“Not this particular one.” Olivia could not drag her gaze away from the picture. “But I’ve seen others like it. I recognize the oracle figure and the title, but it’s the unique style that makes me sure it’s one of my grandmother’s paintings. So much fierce energy. So much incredible detail. Her pictures all have this surreal quality.”

Anticipation surged through him. “Do you have more paintings like this?”

Olivia did look up then, her eyes tightening at the corners. He realized he had spoken too harshly. The last thing he wanted to do was frighten her.

Social skills.

“We had two of them,” Olivia said. “My mother kept them in a closet at the Fogg Lake house. I remember being fascinated by them. I asked Mom why we didn’t hang the paintings alongside her own.”

“Your mother was a painter?”

“Yes. She sold her art at various craft fairs while I was growing up. It was how she paid the bills. I have several of her pictures. Most are landscapes featuring scenes from around Fogg Lake. Her style is quite different from my grandmother’s.”

“What did your mother say when you asked her why she didn’t hang your grandmother’s paintings?”

“She said Grandma asked her to keep them safe and that someday I might have to keep them safe, too. She spoke of them as if they were a family secret that had to be closely guarded. But she never told me why. Over time I mostly forgot about them. Just a couple of paintings in the back of a storage closet.”

“I need to see those pictures.”

“They’re gone,” Olivia said.

“Stolen?”

“I don’t think so. There’s not a lot of crime in Fogg Lake. I didn’t even know they were gone until I went through the house after my mother’s death. That was about a year ago. I intended to pack up her things and sell the place, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it. I still can’t.”

“But you’re sure the pictures weren’t stolen?”

“Almost positive. They sat there in the back of the closet the whole time I was living at home. I doubt if anyone in town knew about them. A year ago it would have been almost impossible for a stranger to break into the house without someone noticing.”

“What’s different now?”

Olivia swallowed some wine and lowered her glass. “The Foundation has a lot of people in Fogg Lake these days examining the old Bluestone lab that was found in the nearby caves. There are more people coming and going now. Still, security is very, very tight. Victor and Lucas make sure of that.”

“Could anyone carrying the right badge get in?”

“It’s possible, I suppose, but the Foundation people all know each other and the people of Fogg Lake all know each other. Strangers stand out, believe me.”