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‘By yourself?’

‘Well, I didn’t want to disturb Peter, and besides, this is Jane’s hoht he understood Clara considered it a safe place He’d have to have a talk with her

‘Mr Hadley, what are you doing here?’

Ben was looking very embarrassed by now ‘I set o upstairs, you know’

This was so deeply uninforht actually fall asleep on his feet

‘Go on,’ said Gamache

‘Well, to do more work On the walls You’d said yesterday how i, and well Then there’s Clara, of course’

‘Go on,’ said Ga

‘You tried to hide it, but I could tell you were getting impatient with me,’ Ben said to Clara ‘I’uess Anyway, I wanted to surprise you by doing soht It was probably a dumb idea’

‘I think it’s a beautiful idea,’ said Clara, going over and giving Ben a hug ‘But you’ll just exhaust yourself, you know, and be slow again toht of that,’ adh, if I just put in a couple of hours?’

‘That’s fine with me,’ said Gamache ‘But next time, please tell us’

‘Should I stay and help?’ Clara offered Ben hesitated and see, but simply shook his head As he left Ga room He looked like a little lost boy

THIRTEEN

It was Thursday evening and Arts Williae The tail of Hurricane Kyla was forecast to hit later that night and the expectation added a frisson to the event, as though going to the openingyour life in your hands and reflected both character and courage Which wasn’t, actually, all that far off the s only the artists the themselves ine froht a gnarly knot of people surrounded Jane’s work, which was sitting cloaked on an easel in the center of the rooed, as were the artists themselves They’d had the misfortune to be chosen for an exhibition in which their as clearly upstaged by that of a reed their misfortune was eclipsed by that of the person actually dead, but even then she’d bested them, even in misfortune Life as an artist was indeed unfair

Ga for Fair Day to be unveiled The board of Arts Willia had decided to make it an ‘event’, so they’d invited the press, whichCounty News and now the chairperson of the jury aiting for ‘le lanced enviously at Jean Guy, sprawled on one of the coive it up to an elderly man He was exhausted Bad art did this to him Actually, he had to admit, any art did this to him Bad wine, stinky cheese and pretty sht out of him He looked around and ca wouldn’t collapse when Kyla finally blew into town later that night

‘As you know, a tragic event has robbed us of a fine woifted artist,’ Elise Jacob, the jury chair, was saying

Clara sidled up between Ben and Peter Elise was going on, and on, and on about the virtues of Jane She practically had her sainted Then, finally, just as Clara’s eyes began to bulge she said, ‘Here, without further ado’ - Clara, who knew and loved Jane, figured there’d been plenty of doodoo already - ‘is Fair Day by Jane Neal’

The veil hisked off and Fair Day was finally revealed, to gasps Then a silence which was evenslack-jawed at Fair Day were variously a at the easel, he was staring at the crowd, at their reactions But the only reaction that was even close to odd was Peter’s His anxious smile faded as Fair Day was revealed, and after a moment’s contemplation he cocked his head to one side and furrowed his brow Ga these people for almost teeks, knew that for Peter Morrow this was the equivalent of a scream

‘What is it ?’