CHAPTER 11: SEARCH FOR THE CURSED PAINTING

After a long journey, we finally came to a place near the sea. It was so hot in here. Dova, Roy, and I were dressed as if we were tourists on vacation at the beach. We wore colored clothes, sunglasses, and hats to ward off the sun. The three of us decided to leave things at the inn closest to the beach, in order to support our role as tourists. Then we arrived at the biggest museum in town by taxi.

The three of us went inside the museum after we got our tickets.

"I think that's the frame of that painting," I concluded pointing to an area surrounded by police lines. Then I looked elsewhere. "It's strange. Can you see? The area have been covered by CCTV, we should have a better clue."

"Yes, indeed," replied Dova instantly. "I think I will approach security now."

I nodded. "We'd better split up."

"Keep your earphones on," Roy commanded while attaching earphones to his both ears.

I stepped to visitors around a strange painting, and acted as if I were too enthusiastic about the abstract artwork they commented on. I didn't really know about it, but I would do my best to keep up with the conversation.

"I like this painting," I commented, trying to start a conversation with an old strange woman next to me. She was wearing eyeglasses and she was also pale-skinned.

The lady with the eyeglasses nodded at me. "Yeah, me too. It's combination color really describes the beauty of the object."

I smirked. "The painter's purpose was understandable."

"But, it depends on each person's point of view," she retorted.

I nodded in a hurry to avoid any debates. "Right. Too subjective, isn't it?" Then I pointed at somewhere else. "Oh, look! Why is that frame surrounded by police lines, huh?"

She looked at the same side. "Oh, that was the cursed painting's frame," she shouted with a look of horror. "It is said that the painter himself disappeared after finishing the painting."

"He lost? Really?" I wondered. "When did it happen?"

"He completely vanished without a trace," she explained. "It happened about six months ago."

"Oh," I said nodded. "How creepy."

"After that, the painting was brought here for display. And four days ago, the painting suddenly disappeared," she continued. And then she left because her phone rang.

I was silent for a moment, starting to think.

"Hey you guys, do you hear me?" All of a sudden my earphones broadcasted a voice.

"I hear you," Roy replied from a distance.

"Are you both finished?" Dova asked, sounding as if he was in a hurry. "I want to talk about something important."

Then I looked around, finding a right place. "All right, then we'll gather in that yellow painting near the biggest window. It is very quiet there." I whispered as I walked out from the crowd.

"Okay," answered both Dova and Roy.

As soon as I stepped into the safe place for a discussion, we arrived at the same time in front of a painting that might rarely visited.

Dova standing in front of me. I watched him secretly from head to toe. For a person that used to wear monochrome outfit, such as white, black, and gray, wearing a beach bastion with striking colors made him looked completely different.

"I got some interesting information," Roy stated quietly. "The cursed painting's price is so expensive. Even one foreign tourist had bid it for thirty thousand dollars."

"It's expensive because of the story behind it that went viral," I told him confidently. "The artist mysteriously disappeared just after the painting was completed."

"This mission confused me." Dova's calm facial expression now looked more serious. "I've also just learned from the security post that Seno Joan, the cursed painter, was a former security officer here. And he had not came back since his sudden disappearance."

"Where was he really going?" I wondered. "I'm curious, can we find such a strange thing as ... ,"

"A corpse, for instance," cut off Roy, guessing my way of thinking. "I know Seno Joan lives near the harbor. Why don't we take a direct look at it?" Roy suggested vigorously. "Mr. Ferdy gave me his full address."

Dova nodded. "Good idea."

"I agree," I said.

****

After changing our clothes, the three of us finally reached a passage with a crowded city bus. There was nothing interesting here. Like most settlements, there were children all around us.

"Pinus street number seven." Roy repositioned his eyeglasses while keeping his eyes on his surroundings. "It must be near from here."

The road we took wasn't very good. Many have potholes, so there are now many puddles, perhaps because of last night's rain. The road was about two metres wide, making it impossible for a four-wheeled vehicle to pass through. And if I looked closely, the distance between the houses was too tight, as if there would be no secret talk between the houses, because the walls were too thin. But I think it was a good thing, because I might be able to get more information from people around here. I wished they heard something from Seno Joan's house.

"Guys, let's check that house over there," I ordered, pointing to a dilapidated house at the corner. Several broken tiles, the walls cracked, and too many weeds filled his garden. "His home number was probably covered in that thick foliage."

The three of us went over to the house I was talking about. I unstuck the foliage covering home number. And we finally agreed this home was the one we wanted. The three of us made sure it was safe, then jumped over the fence.

Dova knocked. It started with a slow, polite knock, then it turned into loud and noisy knocks. No response at all. He finally stopped knocking, perhaps worrying about damaging the fragile wooden part of the door.

"It's empty," I concluded. "The painter is completely gone."

Roy stepped back and went to have a peek through a window. "Yeah, there's no one there."

"Excuse me, are you debt collectors?"

Suddenly a woman's voice startled us. The three of us looked at the source of the sound near the fence. The woman had white hair, in a lace brown overalls. She was stooped down, and then she stood on the side of the road with the help of a cane. Looks like she was one of the neighbors.

"Oh, yes," I was spontaneously answering. Not bad, I just got a good idea. "We want the owner of this house to settle his debt."

"You're all too skinny," commented the old lady. He stared at us for a long time. Things got awkward.

"Oh, is there any debt collector that has been here before the three of us, huh?" asked Dova in his role.

The grandmother nodded. She was likely trying to remember something. "Yes. But that was a long time ago, and they stopped coming since six months ago," she replied in a quivering voice. Then she started coughing. "Maybe they all gave up," she continued. "Seno Joan used to paint in this yard, greeting the neighbors as they passed by. Then suddenly he was gone, leaving a smelly painting that full of blood."

"Seno Joan's completely disappeared," Roy murmured as he hit the ground, trying to show his anger reaction.

"Almost everyone think that, except me," she said. Her voice rose in pitch all of sudden.

"I'm sorry, what do you mean?" I wondered.

"My house is right in front of this house," she said it while pointing to her place. "One night, I saw a flash from the window of this house."

"What might that light be?"

The grandmother gave us a hard look. "I believe it was Joan's spirit."

I was shocked, "So you can see ghost?"

At the time we almost got some important information about this empty house, the door of grandma's house was open. Then a younger man appeared. "Mom! Don't talk to any stranger!" he exclaimed.

He went to his mother and then led her home. Then he turned for a moment and smiled at us politely. "Oh, please forgive my mother. She loves to talk nonsense because of her mental ilness, so ignore what she just said," he apologized. "It's been a long time since Mr. Joan disappeared. She constantly claims to have seen his spirit."

I smiled and waved back. Then I looked at Dova and Roy and whispered as quietly as I could, "Let's just go back to the lodge. I have other plans."

****