, that’s not very welcoming,” Marcus chided. “Or shall I say Mina? A less than clever ruse to throw me off the scent.”
Stolen Portrait Stolen Soul: A Shadow Slayers Story (Shadow Slayers Stories Book 2) Page 20
