The Painting

By Linda Hawrey

Reeza Gordon is a Hairstylist who loves to play detective. Her best friend Whitney purchased a painting from a local Artist of a beautiful house. The artist explained to her that he made the house bright and cheerful because it really looked very sad to him. Unbeknownst to Reeza it was a house she was always drawn to as a child, she thought it was beautiful and sad at the same time.

Realizing the house in the painting and the house from her childhood were one and the same; Reeza knew she must learn the secret no one talked about when she was a child. When her Grandparents told her what had transpired in that house her shock and horror took her on a journey that will unleash feelings shes hidden for years and awaken her entire being to life and love.

This adventure has been her most draining endeavor yet. Reeza had to do some soul searching and found parallels in her life that surprised her to the core. Will she be able to solve this old mystery or die trying...

• Language: English
• Publisher: Linda Hawrey
• Release date: Oct 25, 2011
• ISBN: 9781465807274

Linda Hawrey

Having grown up in Brooklyn, New York Linda and her family moved to New Mexico in 1990, where she presently resides with her husband of 42 years, Dave. They have a daughter, Diane, and a wonderful son-in-law Eric who have given them two beautiful grandsons Matt and Joey. Linda and Dave have two new additions to their family. Their son, David, has found his soul mate and along with her son they have become part of their family. Linda Hawrey has been a hairstylist for over thirty five years and loves her profession. She has always enjoyed writing and decided that this was a good time in her life to give it a go. Hopefully, you have enjoyed reading her first book as much as she has enjoyed writing it. Reeza Gordon Sanders has become a part of her life and it is Linda’s hope you will enjoy her next adventure.

Book preview

Chapter 1

1951

Tony, my wonderful husband of eight years, and I searched for a home for our growing family; finally we came upon this house we thought was the perfect one. The people we purchased our home from really let it deteriorate. It needed a lot of repairs and we were up for the challenge. What really sold us on this house was the large upstairs apartment that we could rent. The extra money coming in every month would really help us out with the bills and allow us to do some improvements to our home.

Tony can fix anything. His father built houses for a living and taught Tony how to do finish carpentry work. Tony’s mother would laughingly say that Tony had a hammer in his hand before he could hold a spoon. As soon as we moved in Tony spent all his free time fixing the apartment upstairs so we could rent it as soon as possible. Time has gone by so quickly, we can’t believe that it’s been two and a half years since we’ve moved into our home. We’ve accomplished a lot in that time, yet we still have a long way to go to finish but when it’s done we will have years to enjoy it.

Mommy, Mommy! Mr. Howard is at the door.

Let him in Theresa.

Mr. Howard is the gentleman who rented the apartment; he has been our tenant for over a year and a half now. He pays his rent on time and is pleasant enough.

Our neighbor’s teenage daughter, Julie Whitcomb, is our babysitter. She seems to come over more often to visit us since Mr. Howard moved in. She hopes he will stop in or she will see him in passing in the hallway. She is like lightning; if Mr. Howard isn’t around she breezes through the house, hi, how are you? She’ll play with the girls for a few minutes and she is gone. If he is around she can stay all day long in hopes of catching a glimpse of him. She thinks he is quite handsome and starts to giggle as she describes him as the handsomest man alive. She’ll tell who ever will listen that he has the lightest brown hair that has shiny gold flecks through it and the greenest eyes she has ever seen and, of course, the face of an angel. She is totally smitten with him.

I think I’ll marry him one day, she says.

Laughing, Mary Valentine tells her, one day. Julie, I swear you are going to swoon right in front of him.

Oh, Mrs. Valentine, she says, I hope he catches me when I do. Can you imagine waking up with him holding you?

No, Julie, I can’t. My Tony is the only one I want to hold me.

I hope one day I am as happy as you are Mrs. Valentine. I have to get home to help my mother before she has a cow. Bye. Have a nice day Mrs. Valentine.

Smiling, Mrs. Valentine waves bye to Julie. As usual, Julie enters and exits with this huge burst of energy.

Tony doesn’t like the idea that a kid is this infatuated with an older man. Mary told him, it’s a crush; all girls and boys have them. Didn’t you when you were a teen? she asked.

He just shrugged his shoulders and shook his head. I don’t really remember. Teenagers, I hope I understand them more when our girls are Julie’s age.

Laughing, Mary said, You won’t.

Do you find him handsome? he asked Mary.

He is nice looking but, no, not handsome, she answered. Are you jealous to have a nice looking man living upstairs? Mary Valentine asks her husband.

Me? Jealous? Don’t be ridiculous, Tony Valentine smiled.

She knows her husband very well. She told Tony, I do have to say that it is nice having a man in the house on the nights you work late, and I feel safer having someone upstairs. Not that I would ever bother him unless it was absolutely necessary.

The girls are crazy about Mr. Howard. If they are in the hallway playing and he hears them he will come down the stairs and play with them. I know they are enjoying themselves because I hear them giggling and laughing.

Kissing her very handsome husband on the lips she says, You, my darling man, have nothing to worry about; you are the love of my life.

