Theo looked more closely at the furniture.“My grandmother had one.When I was younger, I thought it was magic the way the keys moved and played the music on its own.”Lifting an old drop cloth, he found what he was looking for.The pianola’s deep brown wooden case was almost as good as the day it would have been made.
“Barbara said they found their great-grandparents’ dresser in here.”
John nodded.“Her grandmother must have moved it here at some point.Unfortunately, no one kept a record of what came into the rooms.”
“Are you happy for us to try and find the owners of some of the furniture?”
“I’d be thrilled.How will you find them?”
Theo had talked to Barbara a few days ago and they’d come up with some great ideas.“The radio station’s social media accounts have a lot of followers.Barbara will take some videos and create graphics to showcase the furniture.Three newspapers want to run stories about what we’re doing.Combined with the community Facebook page and the support of local television stations, we should be able to find more information about the furniture.I’m not sure we’ll locate the owners, but it’s worth a try.”
“Anything you do is better than leaving it here.How will you choose what you’ll advertise?”
“The more unusual the piece, the more chance we’ll have of someone recognizing it.”
John smiled.“What about the pianola?A lot of people wouldn’t know what it is.It could be a good conversation starter.”
“That’s what I was thinking.”Theo looked around the room.“It shouldn’t take too long to find four or five pieces of furniture.”
“Stay as long as you like.Patrick Devlin’s in charge of the workshop today.He’ll lend you some of his volunteers to move what you’ve chosen to a meeting room.It will give you more space to take the photos and videos.”
“I’d appreciate that.”Theo was looking forward to seeing what was in each room.Even with drop clothes covering most of the furniture, it still looked like an Aladdin’s cave of treasure.
John placed two LED lanterns on opposite sides of the room.“That should give you more light.Let me know if you need anything else.”
“I will.Thanks for your help.”
“You’re welcome.”
As soon as John left, Barbara poked her head around the doorframe.
“Am I too late?”
Theo’s heart pounded when he saw her.After kissing her last night, he’d gone home and spent half the night staring at the stars.When he’d decided to move here, he was desperate for some peace and quiet.He’d never imagined meeting someone, let alone starting a relationship with them.
But Barbara was different from any other woman he’d met.She had a huge heart and cared deeply about the people around her.She’d relocated to Montana to help her sisters create a new family legacy for future generations.And she had a soft spot for runaway journalists who’d gotten themselves into trouble.
“Your timing’s perfect.”He smiled at the red and orange bandana tied around her head.With her hair caught under the scarf, she looked like she’d stepped out of the 1950s.“I only arrived a few minutes ago.”
“Have you found anything interesting?”
Theo sighed.He’d discovered a lot of interesting things since he’d met Barbara, but none of them involved old furniture.
“Theo?”
“Sorry.My mind was a million miles away.”He lifted the edge of one of the drop cloths.“I found this pianola.I thought it would be a great piece of furniture to showcase.”
Barbara ran her hand along the wooden top.“It’s gorgeous.Do you have any of the—”
He held up one of the paper tubes.
“That’s amazing.How old do you think it is?”
“I have no idea.”
Pulling out her cell phone, Barbara took a couple of photos.“I’ll have a look on the Internet when I go home.Where should I start looking?”
He handed her one of the lanterns.“What about on the far side of the room?”
