Alvarado Gold

by Victoria Pitts-Caine

  “Yes. He did.” I watched her eyes grow wider. “In his car. And it’s an engagement ring.” The surprise in her eyes turned to concern as I filled her in on the break-in. I didn’t let her know how I’d felt about having him outside my room all night. I didn’t know if I could express it to anyone. I was still trying to process it myself.

  “Do you think it was Donnie?” Mel queried.

  “I don’t know anymore. One minute I think he has some redeeming qualities, then something like this happens.”

  A somber motel security guard, whom we hadn’t seen before, made his way to our table while Clay and Eric pulled chairs over for themselves and Susan to join us. “Ms. Brown, we’re so sorry about the damage. Two young boys were arrested early this morning. They admitted breaking into your room and a few others on the backside of the motel. The police recovered everything. Do you want to go downtown to look at the evidence?”

  “I guess I was lucky. I didn’t have anything important and nothing was taken.” I breathed a sigh of relief it wasn’t Donnie and had the strange realization that all my important possessions were right in front of me–my family and Gary. Donnie was part of it, too. I’d been too quick to judge him. I hoped he’d become a part of us, let us in a little and open the doors on his past. I needed to soften up, too. We’d all had it pretty easy and it was hard to realize he didn’t.

  We left for the parking lot. Susan, Mel and Clay took the van so Susan could use the entire back seat for her leg. Much to my displeasure, Gary and I were stuck with Eric.

  “So, Addie,” he questioned, “how are you going to handle this confrontation? What are you going to do if he roughs you up again?” He kept firing questions at me. “How do you plan to manage then?”

  “Eric. Please. Don’t try to rescue me. I’ll do whatever needs to be done. You aren’t my guardian angel or my protector or whatever it is you think you are. I thought I made that clear.”

  “No. But I’m your big brother and I care about you.” He just wouldn’t give up on his constant interference.

  “If you care about me, Eric, then just be there when I need you. Don’t smother me. My entire life you’ve tried to fix this, correct that. Don’t. Okay?”

  He just shook his head. He patted Gary on the shoulder and told him he hoped he was up for all I could dish out. The two of them laughed. I actually felt a smile cross my lips, too.

  ****

  Donnie already stood at the front of the building for the Alvarado Boy’s Home with a man I assumed to be Mr. Dickinson. When we walked up to join them, Donnie cordially spread his hand in front of us and introduced us as his cousins. He glanced at Eric and nodded recognition in his direction. Donnie acted totally different. He showed subservience to the gentleman he talked with.

  “Mr. Barnes, here, was asking me about the gold that belonged to Mr. Hansen, who originally owned this property.” The older, graying gentleman filled us in on their prior discussion. “He said he believes that it belongs to you and your family.”

  “So the family legend goes.” I moved in closer to be part of their conversation. “We have letters and documents proving that it is ours.” I could feel my heart racing inside my chest. We were close, very close, to the end of our quest.

  “You’ll need to find Mr. Lincoln Hamilton. He has an office in downtown Alvarado. He built this building and I’m sure he can enlighten you on the history of this property. I’m sorry it’s a holiday but you’re welcome to join us at our anniversary celebration. The boys would love it. They don’t have families or many visitors.”

  I looked at everyone else and they nodded their approval. All except Donnie who slowly walked back to his truck. This time I ran after him. “Donnie. Why don’t you stay? We could get to know you.”

  “No. I’ve seen enough of places like this. The memories are too fresh.”

  “You were in a boy’s home? Oh, my.”

  “No. Worse. The Oklahoma Youth Authority. I did some stupid stuff, stole some things and met those two guys I had chasing you around.” He sighed and turned his head. “I wanted the gold so badly. I wanted to change my life. I thought the money would make a difference. Then you guys came along and were trying to take it from me. You lived normal lives. I didn’t.” He glared down at the pavement and put his hands on the side of the bed rails of his truck. “I’m sorry.”

  “When did you get out?” I touched his arm.

