An artful deception

Chapter 2 - A Venetian Lagoon

Those eyes!! Those dark, stormy, intense and intimidating eyes...almost like being hit from nowhere by a thundering typhoon of such intensity and then being sucked into its vortex! Those were the thoughts that swirled through Cleo's mind as she started sketching late last night to capture what she was seeing in her daydream. Her brain was wired and she needed to get those intense peepers out of her system if she was to get a good night's rest. As her sketch manifested itself, her own eyelids starting drooping and her breathing evened out. Letting out a gigantic yawn, Cleo crawled into her cozy and comfortable bed primed for some much needed shut-eye.

After an uneventful night (which was a huge relief to Cleo!) the next morning she woke surprisingly refreshed. Given how terrified she had been last evening, she had expected nothing short of night terrors. However, her sketching session seemed to have put her demons to rest giving her the respite she dearly needed. 

She put the coffee pot on the stove as per her normal morning routine. Her classes did not start until later this afternoon so she could sit down and enjoy her coffee which was a luxury given how hectic her schedule usually got. While the coffee brewed, Cleo tended to her plants which seemed to be thriving with the better weather. She didn't have a green thumb, but lately she hadn't killed any plants either and she was thankful for this bit of luck. The good sleep, the coffee, her plants and the me-time she got to herself this morning felt like a balm and helped bring her back to her usual cheerful, spirited self.

She wanted to talk to her parents. The painting and the strange dream were never far from her mind, even now. Cleo wondered if her parents had perchance seen the Rembrandt while they were with her on the museum tour. Glancing at the clock to confirm it was a decent hour, Cleo picked up her iPhone sitting on the kitchen counter and speed-dialed her mom.

"Hi Ma! Had your coffee?" asked Cleo when she heard someone pick at the other end. "Cleo! I wasn't expecting you at this hour!" exclaimed her mother's surprised voice on the other end. "Everything okay, my love?"

"Yes, yes, all is well Mamma. I'm enjoying a little time to myself this morning since my classes start a bit later today. I did call however, because I had something I wanted to ask." responded Cleo and hurried on, "Do you recall our visit to the Gardner museum the other day?" "Of course I do. We all had such a nice time. But why do you ask?" 

"Well Mamma, I am a little confused and wanted to check on a minor detail – do you remember seeing a Rembrandt in the Dutch room while we were visiting? One with a boat in the center of a storm." probed Cleo. "Hmmm....let me see...the Dutch room as I recall had several empty frames, six to be precise, due to the heist that happened many years ago and I do not recall any painting of the kind you described darling" said Cleo's mother confirming her suspicions. "Is there a school project you're working on, Cleo?" asked her mother intrigued by the question.

Cleo was silent for a minute mulling over what her mother had just confirmed. The frame had been empty. There was no painting matching that description. She had not seen the painting in real life. Yet, why was it so vividly captured in her memory? It just didn't make any sense. And that horrible man with the nasty sneer – how did she "see" him in such vivid detail? It just didn't add up.

"Hello....Cleo...hello...darling, are you still there?" startled to hear she had left her mother dangling on the phone, Cleo jumped back to the present. "Oh sorry ma, yeah we were discussing about women philanthropists in our last class and our Gardner museum visit had come up. Like I said, not a big deal" and with that Cleo eased her mother off the topic. After exchanging a few endearments, the two said their goodbyes and ended the call.

Cleo's mind was racing. Nothing seemed to make sense. A plan was formulating in her mind. She glanced at the clock and noticed she still had a few hours before class started. And with a lighter than normal schedule today, she could potentially skip classes too if needed. That meant she could make a day trip to Boston and the museum to put her mind at ease and off this all-consuming topic once and for all.