The Buried Treasure on Route 66: A Nancy Keene Mystery

by Louise Hathaway

  “Let me think. Our honeymoon was 45 years ago and we only stayed there together that one time.”

  Nancy says, “Forty-five years is a long time ago to try to remember anything, isn’t it, Mrs. Wood?”

  “I’ve got it!” Mrs. Wood says. “Now I remember. We buried the bride and groom decoration that was on our wedding cake.”

  “That’s great!” Nancy says. “Do you remember where you buried it?”

  “I think so. I’d have to go back there and see for sure.”

  “Well, it’s great that you’re bringing that up right now.”

  “Why?”

  “Because Ned and I would like to drive you to the Blue Swallow Motel.”

  Mrs. Wood starts crying and is lost for words. She gets up from her chair and hugs Nancy and Ned. “This is a dream come true. Thank you. Thank you! I can’t believe this is happening. I feel like I’ve just won the lottery.”

  Ned says, “I’ll bet Mr. Wood buried the new will in your special place there.”

  “Maybe so. When can we leave?” Mrs. Wood says.

  Nancy tells her that Ned has to work until Friday; but his boss is letting him take four days off after that. She continues, “I have to talk to my father about all this. I don’t know how he’s going to like the idea of me going away on a long trip without him.”

  “Maybe he can come with us,” Mrs. Wood says.

  “We’ll see. Start packing your bags, Mrs. Wood, because I think I can talk him into it when he comes home from New York tomorrow.”

  “Thank you both so much for all you’ve done for me. I haven’t been this excited and happy for years.”

  “Okay. I promise to call you after I’ve spoken to my father.”

  Mrs. Wood hugs them goodbye and tells Nancy that she loves her.

  “I love you, too,” Nancy replies.

  ****

  Nancy is waiting for her father’s flight to land at the airport in Phoenix. She has bought a lei at her favorite flower shop and is planning to say “Aloha” when she greets him. Finally, the 5:00 flight comes in from La Guardia. She waves at her father as he comes to her. “Did the plane make a wrong turn and land in Honolulu?” he asks.

  “Welcome home, Dad!” she says as she places the lei over his head. “It’s so good to see you, Dad! I missed you!!”

  “Me, too, honey. Thanks for picking me up. It’s good to be home.”

  “Why didn’t you let me drive you to the airport instead of having to call a taxi? You should’ve woken me up.”

  “I figured that you needed your beauty rest after your previous night of 2:00 a.m. cooking.”

  “Speaking of cooking, I’ve made your favorite meal for dinner.”

  “Coq au Vin?”

  “Bien sur, Monsieur.”

  “I can’t wait to get home.”

  When Mr. Keene arrives home, he is escorted into the dining room by his daughter, who pours him a glass of Moet & Chandon. “Care for some lobster bisque to start, Dad?”

  “Oh, boy!” he says, as Nancy ladles out the soup from their best Villeroy and Boch tureen.

  “What a welcome home! You’ve really outdone yourself this time!”

  “Thanks, Dad.”

  “Okay. So, what’s up? Why are you buttering me up like this? What’s on your mind?”

  “Well, Dad. Since you’re asking, there is something, but let’s finish our meal together first. Tell me all about your trip.”

  “Oh no, you don’t. Tell me right now what your latest scheme is.”

  “Well, Dad. You know how I’ve been trying to help Mrs. Wood find that will I was telling you about?”

  “Nancy! I told you to let it go. Stop being involved in that mess. Those stepsons mean business.”

  “Well, it’s funny you should bring that up because I was thinking of getting her away from them for a while.”

  “She’s not staying here.”

  “Dad. That thought didn’t even cross my mind.”

  “What thought did?”

  “Well, I’ve been looking at all of the clues and everything points to the newer will being buried at the Blue Swallow Motel in New Mexico.”

  “So you want me to hire some people to go there and start digging?”

  “Dad! I can’t believe these thoughts coming out of your head. Being in New York has made you very cynical, all of a sudden.”

  “Okay, Nancy, what’s your plan.”

  “Let me pour you another glass of champagne and I’ll tell you all about it.”

