“Professor Webb.” Mrs. White gestured to two large canvases he’d pinned to a tent wall. “About these drawings?”
“If you will excuse me, Mr. Toffit.” He dipped his head at the short fellow and crossed the now-flattened grass to the side wall.
“Not much to look at, are they, Mrs. White?” He grinned as he stationed himself next to her and Mr. Hamby. “And yet these line sketches are invaluable. These are stratigraphic drawings, illustrating the layers and relationships between different deposits, which is crucial for understanding the chronological sequence of artifacts and features we find.”
Mr. Hamby’s lower lip stuck out. “Impressive.”
“More like helpful, I would say.”
“Professor Webb,” Miss Channing called. “Are those young men out there your students?”
He couldn’t have planned a better transition. “They are, and I have no doubt they would love to show us what they are currently working on. Shall we join them?”
As if on cue, Uncle Pendleton crooked both his arms for Eva and Miss Channing. “Allow me to lead you out, ladies.”
Mr. Hamby accompanied Mrs. White, though he did notice the man turn his head aside to breathe lest he suffocate in her cloud of perfume.
Which left him and Mr. Toffit alone. Bram stepped toward the open flap and swept out his hand. “After you, sir.”
Mr. Toffit held his ground, one finger up in the air. “A word first, Professor, if you don’t mind.”
“Not at all.” He doubled back to the table. “Have you more questions about chemical analysis? I can assure you the compounds I use are all safe for delicate antiquities.”
Mr. Toffit sniffed, his pencil-thin moustache crinkling into more of a wave than a straight line. “Actually, I have some inquiries that are more personal in nature.”
Bram tensed. Blast. What had the man heard of him? “Ask away.”
“I am wondering how beholden you are to Trinity College.”
Huh. Of all the turns of conversation, he hadn’t seen that one coming. “Quite frankly”—he cracked his knuckles—“I know nothing else. Trinity is where I was educated and have worked ever since.”
“Would you ever consider leaving?”
He hadn’t until Grimwinkle’s latest witch-hunt. And now with his uncle retiring next spring. “Perhaps, if the timing and opportunity were right.”
“I must say I am impressed with what you and Professor Pendleton have accomplished here in such a short time. Youshow a great passion for the preservation of the past. Does that passion extend beyond Roman antiquities?”
Bram picked up one of the cleaning brushes, running his thumb over the bristles. “I enjoy interacting and being of help to my colleagues who work with a span of cultures and eras, from ancient Greece to Egypt, even to the Mayan and Incan peoples. So yes, while Rome is my first love, it is my intention to bring history alive for my students.”
“Onlystudents?”
“What are you getting at, Mr. Toffit?”
The short fellow curled his fingers around his lapels, pulling himself up to full height—which barely brought the top of his head even with Bram’s shoulders. “Earlier this year, the Royston Historical Society came into quite a windfall. One of our wealthiest benefactors recently passed, leaving his entire estate to us with the express wish that we create a museum. We have since found the perfect building to house our collection, which at the moment is woefully insufficient. To offset such a lack, the board members and I feel an educational approach would enhance what we have.”
Bram set the brush back on the table, intrigued by such novel thinking. “What sort of educational approach?”
“Lectures, workshops, perhaps even small field trips for those of an interest.”
Well, now. That was quite large thinking for such a small town ... and therein lay the crux of the matter. The citizens of Royston had livelihoods to manage. Would they have time to involve themselves in such academic pursuits?
“Tell me, Mr. Toffit, do you really think the people of Royston would participate in this?”
“Oh yes.” He bobbed his head vigorously. “I should say there’s been a great deal of interest in the few town meetings we’ve held. And as you know, we’re not all that far away from Cambridge. We could draw from that populace as well.”
It could do. There were many deep pockets in Cambridge with a love of all things historical, and if this new museum was to partner with Trinity, why, the possibilities could be beneficial to them both. “It sounds as if you have thought this through.”
“Indeed.” The man sniffed again, then took a moment to retrieve a snowy handkerchief and honk a few notes into the cloth. “And what I am thinking now is that with your passion for education and flair for innovation, you are the perfect fit for our new curator. I have no doubt the other board members will agree.”
