Treasure Me

by Robyn DeHart

  “I did bring the entire inscription,” Vanessa said. She opened the book to the page in question and revealed the code. Here in her father’s study, the hand-drawn symbols looked more than familiar. Now she knew why she’d felt that way the first time she’d seen the decoder.

  Violet looked at Jeremy and asked, “Is the book still in the parlor?”

  “Indeed it is. I’ll fetch it at once.” With that, Jeremy dashed out of the room, leaving the two sisters alone.

  A moment of awkward silence passed before Violet stepped forward. “Vanessa, I am sorry for what I did,” she said.

  “And you should be,” Vanessa said, then paused. “But it is hard for me to be angry, because if you had not betrayed me in such a manner, I would not have left. And then I wouldn’t have met—” Her mind stumbled over how to describe Graeme. The possible labels tripped through her mind. Graeme. My husband. My own love.

  “Your duke,” Violet supplied.

  “Yes,” Vanessa hastily agreed. That was the simplest description. Yet it was the least revealing.

  Violet took another step forward, her hand outstretched as if reaching for Vanessa. “And do you love him?” she asked, sounding slightly breathless. “Do you love him as I love Jeremy?”

  The question was fueled by more than mere curiosity. Violet’s gaze was lit with regret, but with hope as well. She wanted reassurances, and Vanessa was surprised to find herself willing to give them. Not simply for Violet’s sake, but because she had only just realized it herself, and she wanted to admit it, to say it aloud.

  “I do love him,” she said simply. Then she swallowed back the emotion threatening to choke her. Before she could say anything else, Jeremy hurried back into the room, carrying a large book.

  “It’s Father’s Bible,” she said, more to herself than anyone else in the room.

  “Exactly,” Jeremy said as he placed the large leatherbound volume on the desk.

  Jeremy opened the book, and there on the front page, surrounding the title, were small hand-drawn illustrations.

  “I loved this book as a girl and always wanted to look at the pictures, but Father rarely allowed me the chance,” Violet said.

  “I did a bit of research, and it would seem there are less than a hundred of these copies made,” Jeremy said. “It would appear to be quite the treasure.”

  “We deduced that this was a code,” Violet said. “If we figure out the corresponding page, then the picture will give us the word on that page.”

  “But we don’t know where to start,” Jeremy said.

  Vanessa never looked up at them; she kept her gaze on the illustrated Bible. “Kings,” she said. “First and Second Kings.” She flipped the pages until she found what she sought. “So if we start here,” she said, then glanced back at The Magi’s Book of Wisdom, “using this symbol”—she pointed to the illustration at the top of the page, then found its match shadowed behind one word—“we get the word ‘beware.’ ”

  She continued in such a fashion, moving from one book to the other and flipping pages within her father’s Bible until she had an entire message scrawled upon a piece of parchment.

  Beware any who possess the stones of the Kingmaker, for only the most worthy may hold such a treasure.

  The damned code wouldn’t have mattered to Graeme’s original quest to find the Stone of Destiny, but it could certainly matter now. He was trying to retrieve all the stones in an effort to protect the crown from The Raven.

  Vanessa’s entire body went alert and rigid with fear. “Oh no, Graeme.”

  The Raven stood at his study window watching the boy approach. What a fool to follow him here all the way from Scotland. What did he think to accomplish? He could easily send the guards after the boy or even release his hounds. The Raven laughed at his own jest. In the end, he made no move to do anything. This would no doubt be entertaining, whatever the boy’s purpose.

  “Quite a long journey for a boy your age,” The Raven said as Dougal entered his study.

  “I am old enough to travel on my own,” Dougal bit out. Then he took a deep breath, and his features softened. “I came to help you.”

  “Help me?” The Raven asked, amused. He relaxed into the large thronelike chair behind his massive mahogany desk and smiled at the boy. “What would give you the impression that I require assistance from anyone, let alone you?” Perhaps the boy could be of use, but it seemed unlikely that he’d come all this way simply for that. He wanted something.