I better be, he answered, while swatting her backside, because I, my dear wife, could never live without you. Smiling broadly, he went out the back door to finish some of the yard work.

Sitting at the kitchen table Mary wondered about Mr. Howard. At first she thought he was very nice, but there is something she just can’t put her finger on. He is a little strange. Some of his actions make her wonder about him. He said that he had no family, and Mary would say no friends because no one ever visits him. When he comes down to pay his rent he usually stays longer than she feels comfortable with. He would come down to tell her that there is a problem with something in the apartment, but when Tony goes to fix whatever the complaint was about he would tell him I took care of it or my mistake; it’s okay.

Tony thinks he wants to spend time with Mary. He wanted to say something to Mr. Howard but she asked him not to. I think the man is just lonely, Mary said and I’m afraid if we insult him he would move out and we need the money from the rent he gives us.

Mary hoped that Tony would get over his jealousness as he has nothing to worry about. She only has eyes for him. Looking down at the table she smiles to herself; he is a silly man.

Looking around the kitchen she admired her skill at decorating, she loved making her house a home. When they moved into their house Mary thought it was cold and uninviting, she knew she would enjoy the task ahead of her. She was a wonderful homemaker; it came natural to her. She kept their home simple, with soft colors, and it is a very warm and cozy home that she kept clean and neat. She had powder blue curtains with ruffles covering the kitchen windows; on the wall she picked a soft patterned wall paper that had three different colors of blue with pale yellow and cream. The placemats on the table were powder blue and matched the color of the curtains exactly. Mary liked everything to match or come together perfectly. Although they didn’t have a big budget to decorate, Mary had the talent to make her home look like she spent a lot of money without spending too much. Her mother was a seamstress and worked from her home. She taught Mary how to sew when she was 9 years old and after school Mary would rush home to help her Mother with the sewing. Her mother would tell her she had the talent to make anything she put her mind to. Mary’s mother was so proud when her daughter made her own wedding gown hardly any help from her.

Mary would find old fabric someone was discarding and turn it into draperies for her living room, she loved to sew. She turned an uninviting house into a warm, friendly home.

Theresa held the door open for Mr. Howard and as he entered the room he smiled at Theresa and said, thank you, little one.

Getting up from the table and walking over to Mr. Howard, Mary said, Good afternoon, Mr. Howard. How are you today?

Very well, thank you, Mrs. Valentine. And please, after all these months living here, you can call me John.

Ok, John, and you may call me Mary.

That would be nice, John said. I see Tony is still working hard in your yard.

Yes, he is. He’s planting the trees today, and tomorrow he will start the cement for the garages.

That’s a lot of work for one man.

"Yes it is. Unfortunately, his father is working out of state at the moment and Tony won’t wait until he returns. He insists on doing it himself and he really loves it. His vacation ends after next week and he really wants to get it done. Hopefully, he will be finished with the yard by then. As for the garages, he hopes to do a little every day after work and weekends. He hopes to be done by the time the cold weather comes in the fall. At least after the cement is poured we will be able to enjoy the yard. It will be nice to allow the girls to run around the yard without fearing they could get hurt.’’

Oh! Here, I came down to give you this month’s rent money. I am very happy living here. I can’t believe I’ve been renting your upstairs apartment for 18 months. Your girls have grown two inches since then. What beautiful girls they are; just like their mother.

John wondered if she knows just how beautiful she is with her big brown eyes and her shiny golden blonde hair just like wheat; beautiful, golden wheat. Those legs of hers are mesmerizing with her seamed stockings and high heels; they make her long legs so much longer and they are oh, so shapely. Without realizing it he was licking his lips. Stop it, John! She is a happily married woman. But maybe, just maybe, she isn’t.

John? Mary asked looking at him strangely.

I’m sorry, said John, my mind just wandered away for a second.

Ah.. Ah.., thank you for the rent money and the compliment, my girls are beautiful.

John answered, And don’t forget their mother.

Feeling very uncomfortable Mary said, I, I was just going to call Tony in for lunch. Would you like to join us?

Thank you but I can’t. John thought to himself, I would if he wasn’t going to be here. I have some errands to take care of today. Stepping a little too close he says, Maybe next time. Feeling awkward and moving back a little, Mary stumbles over Ann’s toy. John immediately reaches out to catch her and holds on to her arm a little too long.

Mary moves away and quickly and says, thank you, I’m fine. Maybe you can join us for lunch next time. Have a good day Mr. Howard, I mean John. Trying to be polite Mary tells John, we are so glad you’re happy living upstairs.

Have a good day, Mary; bye girls.

Bye Mr. Howard, the girls reply.

Feeling like he had gotten a little closer to Mary today, John Howard was feeling better about himself than he had in a long while. Looking back at Mary as he left her home he kept thinking, how much Mary reminded him of Elizabeth his sweet Elizabeth.

