He stood there, a distinguished figure. He had a handsome
if somewhat shallow face with deep-set keen
eyes. A lock of brown hair fell carelessly on his broad
forehead, giving him a Byronic appearance. There was
an air of worldliness about him and an air of sadness, too.
Roger led him to the portrait of the original Barnabas
Collins hanging on the wall. Barnabas stood back survey-
ing it with a thin smile. The portrait might have been a
mirror likeness of him. Elizabeth gasped as she studied
him and then the portrait.
"The likeness is extraordinary, isn't it, Carolyn?" she
said.
"Carolyn spoke for everyone when she said, "Yes--"
Elizabeth made a small frustrated gesture and inter-
rupted her daughter. "It's as if the portrait had come to
life."
Roger was in an interested and amiable mood, which
was rare for him. He said, "We had no idea that we still might
have family in England."
Barnabas smiled gravely. "I am the last, I'm afraid."
"We knew of course that the original Barnabas Collins
had gone to England in 1797."
"I'm glad that he is still remembered," Barnabas said.
"Remarkable person," Roger observed. "Not entirely
the conventional type if all the records are correct. But
that is aside from the point. We surely do know about
him."
Doctor Julia Hoffman came forward to explain to the new-
comer, "I've been doing some research on the Collins
family. I'm writing a history of their arrival here until
the present day."
Barnabas lifted his eyebrows, "An awesome task, I
fear."
"I'm enjoying it," she assured him. "But there are
certain personalities and facts that have become blurred
over the centuries."
"That almost always happens, doesn't it," Barnabas in-
quired pleasantly. He had a charming manner.
"Shouldn't have here," Roger interposed. "We've been
careful to preserve all the family records. I've turned most
of it over to Dr. Hoffman."
Julia Hoffman said, "There are still blanks to be filled.
As an example, I've been trying to find out what Barnabas
did in England. There's no further mention of him in any
of the family journals."
Elizabeth said, "We're so delighted that Dr. Hoffman has
taken a sabbatical from her practice to write a history of
our family."
"I'm amazed your interested," Barnabas said to
Julia.
"I am, I assure you," she answered.
"I shall be glad to help you, Doctor," Barnabas said.
"If I can."
"I'm sure you can," Julia said.
Now Stokes came over to Barnabas. "Do you come
from London, Mr. Collins?"
"Yes," said Barnabas, turning his deep-set hypnotic
eyes on the pompous man. "It is Professor Stokes, isn't
it?"
"Yes, indeed," the stout man said heartily. "I have
been a world traveler and I am very fond of Europe.
But I think London is perhaps my favorite city."
"Indeed?" Barnabas said politely. "I'm sure that I
agree. But then I suppose I'm prejudiced, since it's my
home. But I also like Paris and Rome."
"Ah, yes," Professor Stokes said, "each of the great
cities has a special character. I always say that, don't
you?"
"Of course," Barnabas said, seeming amused by the
professor.
"I spent some years at Cambridge," Professor Stokes
went on. "Would you know any of the present faculty
there?"
"I'm afraid not," Barnabas Collins replied in his
pleasant voice. "I'm an Oxford man."
"Indeed. Too bad!" Professor Stokes was let down.
"I don't recall having any friends at Oxford. Well, no
doubt there are some mutual acquaintances in other
circles if we can just hit on them."
Barnabas asked, "Have you ever visited Venice?"
"Indeed I have," Stokes said. "Fantastic place. I take
it to be a favorite of yours?"
"I have been there many times," Barnabas said.
"To return to London," the professor said, "since it is
a city I remember with relish. Where did you live
there?"
"Cadogan Square," Barnabas said quietly.
"Well, there you are," Professor Stokes said. "I knew
we'd hit on something. Now do you by any chance know
the Bromwells? They're at 33, I believe."
"Excuse me," Barnabas abruptly and crossed to
the other side of the room to examine a portrait, leaving
a startled Professor Stokes behind him.
Elizabeth said, "That portrait interests you?" She had
moved over to Barnabas.
