Evernight Publishing ®
www.evernightpublishing.com
Copyright© 2014 Beth D. Carter
ISBN: 978-1-77233-128-8
Cover Artist: Jay Aheer
Editor: JC Chute
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
WARNING: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. No part of this book may be used or reproduced electronically or in print without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in reviews.
This is a work of fiction. All names, characters, and places are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
DEDICATION
Many thanks to Evernight Publishing. To Stacey, to my editor Jane. To everyone behind the scenes. Big thanks to Jay for a beautiful cover. And special thanks to all the readers…truly. I’m blessed with having so many encouraging people giving me a thumb’s up. This book is a personal favorite so thanks for sharing Ruby’s journey!
THE TREASURE HUNTERS
Beth D. Carter
Copyright © 2014
Chapter One
October 23, 1929
Ruby walked through the rounded iron-filigree doorway, where a large crystal chandelier buzzed with warm light. A mirror hung on the foyer wall and she caught a glimpse of herself, taking a moment to make sure everything looked perfect. She wore an Asian dress of green silk that buttoned up her throat but left her arms bare. Her strawberry red hair was piled on her head, wispy curls dancing around her temples, held up by black feathers and wooden chopsticks. Her lips were red, and her eyes smoky dark. She felt beautiful.
There was no denying the party was in full swing. Music spilled from somewhere deep inside the mansion, and people held glasses full of bubbly liquid. Her friend Merridie, and Merridie’s fiancé, Robert, stepped up beside her and the overhead light glinted off the huge rock on her friend’s finger.
“That’s what I’m heading for first,” Robert said with a smirk.
He forged ahead, cutting a path through the revelers, pulling Merridie along. Ruby followed them, moving slowly as she waved and greeted people she knew. The New York upper society wasn’t that large, so she knew everyone by name. Dancers were strewn all about, doing the latest craze. Laughing, chatting, singing, all combined into a cacophony of noise that she loved. The quietness of her house drove her up a wall, so she was constantly finding things that made lots of noise.
Ruby saw the hostess, Joyce, and waved. She hurried up to Merridie.
“There’s Joyce. I want to ask her who decorated tonight. This place looks fantastic.”
The house was a subtle blend of rich hues and dark mahogany furniture that reeked of elegance and wealth, two things Ruby certainly appreciated. Merridie turned her head and narrowed her eyes as they locked onto Joyce. Joyce glared back. Ruby realized there was something going on she didn’t know anything about, just as Joyce shifted her gaze to Robert and lingered.
“Oh, goodie,” Merridie muttered. “Now I get to play keep Robert away from the big bad witch.”
Ruby went to open her mouth when a flash of white caught her gaze and she turned to see Eden Cariker, their other friend, hanging on the arm of her latest infatuation Beau Redmont, as he talked to a few people. Ruby was only slightly jealous. Beau was from Philadelphia, and while she didn’t know what they used to grow the men there, she certainly appreciated the beautiful specimen.
She leaned over and waved, catching Eden’s attention. The diminutive blonde smiled brightly and waved back. Each of them was so different, and yet all three had been best friends since they were little. Eden was beautiful, petite and maintained a childlike innocence even in the midst of lively partygoers passing around illegal liquor.
Ruby grabbed Merridie’s arm and pointed. Merridie tugged on Robert and all three of them walked over, arriving at the end of Beau’s speech.
“…Now, it’s like what Coolidge said. ‘The business of America is business’.”
Eden stared moony-eyed up at Beau, and Ruby’s lips twitched.
“Isn’t he just so…smart?” Eden said, a bit breathless.
“You call me boring when I talk business,” Ruby teased her.
“That’s because it isn’t your business she’s fascinated with,” Merridie replied in a dry tone.
Merridie and Ruby laughed and Eden continued staring, not fazed by her friends. Robert rolled his eyes in a snobbish gesture, which caused Beau to flush. The laughter died abruptly, leaving behind an awkward silence.
Ruby cleared her throat. “I’ve been hearing talk that the safety of American business isn’t as secure as we’d like to think.”
Beau nodded his head and she could tell he felt back on safer ground.
“According to fluctuations in the economic trades, I’m afraid it’s a fact, Miss…?”
“Ruby Talcott.”
“Beau,” Eden said softly. “You remember me talking about Ruby. Her father branched the family’s shipping line to America from the homeport of England, and since his death, she likes to stay on top of affairs at the office.”
“I’m sorry to hear about your father,” Beau murmured.
“Thank you,” Ruby said with a nod of gratitude. “I’m more of a figurehead, really––but I like to think I’m knowledgeable about what’s going on in the world.”
“Admirable,” Beau replied. “So tell me, Miss Talcott, what do you make of the unsteady market?”
Ruby shrugged casually. “I think people put too much faith in speculation. The market has been up and down before, proving instability is just temporary.”
“But there’s panic with investors right now,” he stressed. “It was only a month ago that the London Stock Exchange crashed down, with the arrest of Clarence Hatry. It’s weakened the American market optimism. That’s not speculation.”
Ruby narrowed her eyes while a devilish smile played around her lips. Oh, how she did love a good debate.
