Page 64 of A Lady Igniting Wicked Passions
Clamping her hands to the arm of the chair she wondered how she could possibly hold to her promise not to run to him at the first opportunity.
“Here it is!” Julian crowed, carrying a large painting in his hands.
He casually discarded the canvas that was sitting on the easel, examining it for a moment before shaking his head and snorting. He carefully placed the new canvas on the easel and then turned it to face Arabella. It was done with some difficulty due to the size of the canvas and the obvious care he took with it.
It probably should have been turned around before the canvas was placed upon it, but Julian had clearly not thought of that. Arabella sat forward to gaze at the picture. She did not understand how this could form part of any plan to help Aaron or what the significance of the painting was.
But she knew enough of Julian’s work to see that it was a fine example of it. It was a painting of the coast and the sea but done with such skill that the waves seemed almost to be wet. Arabella thought that if she stared at it long enough, it would start to move. A ship was visible, intricately detailed and there were people upon the cliff top.
She rose from her seat to examine it more closely, picking out more details that she had not noticed previously. The brush strokes were something she had never seen before, conveying an energy to the scene that, she realized, was responsible for the sense of life the painting had.
“It looks like a window. Not a painting at all. As though, I’m looking out on the real world. It is remarkable.”
“My finest work. And now that I have the techniques involved mastered, the first of many. I believe I have created, for the first time, something which owes nothing to the masters of the past. I can discern no single stroke that is inspired by any of the paintings I have seen by the old masters. It is entirely original and…” Julian broke off, gazing at the picture with a sudden frown.
Victoria almost leapt to her feet. “But no painting is ever finished. Except this one. There is nothing more for you to do, Julian,” she said firmly.
He shrugged, still frowning. “You are probably right, Victoria. I have other works to care for. It is just a shame to see it leave this house while there is such a glaring…”
Victoria put up her hand. “Glaring to you only. Not to the man who will pay a king’s ransom for it. He wants it as he saw it.”
Julian shrugged again and stepped back, putting his hands behind his back, and rocking on his heels. Victoria went to a bookcase and took down a leather envelope tied with string. Undoing the ties, she opened it and took out a piece of paper which she handed to Arabella.
“Note the crest at the head of this letter. It was hand delivered to us by courier,” Victoria said.
Arabella looked at the crest and with shock realized that it was royal. Her eyes widened as she read.
“The Prince Regent wishes to purchase Julian’s painting. This painting?” She gasped.
“Do not sound quite so surprised please, my dear,” Julian said in a pained voice. “It is a rather fine painting.”
“And he has asked you to name your price,” Arabella said. “Aunt Victoria, this is wonderful. You and Julian could be, well, rich.”
“And when have we ever sought riches, child?” Victoria said.
“Money does not bring happiness, but it can be useful when put into the right hands,” Julian said, cryptically.
“Besides. We cannot sell this painting,” Victoria said.
Arabella nodded. “It is too precious to Julian.”
“No, we cannot sell what we no longer own,” Victoria said.
She produced another piece of paper. It was a bill of sale. Julian had signed it. There were a few lines of scrawled words above his signature that Arabella struggled to make out. When she did, she found herself sitting back down rather heavily. The paper fluttered in hands that shook.
“This confers ownership of the painting to…to…”
“You, child,” Victoria said, also sitting.
She smiled in a very satisfied way. Julian also sat, sighing happily.
“I am glad the obscene wealth of that oaf, the Regent, will be put to some good use. Saving my niece and her husband. Name the price that will free you from your troubles and take it with my blessing.”
Chapter 38
Aaron’s plan was a desperate one. A worse toss of the dice than the ill-fated steed that Ethan had desired him to wager on. The horse did not complete the race it was entered into, developing a problem with one of its rear legs. A veterinarian physician had declared it would preclude it from racing for the rest of its life.
On hearing of Ethan’s disaster, Aaron had praised God for his wife’s equine acumen and felt a chill down his spine for his own near miss. The amount he had been contemplating wagering would have seen him selling Ashenwood and the rest of his lands to recoup his losses.