  He motioned for Dougal to sit in one of the chairs opposite him. The boy’s eyes wandered over his surroundings, and The Raven allowed him to do so. Allowed him to see what kinds of riches could be his if he made the right choices in life. The boy’s eyes lit on the heavily jeweled crown that sat on the shelf to the left of his desk.

  “Ah yes, you have exquisite taste. That I found in Egypt. It is rumored to have belonged to Cleopatra herself,” The Raven said. He clasped his hands together on his desk. “But you did not come here to see my antiquities collection. I believe you were going to tell me how helpful you could be.”

  Dougal sat straighter on the edge of the leather chair. “I can tell you that my brother has returned to London,” he said. “He’s already looking for you.”

  “Something I already knew. I expected him to follow me. Wanted him to,” The Raven said. “That had been part of my plan from the beginning.” Of course, that wasn’t precisely true. He’d been alive long enough to know that plans had to be fluid or else you risked getting caught or losing sight of your goal.

  “And he is with his club right now discussing you,” Dougal said. “They will, no doubt, come for you.”

  “Ah yes, Solomon’s. Typical. They can’t ever do anything on their own. I do wonder if Fielding is there.” The Raven felt the contempt rising inside him. He couldn’t afford to think about that. He had a master plan in the works. He shook his head. His dealings with Fielding were water under the proverbial bridge. Or rather water beneath the Tower of London, where they’d had their last confrontation. “I’m still missing the point of how it is you’re supposed to assist me.”

  “I can help you get the third stone,” Dougal said.

  The Raven paused, not wanting to reveal too much. He leaned forward, bracing his elbows on his desk. “He has it? The Loch Ness Treasure? You’re certain?”

  Dougal nodded. “Niall found it.”

  “And Niall?” he asked, keeping his tone neutral. “What of him?”

  “My cousin is dead,” Dougal said, never blinking an eye. “Died in an unfortunate explosion set by his own hand.”

  Perhaps the boy was telling the truth and was here to assist him. Still he doubted that. Perhaps instead the boy was simply a better liar than he’d first given him credit for. “Pity,” The Raven said.

  “I wouldn’t be so foolish.” Dougal crossed his arms over his chest.

  And he’d been doing so well. A pity, the boy could have been a true ally. “Never underestimate your own stupidity, boy.” The Raven came to his feet, stepped around the desk, then leaned casually against it. “Or mine.”

  “What is that supposed to mean?” Dougal asked. His arms unfolded, fists clenched at his sides.

  “It means I know why you’re here. Why you’re truly here.” He patted Dougal on the shoulder. “I will give you credit for trying to convince me. You definitely have some skills in that area, but your emotions give you away.”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Dougal said with feigned ignorance.

  “Yes, of course you do. Stand up.” He slammed his hand down hard onto Dougal’s shoulder. The boy winced, but came to his feet nonetheless. “And I know you’re not alone. Shall we go and find your counterpart?” The Raven asked.

  Dougal shook his head. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I came here alone.”

  That could have been the truth. “Perhaps, but you didn’t arrive alone. Follow me.” And in case the boy had thoughts about disagreeing, The Ra
ven withdrew a pistol from the hidden compartment on the bookshelf. “Come along.”

  Vanessa crept in quietly after Dougal, sneaking in the front door and closing it soundlessly behind her. She waited two heartbeats before moving forward. So far no one had come running, so perhaps she had gone undetected. Dougal hadn’t appeared to notice.

  She knew the boy had come to help find Niall’s family. She’d overheard him speaking with Graeme outside their sleeping car on the train. It had been clear that Dougal was racked with guilt and desperately trying to find a way to make amends. His sincerity had touched her. When she’d arrived back at Graeme’s townhome to find her husband gone and her young brother-in-law sneaking out, she had decided to follow him. She simply couldn’t allow him to walk into the dragon’s lair unaccompanied.

  Surely Niall’s wife and son were here, hidden somewhere in a locked chamber. A dungeon, perhaps. This house certainly looked as if it boasted a dungeon.

