Chapter 86
Lisa’s POV
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After breakfast, Katherine and I lingered in the hallway for a moment. The tension from being around her father still clung to me like a second skin, but her presence was a welcome relief from the coldness that had settled over the morning.
She glanced sideways at me with a soft smile. “I don’t have much to do today,” she said while tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. “Do you want to see the art room? I think that you would really like it.”
I hesitated. My heart was still heavy, and Sierra hadn’t stopped pacing in my mind. But Katherine looked so hopeful. She had been nothing but kind since I arrived, and I didn’t want to dampen her spirit.
I gave her a small nod. “Okay. I would like that.”
Her face lit up. She clapped her hands gently and took my wrist. “Great! It’s upstairs. Come on, it’s one of my favorite places.”
We walked up a winding staircase. The banister was carved with intricate wolves and forest vines. The hallway upstairs was quieter, and the sunlight streaming through stained–glass windows painted the stone floors with patches of color. It was beautiful, like walking through a dream.
When she pushed open a double door at the end of the hall, I gasped softly.
The room was enormous.
Paintings lined the walls. There were dozens of them. It looked like a private gallery. There were landscapes of forests at twilight, moonlit lakes, and misty mountaintops. Some canvases captured wolves mid–shift, others showed tender portraits of men and women, children, warriors, and ethereal beings I couldn’t quite name.
The room smelled like turpentine and fresh wood. Light streamed from the large windows and fell across scattered easels and stacked canvases. A long wooden table held glass jars of paintbrushes, palettes with dried color, and open sketchbooks.
“Wow,” I breathed. “This is… amazing.”
Katherine beamed. “Right? Most of these were done by my mom. Some were painted by my dad too.”
I turned to her, surprised. “So both your parents are artists?”
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She nodded proudly. “Yes! Mom was incredible with details. Dad used to paint a lot more. when I was younger, but he’s more serious now.”
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I walked slowly to a wall of portraits. “They’re so good. The emotion in the faces, the way the eyes almost follow you…”
Katherine smiled. “My mom believed a true painting should feel alive. She taught me everything I know.”
I looked back at her. “You paint too?”
“I try,” she laughed. “Not nearly as good as them, but I love it. It calms me.”
She suddenly clapped her hands. “Wait! Let’s see your talent.”
“Mine?”
“Yes,” she said brightly. She moved to a clean easel and placed a blank canvas on it. “You said you used to draw. Let me get some brushes and paint.”
I opened my mouth to protest, but she was already moving toward a large closet on the far end of the room. While she rummaged through supplies, I stared at the empty canvas.
Sierra whispered, I don’t like this, Lisa. Something’s not right.
I know, I replied. But she’s been kind to us. I just want to be polite.
Just be careful. Stay alert.
Katherine returned with a smile and handed me a box of paints and a cup of brushes. She pulled over a stool and gestured to it.
“Okay, Miss Artist. Let’s see what you can do.”
I took a deep breath and sat. My hands trembled slightly as I picked up a brush. I wasn’t in the mood to paint, not really. But I let my mind drift and my hand move.
I painted a wolf under a full moon. The fur was white, tinged with silver, and the eyes glowed green. Behind it was a dark forest. My strokes were quick. The image came together more easily than I expected.
Katherine leaned in. “Oh my Goddess… Lisa, this is beautiful.”
I felt a small and shy smile tug at my lips. “It’s not finished. Just a rough sketch.”
“Still. The detail… the emotion. That’s your wolf, right?”
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Chapter 86
I nodded. “Sierra.”
“She looks strong and fierce. Just like you.”
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I stood up and stretched my arms. The stool tipped slightly, and I bumped into the chair next to me. It crashed into a small table stacked with canvases, sending them flying to the floor with a loud thud.
“Oh no,” I gasped. “I’m so sorry!”
I rushed forward and began picking up the fallen canvases. Katherine was beside me in seconds. She was kneeling and gathering the scattered artwork.
“It’s okay,” she said. “These are just unfinished ones. My mom used this corner for her practice pieces.”
One by one, I stacked them back. I was trying to be gentle.
There were paintings of vases with flowers, sketches of lakes and rivers, and pencil outlines
of wolves in motion.
But then I saw it.
A portrait.
A small girl with bright green eyes and soft brown hair. Her smile was gentle and innocent. Around her neck was a silver locket. This was my locket. The same one Althea had left with
- me.
My breath hitched.
The painting was unfinished, but the name etched in tiny letters on the locket was clear.
Lisa.
It was me.
I froze.
Sierra roared in my head. That’s you.
That’s
your face.
I know, I whispered internally, But how?
Katherine turned. She was still picking up more canvases. I moved quickly and covered the portrait with another canvas and slid it to the bottom of the pile.
My hands were shaking.
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Claim
< Chapter 86
Stay calm, I told myself. Don’t let her see.
We finished stacking the canvases. She brushed off her hands and smiled.
“Sorry about the mess. This corner gets chaotic sometimes.”
I nodded and forced a weak smile. “It’s okay. Thanks for helping.”
She glanced at my wolf painting. “We need to show this to my dad. He’ll appreciate it. He values real talent.”
My stomach turned.
“Really? You think he would want to see it?”
“Definitely. Let’s show it to him tonight at dinner. He always notices good work.”
I nodded slowly. I was still shaken.
“Of course,” I said with a smile.
But inside, my thoughts were screaming.
Who painted that portrait of me?
How did they know what I looked like as a child?
Why was it here?
Something was deeply wrong in this place.
And now I had proof.
But until I figured out what to do next, I had to pretend I knew nothing.
I had to play the part.
For now.
< Chapter 87