John Howard was in his mid-twenties, a very good looking tall man who always wore a three piece suit and tie. He was a very conservative man who liked to give an appearance of wealth. He worked in Gimble’s, a huge department store in Manhattan where he was the assistant manager. He worked himself up from a salesman in the men’s department. He hated that position because he thought it was beneath him. He knew if he worked very hard to impress his superiors and kissed a lot of you know what he would be promoted. He became the assistant manager within six months. He thought within a year he would be in charge of the entire department store no matter who he had to step on or crush to achieve his goal, when he becomes the Manager he will fire whoever got in his way.

The women fell at his feet and constantly flirted with him vying for his attention. He wanted no part of them; he only had eyes for Mary.

John Howard had moved to New York less than two years ago. He came from Indiana and had a younger sister who died in a drowning when she was 5 years old; he was 8 at the time. After her death his parents became withdrawn, they couldn’t get over losing their baby girl. John had to raise himself; he lived in a house with two adults and yet had no one to talk to.

As soon as he became of age he left his parents’ home and never returned. He was cold to the world; he learned early on that his good looks would help him achieve whatever he was after. He learned how to manipulate, and used his charisma to obtain his goal. He never made any friends, he didn’t need any. Unless he needed them to help him better his life then he was their best friend until he got what he wanted. Once he achieved what he was after he would discard them like trash.

A few years passed taking odd jobs here and there making just enough money to live. He found himself in a small town in Ohio. One day going through the classified section in the local paper he found a promising position in a bank. He knew this position could be his chance to achieve a status people would look up to. He answered the ad falsifying his credentials and started immediately. There he met the most beautiful woman, Elizabeth. She was a striking beauty. Every day he would ask her out for a date and she would very nicely turn him down saying she could not mix business with pleasure. Her father was the president of the bank and one of the more prominent people in their town. John needed to win her over; having her on his arm would help him achieve his goals.

Her father didn’t like the idea of John asking his daughter out; he thought he wasn’t good enough for her. One night he confronted John and demanded that he leave his daughter alone or be fired. John didn’t like his condescending tone and they had some harsh words that ended badly. After his confrontation with Elizabeth’s father John found himself in her office. He made an advance toward her and she screamed….

He packed quickly and left Ohio in the middle of the night not knowing where he was headed. He found himself wandering from state to state until he came to New York. He moved around living in different hotels until he found himself in Brooklyn and rented the apartment upstairs from the gorgeous Mrs. Mary Valentine.

Saying goodbye and leaving the Valentines home he thought Mary is awfully friendly to me today. Maybe she is starting to have some feelings for me, real feelings. Maybe … just maybe. Time will tell John said to himself as he left with a skip in his walk.

Chapter 2

Girls, call Daddy for lunch. Ok, Mommy, opening the screen door running, Daddy! They both yelled in unison. Mommy said lunch is ready.

Looking out the window at her family Mary thought to herself and smiled. My girls are beautiful. When did they get to be 4 and 6 years old? Time has really gone by so fast, too fast. They both look like my very handsome husband. How did I get so lucky? I love him so very much.

She closed her eyes and thought back to how she and Tony met, remembering that first week at school.

My father had a job transfer from Connecticut to the Brooklyn Navy Yard, so the entire family moved. I was starting the eighth grade in a new school and I didn’t know anyone. The third day in school I saw Tony. As soon as I set my eyes on him I knew right then and there he was the man I was going to marry. All I had to do was get him to think the same way. Oh yeah, and meet him first.

My first friend was Amy who lived on my street. She introduced herself the first day we moved in and we became best friends. We are still friends today. So I confided in her about my feelings for Tony, a complete stranger. To my wonderful surprise she knew Tony very well. The next day we were on the staircase and she called after Tony, Wait up Tony, I want you to meet Mary. She’s new and just moved here this week.

As I stepped forward to say hi, I tripped and fell down three steps; thump, thump, thump, and landed at his feet. I was mesmerized by those blue eyes, and speechless.

Are you ok? he asked. I couldn’t answer him. Nothing would come out of my mouth. He looked down at me and spoke much louder, ARE YOU OK? I was still speechless and all I could do was smile. He shrugged his shoulders and helped me up with a chuckle. Still, I couldn’t speak. The words would not come. I stuttered with this awful gurgle I’d never heard before. So he just smiled and walked away looking at me like I just came from outer space.

Amy asked me, What is wrong with you? You just let the love of your life think you are a Martian.

I don’t know what happened to me. I’m never short on words, my family calls me motor mouth, what’s wrong with me? I thought of a hundred things to say and all I could do was gurgle, Mary answered. "I have to get him to notice me.’’

"Not by falling and acting weird you don’t. Come on, brush yourself off and hurry up. We’re going to be late to our next class.’’

It never failed. As soon as he was in my line of sight, I, Miss Queen Klutz would either trip or fall. Finally, one day he picked me up and asked me out. By the time we graduated we were inseparable. Everyone knew Tony and Mary were meant for only each other. We married a year after graduation and two years after that our beautiful little girl, Theresa, was born. What a beautiful little girl. She looked just like her father with his big blue eyes and my golden blonde hair. Two years later Ann was born; she is stunning also. She has