  “Ten years ago, when I turned twenty-five. I just wandered from pillar to post since then. Doing odd jobs. Never settling down.”

  “Donnie. We weren’t trying to take the gold from you. We were trying to find it. It became an adventure for all of us. You certainly added to the intrigue.”

  “Yeah, I guess I did. I’m sorry about that, too. I didn’t hurt you much, did I? And your friend’s truck? The tires got repaired okay, didn’t they?”

  “Everything is fine.” I nodded my head in the direction of the rest of the group. “They think you're dangerous. Why don’t you stick around and prove to them you're not.”

  “I can’t, not yet. There’s just too much between all of us. You don’t understand.”

  “We can’t unless you let us.” I placed my hand on his shoulder. “You’re part of us, Donnie, and we’re part of you whether you want us to be or not.”

  A baseball rolled in between us and Donnie picked it up just as a little tow-headed six-year-old came running up. “Can I have my ball back, mister?” Donnie tousled the boy’s hair and handed him the ball. “Can you play with us?” The child asked wide-eyed.

  Donnie stooped down and picked him up. “What’s your name, son?”

  “Donald.” He smiled.

  “Well, that’s my name too. You must be a fine, young man.” Donnie placed the boy down next to him. “Beat you to third.”

  They took off toward the baseball field and as I watched them go off together, I was ashamed of myself that I had thought so little of him Not that he hadn’t given me good reason but I realized he was only trying to survive. If nothing else happened and this search didn’t turn out like we’d planned, we’d found him and I was determined to make him part of us. I walked back to the rest of the group. We settled in at a picnic table under a large tree where later all of us shared stories of our similarly rooted lives.

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Long before the shiny, glass doors opened, the six of us stood in front of the offices of Hamilton and Bard. Gary didn’t join us as he knew how much this meeting meant to my family. We agreed to meet later for lunch. Each of us needed to head out for our real lives as soon as we’d heard what Hamilton had to say.

  “What do you think we’re going to find out?” Susan spoke up.

  “I don’t really know. He could tell us almost anything.” I felt the electricity run through my veins. The word, excitement, didn’t fit the situation. It was much more. I knew, within the next few moments, something would happen. Something that would, somehow, change all of our lives. “I don’t think they found the gold or Mr. Dickinson would have directed us to some bank. Or Grandpa would have already had it in his possession. Something else is going on.”

  As a young woman in a royal blue dress slipped a key into the lock on the other side of the glass, I motioned for the group to enter through the enormous doors. “I’d…er…we’d like to meet with Mr. Lincoln Hamilton. I’m sorry we don’t have an appointment but we all need to leave Texas this afternoon. Is it possible to see him?” I held my breath; the urgency of my request caused my pulse to quicken.

  “I’ll check for you. He should be getting to his desk about now.” She left the entryway through a large mahogany side door.

  As Eric and Clay marveled at the ambiance of the carefully structured lines of the building, Eric mentioned, “This is a pretty impressive place.”

  “These people are big builders,” Mel added. “They probably have their own architects on staff.” She knew who these people where even though she lived in Virginia, which meant they were f
airly well known throughout the building and real estate community.

  The young woman reappeared and held another large, glass door open for us. This passage separated the lobby from the offices. “Mr. Hamilton will see you all now.” We were led down the hall to a massive conference room and escorted to chairs on each side near the head of the table where Mr. Hamilton sat. The blue smoke from his exquisitely carved pipe circled over his head. Steaming cups of coffee awaited each of us. Squarely positioned in front of each seat was a manila folder. After we’d been introduced by the young woman, she left the room. For some reason, I felt like Hamilton and Bard were prepared for us to find them.

  “Have a seat ladies and gentlemen.” He motioned to the heavily upholstered brown, leather chairs.

  We sat there silently. I could hear the whirl of the air conditioner. I looked out into the haze that surrounded the city buildings and had the feeling my life was about to change.

  “I expected to see you. Your grandfather, Addison, said you’d be looking for me.” Hamilton offered.

  Mel’s voice revealed her surprise. “You knew our grandfather?”

