The Rembrandt Affair Read online

  “As it should be,” said Gabriel. “Besides, the last thing we need to advertise is that private restorers keep extremely valuable paintings under less than secure circumstances.”

  It was one of the art world’s many dirty secrets. Gabriel had always worked in isolation. But in New York and London, it was not unusual to enter the studio of an elite restorer to find tens of millions of dollars’ worth of paintings. If the auction season was approaching, the value of the inventory could be stratospheric.

  “Tell me more about the painting, Julian.”

  Isherwood glanced at Gabriel expectantly. “Does that mean you’ll do it?”

  “No, Julian. It just means I want to know more about the picture.”

  “Where would you like me to begin?”

  “The dimensions.”

  “One hundred four by eighty-six centimeters.”

  “Date?”

  “Sixteen fifty-four.”

  “Panel or canvas?”

  “Canvas. The thread count is consistent with canvases Rembrandt was using at the time.”

  “When was the last restoration?”

  “Hard to say. A hundred years ago…maybe longer. The paint was quite worn in some places. Liddell believed it would require a substantial amount of inpainting to knock it into shape. He was worried about whether he would be able to finish it in time.”

  Gabriel asked about the composition.

  “Stylistically, it’s similar to his other three-quarter-length portraits from the period. The model is a young woman in her late twenties or early thirties. Attractive. She’s wearing a wrap of jeweled silk and little else. There’s something intimate about it. She clearly managed to get under Rembrandt’s skin. He worked with a heavily loaded brush and at considerable speed. In places, it appears he was painting alla prima, wet into wet.”

  “Do we know who she is?”

  “There’s nothing to identify her specifically, but the Rembrandt Committee and I both concur it’s Rembrandt’s mistress.”

  “Hendrickje Stoffels?”

  Isherwood nodded. “The date of the painting is significant because it was the same year Hendrickje gave birth to Rembrandt’s child. The Dutch Church didn’t look kindly on that, of course. She was put on trial and condemned for living with Rembrandt like a whore. Rembrandt, archcad that he was, never married her.”

  Isherwood seemed genuinely disturbed by this. Gabriel smiled.

  “If I didn’t know better, Julian, I’d think you were jealous.”

  “Wait until you see her.”

  The two men lapsed into silence as Isherwood guided the car into Lizard village. In summer, it would be filled with tourists. Now, with its shuttered souvenir stands and darkened ice-cream parlors, it had the sadness of a fête in the rain.

  “What’s the provenance like?”

  “Thin but clean.”

  “Meaning?”

  “There are gaps here and there. Rather like yours,” Isherwood added with a confiding glance. “But there are no claims against it. I had the Art Loss Register run a quiet search just to be certain.”

  “The London office?”

  Isherwood nodded.

  “So they know about the picture, too?”

  “The Art Loss Register is dedicated to finding paintings, darling, not stealing them.”

  “Go on, Julian.”

  “It’s believed the painting remained in Rembrandt’s personal collection until his death, whereupon it was sold off by the bankruptcy court to help pay his debts. From there, it floated around The Hague for a century or so, made a brief foray to Italy, and returned to the Netherlands in the early nineteenth century. The current owner purchased it in 1964 from the Hoffmann Gallery of Lucerne. That beautiful young woman has been in hiding her entire life.”

  They entered a tunnel of trees dripping with ivy and headed downward into a deep storybook hollow with an ancient stone church at its base.

  “Who else knew the painting was in Glastonbury?”

  Isherwood made a show of thought. “The director of the National Gallery of Art in Washington and my shipping company.” He hesitated, then added, “And I suppose it’s possible I may have mentioned it to Van Berkel.”

  “Did Liddell have any other paintings in his studio?”

  “Four,” replied Isherwood. “A Rubens he’d just finished for Christie’s, something that may or may not have been a Titian, a landscape by Cézanne—quite a good one, actually—and some hideously expensive water lilies by Monet.”

  “I assume those were stolen as well?”

  Isherwood shook his head. “Only my Rembrandt.”

