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“By Anthony van Dyck?”
Gabriel smiled. “I certainly hope so.”
Phillip Somerset escorted Gabriel and Sarah up a flight of stairs and into a large, light-filled office with outsize computer monitors and a sweeping view of the whitecapped bay. A lengthy silence ensued as he regarded them speculatively from behind the no-man’s-land of his half-acre desk. Then he looked directly at Sarah and said, “Perhaps you should tell me what this is all about.”
Her answer was precise and lawyerly. “Isherwood Fine Arts has retained Mr. Allon to conduct a discreet inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the rediscovery ofPortrait of an Unknown Womanand its sale to Masterpiece Art Ventures.”
“Why was such an inquiry deemed necessary?”
“Late last week, the gallery received a letter expressing concerns over the transaction. The woman who sent it was killed in an auto accident near Bordeaux a few days later.”
“Do the police suspect foul play?”
“No,” answered Gabriel. “But I do.”
“Why?”
“Her late husband purchased several paintings from the same gallery in Paris where Julian and Sarah acquiredPortrait of an Unknown Woman. When I paid a visit to the gallery on Friday, I noticed three paintings that appeared to be forgeries. I purchased one of them and turned it over to Equus Analytics.”
“Aiden Gallagher is the best in the business. I use him myself.”
“He’s hoping to have a preliminary report by tomorrow afternoon. But in the meantime—”
“You thought you’d have a look at the Van Dyck.”
Gabriel nodded.
“I’d love to show it to you,” said Phillip Somerset. “But I’m afraid it’s not possible.”
“May I ask why not?”
“Masterpiece Art Ventures sold it about three weeks ago. At a considerable profit, I might add.”
“To whom?”
“I’m sorry, Mr. Allon. The transaction was private.”
“Was there an intermediary?”
“One of the major auction houses.”
“Did the house conduct a second review of the attribution?”
“The buyer insisted on one.”
“And?”
“Portrait of an Unknown Womanwas painted by Anthony van Dyck, almost certainly in his studio in Antwerp, sometime in the late sixteen thirties. Which means that, as far as Isherwood Fine Arts and Masterpiece Art Ventures are concerned, the matter is now closed.”
“If you don’t mind,” said Sarah, “I’d like that in writing.”
“Send me something tomorrow morning,” replied Phillip Somerset. “I’ll have a look.”