  “Well, not at first. We got to know each other about five years ago when I was working on the Alvarado Boy’s Home project.”

  “Don’t draw this out, Hamilton.” Eric fumbled with his sugar packets. “We need to know something about the property.”

  Too much sugar. No wonder he was always so hyper. I shot a look in his direction. “Eric. Please. Let the man talk.”

  “It's all right. I can understand you’re all impatient.”

  “Why?” I pressed.

  “The gold. Why else?”

  Donnie rose out of his seat. “You know about the gold, then?”

  “Yes. It was all part of your grandfather’s plan. When we dug the foundation for the building, we found several sacks of gold bars and ingots. An announcement ran in the major papers and your grandfather came forward. He had enough documented history, letters, and deeds to prove that the gold did indeed belong to your family.”

  “What major papers?” I reached for the brown cup of caffeine to gain strength. “I’ve researched this very carefully. I couldn’t find anything.”

  Unnerved, Mr. Hamilton reached for his coffee and waited to answer me. “I can assure you, Ms. Brown, everything was done legally. The notice is in the classified section and the land itself was posted for three days as required by law.”

  “I don’t doubt you did what was right, sir. I’m just surprised none of us knew anything about this.”

  Mr. Hamilton reached for his pipe. “Your grandfather had a well thought out plan.”

  This was it. He was about to tell us about the gold.

  “He told me that over the last one hundred and fifty years different members of the family had looked for the gold, but they’d always looked around Barnesville. Never up into Alvarado. The letter about the gold being buried on the Hansen property settled the deal.”

  I suddenly felt this situation would turn out far differently than we’d planned.

  Clay shifted nervously in his seat. “The old goat. He planted all those clues so we’d wind up here. So where is it? Is there a bank we need to find?”

  “No. Mr. Barnes. I’m sorry. It was never his intent for the family to have the gold.” Mr. Hamilton let the statement fall out into the flat, stale air of the conference room.

  Donnie’s voice pitched up three octaves. “No gold!”

  I felt the breath go out of my lungs. I glanced from face to face looking for a reaction. There were five expressions from thoughtful smiles to shock and disbelief. I eagerly asked about Grandpa’s plans. “Then what happened to it and why are we here?” I looked over at Donnie trying to make eye contact but he stared down into his empty coffee cup, his face the gray of a cold, winter day. I surmised he probably felt that way, too.

  “Your grandfather wanted me to use the money to build the Boy’s Home. The funds were running low on the project and with his generous donation we were able to finish and pay for much of the equipment on the playground. The portfolios in front of you explain everything.” Grandpa lived his life giving to others. I realized this knowledge was his final gift to us.

  I leaned over in the direction of Mr. Hamilton as I posed my question. “Do you think our grandfather used this wild goose chase we’ve been on to bring us all together?”

  “Precisely. He knew he didn’t have many more years. He went back home and planted each one of the clues carefully so you’d find them when he died. He left the tortoiseshell box with his lawyer, but from what you’ve told me, you found even more clues than your grandfather knew about.”

  “I guess fate, or something greater, intervened so we’d find each other.” I stood and extended my hand to Mr. Hamilton. “We’ve taken up enough of your time, sir. You’ve been truly helpful.”

  “I’d like to offer my condolences.” Mr. Hamilton reached for my hand. “Your grandpa was quite an endearing man.”

  “I have one final request. Do you think we might petition the city fathers to call the home the Addison Barnes’ Home for Boys?”

  Mr. Hamilton smiled broadly. “I think that might be arranged, especially since I’m on the Board of Directors.” I knew he’d keep his word.

  We reassembled on the sidewalk in front of the building. Donnie looked like he was in shock and Eric mumbled about the episode being an incredible waste of time. The girls were quiet. Although I though Susan looked a little stricken.

  “Look.” I scanned their faces. “This is what Grandpa wanted. Not for us to find the gold but to find each other.” I turned to stand closer to Donnie. “We’re all that’s left of the family. His legacy was to bring us together–something he couldn’t do with his own children.” I took Donnie’s hand and one by one the cousins did so in unison. A time to heal.