He was staring at it intently, a strangely tender look
on his handsome melancholy face. "Naomi Collins, isn't
it?" he asked, his eyes not leaving the portrait.
"Yes."
Barnabas glanced at her. "Of course you know who
she was."
Elizabeth smiled. "Yes. She was the mother of the
first Barnabas.
"That is right," Barnabas said quietly. And at the
same time he reached in a pocket and extracted a small
velvet box. "You may find this interesting."
"Oh?" Elizabeth raised her eyebrows.
"I so hoped there would be someone like you to wear
this," he said, as he handed her the box.
"Why thank you," Elizabeth said, touched and pleased.
She opened the box and then registered astonishment.
She turned to the others and said, "Roger! Carolyn!"
"What is it, Mother?" Carolyn asked as she joined
them.
Elizabeth held up a necklace. It was identical to the
one shown in the portrait of Barnabas' mother. "Recog-
nize it?"
"It's Naomi's necklace," Carolyn gasped.
"Incredible!" Roger added his surprised comment as
he came close to study the necklace.
Barnabas gave him a sharp look. "Why do you say
incredible, Cousin Roger?"
Roger's stern face registered embarrassment. "Of course
I couldn't expect you to know. It has to do with our
branch of the family."
"Indeed?" Barnabas said.
"That necklace is part of the missing jewels," Roger
told him.
Barnabas was listening closely. "Oh?"
Roger went on, "There's a legend that they were buried
during the Revolutionary War, and never found again."
"History is so much more romantic than reality," Barn-
abas commented with a smile flickering on his lips.
Elizabeth asked, "Why do you say that?"
"Naomi gave them to my ancestor when he left Collin-
wood," Barnabas said.
"They vanished," Roger acknowledged, "and there
seemed to be no explanation of where they'd gone. I
assume that is how the rumor that they were buried to
save them during the Revolutionary War came to be."
"No doubt," Barnabas said. "As I have heard it, the
mother of my ancestor knew she would never see him
again. She gave them to him as his share of the estate."
Roger nodded. "That could well be."
Elizabeth turned to her brother. "That wasn't the only
legacy, Roger. Remember?"
Roger looked blank for a moment and then appeared
to understand. He turned to Barnabas. "Of course. We
believe that the old house belonged to the original Barnabas
as well."
"I'm most anxious to see it," Barnabas said with a
haunted expression on his noble, sallow face.
"It's still here," Elizabeth assured him.
"Not in the best of repair, but it has stood up to the
years remarkably well," Roger said.
"The first Barnabas wrote a fascinating description of
it years later," the man in the caped coat said. "I feel that
I know it. Just from reading his account."
"How interesting," Elizabeth said with a smile. "He
must have been very fond of the old place."
Barnabas set his deep-set eyes on the attractive
matron. "He was,"
"And how sad he was never able to return to it
again," she went on.
"True," Barnabas said. "I'm positive that he planned
to come back one day."
Elizabeth looked sad. "But he died before he could
fulfill his dream."
"You might say that," Barnabas agreed quietly. "Other-
wise he would have come. He loved the house so."
"We must take you through it," Roger said.
"I'd appreciate that," Barnabas said.
Carolyn moved over to her mother and said, "Let me
fasten the necklace around your neck."
Elizabeth smiled. "If you like."
Roger looked on approvingly as Carolyn did this. When
it was in place, he said, "Looks lovely, Elizabeth."
"Lovely," Barnabas echoed in a warm voice. And he
went to Elizabeth and with his burning eye fixed on hers
lifted her hand and kissed it. At that same moment Carolyn
noticed the ring on Barnabas' finger and remembered
the hand with the same ring she'd seen at the Collinsport
Hotel restaurant. The hand which had belonged to Willie
Loomis' mysterious companion.
As Barnabas said to her mother, "You are as beautiful
as she," Carolyn stared at him with a mixture of baffle-
ment and alarm showing on her pretty young face. She
found it hard to believe that this charming stranger, a
cousin of the family, had been in the company of Willie.
And yet she was positive the ring she saw now was iden-
tical with the one she'd glimpsed at the hotel restaurant.
