The Rosaries (Crossroads Series) (20 page)

“Natalie Sanders has the rosary” she said almost in a whisper, “that’s the information you were looking for, right?”

Ryan was equally surprised by the news Natalie shared while they ate lunch together. “Wow! Who would have known?”

“No kidding! Now I am suddenly in charge of securing the terms of a will, finding some mysterious woman who was left in foster care in a different country over thirty years ago, and making sure she gets what’s rightfully hers, including that damn rosary which looks like an ordinary rosary to me, but it is not, unless
Lakeisha
is making all this up.”

“Whoa! Wait up…you lost me…what rosary are you talking about?”

“A rosary my aunt bought at some antique store last year, when she thought she was going to meet her daughter - I found it hidden in her studio after she passed.
Lakeisha
, my aunt’s former nurse, who claims to belong to a secret order of nuns, told me it is an important piece necessary for the unfolding of some ancient prophecy.”

Ryan looked at Natalie over the rim of his water glass. “And you believe her?”

“Hmmm…I sort of do. She seems to know things we common humans don’t know.”

“I see. Is this rosary worth money?”

“According to
Lakeisha
the rosary is worth more than money. Allegedly, the keeper will have power to see past, present and future. Yes, I guess it’s worth money too. ”

“Natalie…I hate to burst your bubble, but it sounds like Aunt Catherine’s nurse might have indulged her share of swamp water.” He circled his right forefinger around near his temple to indicate that
Lakeisha
was crazy.

“She’s not crazy, Ryan. She told me things that really made a lot of sense, and she explained some concepts I have struggled with my whole life.”

“I would really take everything she says with a grain of salt, Sweetie.” 

“Oh, I will. She really is a pleasant person to talk to, though. I think she is planning on going to
London
with me.”

Ryan pulled his head back and looked at Natalie. “Really? Why would she do that?”

“I think she has some personal loose ends to tie up there, so we are taking the opportunity to travel together.”

“That should get pretty interesting – ancient prophecies and crazy swamp ladies.”

Natalie really was beginning to resent Ryan’s preconceived attitude toward
Lakeisha
, but she let it go to not spoil the moment. “Yes, it might. Well, look, I actually have to run. I have some phone calls to make, and I want to make sure I have enough time to stop by the grocery store as well.”

“Okay Sweetie; I have to roll out of here and get back to work too. See you tonight?”

“Sounds great. I will call you later.”

Ryan watched Natalie walk out, and followed her with his eyes until she got into her car. He wondered just how much that rosary was really worth. If it was something really sought after, he might be able to sell it for a good amount and patch up his family’s misfortunes without having to marry Natalie. He planned to spend the night at her house again, although he didn’t remember seeing a rosary there. Maybe Natalie didn’t take it out of Catherine’s house yet. If he got lucky, and found the rosary, tomorrow he could just come up with an excuse to stay away, save his family and start seeing Ashton again. It really looked like things were shaping up in his favor.

When Tom Hadley’s phone rang he was just thinking of calling Natalie. Hearing her voice on the other side of the line was definitely welcome news.

“Natalie, it’s great to hear from you. I was going to call you tonight. Given the time difference I was going to try after dinner my time, to make sure I would find you.”

“Tom – you don’t mind if I call you by your first name, right?”

“Not at all.”

“I discovered something crazy about my aunt today…”

“Yes, I think I did too. From the photos you sent me, I have reasons to believe that Catherine has painted before, under a different name.”

“Marcie Walker, right?’

Tom was stunned. “You knew?’

“No, actually I didn’t, but her attorney informed me of that today. Catherine
Bouvier
and Marcie Walker were the same person.”

“That’s an amazing thing, Natalie. Marcie Walker’s paintings are highly sought. I can’t imagine what their value will rise to if word leaks out that she passed away.”

“I know, Tom; to tell you the truth, I’ve heard the name, but I’ve never really seen the paintings. I think I will do a little research tonight.”

“When are you planning on sending Catherine’s paintings to me, Natalie?”

“I have to pack them and ship them – probably a few days. I’m hoping to get to
London
myself, within the next two weeks. I’m calling the travel agency this afternoon, or tomorrow at the latest. My passport is already in order.”

“You are welcome to stay with me, Natalie, if you are comfortable with the idea. I have a fairly large home, and I am rarely there. Of course, if that makes you uncomfortable, I can book a hotel for you.”

“Staying with you would be fine with me, but I am not traveling alone, so I will have to ask my friend if she is amenable to it.”

“Inquire with her, and then let me know. It would be a great pleasure to have you stay at my house. I live within walking distance from the gallery, and it would make it easier for you to go back and forth, especially if you don’t have transportation.”

“Thank you, Tom. I really appreciate the offer. I will call my friend today and we will discuss the possibility.”

“Natalie, go ahead and also ship your own paintings, the ones you have ready.”

Natalie’s heart skipped. “I will, Tom. I have a few more I’m still working on, but I can certainly finish them before I ship the others.”

“Very well. Let me know if there is anything I can do to facilitate the shipping. You have my address, I assume?”

“I do, thank you. Aunt Catherine wrote it down for me.”

“That’s great. I look forward to receiving them.”

“Bye for now, Tom.”

“Good-bye, Natalie.”

