Chapter 9 - THE RESTORATION
Six months later.
The morning sun poured through the massive skylights of the newly opened Morgan-Muski Foundation in Manhattan. The gallery was located in a stunning, beautifully restored warehouse district building, ironically purchased at a severe discount from the liquidated assets of Blackwood Real Estate.
Damian and Preston Blackwood were currently awaiting trial in federal lockup, denied bail. The scandal had ripped through the city's elite, exposing decades of extortion, bribery, and theft. The Blackwood empire was dissolved, sold off piece by piece to pay restitution to the hundreds of people they had crushed over the years.
Anna stood on a specialized scaffolding in the center of the main exhibition hall, a tiny detail brush in her hand. She was wearing a pristine white conservation coat.
She was carefully applying a restorative varnish to the edge of one of the recovered masterpieces. The hideous overpaint had been completely safely removed, revealing the breathtaking, tragic beauty of Elias’s work in its pure form.
"You're using too much pressure on the corner."
Anna smiled, not looking away from the canvas. "I'm using exactly the right amount of pressure, Elias. You paint them. Let me save them."
Elias chuckled, leaning heavily on a polished wooden cane as he walked toward the scaffolding. He looked like a new man. The bruising was long gone, replaced by a healthy color in his cheeks. He wore a tailored tweed suit, looking every bit the iconic, mysterious artist the world had celebrated his return to be.
He stopped at the base of the scaffolding. "I have something for you. Come down here."
Anna wiped her hands on a cloth and climbed down the metal steps.
Elias reached into his pocket and pulled out a small velvet box. He handed it to her.
Anna opened it carefully. Inside, resting on white silk, was her mother's silver locket.
But it was no longer tarnished or melted. Elias had secretly taken it to a master silversmith. The metal gleamed perfectly, the engraved E & M restored to its original delicate beauty.
Anna gasped, her hand flying to her mouth.
"She would be so incredibly proud of the woman you've become," Elias said softly. "I know I am."
Anna took the locket from the box and unclasped the chain. Elias stepped forward and helped her fasten it around her neck. It settled against her collarbone, feeling exactly like it belonged there.
"We open to the public in two hours," Elias said, looking around the incredible gallery, filled with his life's work, safe at last. "Are you ready, Head Conservator Morgan?"
Anna touched the locket, then looked at the brilliant, beautiful paintings surrounding her. She thought of the cold alley, the shattered phone, and the arrogant men who thought they could silence the world with a slap and a threat.
They had chosen the wrong waitress.
May you like
Anna smiled, her eyes shining with unshed, happy tears.
"I'm ready," she said. And for the first time in her life, she truly was.