  “No other paintings? You’re sure?”

  “Trust me, darling. I’m sure.”

  They emerged from the hollow into the open terrain. In the distance, a pair of massive Sea King helicopters floated like zeppelins over the naval air station. Gabriel’s thoughts, however, were focused on a single question. Why would a thief in a hurry grab a large Rembrandt portrait rather than a smaller Cézanne or Monet?

  “Do the police have a theory?”

  “They suspect Liddell must have surprised the thieves in the middle of the robbery. When it went bad, they killed him and grabbed the closest painting, which happened to be mine. After this summer, Scotland Yard is quite pessimistic about the chances for recovery. And Liddell’s death makes it more complicated. This is now first and foremost a murder investigation.”

  “How long until your insurance company pays out?”

  Isherwood frowned and drummed one finger nervously on the wheel. “I’m afraid you’ve just hit upon my dilemma.”

  “What dilemma?”

  “As of this moment, the rightful owner of the Rembrandt is still the unnamed client of David Cavendish. But when I took possession of the painting, it was supposed to come under my insurance policy.”

  Isherwood’s voice trailed off. It contained a melancholy note Gabriel had heard many times before. Sometimes it appeared when Isherwood’s heart had been broken or when he had been forced to sell a cherished painting. But usually it meant he was in financial trouble. Again.

  “What have you done now, Julian?”

  “Well, it’s been a rough year, hasn’t it, petal? Stock market declines. Real estate crashes. Falling sales for luxury items. What’s a small independent dealer like me supposed to do?”

  “You didn’t tell your insurance company about the painting, did you?”

  “The premiums are so bloody expensive. And those brokers are such leeches. Do you know how much it would have cost me? I thought I could—”

  “Cut a corner?”

  “Something like that.” Isherwood fell silent. When he spoke again, there was a note of desperation in his voice that had not been present before. “I need your help, Gabriel. I am personally on the hook for forty-five million dollars.”

  “This isn’t what I do, Julian. I’m a—”

  “Restorer?” Isherwood gave Gabriel a skeptical glance. “As we both know, you’re not exactly an ordinary art restorer. You also happen to be very good at finding things. And in all the time I’ve known you, I’ve never asked you for a favor.” Isherwood paused. “There’s no one else I can turn to. Unless you help me, I’m ruined.”

  Gabriel rapped his knuckle lightly on his window to warn Isherwood that they were approaching the poorly marked turnoff for Gunwalloe. He had to admit he was moved by Isherwood’s appeal. The little he knew about the case suggested it was no ordinary art theft. He also was suffering from a nagging guilt over Liddell’s death. Like Shamron, Gabriel had been cursed with an exaggerated sense of right and wrong. His greatest professional triumphs as an intelligence officer had not come by way of the gun but through his unyielding will to expose past wrongs and make them right. He was a restorer in the truest sense of the word. For Gabriel, the case was like a damaged painting. To leave it in its current state, darkened by yellowed varnish and scarred by time, was not possible. Isherwood knew this, of course. He also kn
ew he had a powerful ally. The Rembrandt was pleading his case for him.

  A medieval darkness had fallen over the Cornish coast by the time they arrived in Gunwalloe. Isherwood said nothing more as he piloted his Jaguar along the single street of the village and headed down to the little cottage at the far end of the cove. As they turned into the drive, a dozen security lamps came instantly to life, flooding the landscape with searing white light. Standing on the terrace of the cottage, her dark hair twisting in the wind, was Chiara. Isherwood watched her for a moment, then made a show of surveying the landscape.

  “Has anyone ever told you this place looks exactly like the Customs Officer’s Cabin at Pourville?”

  “The girl from the Royal Mail might have mentioned it.” Gabriel stared at Chiara. “I’d like to help you, Julian…”

  “But?”

  “I’m not ready.” Gabriel paused. “And neither is she.”

  “I wouldn’t be so sure about the last part.”

  Chiara disappeared into the cottage. Isherwood handed Gabriel a large manila envelope.