  She moved through the hall and up the stairs to her right. She’d check every room on every floor if she had to. She passed by one room as a maid solemnly made the bed, flipping the linens into the air and back onto the mattress. Vanessa spied a feather duster and quickly grabbed it, then sneaked back out of the room. Perhaps if she were caught, they would believe her if she said she was a new maid only just hired and hadn’t yet received her livery.

  She checked three more rooms in this wing, all empty bedrooms. The other wing was darker, and, if it was possible, colder. She moved in that direction and cautiously opened the first door. This was clearly The Raven’s personal chamber, so she slipped inside and closed the door behind her.

  The room was ornately decorated, with heavy carved furniture and red velvet and brocade fabrics dripping off every surface. It was easy to see that The Raven enjoyed his wealth. Not surprising, considering what she’d been told of his character. To her, the room seemed oppressive rather than opulent.

  Perhaps there was a hidden chamber within this room where she would find Niall’s family.

  “Penny,” she called, trying to speak in no more than a whisper. No one responded. She tried again. Again nothing.

  And then Vanessa eyed the dressing closet. When she was a girl, her father had used his own to hide things from the family. Her mother hadn’t wanted him to bring his “filthy tools” in the house, so he’d kept them in compartments in the dressing closet, along with some treasures he’d found. Vanessa remembered going in there and sitting amongst his coats and rifling through his mud-caked tools. Perhaps The Raven had similar compartments.

  She stepped into the dressing closet. Covering the four walls were a variety of garments: great coats, jackets, shirts, trousers, all sorts of gentlemanly clothes. She swept one side away to reveal the wall behind. She tapped, listening for a hollow sound, but there was nothing. She tried with the next, sweeping the trousers to the left to reveal the wall. She tapped, then paused, then tapped again. It was hollow. Barely detectable, but hollow nonetheless.

  Vanessa looked around for some sort of lever that would open the hidden panel, but found nothing that appeared suspicious. She pounded on the wall in frustration and something clicked, then the panel slid aside. However, instead of an entrance to another room, as she’d expected, a small compartment was revealed. Inside she found a simple wooden box.

  She reached in and pulled it out, then slowly, cautiously, she opened it. Inside sat two sizable stones, one blue, and the red one that she and Graeme had discovered in MacBeth’s crown. A ruby and a sapphire, each the size of her fist, and very similar to the emerald they’d retrieved from Niall. The Raven now had three of the four stones required for the Kingmaker.

  “I thought we already tried to kill you,” a male voice said from behind her.

  “You did try to kill me,” Vanessa said as calmly as she could manage. She turned to face The Raven and Dougal. The former held a pistol. “But you missed,” she said sweetly.

  “That’s what happens when you send a boy to do a man’s work. I won’t make that mistake again,” The Raven said.

  She was pinned in the dressing closet, and The Raven stood in the doorway, blocking her exit. “So you intend to kill us, then?” Vanessa asked. Her only strategy would be to stall him until Graeme might come and rescue them, because she knew he’d come to confront The Raven eventually. She was certainly not used to being the damsel in distress, but when one managed to get oneself in such a situation, it helped to have a large and strong husband.

  “Of course,” The Raven said.

  “You know that if you harm one hair on either of our heads, Graeme will never give you the treasure you seek. The Kingmaker will never be completed,” Vanessa challenged.

  The Raven eyed her carefully. If she wasn’t mistaken, she thought she might have seen appreciation cross his expression.

  “If all you seek are the necessary stones for the Kingmaker, keep us safe, and you can barter our lives for the missing stone,” Vanessa continued.

  The Raven laughed, a chilling chortle that almost made Vanessa shiver. “You are a clever one, I’ll give you that. I fully intend to kill both of you, but as it so happens, I’m late for a rather important engagement. So we must be leaving.”

  He nodded to her hands, where she still gripped the box with the jewels. “Thank you for retrieving my stones for me. We’ll need those where we’re going. Carry them gently.” He met her gaze, and the complete absence of kindness caused her to shiver. “Drop or damage them, and I’ll kill the boy. Understand?”

  Graeme would never forgive her if she allowed anything to happen to his brother. She nodded. Briefly she met Dougal’s gaze and offered him a smile.

  “Now move.” The Raven pointed the gun at her and jerked it forward.

