Hidden Talents

won't tolerate any more blackmail.”
    “Goddamn it,” Franklin roared, “you can't prove that I tried to blackmail anyone.”
    Roland shot Serenity a speculative glance and then gave Caleb a sharp look. “Well? Can you prove what you're saying, Caleb?”
    Caleb pulled the folded record of sale from the pocket of his shirt. “I got this from Ambrose Asterley's files. It says he sold a set of photos of Serenity Makepeace to Franklin Ventress. You'll notice the date on the receipt. The transaction took place on the twentieth of October, ten days ago. But Franklin only got around to calling me about this yesterday.”
    “You're lying,” Franklin hissed.
    “No.” Caleb's gaze glittered briefly. “I don't lie, and whatever else he may believe about me, I think Grandfather knows that much. I have never lied to him.”
    Roland looked troubled but he said nothing.
    “Damn it, why would this Asterley person give you a receipt for a bunch of pictures that he supposedly sold to me?” Franklin asked swiftly.
    “He didn't have much choice,” Caleb said. “Ambrose Asterley died a few days ago. I found this record in his files after his death.”
    “Impossible. Let me see that.” Franklin charged across the room and grabbed the incriminating slip of paper out of Caleb's hand. He stared at it in dismay for a long time. Then his shoulders slumped. His whole body seemed to deflate. When he raised his head, he looked defeated.
    “Franklin?” Phyllis spoke sharply. “What is it? What's going on?”
    “I don't understand,” Franklin muttered. “I just don't understand. It's not possible. I did everything I was told to do each time.”
    Caleb plucked the receipt from his hand. “What don't you understand, Franklin?”
    “There wasn't supposed to be any record of this. He told me there wouldn't be any way to trace the sale.” Franklin rubbed the bridge of his nose. He appeared dazed. “On both occasions, I carried out his instructions to the letter.”
    “What instructions?” Serenity asked.
    “I parked my car in the Ventress Valley Mall parking lot.” Franklin stared out the window at the gray sky. “Left the door unlocked, the money in the glove compartment. I went into the mall for fifteen minutes. I never saw him, but when I returned to the car, the money was gone.”
    “And the photos were in the glove compartment?” Caleb asked.
    “Yes. The first time. I paid five thousand for them.”
    “And on the second occasion?”
    Franklin looked haunted. “He called again on Sunday. Said it wasn't over. Said he still had the negatives and that he'd send prints to the Ventress Valley News if I didn't pay him five thousand dollars.”
    “Then you admit you purchased those pictures?” Roland asked roughly.
    Franklin's head came up proudly. His shoulders straightened. “Yes, I admit it. As soon as I knew those photos existed, I realized it was my duty to get hold of them. I had to see just what sort of woman had gotten her greedy little claws into Caleb.”
    “And once you did have the pictures in hand, you tried to threaten Serenity, didn't you?” Caleb asked. “You sent copies of the photos to her and warned her that if she didn't end her business relationship with me, you'd send the pictures directly to me.”
    “I hoped she would have enough sense of shame to end the relationship on her own.” Franklin gave Serenity a furious glance. “I suppose I should have known better. Any woman whose moral standards are so low that she has no compunction about posing nude, wouldn't care who saw the pictures, I suppose.”
    “Don't worry about Serenity's moral standards,” Caleb said. “I guarantee you that they're a lot higher than yours are.”
    “How can you say such a thing about a member of your own family?” Phyllis demanded.
    “On my scale, blackmailers rank a lot lower than photographers' models,” Caleb said.
    “Really,” Phyllis grumbled. “I don't see that Franklin was actually blackmailing anyone.”
    “I was only doing what I had to do to save you from her.” Franklin stared at Caleb. “Don't you understand? I had a duty to this family. I could not allow you to repeat the mistakes of the past. I simply could not allow it. We all suffered too much the last time. I couldn't let you follow in your father's footsteps.”
    A sudden hush gripped the room. The dreadful words had finally been spoken aloud. Serenity knew they had all been waiting for them.
    “No, I guess you couldn't allow