She hung up the phone and looked at her watch – almost three in the afternoon. She decided to go home right away and skip the grocery store, but first she figured she would give
Lakeisha
a call. There was no answer at Aunt Catherine’s house, so she assumed that
Lakeisha
had gone out to run errands. She went home and pulled out the paintings that needed more work, determined to finish all five of them before packing Aunt Catherine’s. She had just started setting out the colors, when someone rang her doorbell. She wiped her hands on a cloth and went to open the door, surprised to see
Lakeisha
standing in front of her.

“
Lakeisha
! What are you doing here? I just tried to call you a short while ago.”

Lakeisha
shook her head. “I’m not staying at the
Bouvier’s
house any
longer.Your
mother discharged me.”

“Really? Wow, that was fast…come in, come in.” She moved out of the way, to allow
Lakeisha
inside. “When did she let you go?”

“Just this morning. I haven’t taken all my things yet, but I’m staying at the Rest Inn on Market Street.”

“Not for long,
Lakeisha
. I would like for you to stay with me, if you will; at least until we go to
London
.”

Lakeisha
was taken aback by the offer. “Why, Natalie, that’s very kind of you. I just took the bus here because I wanted to talk to you in person; I didn’t expect your generous offer.”

“It’s no bother for me,
Lakeisha
. In fact, I could really use the company, and maybe you can teach me a few more things. You really gave me some food for thought the last time we talked.”

Lakeisha
smiled. “That’s good, Natalie. That shows your thoughts run deep. I would love to accept your offer, but I will have to go back to
Wilmington
to fetch my things from the hotel, and go back to the house to get the rest.”

“I have an idea…why don’t you go take a walk on the beach while I work on this for a little while, and then we’ll get some dinner and head back to
Wilmington
together? I will drive you back to Aunt Catherine’s house on my way to get a few supplies. Then, I can wait for you, if you want me to.”

“I would love to ride back into town with you, Natalie. The bus system in
North Carolina
is really not the best there is. You can just drop me off to your aunt’s house. I’ll just pack the rest of my belongings and then I will walk back to the hotel – it’s quite near.”

“That’s settled, then. Go on and kick some sand around those toes, and I will be done in a jiffy. Of course, if you prefer to stick around and have some tea, feel free to do so. I will just be in my own little world for a while.”

“No, actually a nice walk will do me good. I will be back in a bit.”

Lakeisha
left, and Natalie dove right into painting. She was happy to be working again, and immediately felt invigorated. She wondered if she had jumped into things a bit too fast – she barely knew
Lakeisha
…would she work out as a roommate? Well, it wasn’t forever anyway; just until they went to London, which was going to be within the next couple of weeks, hopefully.

When she heard knocking at the door, she jumped and looked at clock on the wall – seven o’clock! It had been two hours since
Lakeisha
had come and gone. As it always happened when she painted, Natalie had lost track of time. She opened the door to a smiling
Lakeisha
. “I really needed that walk. The beach is quite nice here.”

Natalie smiled back. “Yeah, I think it is, too. Well, I’m just about done here. Are you ready to go grab a bite?”

“Sure. Walking made me hungry.”

“Let’s go, then” Natalie said as she moved the easel away from any jumping platform – Billy seemed to have a fatal attraction to wet paint. “Oh, you know what? I never called Ryan. Give me a moment,
Lakeisha
, and we’ll be out the door.”

Lakeisha
nodded and sat on the loveseat in the family room. It only took a few minutes for Natalie to wrap up the conversation, and by the time she got back into the family room,
Lakeisha
appeared a bit unsettled.

“Is everything okay,
Lakeisha
?”

“I think so…I just got this funny feeling about deception, a few minutes ago, but I think I’m just tired after a long day.”

“Well, let’s go eat something; then, I will give you a ride back into town to tie up all the loose ends. When you come back, you can have the guest room all to yourself.”

He moved through the house in the dark, afraid the neighbors might get alerted by lights in the house. Time was really running out – he knew it, he could feel it in his bones.

After he spoke with Lisa, the attorney’s secretary, he found out that Catherine
Bouvier
left the rosary to her niece, but it was never made clear whether it was taken out of the
Bouvier
home already, or if it was still hidden somewhere in the house.

Accidentally meeting Lisa at the Sweet Carolina Café, the day before, was, in his opinion, another sign – getting in her pants so quickly was just an added benefit.

Lisa was completely unaware of the impact her words had on him when she told him of her annoyance at having to change her employer’s appointments to accommodate the reading of a Will and Testament. He was fairly sure that client confidentiality forbade the young woman to disclose names, but she was so heated up about having to stay late that afternoon, and missing her niece’s birthday party to make phone calls, that she angrily blurted out Catherine’s name as she discussed the situation.

Of course, he was all ears. He turned on his charm and told Lisa that Ms.
Bouvier
owned a rosary his own mother would love to have. His mother was ill, he explained, and owning that rosary was her greatest wish; if he could find out whom Ms.
Bouvier
left it to, he could maybe talk to the new owner about purchasing the piece. Lisa knew nothing about the rosary, so she had no reasons to doubt his words.

They met again that same evening, and after a few drinks and some coaxing on his part, they sealed the deal: Lisa would listen in, the next day, and she would keep him informed if she found out any details about the coveted rosary. When she finally called, Lisa informed him that Catherine’s niece planned to take the rosary to London – when did that plan materialize?

He slipped quietly into Catherine’s closet, careful to not turn on the flashlight until the door was closed. There were several boxes on the ground, and he wondered if the rosary could be into one of them. It would take him a while to go through all the boxes in there, but he should have enough time. It was certainly a plus that the housekeeper was gone.