What happened that, the person who you trusted to store your guns no longer has them? Was it a family member, who might have thought they belonged to them?
The choice of the "perfect Caliber" is such a loaded question around here that bringing it up is sometimes frowned upon.
The "perfect caliber" is one that you are comfortable with and that you can shoot well
with.
I personally shoot a 7mm Rem. Mag. and a .243 Winchester equally well, it just depends on where I will be hunting on a given day, and how badly I want to lug around my heavy 7mm.