  ****

  After two hours of telling her Dad everything that’s been happening with Mrs. Wood, his heart starts to melt.

  “Nancy, you’ve always had a way of wrapping me around your little finger. Okay. You may do it, but here are my rules,” her Dad says, putting his foot down. “You may go on your road trip with Mrs. Wood and Ned, but I’m going to be coming with the three of you. I’ve been worried about this whole situation with those two stepsons, and I want to stay as close to you as possible right now.”

  “Oh, Dad. You can’t protect me forever. I’m an adult now,” she says, wrapping her arms around his neck.

  “I don’t know what I’d do if I lost you, honey.”

  “That won’t happen. We will have a long and happy life together, Dad. The best is yet to come.”

  “Well, my dear. Once again, you certainly have lifted my spirits. I’m even starting to get excited about the thought of taking a road trip, too.”

  “That’s the spirit, Dad!”

  ****

  “Road Trip!” Nancy says to her father, the morning they are leaving for their vacation.

  “Road Trip!” her father says back, pumping his fist up high.

  “Oh, Dad. This is going to be so fun, spending time with my two favorite people--you and Ned.”

  “And our little friend.”

  “Do you like Mrs. Wood?”

  “She’s sweet. What’s not to like? Now, wait a minute: you’re not planning on being a match-maker, are you?”

  “Don’t be silly, Dad. Isn’t she like 30 years older than you?”

  “Don’t ask me. I’m a terrible judge of a woman’s age.”

  Nancy tells her father, “I just want you both to enjoy spending time in each other’s company. Plus, she makes a killer tuna casserole.”

  “Nancy, are you afraid I’m going to be too lonely when you go off to college.”

  “Yes, I am. I promise I’ll come home and visit as often as possible.”

  “I just don’t understand why you want to go to Boulder; there are a lot of good schools here in Arizona.”

  “I like their Computer Science Program, Dad.”

  Her father says, “Maybe we could go camping in the Rocky Mountains together in the summer time.”

  “I’m looking forward to that, Dad.”

  “So, are all your bags packed and ready to start our road trip?”

  “Yes. Dad, you would be so proud of me. I watched that Rick Steves’ show about how to pack your suitcase the most efficiently and I managed to put all my stuff in just one suitcase.”

  “That’s my girl! I’m wondering how much luggage Mrs. Wood plans on bringing? Your car is pretty small to fit a lot of suitcases inside the trunk. Maybe we should take my car.”

  “But, Dad, I want to take my Prius on its first road trip. I’ll tell you what: I’ll take half of my stuff out of my suitcase, and you can put your stuff on top of mine in it.”

  “Okay. It’s a good thing we’re only going to be gone for 4 days.”

  “Okay: let’s hit the road,” Nancy says and she gets into the driver’s seat. “Dad, I made a special cd for this trip. Guess what the first song is.”

  “Get your kicks, on Route 66.”

  “I guess that was a little too obvious, wasn’t it?” she laughs, as she plays the song. “The next song is going to be harder to guess. I’ll wait to play it until we pick up Ned.”

  Ned is standing outside, waiting for her to pick him up
.

  “Hi, Ned. Excited?”

  “Road Trip!” he says. He tells them that he’s managed to put into his backpack everything he’ll need for the trip.

  “That’s great. Climb in. The game is afoot.”

  “Okay, Sherlock.”

  Nancy begins her cd over again so Ned can hear it, too.

  “I love this song,” Ned says.

  As they are on their way to pick up Mrs. Wood, Nancy turns up the volume on the cd player so that her father and Ned can “Name That Tune.”

  “That one’s easy, Nancy. It’s ‘Take It Easy’ by the Eagles.”

  I picked that song because it has the line about ‘standing on the corner of Winslow, Arizona’. I read that in Winslow, there’s a statue of Jackson Browne standing by a mural of a guy sitting in a pickup truck.”

  “Sounds like a photo op,” Ned says.

  Mr. Keene chimes in, “Sounds like it’s ‘worth a detour’ as they say in travel guides.”

  “Okay, guys. Before we pick Mrs. Wood up, what’s this next song?”

  “I can’t place it,” Ned says.

  “Neither can I,” Mr. Keene agrees.

