Legal Artistry (17 page)

By the time they left, both he and Dieter were shivering from the temperature controls in the research room, and Gerald turned his head toward the sun when they reached the street. “Let's get something to eat, and then we can visit the museum.” Gerald knew Dieter was anxious to actually see his great-grandmother's portrait.

"What about your bag?” Dieter asked. “Shouldn't we take it back to the hotel?"

"I can check it at the museum,” Gerald said as they walked toward what appeared to be a business district nearby and found a small restaurant for lunch.

Inside, Dieter took over, speaking to the maitre d', and they were seated near the window. The menus were in German, so Dieter translated for him. “I'd like the schnitzel,” Gerald told Dieter, and he ordered for both of them when their server came to the table.

"I ordered you one of the local beers too,” Dieter said, and the server brought tall glasses of a light-colored beer that went down smoothly when he tasted it. “How do you think it went?” Dieter asked when the server was gone.

"Pretty well, I think. We got a lot of information, but we'll need to figure out what we have so we can determine what we need to try to find tomorrow.” Gerald took another drink of his beer. “Is there anything you want to talk about?"

"Yes, but I'm not sure how,” Dieter told him, looking concerned. “I know you were being a good lawyer, but I have difficulties when I see you act like the hard-edged lawyer because I can't reconcile it with the sweet, caring man I slept with two nights ago.” Dieter took another gulp of his beer, and Gerald could see the conflict behind Dieter's eyes. “You're doing this for me, I really do know that, and you're trying to get me what I want, I know that, too, but I sort of wonder which is the real you.” Dieter set down his glass, and Gerald felt Dieter's gaze bore into his eyes.

"They're both me, sort of. The caring person you know is very much me, as is the lawyer. I guess the best I can say is that the lawyer in me loves to win, and the rest of me feels like he already has,” Gerald tried to explain. “I want you to think about this. I told Hanna a story based on the truth today. I did it so we could get the information we needed. I understand that you may not like what I did, but we found out a number of things. Your grandmother appealed to the Ministry of Culture to get back what was rightfully hers, and they used only part of the story to deny her claim. What we're trying to do is get the rest of the story.” Gerald lowered his voice, not that anyone was listening, but he didn't want to appear harsh. Dieter's questions were valid, and he needed to know the truth. “We're not asking for access to information that isn't available to other people, and we're not stealing it. We just need to know what they know. And we got some good news today. They have more than just the five paintings, and the so-called letter that they're basing their claim of ownership on is a little note from Anna to Joseph explaining her wishes. It's not legal or binding. Joseph was free to decide what he wanted, and he never donated the paintings, so their claims are pretty weak."

"I guess you're right,” Dieter said, but he didn't sound very convinced. “You've never treated me in any way but wonderfully."

"And I promise I'll always try to treat you that way. But there will be times when I go into lawyer mode, though I'll try not to do it when it's just us.” Gerald reached across the table and lightly touched Dieter's hand. “You don't have to be afraid."

"I'm not really afraid. It's just that everything's so new, I keep wondering if it's for real. It seems so easy, too easy, maybe,” Dieter said, but he didn't continue when the server brought their plates. “Let's eat and we can go back to the museum. And when we get back to the hotel, we can take a look at those papers we had copied.” Dieter took a bite of his veal, and Gerald tried his own dish as well. “I shouldn't be so sensitive."

Gerald swallowed and took a drink of beer. “You're a good person, and you see that same goodness in others. It's one of the things I really like about you. So don't change, just try to understand, and I'll do the same,” Gerald explained.

"Okay,” Dieter replied with a half-smile, and they continued their lunch. “Is there anything planned for this evening?"

"Once we've reviewed the documents, the time is ours. I thought we could take the subway to the city center, and I thought we could walk part of the Ringstrasse one evening. I'm really going to need your help with these documents. I have no idea what they are, and unless we can determine what we have, I can't figure out what we need."

"Then after we look through the museum, let's go back to the room and get the work done. That's why we're here, after all. Once we're done, we can look around the city. The lawyer's right,” Dieter said, giving him a wink, “we need to get the work done first. Just don't get a big head and start thinking the lawyer's always right."

