26

To Solve a Riddle

Maria read the message:

You saw the perfect picture once,

In this very room.

The cat was cradled in your arms,

That sunny afternoon.

You have your kindred spirits here;

Those living just make two.

The treasure’s hidden in the place

Reflected inside you.

Maria brought the message down to her side. Then she shook her head. How could Edward do this to her? He’d promised a real treasure for a widow with no money. Now he was telling her it was inside her.

“No,” she whispered. “It’s not that kind of treasure.” She wiped her eyes before her face grew stern. “There’s no gold and silver.”

The floorboards creaked as Madame Destine snaked her way to Maria. Very slowly, she asked, “What do you mean?”

Maria lowered her voice and, without any emotion, replied, “There was never a treasure!” Then she mumbled, “At least, not your kind.”

Maria watched her friends struggling to break free and felt pain. Then she turned to her stepmother.

“The treasure is about love,” Maria said with certainty. Then she narrowed her eyes. “Somehow, I don’t think it’s what you were after.”

Madame Destine crumpled the message and let it fall to the floor.

Houdini flapped his wings before he settled down again.

Madame Destine puffed up her fur collar. Then, in a soft voice, she continued. “If there’s one thing I know about Eddy it’s that his poems had multiple meanings. It’s here. Find the treasure.”

“FIND THE TREASURE!” echoed Houdini.

Maria shook her head. She wondered what Edward’s real intention had been for her all along. Was she supposed to find something hidden in Mrs. Fisher’s apartment? It seemed like he sent her on a treasure hunt in order to connect her with the widow. He must have waited all those years for Mrs. Fisher to come before he sent Maria after her. And now she’d been introduced to jazz, Beat poetry, and abstract art. That would explain why he never told her where the treasure was but kept sending her back so she could become acquainted with Mrs. Fisher and Sebastian. No. She knew now there was never an actual treasure.

Madame Destine placed her fingers lightly on the back of Maria’s head, stroking it in soothing, gentle circles. “There must be something in this room that you saw,” she cooed. “The poem stated, ‘You saw the perfect picture once while standing in this room.’” Madame Destine gave a smile that was as red and ugly as a scab. Then she spun around and pointed to the wall. “Which painting is it? Which one is it hidden behind?” Maria’s stepmother nudged Mr. Fox. “Turn over the paintings until you find a safe!”

Mr. Fox obeyed, ripping the artwork from the walls and knocking the African masks to the floor.

Mrs. Fisher flinched. “There’s nothing in this room!” she said. “I’ve lived here for over sixty years! I think my husband would have told me if he had something of value hidden in here!” Mrs. Fisher struggled to break free again but gave up.

Maria knew it must have pained her to see her things so badly treated.

Sebastian tried to help the widow, but Mr. Fox had done a number on tying his knots.

Maria looked up. Maybe her stepmother was onto something. She was right about one thing: Edward liked to hide multiple meanings in one message.

She surveyed the room. There was the upright piano. At the far end of the room was the dining room table with all the books on top. The trunk where they had tea was just beside the sofa. Behind the sofa was a window and curtains. Then there was the hallway. The rest of the wall held more paintings and the full-length mirror.

Archimedes poked his head around the sofa. He dashed across the living room and down the hallway.

Maria shut her eyes.

She saw the picture of herself holding the cat. It was a bright afternoon, and everyone she loved was reflected behind her in the full-length mirror.

Slowly, she approached the mirror and studied her reflection. Mrs. Fisher and Sebastian were tied up on the sofa behind her. Mr. Fox was tearing down paintings. Madame Destine was rubbing Houdini’s beak.

Could this be what Edward meant?

She pushed the full-length mirror.

Nothing happened.

She knocked on the glass.

It made a dull, hollow sound.

Maria scanned the room for something heavy. Then her eyes rested on a Grecian vase.

She hurried across the living room and stopped at the vase in the hallway. She bent over and used all of her strength to lift it. Then she gripped it and wobbled over to the mirror. Maria hefted the vase up to her shoulders. Then she hurled it at her reflection.

Crash!

Glass shattered. Tiny shards sprinkled in Maria’s hair and about her feet.

Everyone froze.

When Maria had brushed away the tiny flecks of debris from her face, she found herself staring into a black hole. A light breeze blew through it. Where the mirror once stood was a dark passageway.

Mr. Fox dropped a painting and rubbed his hands.

Madame Destine’s eyes grew large, and a smile crept across her face.

Clap.

Clap.

Clap.

She clapped her hands slowly and steadily as she made her way to the secret passage. “Well done, Maria. Well done.”

“That goes down to the basement,” said Mrs. Fisher. “My husband used it for business but sealed it up after his publishing company failed.”

Madame Destine ducked her head inside the entrance and took one timid step inside the hole. Then she turned around and motioned at Mr. Fox. “Watch them!” She pointed at Maria. “You, follow me!”

“YOU, FOLLOW ME!” echoed Houdini.

Maria didn’t know if she should obey or stay with her friends. She’d solved the riddle and found a secret entrance so her stepmother could retrieve the reward. But she knew better than to argue. It was Madame Destine calling the shots now.

She glanced back at Mrs. Fisher and Sebastian.

Mrs. Fisher nodded.

“Go,” said Sebastian. “Just promise to come back.”

Maria turned and took a deep breath. She brought one foot inside the hole and then pulled her other foot through.

Once Maria was inside the wall, Madame Destine grabbed her stepdaughter’s hand. “You did good, Maria. I knew you were smart. Just like me.”

Cautiously, Maria stepped into the dark. The musty scent of all things old filled her nose. She was overwhelmed with both dread and excitement.

Never had she dreamed she would get the chance to find a real hidden treasure. But part of her was also sad because she didn’t want to find it this way. She wanted Mrs. Fisher to have it.

Maria wondered how long Madame Destine would hold her hand. Already her palm was beginning to sweat in her stepmother’s callous grip.

But whether or not she was Maria’s mother, Madame Destine had taken care of her since she was a baby.

Whatever the reason, it was clear that Madame Destine was not a good person.

One minute Madame Destine was tying up the people Maria loved, the next she was singing Maria’s praises, depending on the circumstances.

Maria decided that whatever they found, Madame Destine could have it, but she would not be joining her in the getaway van. She loosened her grip and slowed her pace so that it was a strain to hold her stepmother’s hand.

Maria let her fingers slip away from her stepmother’s grip one finger at a time.