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Chapter 148 — The Family Portrait
"Here you go... I do search for you."
Mason goes into the studio and sits down next to Mary in front of the easel. With suspicion he looks at the canvas but there were only some vague outlines of the trees.
"What?" Mary roused herself and glanced at her watch. "Oh God I just wanted to take five minutes! My God, Mickey--"
"He's asleep, do not worry. I just saw him while I'm looking for you all over the house."
"I'm sorry, I was deep in thought."
"About it?" He nodded to the canvas.
"Yes..." Mary looked back at her draft.
"Cannot manage?" Mason touched her hair, and then run his fingers along her collarbone.
"For some reason I can not draw faces from my memory... It'd fail."
"Well, you're drawn my portrait from your memory too."
Mary shivered.
"Yes, but you're always here. Now I'm pulling the heavily clouded image out of my memory."
"Of your father? But this is not a portrait. I do not see any faces at all."
Mary nodded.
"They are not here, yes. Because I cannot manage."
"All in good time, do not you think?"
"Tries to hint that I still have too little experience?"
"Yes. But also it seems to me you have not gone through his death... to the very end."
"It's ridiculous!" Mary surprised looked up. "My father died many years ago. His death was in the past for me for long time."
"It is unlikely if you so hard push yourself to draw him."
"I want to save him in the canvas exactly he is in my memory!"
"Pictures can tell you how he's looked. Do not deny, you try to do something more."
"I do not know," Mary hugged her shoulders with annoyance. "Maybe. By the way, why you're looking for me?" She looked at him questioningly.
"I wanted to inform you that Augusta Lockridge's back in Santa Barbara."
"I know. She already came to see Samantha."
"You knew but said me nothing?" Mason angrily frowned.
"I had no time; she appeared just in the yesterday's morning. Why you're so mind against her?"
"If she saw Sammy?" Mason asked instead of answering.
"From afar. I offered her to accompany us to the park but she refused.
"And how you presented Augusta to Sammy?"
"Mrs. Lockridge. Mason what's wrong? Why you do this interrogation?"
"I spoke to her yesterday; she wants have rights to tell Samantha about Julia! She won't make it."
Mary looked up him but said nothing.
"Do not tell me that you're on her side!" Mason hardly said.
Mary shook her head.
"No, but... Do you actually want Samantha never learn about her mother?"
"She has her mother, and it's you!"
"Yes, of course. I love her. And Chipper. Just it's a sort a secret that can not be safely stored for many years. Too many people aware that I'm not birthmother for Sam. If she finds out it later by her own efforts? She may hate both of us if she found out that we lied to her! I do not want to lose my daughter because some relative who appear once in ten years and then disappear without saying goodbye."
"Now Samantha is too young to understand such difficult things," Mason said.
"When she'll be old enough it will be very difficult to explain her why nobody said it earlier."
"Nonsense."
"Not at all. Mason, why you're making so much unnecessary fuss? Allow Augusta to see Sam and she'll forget about her for ten years more."
"It is unlikely. I think she's just bent to active interacting with his niece."
"And so? Now she's bent and after a couple of days she's forget. You actually think that she came to Santa Barbara just for Sammy?"
"Do you know something I do not?"
"No. But if she worried about Sam she'd appeared much earlier. Perhaps she has something to do here and decided to see her niece as well."
"This is your guess. I do not trust to all of Lockridges and directly to Augusta — twice."
"Why? I thought you took well her. Or I'm confusing you?"
"No..." Mason grimaced. "Just after Julia's death she tried to take Samantha from me. We almost went to the court."
"What?" Mary became pale. "You... you think she wants to file for custody now?"
"Unlikely. Especially because it would be absolutely lost cause."
"Then what is you afraid of?" Mary felt some better.
"I'm not afraid. I said that I do not trust her. And I'm asking you stop her attempts to see Sammy. At last for now. I already warned Mrs. Rold. The way into our house is tabooed for Augusta Lockridge.
Mary evaded of direct answering. Mason's position seemed unnecessarily rigid to her. Besides she feels sorry for Augusta. Sammy was her only reminder of the late sister.
Mary leaned over and kissed Mason on the lips.
"Let's go downstairs. Mickey's about to wake up soon."
Unfortunately they could not stay together. Soon Mason had to leave to the law firm with he signed only in the morning.
Once he was gone the doorbell rang.
Thought that its Mason Mary flung open the door without asking who it is.
"If you forgot something..." Mary began.
But it was not Mason but Augusta Lockridge.
"I want to see my niece," she stated.
"I'm sorry, but Mason does not want it. He said you plan to tell Sam that she's not my daughter. Is that true?"
Augusta's face somehow twitched.
"Can I come in?"
Mary unwilled looked back but then remembered that the older children are walking in the park with their nanny and gestured Augusta come in the living room.
"Is it true?" Mary asked again when their exchange of niceties was over. "Do you want to tell Samantha that I'm not her mother?"
"My sister was actually her mother."
"I aware. And I know that Julia loved Samantha."
"So what is wrong?" Augusta softened. "Why do not you want Sammy to know the truth?"
"Because it is a heavy burden for a little girl. One mother — other mother, stepmother — not stepmother. She did not understand yet. In addition it's up to me and Mason only."
"Samantha will know who her real mother was anyway. Mason wants or not. He could not shut me up."