  “At least have a look at these. If you still don’t want to do it, I’ll find a nice picture for you to clean. Something challenging, like a fourteenth-century Italian panel with severe convex warping and enough losses to keep those magical hands of yours occupied for several months.”

  “Restoring a painting like that would be easier than finding your Rembrandt.”

  “Yes,” said Isherwood. “But nowhere near as interesting.”

  7

  GUNWALLOE COVE, CORNWALL

  The envelope contained ten photographs in all—one depiction of the entire canvas along with nine close-up detail images. Gabriel laid them out in a row on the kitchen counter and examined each with a magnifying glass.

  “What are you looking at?” Chiara asked.

  “The way he loaded his brush.”

  “And?”

  “Julian was right. He painted it very quickly and with great passion. But I doubt he was working alla prima. I can see places where he laid the shadows in first and allowed them to dry.”

  “So it’s definitely a Rembrandt?”

  “Without question.”

  “How can you be so certain just by looking at a photograph?”

  “I’ve been around paintings for a hundred thousand years. I know it when I see it. This is not only a Rembrandt but a great Rembrandt. And it’s two and a half centuries ahead of its time.”

  “How so?”

  “Look at the brushwork. Rembrandt was an Impressionist before anyone had ever heard the term. It’s proof of his genius.”

  Chiara picked up one of the photos, a detail image of the woman’s face.

  “Pretty girl. Rembrandt’s mistress?”

  Gabriel raised one eyebrow in surprise.

  “I grew up in Venice and have a master’s degree in the history of the Roman Empire. I do know something about art.” Chiara looked at the photograph again and shook her head slowly. “He treated her shabbily. He should have married her.”

  “You sound like Julian.”

  “Julian is right.”

  “Rembrandt’s life was complicated.”

  “Where have I heard that one before?”

  Chiara gave a puckish smile and returned the photograph to its place on the counter. The Cornish winter had softened the tone of her olive skin while the moist sea air had added curls and ringlets to her hair. It was held in place by a clasp at the nape of her neck and hung between her shoulder blades in a great cloud of auburn and copper highlights. She was taller than Gabriel by an inch and blessed with the square shoulders, narrow waist, and long legs of a natural athlete. Had she been raised somewhere other than Venice, she might very well have become a star swimmer or tennis player. But like most Venetians, Chiara regarded sporting contests as something to be viewed over coffee or a good meal. When one required exercise, one made love or strolled down to the Zattere for a gelato. Only the Americans exercised with compulsion, she argued, and look what it had wrought—an epidemic of heart disease and children prone to obesity. The descendant of Spanish Jews who fled to Venice in the fifteenth century, Chiara believed there was no malady that could not be cured by a bit of mineral water or a glass of good red wine.

  She opened the stainless steel door of the oven and from inside removed a large orange pot. As she lifted the lid there arose a warm rush of steam that filled the entire room with the savor of roasting veal, shallots, fennel, and sweet Tuscan dessert wine. She inhaled deeply, poked at the surface of the meat with her fingertip, and gave a contented smile. Chiara’s disdain for physical exertion was matched only by her passion for cooking. And now that she was officially retired from the Office, she had little to do other than read books and prepare extravagant meals. All that was expected of Gabriel was an appropriate display of appreciation and undivided attention. Chiara believed that food hastily consumed was food wasted. She ate in the same manner in which she made love, slowly and by the flickering glow of candles. Now she licked the tip of her finger and replaced the cover on the pot. Closing the door, she turned and noticed Gabriel staring at her.

  “Why are you looking at me like that?”

  “I’m just looking.”

  “Is there a problem?”

  He smiled. “None at all.”

  She furrowed her brow. “You need something else to occupy your thoughts other than my body.”

  “Easier said than done. How long before dinner?”

  “Not long enough for that, Gabriel.”

  “I wasn’t suggesting that.”

  “You weren’t?” She pouted playfully. “I’m disappointed.”

