Page 88 of Pepper, the Biker & the Vanishing Body

I glanced back quickly before entering the house and Stone did not look happy talking with my dad, though my dad appeared pleased.

I peeked out the side window flanking the front door once I entered the house and saw the guy from the hospital and garden suddenly appear. He waved Stone away though Stone looked reluctant to do so, but he left, leaving me to believe the guy was in charge of whatever was going on.

“Everything okay, Pep,” Ian whispered when I returned to my seat beside him.

“All is good. I’ll tell you about it later. Did you win the bid on the spyglass?” His happy grin said it all.

We were able to take the smaller items we purchased with us, but pick-up arrangements had to be made for the larger items. We had two days’ time to pick them up or we’d be charged a daily storage fee, something the historical society definitely could not afford. After we made the necessary arrangements for the historical society items to be picked up, Ian and Beau returned to work. Amy returned home, eager to find places for the items she and Beau had bought, and I was equally as excited to get home with my finds and display them.

I unwrapped the few items, pleased with the vintage magnifying glass and letter opener set I had won. The bid went a bit higher than I was hoping but Ian and I split the cost both of us eager to get the magnifying glass, a fitting piece for our hobby of solving mysteries while useful when magnification was necessary.

I took the letter opener and magnifying glass to the library. I wanted to see how well the magnifying glass worked on small lettering. My eye caught on a favorite painting of my Aunt Effie’s that had hung in her library as long as I could remember. It was a favorite of hers, a lake scene, a forest surrounding it. It looked much like the lake area on the lodge property. I recall the day she pointed it out to me, and I heard her voice in my head.

That painting reveals so much more than what you see. Look past what you see to unlock the truth, Pepper.

Look past what you see to unlock the truthwas what my aunt had written in her journal to me.

I went to the painting and used the magnifying glass, hovering it over the artist’s name. I took a step back when I saw it clearly… Lander.

It was the same artist who had painted the Willow family portrait.

CHAPTER 25

My mind refused to accept that it was a coincidence.

I recalled another thing my aunt had said to me that day.

The painting will hang there until the day you find the need to move it.

Was that why I had never moved it? Had her words lingered somewhere in my subconscious? Had I now had a need to move it? After all, my aunt was known for hiding things for me to find, important documents, her journals, notes—I was still finding in her books—and who knows what else she had hidden.

I put the magnifying glass down and reached up slowly as if I wasn’t quite sure if I should take the painting off the wall. I had no intention of moving it from where it hung, but curiosity had me wanting to examine it.

Curiosity won out and I took the painting off the wall. I laid it face down on the sofa to protect the painting itself, then I grabbed the letter opener that came with the magnifying glass. I poked a hole in the paper backing, then gently used the letter opener like I would on an envelope, slicing along the edges to reveal the back of the canvas.

I stared at it as soon as it was revealed to me. A journal was taped to the back of the canvas. I carefully removed the thick tape that held it in place and returned the painting to the wall with a mental note to myself to repair the backing, not that I thought I would forget after the astonishing find.

I settled into the oversized chair, its well-worn cushions cradling me in comfort. I had hoped it would relax me, but the mixture of nerves and excitement coursing through me made that impossible. My hands trembled slightly as I ran my fingers over the aged leather cover of the journal, the scent of old paper and time-worn ink rising from its pages. Aunt Effie’s journal. A piece of her. A piece of the past.

Taking a deep breath, I opened it.

The words on the first page leapt out at me, as if Aunt Effie had known this moment would come.

I had no doubt you would find this, Pepper. There wasn’t a mystery you couldn’t solve when you were young, and I knew your talent would only grow with the years. In here, you will learn the truth about Ignatius and Claire Willow. I chose not to reveal it while I was alive, as they had worked so hard to keep their secret and protect themselves and their only child. It is now your choice what to do with this information.

I paused, my heart hammering. Aunt Effie had always had a way of pulling people into a story, of making the past feel alive. I swallowed hard and continued reading.

It starts with a confident young Irishman, Shamas O’Rourke, from a poor family, who journeyed to England in search of work. He had a sharp mind, a talent for managing, and a willingness to do whatever it took to succeed. His determination led him to Mumford Castle, home of Lord Benedict—a powerful noble known for ruling with an iron fist. Lord Benedict had three sons and one daughter, Sarah. She was a beauty, but it was her fierce mind and kind heart that set her apart—though both were considered troublesome traits in a woman of her station.

I could already tell where this was going. A forbidden romance. A tale of love and sacrifice.

As you might guess, this story became a love story. Shamas and Sarah fell for each other, their differences overshadowed by the strength of their hearts. But their love came with a price. When Sarah became pregnant, Shamas was determined to run away with her, to build a new life together. But Lord Benedict found out before they could escape. In a desperate move to avoid scandal, he arranged for Sarah to marry one of his older friends—a match meant to erase any shame. Shamas barely escaped with his life, but he would not abandon his love or their unborn child.

I exhaled slowly, feeling the tension in the words.

Sarah had been prepared. With a substantial dowry left to her by her grandmother, she sewed jewels into the hem of the few dresses she managed to take. One night, under the cover of darkness, she slipped away and met Shamas. Together, they fled to Liverpool, their sights set on America. But they couldn’t travel under their real names. I was never able to uncover exactly how Shamas came into possession of Ignatius Willow’s passage ticket, but he did. And when he and Sarah boarded the ship, they left their old lives behind. They became Ignatius and Claire Willow—and they remained those people for the rest of their lives.

A shiver ran down my spine. Aunt Effie had unraveled a secret buried for generations.

---