Could it be merely a coincidence? if so, it was surely a
very strange one!
As conversation continued comfortably in the gallery
of the mansion, Carolyn tried to convince herself that
she'd made a mistake. perhaps the two rings had merely
looked alike. Yet these rings were of such a strange de-
sign it appeared dubious that this could be the solution of
the mystery. Barnabas came to her and chatted in such a
friendly manner that she forgot her suspicions about him.
"It is pleasant to meet a new generation of our family,"
he told Carolyn as they stood apart from the others.
Carolyn smiled. "And I find it fascinating to discover I
have a British cousin."
Barnabas noble face had an expression of warm good
will. "I trust we'll get to know each other better," he
said.
"We must," she agreed. "You'll be our house guest,
of course."
His brow furrowed. "I'm not positive of that."
"My mother and Uncle Roger will be upset if you
don't," Carolyn told him.
"I don't question their hospitality," Barnabas said. "But
I dislike intruding."
"You won't be," Carolyn assured him.
He glanced over where Roger and Elizabeth were
standing with Professor Stokes and Dr. Julia Hoffman.
And he said, "I would like to take a look at the old
house."
"It's interesting," she agreed.
"Your uncle Roger mentioned giving me a tour of it,"
Barnabas said. "But apparently he's forgotten. Do you
suppose he'd show it to me tonight? Perhaps the request
sounds odd. But I am impatient to look at it."
Carolyn said, "He can take you there. It's not far
from here. Do you want me to mention it to him?"
"That would be kind of you, "Barnabas said with one
of his winning smiles.
So Carolyn left him studying some of the other ancient
portraits in the gallery while she crossed to her Uncle
Roger to remind him of his promise to Barnabas. She
had just about decided that she'd been wrong about the
ring. For a moment she'd been on the verge of asking
Barnabas whether he had been at the restaurant with
Willie Loomis. And then she'd felt it to be a stupid
question. Best to put the whole matter out of her mind.
She touched Roger's arm to get his attention. "Uncle
Roger," she said, "are you going to show Barnabas the
old house?"
Her uncle's stern face registered surprise. "At this
hour?"
She glanced over where Barnabas was standing before
the portrait of Naomi. "He's impatient to see it. He's
full of romantic notions about the place."
"Obviously," Roger said in a dry voice, "or he wouldn't
expect me to take him there tonight."
"Would it be so much bother?" Carolyn asked.
"Bother enough," Roger said. "Let him wait until
tomorrow."
Elizabeth came to join in the conversation. "Now just
what is this important discussion?" she wanted to know.
Roger gave her an annoyed look. "This fellow, Barna-
bas, expects me to take him over to see the old house now."
"Why not?" Elizabeth smiled. "He's been so charming
and don't forget the valuable gift he's given me. It
wouldn't put you out all that much. I'd say it would be
fun to visit it at this hour."
"There's no electricity," Roger reminded her.
"The old house looks its best by candlelight," Eliza-
beth said. She turned to Carolyn, "Tell Barnabas we'll
be glad to show him around tonight."
"I will," she said.
Roger continued to look annoyed at the idea. "I'll do
it," he said grudgingly. "But I regard it as a lot of non-
sense."
Elizabeth smiled at her brother. "You talk like that
about almost everything," she chided him.
Carolyn went back to join Barnabas. he was still
standing before the portrait of Naomi Collins, mother
to the original Barnabas. Carolyn came up beside him to
gaze at the portrait.
"She has a lovely face," Carolyn said. "I think she
must have been a very kind woman."
Barnabas continued to stare at the painting. "She was,"
he said with deep feeling. And then he turned to her and
explained, "At least that's what I've gathered from
the letters my ancestor left."
Carolyn nodded. "I have good news. Uncle Roger is
ready to take you to the old house whenever you like."
The burning deep-set eyes showed excitement. "I'd
like to go there at once."
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Topic: And Now The Return of Another New Slideshow (Sort of), Part 2 [**Now featuring alternate versions of scenes - see replies #18,#21,#23,#49,#64,#69,#76,#88,#90,#100,#105,#107,#115**] (Read 88010 times)