  She opened a bottle of Chianti, poured two glasses, and pushed one toward Gabriel. “Who steals paintings?”

  “Thieves steal paintings, Chiara.”

  “I guess you don’t want any of the veal.”

  “Allow me to rephrase. What I was trying to say is that it really doesn’t matter who steals paintings. The simple truth is, they’re stolen every day. Literally. And the losses are huge. According to Interpol, between four and six billion dollars a year. After drug trafficking, money laundering, and arms dealing, art theft is the most lucrative criminal enterprise. The Museum of the Missing is one of the greatest in the world. Everyone is there—Titian, Rubens, Leonardo, Caravaggio, Raphael, Van Gogh, Monet, Renoir, Degas. Everyone. Thieves have pillaged some of man’s most beautiful creations. And for the most part, we’ve done nothing to stop it.”

  “And the thieves themselves?”

  “Some are bumblers and adventurers looking for a thrill. Some are ordinary criminals trying to make a name for themselves by stealing something extraordinary. But unfortunately a few are real pros. And from their perspective, the risk-reward ratio is weighted heavily in their favor.”

  “High rewards, low risks?”

  “Extremely low risks,” Gabriel said. “A security guard might shoot a thief during a bank robbery, but to the best of my knowledge no one has ever been shot trying to steal a painting. In fact, we make it rather easy for them.”

  “Easy?”

  “In 1998, a thief walked into Room Sixty-seven of the Louvre, sliced Corot’s Le Chemin de Sèvres from its frame, and walked out again. An hour elapsed before anyone even realized the painting was missing. And why was that? Because Room Sixty-seven had no security camera. The official postmortem proved more embarrassing. Louvre officials couldn’t produce a complete list of employees or even an accurate accounting of the museum’s inventory. The official review concluded that it would be harder for a thief to rob the average Paris department store than the most famous museum on earth.”

  Chiara shook her head in amazement. “What happens to the art after it’s stolen?”

  “That depends on the motive. Some thieves are just out to make a quick score. And the quickest way to convert a painting into cash is by handing it over in exchange for a reward. In reality, it’s ransom. But since it’s almost always a small fraction
of the painting’s true value, the museums and the insurance companies are only too happy to play the game. And the thieves know it.”

  “And if it’s not a ransom job?”

  “There’s a debate within the art world and law enforcement over that. Some paintings end up being used as a sort of underworld currency. A Vermeer stolen from a museum in Amsterdam, for example, might fall into the hands of a drug gang in Belgium or France, which in turn might use it as collateral or a down payment on a shipment of heroin from Turkey. A single painting might circulate for years in this manner, passing from one criminal to the next, until someone decides to cash in. Meanwhile, the painting itself suffers terribly. Four-hundred-year-old Vermeers are delicate objects. They don’t like being stuffed into suitcases or buried in holes.”

  “Do you accept that theory?”

  “In some cases, it’s indisputable. In others…” Gabriel shrugged. “Let’s just say I’ve never met a drug dealer who preferred a painting to cold hard cash.”

  “So what’s the other theory?”

  “That stolen paintings end up hanging on the walls of very rich men.”

  “Do they?”

  Gabriel peered thoughtfully into his wineglass. “About ten years ago, Julian was putting the finishing touches on a deal with a Japanese billionaire at his mansion outside Tokyo. At one point during the meeting, the collector excused himself to take a call. Julian being Julian, he got out of his seat and had a look around. At the far end of a hallway he saw a painting that looked shockingly familiar. To this day, he swears it was Chez Tortoni.”

  “The Manet stolen in the Gardner heist? Why would a billionaire take such a risk?”

  “Because you can’t buy what’s not for sale. Remember, the vast majority of the world’s masterpieces will never come on the market. And for some collectors—men used to always getting what they want—the unobtainable can become an obsession.”

  “And if someone like that has Julian’s Rembrandt? What are the chances of finding it?”

  “One in ten, at best. And the odds of recovery drop precipitously if it isn’t recovered quickly. People have been searching for that Manet for two decades.”