Page 46 of Black
We were interrupted by Bruce, who cleared his throat behind us. “Feeling better, Cia?” he asked.
“Yes. Thank you.” She looked up at him and for the first time I didn’t read hostility on her face.
“That’s a nice drawing,” he said and pointed to my portrait.
“Cia made it,” I said, not hiding the pride in my voice.
He sat down on a chair beside us and asked to see it.
“How long have you been an artist?” he asked.
“I don’t remember, but I started making portraits for money when I was seventeen.”
“You forgot to sign it,” he said and handed it back to her.
She picked up a black crayon and put it to the lower right side of the paper, but there was a moment of hesitation before she wrote “To G from Cia.”
“Interesting,” Bruce commented, and he had the look of a sly fox. “What name do you normally sign your portraits with?”
“I just write a B, nothing else.”
“B for Black?”
“Yes.”
“And yet you chose to sign this one as Cia – why is that?”
“I don’t know, it just felt right.”
“I’m wondering if you would be interested in helping me out with an art project while you’re here.”
“What do you mean?”
“I’ve been planning on decorating the dining room for a while, but I’m wondering if maybe you would like to have fun with it…”
“Like make pictures for the walls?”
“Yes… why not?”
“Sure, what kind of pictures would you like?”
“Whatever you feel inspired to make,” he replied. “Just tell me what you need. We already have some art supplies here and if you need more I can get them for you.”
Cia looked intrigued. “I just need large pieces of good-quality paper and quality pencils,”
“But what if I wanted some pictures in colors, could you do that?”
“I don’t know, I’ve only ever worked with pencils”
Bruce smiled. “Then this will be a challenge for you.”
Cia was quiet for a few seconds before she spoke. “I think I could do it.”
“Wonderful. Therese can show you where we keep our art supplies,” he said and got up from the chair. “Also, since you are now five years old, it might be fun for you to take a hike with your father. Nature here is breathtaking.”
“What about boots?” I asked since Cia only had sneakers on.
“I’m sure her black boots will do fine for a hike; I’ll have them brought to your cabin,” Bruce said and got up to leave. “Enjoy your day; I’ll see you at dinner.”