Gerald smiled. If Dieter could joke, then maybe he was beginning to understand. Dieter was his boyfriend and his client; maybe that wasn't the most ideal situation, but he wasn't willing to give up either one of those right now. They continued talking as they finished their lunch.

"I'm so full, I think I need to walk around for the next few hours,” Dieter commented happily, a huge, satisfied smile on his face as they left the restaurant.

"Are you feeling better?” Gerald asked, still a little unsettled about their earlier conversation. He was a good attorney, he knew that, and he also knew from some of the stories in the office that the job could take over your life. He could feel a bit of that threatening already, and he was determined not to let that happen. He liked having someone wonderful in his life, and he was becoming convinced that his Mr. Wonderful was Dieter. He also knew that he had to be who he was. He just hoped that Dieter could accept that.

"Yes. I think so,” Dieter said as they walked back toward the museum, “and I'm beginning to realize that there's more to you than just the kind person I know. Not that I'm disappointed. In fact, I should have expected it. We met in your office, and I wanted you on my case because you cared and because you're a good lawyer. I shouldn't fault you for doing your job well."

"I know it can be difficult. Half the people in my office are divorced, some more than once. I asked Steven, one of the partners, about it once, and he told me that success comes with a price,” Gerald explained as he moved closer to Dieter. “I've always hoped I wouldn't be one of those people who paid that price and sold their soul for their job."

Dieter stopped walking and turned toward him, an unreadable look on his face. “What if I'm the price?"

"Then it's too high,” Gerald said, the words tumbling out before he could think about them. Other people walked around them on the sidewalk as Gerald stared back into Dieter's eyes. He seemed to be looking for something, and Gerald hoped he found it.

"You're serious,” Dieter commented softly.

"Yes. I won't lie to you or just tell you what you want to hear. That's not who I am. I may have to bend the truth sometimes in order to help my clients, but I don't lie, and I won't lie to you,” Gerald said firmly, but with a slight smile he hoped softened the message. Gerald wasn't angry with Dieter, he just hoped he would understand. “Would you like to go inside?"

Dieter nodded and they climbed the steps, entering the museum once again. This time, Gerald stood in line to check his case, making sure it was locked before handing it over, and after paying the entrance fee, he and Dieter walked into the museum.

Like the Louvre, this museum had once been a palace, and the setting for the Austrian paintings was spectacular, with baroque decoration of the walls almost as breathtaking as the art. They walked through room after room, quietly looking at each painting before moving on. With each room they saw, Gerald could feel Dieter's expectations and excitement rise until they walked into the room with four Pirktl landscapes hanging on the walls.

Dieter stopped, staring at each painting in turn. “They're beautiful,” Dieter murmured so softly Gerald barely heard him.

Gerald had purchased a guide and he opened it, finding the pages that explained the paintings. “It says these landscapes were commissioned by a prominent Austrian family and that they were the only four landscapes he ever completed. The scenes are from the wood outside Vienna where the Meinauer family once had property. Each painting depicts the same stand of trees from different angles at different times of year.” Gerald stopped reading as he joined Dieter in staring at the canvases. They weren't massive, by any means, but they weren't small, and having seen where they originally hung in one of Dieter's photographs, Gerald knew they had been painted for a specific location.

"Can you imagine the lights, music, glittering jewelry, and gorgeous gowns as people danced in the ballroom where these paintings hung?” Gerald looked away from the paintings and saw that Dieter's eyes were closed, as if he were imagining the scene, and slowly Dieter's head began to nod, his eyes sliding open the way they did first thing in the morning.

"They're spectacular. I thought the portrait would be moving, but I wasn't expecting these to be so beautiful. They're the same and yet different,” Dieter told him without taking his eyes off the canvases. “It's the same group of trees, and each painting is serene and you can almost hear the wind and the rustling of leaves or the muffled sound of the snow, and yet, each one is different. The vibrancy of spring, the lushness of summer, autumn's last burst of color, and winter's quiet beauty. I know it sounds cliche, but it's not.” Dieter tilted his head, looking at the depiction of spring. “It looks like the trees are happy, sort of dancing, and in summer, look at this limb, you can almost imagine it swinging back and forth, sort of like the trees are fanning themselves from the heat. They're almost playful.” Gerald stepped next to Dieter, afraid to touch him or disturb him in any way. Eventually, he felt Dieter move closer, and Gerald touched his arm lightly. “I think I'm ready to move on,” Dieter said, but as they left the room, Gerald saw Dieter look back at the paintings.