“I’m afraid there will always be panic and speculation when people take large chunks of money and plop it down in the market, especially in an economy based on credit. But any panic can be met. For instance, 1907: The Dow fell fifty percent from the previous year, but J.P. Morgan stepped in and took care of things.”
“So, what you’re saying is, the reason we’re seeing so much shifting has nothing to do with money?”
Ruby shrugged in an agreeing manner.
Beau continued. “Then it is a matter of whimsical spending, and how much wealth one can possess?”
“It will always be about wealth,” she said. “Take a look around you, Mr. Redmont. You’re in a room full of people who know nothing else.”
“Nor do I want to know anything else,” Merridie injected, teasing. She swallowed down the rest of the bubbly in her Champagne glass.
“Oh, please,” Robert injected snidely. He raked Beau a glance up and down. “This is the most inappropriate place to conduct a conversation on matters of a monetary nature. Such vulgarity suggests a lack of social polish, Mr. Redmont.”
Ruby wanted to slap the ‘smug’ right off Robert’s face. Honestly, she didn’t know what her friend saw in him. Beau, however, looked angrily at him but managed to refrain from biting back with a retort, which she gave him kudos for. Robert could be an ass.
“I don’t know, Robert,” Merridie replied, winking at Beau. “Vulgarity can be quite sexy.”
Robert glared at her and yanked his arm away. Without another word, he turned and marched off into the crowd.
Merridie sighed. “He’s becoming quite a bore.”
“I’m sorry,” Beau said quietly. “I’m afraid I love the debate over economics. I�
�m sorry for bringing it here.”
Eden patted his arm. “Listen, darling, one rule of society is never say you’re sorry.”
She clinked her flute glass to his.
“Quite right, Beau,” Merridie said. “Listen well to Eden…she is the social pariah of us all.”
Eden playfully stuck her tongue out as if to denounce Merridie’s words before holding up a man’s wallet.
“As well as the procurer of odds and ends,” Eden said proudly.
Merridie narrowed her eyes and snatched the wallet from Eden’s hand. “Give me that,” she said sternly. “Now, please excuse me while I find my annoyed fiancé, so I can return this to him.”
Beau nodded his head to her and then shot a quick glance at Eden before Ruby saw him covertly patting his pocket, no doubt making sure his own money clip was secure. Eden was a little thief, but she only stole from people who annoyed her, which made Beau safe.
She winked at Eden and decided to go in search of more alcohol. No one liked prohibition, and although she wasn’t normally a drinker, tonight she felt a little edgy . . . restless, even. It’d been a feeling burning through her for a few days now, ever since the last time she’d stopped in at her father’s office. She couldn’t shake the feeling that there’d been something wrong, maybe because she thought they were hiding something from her.
She found her glass of Champagne and began walking through the lovely home, watching the people. She was aware that many male glances turned her way, but she wasn’t interested in any of them, ever. She was looking for something her father had once told her: that she’d know her true love as soon as she saw him. There would be an instantaneous connection that made everything around seem small and insignificant. It had happened with her parents, her grandparents and her great-grandparents. In fact, finding their one true love was sort of legendary in her family, but so far, in all the men she’d met––nothing.
Ruby stopped at the top of the stairs and looked over the railing down to the partygoers below. The chandelier emitted a yellowish glow, upon everyone who danced and drank mindlessly. The music blared from a side room and obscured any sound except for bubbling drunken laughter. There were couples openly engaging in displays of affection, not that she shunned that. If she found her true love, maybe she’d be doing the same thing. Even though many had a live like you’re dying mentality, she just couldn’t fathom having sex with just anyone.
Suddenly, the party lost its appeal. Everything seemed to hold a thread of desperation. The music, the laughter––she was tired of the extreme endlessness of it all, and wished there was something else. Something more, although she hadn’t the foggiest notion what it was she wanted.
It was sometime close to two when the party began to wind down, and although Ruby had wanted to leave earlier, she had come with Merridie. Men and women were stumbling out of the house finding their cars and driving away, weaving all over the road. Merridie, whose arms were folded in annoyance, looked around for her car in the drunken mess. No doubt she’d had another fight with Robert.
“I knew we should’ve parked down the street,” she muttered. “It’s going to be forever until the Rolls is able to get out of this backup!”
Behind her, Beau sang off-key as Eden accompanied him with giggles.
Merridie rolled her eyes at them.
“I’m walking home,” she declared, heading down the lane. Ruby and Eden glanced at each other before hurrying after her, leaving Beau to croon to no one.
“Hey, wait up!” she called.
“Merri, we can’t walk home,” Eden said. “I’m not dressed for a stroll.”
“I’m not waiting for the car,” Merridie huffed. “Let Robert take it home, wherever he ended up, the pill.”
“Oh, I saw him dancing with Joyce––ouch!” Ruby hit Eden’s shoulder to shut her up when she saw Merridie’s dark look.
Unfortunately, New York City was a big place to walk home, and after about twenty minutes her feet were killing her. They were forever getting in trouble because of Merri’s bad temper, so her feet should be used to situations like this. They turned a corner and it suddenly dawned on Ruby that she didn’t know where they were.