  She followed his instructions and stepped out of the closet with the box. Together, she and Dougal walked down to the front door. Before she stepped outside, though, she pretended to stumble. She didn’t want to appear to have damaged the stones, but she needed a brief reprieve.

  “Clumsy fool,” The Raven muttered. “Best be careful or the boy dies. Don’t test me on this. If I’m not mistaken, you’ve seen where my talents lie. Fitch and Sam put up excellent fights, but in the end, they were no match for me. Do you honestly think a puny female like you would even have a chance?”

  While bending over, Vanessa removed the fossil from her bag and strategically placed it where Graeme would not miss it. If he came here to find The Raven, he’d know the man had her. Hopefully it would be enough to save her and Dougal from whatever horrible death awaited them.

  “Hurry,” The Raven barked. “I don’t have much time.”

  “Why the rush? Where are we going?” Vanessa asked as she climbed into the waiting carriage.

  “Westminster,” The Raven said.

  “Whatever for?” Vanessa asked.

  “There is a funeral today. A highly ranked military leader,” The Raven said. He kept the pistol aimed at both of them.

  Vanessa wondered momentarily if she and Dougal together could overtake the man. He wasn’t extraordinarily large, although she could certainly tell he was athletic. But then she remembered what he’d said about Mr. Fitch. Mr. Fitch had been a very large and strong man, yet he’d been taken down by The Raven’s deadly skills. And hadn’t Graeme warned her of him?

  “And you wish to pay your respects?” Dougal asked, finally speaking up. His brow furrowed in his confusion.

  “High-ranking military officer,” Vanessa repeated, then she brought her gaze up to The Raven’s. “Her Majesty will be in attendance,” she said.

  “Fancy that,” The Raven said.

  “You intend to kill the queen?” Dougal asked.

  “If I must.” Then The Raven smiled. “And I truly must.”

  Chapter Twenty-three

  Vanessa stepped down from the carriage, The Raven’s pistol pressed firmly into her back. Dougal already stood on the street. They were a block away from Big Ben.

  “Are we to wa
lk all the way to Westminster from here?” she asked. “Why not take the carriage directly there?”

  “You see, if you would have killed her when you had the chance, she wouldn’t be here now to annoy me,” The Raven said to Dougal. “Walk straight to that alleyway.” He motioned to their left.

  Dougal followed the man’s instructions.

  Vanessa scanned the street for anyone who might be of assistance, but found no one within earshot. There were a handful of people down the street, but they were too far away. With The Raven’s gun firmly lodged between her shoulder blades, she followed Dougal down the alley.

  They were heading away from the Thames, but walking alongside Big Ben. Perhaps The Raven expected the funeral to be so heavily populated that he wanted to sneak them in a back door. They kept moving until suddenly The Raven stopped.

  “This is it,” he said. There was, in fact, a door directly to their left, but instead of opening it, The Raven nudged one of the large stones that made up the street. “Dougal, get down here and move this,” he demanded. He eyed both ends of the alley, then stood with his great coat open to block any view of Dougal’s activity.

  The boy had gotten to his knees and dug his fingers beneath the edge of the stone. It shifted slightly.

  “You’re going to need to use more force than that,” The Raven said. “Prove yourself useful, boy. A strapping young lad like you should be able to do something useful. God knows your cunning intellect isn’t going to win you any accolades.”

  Dougal eyed The Raven, and for a moment Vanessa expected the boy would charge, but he evidently thought better of it. It was a smart choice, Vanessa knew. The Raven might have no qualms about shooting them both here on the street.

  With renewed effort, Dougal lifted the stone. Below was an opening that went deep beneath the street. Vanessa could make out the faint outline of stairs.

  “Down,” The Raven said.

  She took a deep breath and did as he instructed. Dougal followed directly behind her. Her initial instinct was to run, run anywhere, to try and get away from him. But she knew that she couldn’t leave Dougal to fend for himself. The Raven would kill him, and then Graeme would never forgive her. In addition, she had no idea where she was, and running aimlessly in the dark would not save anyone. She needed to be smart, bide her time, and select the precise moment to escape.