Page 13 of Air Of Mystery (Witches On The Hill #4)

I inspected the three large, framed photos of how the building had looked in its various incarnations.

First there was an old black and white from when the mansion had been in its heyday; then one from several years ago when it had been in ruin—before the reconstruction; and lastly an image of the structure as I knew it, restored and in current day.

I smiled over all the ephemera and items from the 1800s-era Marquette family also on display inside the glass cases.

I viewed old top hats, a pair of ladies’ gloves and vintage children’s toys…

but bottom line? It was all about the amethysts.

At last, I was able to get a good look at the amethyst parure that was on exhibition behind safety glass.

Arranged within a wooden case, the set of jewels was stunning.

While I’d seen plenty of photos from the newspapers and online of the dowry— recovered years before by Camilla Midnight and Jacob Ames—seeing the jewels in person was an entirely different matter.

Beside the display, a recently found photo of Pierre Michel and his bride, Bridgette, was presented.

Perhaps it would correctly be called a daguerreotype, but while it was small and obviously in black and white, seeing how much Chauncey Marquette, Philippe’s younger brother—and Estella’s husband—resembled his notorious ancestor made the hair rise on the back of my neck.

“No wonder the house and grounds were so violently haunted,” I murmured. “A bride who mysteriously vanished shortly after her arranged marriage, a missing dowry, and a husband falsely accused of her murder...”

“Add in star-crossed lovers, a stolen baby, and a man cursed by a local witch,” Gabriella said. “It all makes for a pretty potent mix. The locals have talked about the story for almost two hundred years.”

“With this museum room and the dowry on display, it is irresistible. I completely understand why folks would want to see the dowry for themselves. It’s history brought to life.”

Gabriella sighed. “Unfortunately, the spirit of Bridgette didn’t rest after her dowry was discovered. It didn’t occur to me, or any of us, that she was so angry to have been forgotten...and that her haunting would only ramp up until her remains were found.”

“She was one bad mama jama,” I said, trying to lighten the mood.

Gabriella gave my fingers a squeeze. “She was that, and thankfully the last in a series of dangerous hauntings here at the mansion. I will always remember and be thankful that you, your grandmother, Kenna, Cordelia, and Brynn were all here helping us that night when we banished Bridgette’s spirit from the grounds. ”

“My first Grand Coven experience.” I gave her a playful elbow nudge. “It was one for the books.”

Gabriella chuckled.

“At least now that her remains have been properly interred,” I said, “she’s at peace.”

“I’m so glad we filled that pond in,” Gabriella added. “That part of the property is beautifully coming back to life, and it’ll be a fabulous backdrop for Brynn and Austin’s wedding this fall.”

“Gabriella, I know that you want me to focus on the story of Pierre Michel, his missing bride, and the lost dowry when I come up to film in October...but can I ask you about something that I heard years ago? It’s about a cursed painting.”

Her whole expression changed. “You may ask.”

“Okay,” I said, nodding. “Was there a portrait of Pierre-Michel found here in the mansion during the initial renovation?”

“Yes, there was. But it’s not here any longer.”

I frowned. “As in the portrait was sold, or is in storage?”

Gabriella seemed to consider her words. “The painting was removed for safety reasons and ultimately destroyed about six years ago.”

“Safety reasons?” I repeated. “So, it really was cursed?”

Gabriella lowered her voice. “If we get into this...the rest of this conversation is strictly off the record.”

Damn it, I thought. But to Gabriella I said, “Understood.”

“An expert recommended that we destroy the painting.”

“I can’t imagine a historian would have—”

“Not a historian.” Gabriella cut me off. “A paranormal expert, you could say.”

The Guardian, I realized. She had to be speaking of him. There had been rumors within the local covens and magickal families that the Guardian had been called in to ultimately clean up the intense haunting of Pierre Michel...

Which meant Gabriella knew exactly who they were.

I’d been trying to find out the identity of the Guardian for years. So far, I’d been stonewalled each and every time. So, instead of pressing on that, I switched tactics. “May I ask what reason the expert gave for destroying a historical painting?”

“We were told that the portrait was a gateway...a portal that allowed Pierre-Michel’s spirit to travel back and forth from the spiritual realm to the physical world.”

I blinked at that surprising bit of information. It was the last thing I had expected her to say.

“People were being hurt, Skye,” Gabriella continued. “Chauncey was possessed more than once by the spirit of Pierre-Michel, and it was extremely violent.”

“So, he’s the man who ended up in the hospital a few years ago after a paranormal investigation here at the mansion.

” I reconsidered the old photograph of Bridgette and Pierre Michel.

There was no way it was a coincidence that his look-alike Chauncey had been the target of a possession.

“No wonder Estella hates ghosts and the paranormal.”

Suddenly, her reaction to me being at Amanda’s house made a lot more sense.

“Estella has had her own run-in with the paranormal here at the mansion,” she said.

“Was that an intense experience?” I asked carefully, keeping my tone polite.

Gabriella shuddered. “Intense to the point where she fought for her life.”