Together, they wandered through a few more galleries until Gerald felt Dieter stop in his tracks. Turning, Gerald saw it:
The Woman in Blue,
or
Portrait of Anna
as it was properly called, the face hauntingly beautiful. In real life, the blue looked like one of those mythical colors that legend says existed but was lost to time. The canvas shimmered as they moved farther into the gallery. Gerald stayed behind, watching as Dieter moved closer, his gaze never wandering from his great-grandmother's portrait. The other people in the room turned to look as Dieter slowly moved closer, stopping just a few feet away. Gerald was surprised, after having seen the large-format landscapes, that the portrait wasn't particularly big, but the impact of the image was monumental. At least it felt that way to Gerald, like the woman was looking off the canvas and into his soul. He suddenly knew why it was so important, because if a painting's worth was in its ability to move the viewer, then this was worth more than any work of art Gerald had ever seen.

Dieter hadn't moved, and Gerald saw a woman look at Dieter, then at the painting and back at Dieter once again. Seeing the portrait in person, Gerald realized that Dieter had his great-grandmother's eyes and facial structure. He looked like her in some ways, and the woman in the gallery had seen that as well. “Young man,” the woman was saying as Gerald approached. “I can't help noticing that you look like her.” The woman continued to look from Dieter to the painting.

"Thank you, but I'm not as pretty as she was,” Dieter said lightly, and the middle-aged woman smiled.

"I think you're prettier,” she said. “Would it be all right if I take your picture next to her?"

"Okay,” Dieter said, and he stood near the painting as the woman snapped a picture.

"You couldn't be related, could you?"

Dieter's gaze flashed to Gerald, and he felt himself shaking his head lightly. “I don't believe so,” Dieter lied before stepping away from the painting, and the woman thanked him before moving out of the gallery. Gerald joined Dieter, and they looked at the portrait together. A few times Gerald thought he might have heard Dieter say something, but he couldn't make out what it was, and he figured he'd allow Dieter his privacy.

"Are you ready to go?” Gerald asked, and Dieter nodded his head slightly. Leaving the gallery, Gerald expected Dieter to turn for one last look, but he didn't, he simply led the way through the museum. At the exit, Gerald retrieved his case and they stepped out into the sunshine. “Are you okay?"

"Yes,” Dieter answered. “I told her who I was and what I was trying to do. I didn't get an answer, of course, but I told both her and Gram.” Dieter rushed ahead and stopped walking when they reached the corner of the wide boulevard that ran next to the museum. Turning back to him, Dieter grabbed him and hugged him tight.

It took Gerald a few seconds before he realized Dieter was crying. Soothing him as best he could, Gerald rubbed Dieter's back softly. “It's going to be okay,” Gerald kept saying, looking around, wondering how he could get Dieter back to the room.

A taxi pulled closer and Gerald signaled. Once the car stopped, Gerald ushered them both inside and gave the driver the name of the hotel. The driver looked over his shoulder when he saw Gerald holding Dieter, but he said nothing, and Gerald wasn't in the mood to offer any sort of explanation.

[Back to Table of Contents]

The ride wasn't too long, and by the time they reached the hotel, Dieter had gotten hold of himself, and they exited the taxi. Gerald paid the driver, and they went inside and right up to their room. “Do you want to lie down for a while?"

"No,” Dieter answered, “I want to look over those papers so we can see what we've got."

"Dieter, that can wait a few minutes,” Gerald said as lightly as he could, concerned about Dieter.

"I'm okay. I let myself get worked up when I was looking at my great-grandmother's portrait, and when that woman wanted to take my picture. I should have declined, but I didn't see how it could hurt.” Dieter sighed loudly. “I feel like a bit of a fool, actually.” Dieter pulled a tissue out of his pocket, wiping his eyes before blowing his nose and throwing the tissue in the trash.