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Chapter 10 – Realizations
"That's it!" Tintin's mind worked quickly, and he didn't notice anything as his thoughts came out in a tumble. "You didn't send me the notes, so it must've been the false Mr. and Mrs. Williams." He began to pace behind Eva. "You broke into the house the night before to look for the will, that's why the safe hadn't been touched. But you didn't find it. After hearing I'd received a message, you followed me to determine whether or not it was a threat. You pick pocketed the second one, so it was you I chased. Mr. Hartley's hat was being worn by you, but you wouldn't have the strength or height needed to knock me out. That must have been one of the men working for Mr. Williams. After that, their orders obviously changed – they may have figured out who you are despite your disguise. Then they would have assumed I already knew all that had happened, and that I would go to the police. Now their aim is to capture, or worse. They were both armed. But it would be dangerous for Mr. and Mrs. Williams to stay at the house in case the real will was found. Unless they're there only because they're looking for the real will . . . They're still after us, so they must not have found it yet." Tintin stopped pacing and turned to Eva again. "That means if we get to it first, we can still prove your story."
Eva still held the same posture, her back straight and her head up as her skirt grazed her calves.
Tintin paused for a second, and then crossed the hardwood floors until he was face to face with her. "Eva?" he asked quietly, searching her face as she gazed through him.
The sun sets so early at this time of year, she thought suddenly, realizing it had gotten darker for the brief time they had been in the house. Eva took a deep, shuddering breath as her eyes came to focus on Tintin's chest, which had replaced the window she had been looking through. Her eyes darted up to his, and his intent but gentle expression startled and calmed her at the same time.
"When I broke in, I only had time to search his study. I knew it wasn't likely that he would've hidden the will somewhere so obvious, but it was the farthest spot in the manor from where the guards were posted." Eva felt her strength returning as she held the journalist's unwavering gaze. After a second's pause, she felt peculiar and turned away. Focus, Eva. "What can we do next?"
Tintin followed her motion to the trapdoor, and opened it. "The library may have some information about the manor's history, or another way in. That should be a good place to start." He stepped back as she began to descend the ladder first.
Eva soon found herself in the second floor hallway as Tintin descended the ladder, closing the trapdoor as he went. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw something shining. Turning, Eva noticed a small table with a picture frame on it, reverently but simply placed in the center.
Touching the frame gently, she saw three people in black and white. A kind-faced woman with fair hair holding a baby, and a man who would have looked serious with his dark hair and glasses, excepting a familiar untameable coif.
Eva turned away from the frame as Tintin closed the closet door. In the few seconds he was occupied, she felt something inside her shift. This serious, polite, adventurous young man knew loss too.
By the time Tintin had finished closing the door, she had begun to descend the stairs with Snowy at her heels. Eva paused as Tintin drew level with her, and she laced her arm through his. Something irrefutable passed between them then, in the quiet of that house, as they descended the stairs. They stayed quiet until they stepped onto dimly lit pavement, and then they heard a shout.