“Wait,” she said, pointing to the street sign. “Where are we?”
Merridie threw her hands into the air. “Great! I knew we had to turn left back there.”
Ruby rubbed her forehead, exasperated. “Shut up, Merri––you’re not helping. Now, we can’t be that lost, because I don’t live too far from Joyce.”
“We’ve been walking for ages!” Eden whined.
Merridie threw her a dark look. “We’ve only been walking fifteen, twenty minutes, Eden. And Ruby, please don’t mention that gold digger’s name to me.”
Just then a snide laugh came from behind them, and the three spun to see two men, dressed in scruffy, dirty clothes, standing with smirks on their faces. Their hair hung in greasy waves and they reeked with an unpleasant odor. Ruby did not like how they kept looking them up and down.
“Lost, ladies?” asked one thug with a leering sneer. “Lucky we came by to help out.”
“Why, yes,” Eden said with a bright smile. “We’re looking for––”
Merridie slapped a hand over Eden’s mouth, shutting her up.
“Come on, now. We won’t bite,” said the second man. “We won’t bite, much.”
They started to snicker and Ruby held up a hand to hold them off. “It’d be wise to just walk away. We know how to defend ourselves.”
The two men laughed even harder.
“Really?” asked the first man. “Three spoiled rich bitches, such as yourselves, know how to fight?”
“This I have to see,” said the second.
Eden removed Merridie’s hand. “We are not spoiled!”
“Yeah,” Merridie said. “She’s not bright enough to be spoiled, but you got the second part right. I’m in a real bitchy mood right now.”
She spat at them and her wad of spit landed next to the first man’s shoe. Ruby had to admit: the girl knew how to hock a loogie. The two men growled and took a menacing step toward them, but Merridie didn’t even waste time. She charged them, brought her foot back and kicked the bigger thug right between his legs. He bent over, his hands grabbing what had to be a very sore penis, and slid to his knees on a whimper. Seeing his friend hurt, the second man took a step toward Merridie, but Ruby pulled her gun out of her handbag and held it steady. He stopped and blinked, as if not quite sure what he was looking at.
“1920 Star Pistol,” Ruby told him grimly. “Popular in Europe, particularly in Spain among the radical union anarchists. Point thirty-two caliber, and yes, I do know how to use it.”
The man hesitated and then held up his hands in surrender. He helped his friend to his feet and the two hurried away as fast as they could, disappearing into the long shadows between buildings. Ruby waited a second more and then calmly replaced the gun into her bag.
“I could’ve handled the other one too,” Merridie muttered.
“Were you picturing Robert when you killed off any hope that man had of having children?” Ruby asked with a smirk.
Merridie turned away, pretending to study the street sign. Through the whole encounter, Eden had been busy inspecting her dress, trying to get rid of a smudge of dirt.
“Oh, I hate it when I get dirty,” she huffed.
“Come on,” Ruby said. “We’ll double back. Let’s take that left turn Merridie keeps harping about.”
They left the street corner and retraced their steps.
“When are you going to realize I’m the master at navigation?” Merridie asked, a touch of smugness in her voice.
“I’m never going to hear the end of this, am I?” Ruby asked her back, ignoring the question.
“Next time, remind me not to wear white,” Eden spoke up. “I really liked this dress!”
Chapter Two
The next morning, Ruby stood at the tall windows, staring blindly at the street bel
ow. Behind her sat Alford Densey, President of Talcott Shipping, with fingers pleated together as he waited patiently for her to gather her wits, which was proving very difficult to do.
“How could you sell all the shares?”
“Miss Talcott, the market lost eleven percent of its value at the opening bell. It was a mutual decision of the shareholders,” he explained, yet again. She must have asked that question a dozen different ways, but she still couldn’t quite understand the shareholders’ massive betrayal. “It was the only thing we could do to break even.”
Ruby spun around angrily, her hands clenched in tight fists. “You panicked over an unsteady market that would have righted itself!”
“You don’t know that.”
“I own this company!”
Mr. Densey only shook his head sadly. “You never owned this company. And now you don’t belong here.”
Ruby marched up to him and bent, staring at him nose to nose. “My father branched this company into a thriving corporation when investors laughed at him. I know more about shipping than any of you and I’ll be damned if I let it rot!”
He looked at her so calmly she wanted to hit him.
“What can you do, Miss Talcott? You’re a woman. It’s out of your hands now.”
Ruby felt seething frustration flash through her and wished she could wrap her hands around his neck and squeeze. How dare he sell it? She wasn’t the majority shareholder, which meant her father’s legacy had been pulled out from under her, so basically she had no recourse. Nothing. It was all gone in a flash. Before she could inflict bodily harm, she turned and marched out the door, letting it slam shut behind her.
****
The remainder of Thursday and Friday, Ruby visited everyone she could think of to try to salvage what Alford Densey had done to her father’s company, but it was no use. The Exchange had begun a steady decline that was looking more and more grim as the week progressed. It was like a leak in a dam that couldn’t be stopped. The cracks kept getting wider and wider, until everything she once knew was swept away.
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