Helena and The Secret of The Painting No. 100

By kebbara soumia

The story tells about a hunter and a handsome painter named Marquez, who lives on Laska Island. He drew 99 paintings in his life. However, he did not receive any prize from the Capital's Museum. His only dream was to become a world-famous painter.

After his recent return from the capital, in his hand was the painting No. "Ninety-nine", desperate, Marquez suffered a serious mental illness that forced him to surrender for five consecutive years without drawing a single painting.

Helena, his young, charming and genius wife, takes charge of life trying her best to get food, medicine and to provide her husband with the possible conditions required for his health recovery.

Despite the challenges and difficulties of the customs and traditions of the island and the objections she encountered in the fish market as she was the first woman who worked in fishing, she could instill in her husband the spirit of determination and persistence and finally, he could draw his painting No. 100 which was strange and full of strange symbols.

• Language: English
• Publisher: kebbara soumia
• Release date: Jan 11, 2018
• ISBN: 9781370893416

Book preview

Helena

And The Secret of the Painting No. 100

© 2017 by KEBBARA SOUMIA

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means – electronic, mechanical, photographic (photocopying), recording, or otherwise – without prior permission in writing from the author.

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Dedication

To my parents,

To my dear brother, who inspired me a new meaning in life,

And to you, my dear reader,

I dedicate this work to you all.

HELENA, AND THE SECRET OF THE PAINTING NO. 100

© 2017 by KEBBARA SOUMIA

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means – electronic, mechanical, photographic (photocopying), recording, or otherwise – without prior permission in writing from the author.

Table of contents

99 failed attempts

The ordeal of insanity

Helena and the Hard Society

Long-awaited dinner

Dream and Inspiration

the past comes back to the painter

A devastating fire

The departure of Helena and the sinking of the ship

Isolated Life

Helena and the Fair Destiny

The 100th painting appears

In the capital

Regrets at the end of life

A meeting between two hearts

An invaluable joy

The prophecy is fulfilled

Chapter 1

99 failed attempts

Well! Didn't I tell you! You are a loser. You are a real loser, Marquez. Now, get out of my face. Move away or else I will smash your head with the stick. Do you understand?

These were the last words of Casper, the guard who was standing at the gate if the great museum. He was yelling at the poor painter who decided, after seeing himself a loser, to return to the island.

Mr. Marquez is thirty-five years old, well-built, tall, with sleek dark hair and beautiful black eyes that are filled with desire, ambition, and the power of imagination.

He lived life in a modest wooden house that was made of rough palm trunks which are scattered in Laska Island.

The houses there were built near the shore, similar in shape but different in size, mostly located along the shore waterfront where the boats of the local fishermen are docked.

Mr. Marquez is one of the prominent fishermen on the island, if not clearly the most famous one. He is well-known and has unusual intelligence and agility which him even more liked by everyone.

He has had a powerboat that can penetrate the waves smoothly and has great ability to touch the water gently, even in the days when the waves are enraging against the island and heaving as in Laska.

Apart from being a fisherman, Marquez was an ambitious painter who adores painting to the core since his childhood. His only dream is: to be a world-renowned painter.

He has a sophisticated artistic sense and power of imagination that is beyond all description and measure; as if the world's imagination was born of his mind, his alone.

It is patently thanks to his wife; Helena, who is thirty-five years old, with blue eyes like the sea, golden blonde hair, and a fine figure. Her husband, Marquez, called her "The Bee" due to her gracefulness and cheerfulness.

She shined the light through his heart and all the aspects of his life. She loved him profoundly; a love that has been rarely seen before. She continued to motivate him so far, he developed his painting talent for his paintings become ninety-nine paintings.  

It is a very large number. For other people, it was like the number of the stars in a clear sky in the evening. It is impossible for any man else to achieve the record number unless he has a woman like Helena behind him who would radiate constant love and strong will into him.

Mr. Marquez had a small room near the house, which was for him a workshop and a laboratory, where he would live in seclusion separated from the world surrounding him, and making all his creations and pieces of art.

They were characterized by the aesthetic values; especially with their attractive nature, mysterious features, the vivid colours that penetrate those who enjoy looking at them and their color coordination that suggests secret meanings to the one standing upright in front of them; enchanting him with another color of magic and taking him in journey to a world where he would forget his world and problems even for some seconds so he would believe that what he has just beholden is a wonder of the world lying in his hands.

Mr. Marquez's golden hands managed to produce this number of paintings-ninety-nine-but unfortunately, not even a single painting made him win a prize. They were all wreathed with failure and disappointment.

Every time he traveled to the capital for the great museum where the most famous painters are received, and the creatives and geniuses from around the world are crowned, he would return to Helena pale as a terrified little boy, scowling, and empty-handed. Sometimes they told him that he has a talent that needs to be developed to achieve greatness, at other times they accused him of being an intruder to the painting field, and other times when he barely arrived at the museum, Casper, the guard; has kicked him out. He is so fat that he is dragging his belly, with a bald head that is brighter than a cleaned plate, and a long mustache that could be used to sweep the street, if needed.

Once he sees Mr. Marquez from a long distance, he would have an evil big smile on his face and says in his hoarse voice:

You woke me up with the fish smell coming out of you. You will never succeed. You are a loser. Loser! You will remain a loser for the rest of your life. You are like a suffocated sardine fish.  Get out of my face or I will smash your nose.

Marquez, owing to his poverty and simplicity that emanate through him from the furthest distance, may seem in the eyes of many rich and elegant people of the capital to be a beggar, idler, and vagabond coming from the end of the world, carrying a useless piece of wood under his arm.

That is what he was thinking consciously and hiding inside himself while walking in the streets and alleyways on his way to the museum as well fearing Casper.

Lack of success is still chasing him like a hawk tracking down its prey with its piercing eyes, pouncing on it amid the clouds, or tracing it over the hills and plains. Every time Marquez thinks success would be within his reach, he returns disappointed, down on his luck, as a consequence he starts tearing his painting or burning them in the cold winter as firewood, and in many cases, he would throw them in the sea.

Helena stood steady like a mountain preventing failure from sneaking into her husband's soul. She knows that Marquez is lacking one thing: self-confidence and not listening to frustrating and depressing people. She cheered him up, consoled him, and made him really forget what giving up means. Every morning she wakes him up with her sweet tone as if she is singing the melodies of nature in his ears to greet the new day and be quite active.

Stars were twinkling in the sky when