  “Ha! Got you two.”

  “Okay Miss Smarty Pants,” her father says. “Name that tune.”

  “It’s ‘The Painted Desert’ by Ten Thousand Maniacs.”

  Ned says, “It’s a great song. I like it. Thanks for turning me on to new music, once again.”

  Mr. Keene says, “It’s sure great that both of you share the same musical tastes. That’s important in a relationship. When my dear wife and I used to go to concerts, we had a lot of fun together. We liked the same music, and she was always bringing home new cd’s for me to listen to. One time, she brought home a Van Morrison cd and played me a special song that was on it. She was so romantic.”

  “What is the name of the song, Dad?”

  “Have I Told You Lately That I Love You?”

  “Oh, Dad. How wonderful. Ned, could you download that song so we all can hear it? If either of you are inspired by any songs on this trip, let me know and we’ll add them to our ‘Route 66 Road Trip cd’.”

  “You make everything so much fun, Nancy. I love you.”

  “I love you, too, Ned.”

  Her father suddenly gets very quiet when he hears his daughter tell Ned that she loves him. It’s hard for him to accept that fact that Nancy has a boyfriend who may someday take her away from him. Resigning himself to the fact that “this Ned guy” is going to be around for a while, he tells himself that it’s time to get to know him a little better. A few minutes later, he asks, “So Ned, what is it that you do for a living?”

  ****

  All three of the travelers are glad to see that Mrs. Wood has packed light. No one relishes the thought of being crammed together in a small car. She is very excited about the trip. “Oh,” she says. “What fun!”

  “Let’s hit the road, Mrs. Wood. We want to get to Holbrook in time to see the sunset at the Petrified Forest.”

  “Okay, honey.”

  Nancy starts their special cd all over again.

  “Hey, I know this song,” Mrs. Wood says. She starts singing along, “Get your kicks, on Route 66”. Everyone sings along with her.

  “If you are inspired by any songs on this trip, let me know. We’re making a cd of all of our favorites.”

  “What a lovely idea. I’ll have to think of a song.”

  When “Take It Easy” comes on, Nancy, Ned, and Mr. Keene start singing along with the lyrics about standing on the corner of Winslow, Arizona.

  “Oh, that’s a good song,” Mrs. Wood says.

  They stop for lunch in Flagstaff, and then head back to Route 66. When they enter Winslow’s city limits, Nancy says, “Okay, guys. Start looking for that Jackson Browne statue.”

  Ned, looking at his iPhone, corrects Nancy by saying, “According to this website, the statue is neither Jackson Browne, who wrote it, nor Glenn Frey, who sang it.”

  Mrs. Wood says, “Isn’t it wonderful, Ned, to have all that information instantly at your fingertips?” She is the first one to see the statue. “Slow down, Nancy! It’s right at that corner.”

  They get out of the Prius and take a look at it. Nancy takes pictures of all three of them, and then Ned takes a picture of Nancy with her Dad and Mrs. Wood. Then Mr. Keene takes a picture of Nancy and Ned. After they’ve exhausted every possible photo opportunity that they can think of, they hit the road for Holbrook, where they’re going to spend the night.

  “Sleep in a Wigwam”, Ned reads from a brochure they’ve brought along. “Remember the Cozy Cone Hotel in ‘Cars’. It was probably inspired by the Wigwam Village.”

  Mrs. Wood says, “I sure have been hearing about that ‘Cars’ movie a lot lately.”

  “We can’t wait for you to see it,” Nancy says. “Let’s watch it all together in our home theatre when we get back home.”

  “Oh, my,” Mrs. Wood says. “You have your own theatre in your house.”

  Ned says, “Yes, they do. It’s really awesome. You will love it!”

  At around 5:00 p.m., they arrive at Wigwam Village Motel. They get a kick out of the 15 concrete and steel wigwams arranged in a semi-circle.

  “I hope that they have bathrooms in them,” Mrs. Wood says. “I wouldn’t want to have to hike over to an outhouse in the middle of the night and be surprised by a havalina.”

  Nancy laughs. “Each wigwam has a sink, toilet, and shower.”

  “Phew!” Mrs. Wood says.