  ****

  We met Gary at a local restaurant and filled him in the morning’s events. The time came too quickly for us to bid our farewell to Alvarado. Our jobs and families beckoned all of us, except for Donnie. He hadn’t said much since we’d found out about the gold.

  “What’s your plan, Donnie?” Clay pressed him.

  “I don’t know.” He rubbed his forehead. “I put too much stock in finding that gold. I can do some odd jobs somewhere. I don’t have much of a background in anything except I worked in the bakery at the youth authority.”

  Clay questioned, “You any good?”

  “Not bad.” Donnie continued to talk about his life with animation for the first time since we’d met. “I didn’t get a chance to make anything fancy but I can make some artisan breads and pastries.”

  “You have a job, then. I need a baker.” Clay reached over and they shook hands, sealing the deal. “Two Barnes boys in one kitchen, now that should be interesting.”

  We all stood and said our good-byes. Donnie made plans to join Clay in Arizona as soon as he could tie up all his loose ends in Oklahoma. Mel, Gary, Eric and I stood in the parking lot as Clay and Susan left in his van and Donnie in his pickup. Mel drove the rental car to Dallas where she and Eric caught their three o’clock flights home. Gary and I remained in Alvarado until my flight left at six.

  We sat, alone, on the porch swing at his parent’s home. A light rain cooled the hot afternoon air. While I sipped a glass of Mrs. Wright’s tangy lemonade, I asked Gary about the major obstacle in our relationship before it gnawed a hole in my heart. “How are we going to handle this long distance romance?”

  He smiled, crinkling the edges around his eyes, which made them dance with mischief. “It won’t be hard.”

  While Gary moved the swing patiently with his muscular legs, I rattled on. “How can it not be? We’re half a continent away from each other. I don’t know about you but I don’t have very many frequent flyer miles.” Why didn’t he interrupt? I started to wonder what he was up to. He sat on the edge of the swing, smiling, behind him a prism of light set the sky on fire with a brilliant arch. “I’ve waited
all my life for you and you have to live in Texas. I just got that big promotion at work and I can’t leave it. Do you know how long it would take me to find something like that here?” As I spoke, his grin grew wider. “Tell me. What’s the joke?”

  “I’m transferring to the San Francisco office. That’s why I came out the weekend of Susan’s wedding.”

  Everything came together. I’d tried so hard to make it happen on my own and it happened all by itself. I’d found gold, after all, at the end of a Texas rainbow.

  Epilogue

  It’s hard to believe it all happened two years ago. Gary and I were married in the spring of the next year on the steps of the Barnesville Church. It didn’t surprise me he’d somehow gotten permission from the state for us to use the area. He had told me it was because we were direct descendants, but I believe he pulled a few strings at the BLM to make it happen. To be able to have our wedding on the site of the very church my great-great-great grandfather had built meant more to me than I think Gary even realized.

  My four cousins were in attendance along with their families and Gary’s parents. His friends from college, a few of his work associates and their respective partners and children, most of whom I’d never met, traveled from throughout the state to celebrate with us. Nerd boy, Mitch, along with a toothy bespectacled girl I recognized from building C, held Mollie who was fresh from the groomer with blue flowers twined into her leash. Jack, Catherine, Liz and even old man Geller joined the assemblage of our friends and family.

  The Texas Bluebonnets bloomed profusely. Grandma’s altered wedding gown elegantly swept the grassy prairie floor when I walked down the aisle, the old walk way of the church, on Eric’s arm. He led me to Gary who beamed at us from the steps of the foundation. Standing next to Gary was his father, who’d enthusiastically agreed to be best man, and Clay. Susan and Mel were my attendants; Donnie made the wedding cake and drove all night in a refrigerated van from Arizona to deliver it. His gift to me, the key Uncle Joseph gave him years ago. Donnie found a jeweler in Arizona who dipped it in gold. A poignant reminder of what we thought we’d lost, but instead renewed. I wore it on a velvet ribbon around my neck.