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"That when they were put together, the location would be clear.And it would be time to retrieve the originals, the ones that we stole and replaced with copies.Then we would give them back to their rightful owners.We couldn't move too soon, or the thieves would be on to us, and we wouldn't be able to keep going.So, we would wait until the time was right to retrieve the paintings and then the world could still enjoy them, not just the thieves who were stealing Italy's most precious art."
Another piece of the puzzle clicked into place.The location of the stolen paintings would be revealed when they were all put together.
Isabella took the painting off the wall and handed it to him, a gleam in her eyes.He had a feeling she had already figured it out.
"Thank you for this," he told Jasmine."For keeping it safe all these years."
"I hope you knew I loved you, Tomas, even though I couldn't be with you.I had to honor my vows."
"I knew."He took her hand and gave it a gentle squeeze."Read my letter again, and you'll always know how I felt."
Her eyes watered with tears as she gave him a smile."You're leaving now, aren't you?"
"I have to get the paintings."
She nodded as he got to his feet."We won't see each other again."
It wasn't a question, so he didn't give her an answer.He just leaned over and kissed her on the cheek and then he followed Isabella out of the room.They could hear Jasmine's granddaughter dealing with her children down the hall, so they hurried out of the house before she could stop them and ask why they had her grandmother's painting.
They jumped into the car, and he quickly drove away, not stopping until they were several blocks away.Then he pulled over by a park and looked at the painting Isabella had on her lap."You know where the paintings are, don't you?"
"It's the school," she said with excitement in her eyes."The school Frederico started.The one with the courtyard, the artists painting in the open air.Don't you remember what we saw when we stood there?"
"The trees, the rock wall, the river…"
"And the castle on the hill in the distance."
"Damn!You're right, Isabella.But…"
She groaned."Why is there always a but?"
"If the paintings were hidden in the school, why wouldn't Frederico have done something with them?Why didn't he burn them when he burned his own?"
"Louisa and Victoria said he went mad with alcohol and mental illness."
"There's something we're missing."
"Lucinda," she said."She taught at the school.Maybe Frederico never knew the paintings were there.She might have hidden them there without his knowledge."
"Okay.That's making more sense.If they are at the school, where would they be?"
She thought for a second."Oh, my God!"She shot him a triumphant smile."I think they're in plain sight, Nick.Remember all the paintings in the hallways?"
"I thought that was student art."
"Maybe it was a combination of copies of the masters mixed in with student projects.Remember Lucinda's sketchbook—the picture I showed you a few days ago.It was a copy of a famous painting.My mother said they would study the work of master artists to help them understand technique."
"Are you suggesting that priceless paintings have been hanging in an art school and no one knew?What about the teachers?Wouldn't they recognize an original over a copy?"
"Maybe the original is behind the copy.Either way, we have to go to the school.I think the other two paintings, the stairs and the patterned tiles probably reflect the interior of the school.We didn't go up the stairs, so we didn't see what they looked like, and I didn't notice the floor, but maybe the tiles will lead us where we need to go."
He started the car and pulled away as she put the painting in the back seat.
The idea of the paintings being at the school was wild, but it also made sense.He pressed down on the gas, eager to get back to the highway.It would take them at least another hour to get to Rome, which was frustrating.They were so close.He didn't want anyone else to find the paintings before they did.
"Did you feel bad lying to Jasmine?"Isabella asked a few moments later."Pretending to be her lost love?"
"A little.But it was less complicated for her to think I was Tomas than to have to explain it all."
