Chapter 11 #2
The senator arched his eyebrows. “Do you refer to how I speak of transitioning as though it is a normal occurrence? It is for a great many people in this country. I count myself an LGBTQ+ ally, and sadly these days, there are too many people who would rather ignore the T. I am not one of them.”
Yeah, the more the senator said, the more Dan liked him.
“But back to Cheryl. She had talent, even at that tender age. I think I was the one who first gave her a pencil and paper.” His warm smile lit up his face. “And she improved by leaps and bounds as the years went by.” He pointed to a portrait above the fireplace. “That’s one of hers.”
Dan gazed at the classically posed portrait of the senator and his wife. “She obviously favored photorealism.” The attention to detail was meticulous, right down to the diamond brooch on Mrs. Cain’s jacket and the gold ring on the senator’s finger.
“Yes, she did.” Senator Cain glanced at Dan. “Are you interested in art, Mr. Porter?”
“Yes.” The house where he’d grown up had been full of paintings collected by his father and grandfather. Dan could remember spending rainy Sunday afternoons with his dad, going from painting to painting, listening as his dad told the story behind each work of art.
That had been before Dan had revealed his secret. His gift had erected an awkward barrier between him and his parents, and their relationship had been strained ever since.
There were days when Dan’s gift felt more like a curse.
Gary expelled a breath. “I’ve seen some of her work online. It’s even more impressive in real life.”
Senator Cain nodded, his smile faltering. “She was an amazing artist.” He indicated the wall behind them, where four paintings hung on long thin chains. “And that’s another.” It was a portrait of the senator, but this time he sat alone, and the style was more casual.
Dan stood and walked over to get a better look. “She really captured you.” What he liked most was the senator’s relaxed pose, the warmth in his eyes.
The same warmth Dan had seen when Senator Cain spoke of Cheryl.
“Yes, she did.” The senator joined him. “She used to visit my art collection at the house in Lenox. She grew up there of course. And as she got older, her artistic talent developed, and I did my best to encourage her.”
“Her father says you paid for her studies,” Gary commented.
“I was glad he accepted my help. Someone as gifted as Cheryl…. It would have been a crime if she had not been able to study art.”
That tremor was evident once more.
Dan turned to gaze at him, his heart aching for the senator’s loss. “You cared for her.”
Senator Cain stared at his portrait. “She was a beautiful human being.” He scowled. “I cannot begin to tell you how angry I was when someone assaulted her. Cheryl never harmed a soul.”
Gary stared. “You knew about that?”
“She confided in me. That lowlife—”
“And yet that ‘lowlife’ did work for you at the house in Lenox.”
There was no mistaking the shock in his eyes. “What? As if I’d have let him set one toe on my property.”
Gary nodded. “In 1992. You had a pool house constructed, didn’t you?”
He frowned. “Yes, I remember that, but—”
“Aiden Reynolds was one of the laborers sent to work on it.”
The senator’s mouth fell open. “I had no idea. Not that I would have paid much attention to workmen. And Cheryl couldn’t have seen him. She’d have mentioned it.”
“You went to great lengths to find her when she disappeared,” Dan remarked.
“Pete was distraught, and there was a limit to how much he could do. I simply gave more weight to his efforts.”
“Which included applying a little pressure to the police department,” Gary said with a twinkle in his eyes.
Senator Cain coughed. “Oh. You know about that. Not that it got us anywhere. I just felt they weren’t doing all they could to find her.
” He glanced at Gary. “No disrespect intended to my present company. I even offered a reward, but nothing came of that either.” He returned his gaze to the portrait.
“I come in here often to look at her work. If she’d lived, who knows what she might have achieved?
Her father had no idea where her talent came from.
” He smiled. “He certainly had no idea to what use she put it the last five years of her life before she disappeared.” His smile faltered. “Cheryl didn’t think he’d approve.”
Gary frowned. “What do you mean?”
Senator Cain pointed to another painting. “That’s also her work.”
Dan stared at the painting of a young woman in a cream dress, seated at a musical instrument, a gold wrap around her shoulders. His brain would not compute. “But… that’s a Vermeer.”
The senator nodded. “Yes, it is. The original is in the vault at my bank. My grandfather bought it in 1947, and since then its value has increased tremendously. I didn’t feel happy having it at the house, so I commissioned Cheryl to produce a copy.
” He held up one finger. “You will note she didn’t sign it.
She never intended such works to be forgeries, but clearly copies. ”
“‘Works’?” Gary pulled his notepad from his pocket and peered at his scribbles. “Her father says she had a job as an art conservationist and that her portraits were a sideline.”
Senator Cain nodded. “And so they were.” He indicated the copy of the Vermeer. “This, however, became an even more lucrative sideline. I think she produced three, maybe four such copies before she… disappeared. But as I said, her father didn’t know about those.”
“She didn’t paint them in Lenox?” Gary asked.
The senator blinked. “Now that you mention it, I have no idea where she painted them. I never saw her at work, apart from when my wife and I sat for her. That was in Lenox, at our house.” He stared at Gary. “Why? Is it important?”
“Maybe.” Gary smiled. “Thank you, Senator, for—”
The door opened, and a woman entered. Dan recognized her instantly.
It was Mrs. Cain, as immaculate as if she’d just stepped down out of her portrait, not a hair out of place, the combination of high-waisted charcoal pants and a cream sweater with three-quarter sleeves making her look every inch a politician’s wife.
Senator Cain frowned. “Della? You didn’t mention you were coming to Boston today.”
She gave a thin smile. “I didn’t realize I had to keep you informed of my movements.
” Her eyes sparkled. “But if you insist, I’ll let you know every time I intend to do a little shopping.
” She glanced at Gary and Dan, then back to the senator.
“I’m sorry for interrupting. No one told me you were in a meeting. ”
“This is the detective who called me yesterday.” Senator Cain gestured to Gary.
“Then I’ll leave you to it.” Her gaze flickered toward Dan.
“Actually, we’re finished,” Gary said politely.
The senator blinked. “That’s it? No more questions?”
“I don’t think so. If anything else occurs to me….”
Senator Cain nodded. “Then please, come see me. I wish you luck in your investigation. If there is anything I can do to help, I would be only too happy.” He walked to the oak door and opened it. “Curtis?” The PA appeared, and the senator indicated them. “Please show my guests out.”
“Thank you, Senator.” Dan had to say something. “And… I’m sorry for your loss.”
Senator Cain’s eyes glistened, and he turned away quickly.
“Goodbye, gentlemen.” Mrs. Cain’s smile didn’t reach her eyes.
Curtis escorted them to the front door, and they exited the house.
They strolled to the parking space Gary had found. “You know we keep talking about coincidences,” Dan remarked. “Well, here’s another. Both the Cains and the Brightmores have houses on Nantucket. For all we know, they could be neighbors.”
“The same thought crossed my mind.” Gary glanced back toward the square. “I’ll be honest, he wasn’t at all how I’d expected him to be.”
Dan couldn’t resist asking. “Well? Do you think he’s our killer?”
Gary laughed. “You obviously don’t.”
“He grew up with her, encouraged her, supported her. But you know the one thing I took away from that conversation?” Dan’s head was buzzing. “If she’d worked on the copies in Lenox, her father would have seen them. And the senator says she didn’t tell him.”
Gary had a gleam in his eye. “So that means….”
Dan nodded. “Somewhere there’s a studio that may contain clues to her death.”
A studio they knew nothing about.