by Holly Rayner
“I did. What are you doing up already?”
“I remembered something.”
Khizar didn’t react at first. Only after a moment did he seem to realize what she was saying.
He sat up in bed and asked, “What did you remember?”
“On my eighth birthday, an old man came to visit me. He brought me a gift—a stuffed teddy bear. He told me that it had a secret, and that it was my job to look after it until I was older.”
Khizar’s eyebrows knitted together. “Do you still have the bear?”
Jacqui’s eyes sparkled. “I do. It’s in a box up in the attic.”
“Then let’s go find that bear!”
Chapter 13
Khizar
Khizar followed Jacqui down the hall and helped her pull down the stairs to the attic. He insisted on being the first one up the wooden steps and offered her a hand as she climbed in after him.
Almost every diamond miner would tell you that they had an instinct telling them when they were about to strike it big. It was practically a sixth sense, something more than intuition, maybe closer to a premonition. Khizar knew exactly what they meant; he felt that same clairvoyance as he climbed the attic stairs.
Jacqui pulled the string to turn on the overhead light and took a moment to orient herself among the plastic bins organized in neat stacks around the attic. She finally pointed to a stack sitting along the far wall, underneath the tiny round window.
“There, I think. That stack should be things from my old bedroom.”
“Any idea which one?”
All the plastic bins looked alike to him. They were a drab olive green, fit with the same color lids.
Jacqui shook her head. “No, but one of them should be just stuffed animals. That should be the one.”
Khizar lifted the top box off the stack and set it down on the attic floor. Jacqui pried the lip off and leaned over the box. She stuck her hand inside and shifted the top layer of things around.
“Not this one.”
In spite of his eagerness to find the diamond, Khizar found himself interested in young Jacqui’s life. He peered into the box.
“Are those trophies?”
Jacqui laughed. “They are. For math, mostly. My high school had a team that competed in math competitions.”
Khizar was intrigued, but the pull of finding the diamond was growing stronger by the minute. He was struggling to focus.
When Khizar didn’t answer, Jacqui added, “I think there are probably some soccer trophies in there, too. I played for a couple of years right after I came to live with my adopted parents.”
That he couldn’t just let go.
“Soccer, huh? Do you still play, or watch?”
“I watch, but I haven’t played in years. Yoga is about the only thing I have time for these days.”
Khizar gave her a grave look. “We are going to need to have a conversation, then.”
Jacqui looked at him, unsure. “About?”
“I didn’t think about vetting your choice of soccer team before I proposed. This could be a serious issue.”
Jacqui was surprised into laughter, and Khizar was surprised that he felt like laughing with her. He’d never had this with a woman before, this feeling of camaraderie that seemed just as important as physical attraction.
She tossed a squishy ball at him, still laughing, and he batted it away with one hand. He grinned at her and picked up another bin.
“What about this one?” He set it down on the floor and Jacqui opened it.
“Ah, not this one. I think this is mostly old clothes.”
Khizar set another box on the attic floor, then moved the two already opened bins back over in a stack by the wall. Jacqui opened it and shook her head.
After two more bins, Khizar was starting to doubt that the bear was actually in the attic. Jacqui studied the boxes and then snapped her fingers. She dug around in a corner, and then pushed a dusty book shelf to the side.
“Here, let’s try this one.”
Khizar helped her pull out the larger box and wrangle it open. He could see stuffed animals inside, indicating that this was the right box. He didn’t want to appear overeager, so he stood back and let Jacqui carefully unpack the box.
She finally held up a large, brown bear wearing a dapper vest.
Jacqui smiled at it and quietly said, “Hello, Alexander Bear.”
Jacqui handed the bear to Khizar, who noted how heavy it felt. Poking at the middle of the stuffed animal, he felt a solid lump.
“I think this might be something,” he said and handed the bear back to Jacqui.
“Let’s go downstairs where the light is better,” she said.
Khizar wanted to protest and tell her to tear open the bear right then and there, but held himself in check.
Jacqui closed the box and they carefully made their way out of the attic and back downstairs. She found a pair of scissors and set the stuffed animal on her dining table after flipping the bright overhead light on.
Carefully, she clipped a few threads on the bear’s back and pulled them apart. Again, Khizar wanted to ask her to hurry, but then he remembered that the bear was all that Jacqui had of her family. He recalled how she’d greeted it in the attic, and could understand her wanting to preserve it as much as possible.