"And you're willing to sacrifice the happiness of your niece for it?" Mary could not stand. "She's so sunny little girl, laughing like a bell. Do you want she's mourned after her dead mother when she's just less three years? It's impossible."
"She must know the truth," Augusta rigidly repeated.
"Well," Mary stood up. "So I have to agree with Mason. I can not allow you to destroy Sam's trust to the world. She's my daughter even if not through blood. And I will fight anyone who even tries to harm her. Even if it's her ??own aunt. Have a nice day, Augusta."
"I did not expect to hear such words from the former nun," Augusta snorted indignantly and reluctantly headed to the door.
Caught Augusta's gaze into the depths of the house Mary explained:
"Samantha is not here, she and Chip are walking with the nanny."
Augusta immediately disappeared behind the door.
Mary helplessly looks around the living room and buried her face in her ??hands. Lord, how she's wishing that Augusta will leave Santa Barbara as soon as possible!
Again heard the doorbell's sound and Mary almost groaned. If it's Augusta--
But it's not Augusta but just Sophia.
"A bad time?" she asked gently seeing Mary's expression. "I'm just stop by. At the last moment Charlie found that he missing his favorite pen."
"It's okay. Come in. I'll get Charlie's pen now. I know one he's meaning."
A few minutes later Mary came down having Mickey in one hand and the beautiful black pen with gold engraving in the second one.
"This is the gift of his mother," Mary explained handing the pen to Sophia. "I wonder how he managed to forget it."
"Boys constantly lose everything. Mary... I don't wish to pry but it seems to me there's something happened? Maybe I can help?"
"Hardly. No many people can handle with Augusta Lockridge."
And Mary told Sophia about the latest developments.
"Lord, she's absolutely crazy! Samantha is still quite baby!"
"I think she just wants to see Sam as Julia's incarnation."
"It's very selfish!"
"I agree," Mary sighed. "My only hope that Mrs. Lockridge will stay in the town not for long. I do not really believe that we can hold her away from Sammy too long."
"Let me know if you want any help."
"Of course. Now I just hope to do without an act of war."
"Too good to be true..." Sophia sighed. "What is this album?" She takes note of it.
"Just old photos of my family, including my father. I still keep attempts to draw him."
"You're a child when he's dead?"
"Yes..." Mary put Mickey in the playpen and reaches the album to remove it from the sofa to the table but its smooth cover slides out of her fingers. The album fell down, photos scattered on the floor.
Mary gasps and kneeling to gather up pictures.
Sophia rushed to help her but she suddenly froze, staring at one picture.
"Where you get it?"
"What?" Mary surprised and looked at the photo. The unknown woman holds the tiny baby in her arms. "I do not know who it is. Probably some relatives."
Sophia silently collapsed on the couch, keeping hold of the photo. Mary anxiously looked at her.
"What's wrong? Do you know this woman?"
Sophia raised her head and sadly smiled.
"Oh, yes. It's me," she pointed to the baby on the image. "And this is my mother."
Mary's eyes widened as she looked at the picture.
"It's impossible! Are you sure you're not mistaken?"
"Absolutely. I know this picture since long time ago."
"But how it turns to be in our album?" Mary said in amazement. "We're... we can not be relatives."
"I do not think that we are," Sophia shook her head. "My family was originally from the East Coast."
"My parents both were long-standing Californians. So how it can be like this?"
Mary reached out to the album. Slowly flipped through it from beginning to end but found nothing. Just pictures of her parents, familiar to the smallest speck. Mary looked up and saw that Sophia's restlessly twisting her fingers.
"Do you remember if this photo was already in your album earlier?" Sophia asked nervously.
Mary frowned, trying to remember and then shook her head.
"No... I do not remember. I think it was, but I'm not sure. Sophia, why it so important for you?"
"You're even not imagining," Sophia managed a trembling smile. "Maybe this photo meaning that the fortune gives me a new chance to find out my father's fate."
"What's happened to him?" Mary sat down beside her on the sofa.
"I've lost contact with him many years ago. My mother died with cancer when I was fifteen. The father was heartbroken. And my wish to become an actress was the last straw for him. We quarreled and I left home to conquer Hollywood. Since I never saw him."
"Did you try to find him?" Mary looked at her sympathetically.
"Yes, of course. Long time I just could not bring myself to go back when I did there were nobody. The house was looked as completely deserted and the neighbors knew only that my father gone away. I even hired detectives to track him but they came back with nothing. And now I saw this photo!"
"May be my mother knows something. But I have no more relatives for asking," Mary awkwardly looked at her. "My father is long since dead and now my uncle is too. Although he hardly knew anything about this picture."
"But it's at least a track," Sophia hopefully looked at Mary.
"Let's hope that it will lead somewhere. How you think if your father had the copy of this photo?"
"Almost certainly. When he leaved he took almost nothing. Most of things have remained in their places. I'm sure he'll like keep my mother's picture. The one was his most beloved."
Mary looked at the picture.
"Yeah, I guess it looked like someone carried it with him," she said touching the worn and yellowed piece of card. "I mean, album photos usually are not soiling like this."
"I do speak exactly about that!"
"I'll go to my mother," Mary decisively got up. "Maybe she remembers how we got the picture. Don't you mind to babysit with Mickey?"
"Of course, I'm not! Thank you so much!"
The door just closed after Mary and Sophia pressed her palms to hot cheeks. God, is it possible that she got a chance to find out about the father? She looked at the picture and her eyes filled with tears. Once they were so happy--
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