  Ned points out a 1959 Chevy parked in front of one of the tepees. He says, “Check out those tail fins.” The four of them get out of the Prius and walk over to the car to take a closer look.

  “This is so cool. I love it!” Ned says.

  Nancy says, “I love the whole kitschy look. What a welcome distraction for travelers to stop, rest, and take a few pictures.”

  Mr. Keene says, “Okay, guys; let’s check in, unload our gear and drive out to the Petrified Forest before the sun goes down.”

  Nancy says, “And I want to see the Painted Desert from there. Then maybe you guys will like the song I chose for our special cd even better.”

  “Okay, honey,” her father says. “We’ll be sure to play it on the way.”

  ****

  At 6:00 p.m., after a quick dinner at a local restaurant, the four travelers get into Nancy’s car and head for the Petrified Forest. Nancy is the tour guide this evening. She begins: “The Petrified Forest is best known for its fossils. The visitor center is open until 8:00 p.m. I’d like to go to the Painted Desert Inn first, since we’re getting a late start. It is supposed to have the most stunning view of the Painted Desert. The inn is a national historic landmark. No longer an operating inn, it just has a museum and gift shop if we want to buy souvenirs.” When they arrive at the visitor’s center, they are disappointed to find that the landmark has closed at 4:00 p.m. Nancy is really disappointed. Ned tells her, “Don’t worry. Someday, we’ll come back and see it. I promise.”

  Mr. Keene tells her, “Let’s be sure to find the best location to view the cliffs of the Painted Desert and take some pictures before the sun goes down.”

  Mrs. Wood says, “Look up ahead. There’s a lookout point.

  Mr. Keene tells her, “You are really a good co-pilot. Once again, you’re the first person to locate just what we are looking for.”

  “Thank you, Mr. Keene.”

  They pull over to the side of the road and take out their cameras.

  Nancy is the first person to arrive at the look-out. “Oh, it’s beautiful. Look at those striped cliffs of red and gold.”

  Ned says, “It looks just like the background in a western.” He puts his arm around Nancy.

  Mrs. Wood touches Nancy’s father’s arm, and says, “Let’s leave the kids alone for a bit. Shall we look at the cliffs as far away from them as possible?”

  Mr. Keene says, “You’re right, Mrs. Wood. Let’s give them some privacy.”

&nb
sp; Mrs. Wood says, “By the way, call me Phyllis.”

  “Glad to meet you. My name is Drew.”

  Ned drives the Prius back to the Wigwams where they’ll be spending the night. He makes a point of putting on Nancy’s song, “The Painted Desert” by 10,000 Maniacs. He turns the volume up loud, so nobody can talk over it. They just have to listen.

  When they arrive back at their motel, Nancy says, “Okay, guys, we have to get up early tomorrow because we have a lot of driving to do. It’s a three and a half hour drive to Albuquerque, where we’ll stop for a quick lunch, and then get on our way to Tucumcari.”

  They bid each other “Good night” and head to their wigwams--the guys sharing one wigwam; the ladies sharing another.

  ****

  They get an early start in the morning, on their way to the Blue Swallow Motel. Ned asks Nancy if it’s okay if he drives to Albuquerque, and she drives to Tucumcari. She responds, “I’m really glad you like my car.”

  Ned returns, “I don’t know if you’re being flippant or not.”

  Nancy responds, “I’ll leave you to wonder.”

  After they’ve driven a few miles, Ned puts on his favorite song for the trip cd. He had borrowed Nancy’s iPhone when she wasn’t looking, and downloaded a song he thought she’d like. “Maybe this song will make you feel better towards me.”

  “Let’s hear it.”

  He puts on the song, “You’re My Partner for Life,” by Graham Parker. Everyone is quiet, listening to the lyrics while it plays. Nancy says, “Oh, Ned. What a wonderful song. I’ve never heard it before.”

  He answers, “Well, you know how we like to surprise each other with songs that we think the other doesn’t know about yet.”

  Mrs. Wood says, “That’s a good one, Ned. Play it again. And crank up the volume.”

  Nancy holds his hand and starts crying when she hears the lyrics about how they’re in this together; going the distance; right down to the last mile.