The group sat around the table at the Big Texan Steak Ranch, drinking in the exchange between Ruby Smith and Mark Jacobs. Even Jean Louise, who was their waitress, had broken the rules and pulled a chair up to the table.
“I can’t believe Foster Wilson was your uncle. I never met him, though I do remember Mama talking about a nice man she wanted me and Jack to meet,” Ruby told the man sitting across from her.
“It’s as much of a surprise to me as it is to you. I always knew Uncle Foster fell in love here in Amarillo. I just never knew the whole story,” Mr. Jacobs responded. He looked around the table, and his eyes rested on Elizabeth. “I knew you were on to me, and I’m sorry I made you nervous. When I realized you were after the same thing I was, I just figured you were some detective wannabe. You were always one step ahead of me, though. When I figured out you really knew what you were doing, I began to follow you. Sorry if I scared you.”
“That’s okay. I’m sorry I thought you were a con m—”
“Elizabeth!” her mother stopped her.
Mr. Jacobs tilted his head back and roared. “It’s okay, Sue. She had every right to believe I was a con man.”
Everyone laughed this time. Then Ruby spoke again.
“I’ve given this a lot of thought, Mark, and my brother, Jack, and I have talked about it on the phone. He agrees with me, and I don’t want to hear any arguments. There are twelve marbles, and we’re going to split them. Jack and I will take six and the other six belong to you,” Ruby said.
“Oh, no, Ruby, I couldn’t, now that I know the whole story. Those were a gift to your mother. I wouldn’t dream of taking them,” Jacobs replied.
“Now Mark Jacobs, you listen. Your uncle would have wanted you to have them as much as he wanted me to have them. You can argue with me all you want, but I’ll get my way. Each marble is worth close to one hundred thousand dollars. We can certainly afford to share them,” Ruby argued.
Jacobs opened his mouth, but Ruby cut him off. “Not another word!” she said.
The handsome cowboy leaned back in his chair and grinned. “How do you know what I was going to say?” he asked.
“You were going to argue with me, I know that,” the woman told him.
“No, ma’am. I know better than to argue with you; I have the feeling that once your mind is made up, there’s no changing it.”
“You’re right about that,” Ruby told him. The two bantered back and forth as if no one else were in the room.
McKenzie nudged Elizabeth under the table, then whispered, “I don’t know why she’s giving him the marbles. When they get married, they’ll belong to both of them.”
The two girls giggled. “Let’s not rush things,” Elizabeth whispered back. “But they do make a nice couple, don’t they?”
They turned their attention back to Ruby and the cowboy. “So, what were you going to say?” Ruby asked coyly.
Jacobs looked her in the eye and said, “I was going to say that I came here looking for a treasure. I believe I may have found one, whose worth is far more than rubies. And her name…is Ruby.”
The group applauded, then Jean Louise began taking their orders.
Elizabeth focused her attention on Megan, who was smiling and watching her mother. “You look happy,” she told her friend.
Megan turned to Elizabeth and McKenzie. “It just feels so good to see Mom smile. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen her so happy. And it’s all thanks to the two of you and the Camp Club Girls.”
Elizabeth glanced at Megan’s mom, laughing at something Jacobs had said. “I’m not sure if we can take the credit for making your mom smile. I think that goes to a certain handsome cowboy,” she told her friend.
Megan laughed. “He may have something to do with it, but the sadness is gone from her face. Now, she won’t have to work so hard all the time. Now, she doesn’t have to worry as much about paying the bills every month. And I owe it all to the two of you and your excellent sleuthing skills.”
“I just wish we didn’t have to leave as soon as we finish our lunch here,” said McKenzie. Then, reaching into her backpack she said, “Oh! Before I forget…these belong to Jean Louise.”
She pulled out the journals. Then she turned again to Megan. “Thank you for letting me help solve the marble mystery. This has been the best vacation ever!”
Elizabeth sat at the kitchen table, chin propped on her elbow, flipping through a library book. She loved to read, but reading was all she had done during the past week. One more week, and her grounding would be over.
“Hello, princess. What are you reading?” her father asked as he came into the kitchen.
“It’s a book about an Amish girl named Rachel Yoder. I’m a little over halfway through,” she told him.
He pulled out a chair and sat down across from her. “Did I ever tell you how proud I am of you?” he asked.
Elizabeth smiled but said nothing. He had told her many times.
“You are like those marbles you found—rare and precious. I’m proud of you for being so determined to help Megan and her mom,” he told her.
“It was kind of fun, looking back on it. Maybe I’ll be a detective someday,” she said with a laugh.
He leaned forward and rested his arms on the table. “Ruby told me that you offered to use your prize money to buy Megan’s band instrument. That was very generous of you.”
Elizabeth blushed. She hadn’t meant for others to find out. “I didn’t need the money, and they did. It was no big deal”
“God loves a cheerful giver, you know,” he told her, reaching out to pat her hand.
“I know—2 Corinthians 9:7,” she said.
Mr. Anderson smiled at his daughter before standing up and mussing her hair. “Like I said, princess, I’m proud of you. By the way, your computer screen shows that you have e-mail waiting.”
Elizabeth wasted no time in moving to the computer and clicking on her e-mail. It was from Alexis, addressed to all the Camp Club Girls.
I’m going to the London Bridge! Did you all know they moved it, and it’s not in London anymore? It is at Lake Havasu, Arizona. Isn’t that the craziest thing you’ve ever heard?
My grandmother is going to be a guest speaker at the London Bridge Festival there, at the end of October. And she’s invited me to go along! I’m so excited!
Elizabeth read back through the e-mail a couple of times. Lake Havasu. Lake Havasu. Why did that name sound familiar?
Suddenly, she remembered. “Uh, Dad?” she called over her shoulder. “You know that convention or whatever that you go to at the end of October every year? Isn’t that at Lake Havasu, Arizona?”
“Yes, it is. It’s during the London Bridge Festival there. Why do you ask?”
Elizabeth felt the excitement mounting inside her. She was almost afraid to ask her next question. “Any chance I could go with you this year?”
“Funny you should ask that. I’ve been thinking about taking the whole family. I think you’d enjoy it.”
Elizabeth lunged from her chair and threw her arms around her father’s neck. “Oh, thank you, Daddy! Thank you, thank you, thank you!”
Surprised, he laughed and returned the hug. “Whoa! You’re welcome! You want to tell me what this is about?”
“I will in a minute. First, I have to e-mail Alexis!”
Elizabeth's Amarillo Adventure Page 11