Once she had a large enough hole in the bear, Jacqui cautiously reached in and pulled out some of the stuffing. It was wrapped around a large bulk of something. Jacqui set the scissors down and pulled the cotton off of whatever it was cushioning.
Left in her hand was a diamond. A large, clear diamond, cut in a beautiful shape with edges that refracted light across the dining table. Jacqui took in a long, deep breath.
“Oh, it’s beautiful. William Bauer owned a diamond mine, right? This must be one of his.”
Khizar carefully, reverently reached for the diamond. This—this—was the end of his quest. The thing he’d sought for so long was in his hands. Truly, this was a moment he wouldn’t forget.
Except that the second the diamond was in his hands, he could tell that something was wrong. Khizar turned it over and over, trying to decipher what his brain was telling him.
Jacqui must have picked up on his puzzlement, because she asked, “Khizar, what is it?”
He shook his head, stunned. “It’s not…”
He only remembered at the last second that he wasn’t supposed to know about the Bauer Diamond.
“It looks like a diamond, but it’s not a real one.”
Jacqui looked at him in confusion. “What is it, then?”
Khizar laughed bitterly, then, and set the diamond back on the table.
“It’s a fake. A very good one, but still a fake.”
He felt like he was going to break in two. All the time and effort spent looking for the Bauer Diamond, and all he had to show for it was a fake gem…and a fake engagement.
He’d gotten Jacqui to fall for him, proposed, and it was all for nothing. He had the woman, but no diamond. And the diamond was all that mattered. The feeling in his gut made that clear.
Khizar ran his hand through his hair, not caring that Jacqui was confused. This was a disaster, and he needed to think. He waved a hand when she asked again, and sat down heavily in the chair next to her.
Jacqui picked up the diamond again, turning it over as well. Her eyes narrowed as she looked more closely at one side, and Khizar wondered what she saw.
He couldn’t believe it. Khizar took the diamond back from Jacqui and held it up to the light.
“Look at that,” Khizar said and pointed out the engraving on the back. It was tiny, but with his trained eye, Khizar could see that it was a series of numbers.
“Do you have something to write on?” he asked.
Jacqui turned and grabbed a notebook and pen from the sideboard next to the table. “Here.”
Khizar took the pen and opened the notebook. He wrote down the numbers from the back of the diamond and then turned the page so that
Jacqui could see.
“Any idea what these numbers mean?” he asked.
Jacqui frowned and tilted her head. Then, she took the pen from him and rewrote the numbers, leaving spaces between some of them.
“They look like…coordinates, maybe?”
Khizar saw it as soon as she was done writing. “Yes! That’s it.”
“But coordinates to what?”
Again, he almost gave away the fact that he knew more than he was supposed to. Khizar changed what he was going to say as he took a breath.
“I don’t know. It looks like your great-uncle was trying to send you on a treasure hunt.”
Jacqui brightened. “Do you think he left me something else? Maybe something that belonged to our family?”
Khizar felt guilty again that he was searching for a diamond that he didn’t need, and Jacqui was simply searching for a connection to a family member she hadn’t known. He found himself wanting to help her learn more about Bill Bauer, to introduce her to people that had known him so that she could learn more about her family.
“I don’t know, but we can find out. I have my jet; we can fly to the coordinates and see what’s there.”
Jacqui’s smile rivaled that of a real diamond.
“Maybe it’s where he lived. Or grew up.”
Khizar resolved to see at least part of her wish met, whatever else happened. If they found the diamond, or if they didn’t, he’d make sure that Jacqui got to see where Bill Bauer had lived, where his family—Jacqui’s family—was originally from.
“Let’s go find out. I’ll call the crew and get everything set up. We’ll leave within the hour.”
“Thank you, Khizar!” Jacqui gave him a sudden, fierce hug and a kiss on the cheek.
Khizar wasn’t used to being shown that kind of easy warmth. It was nice, he had to admit. And so was the idea of an adventure with Jacqui. He was truly looking forward to the idea of a treasure hunt with her. Of spending time with her.
Jacqui was beautiful, but she was also kind and fun to be with. She made him feel like a regular person, and she didn’t care about who his family was or his wealth. And Khizar couldn’t deny that he had a strong physical reaction to her. Especially after last night, he wanted to be close to her, to touch and kiss her.
Maybe this little adventure would turn out to be a good thing, after all.
Chapter 14
Jacqui
Despite having less than an hour to prepare for their trip, Jacqui took a few minutes to call her parents and let them know she was going out of town. She explained about finding the stuffed bear and how her great-uncle might have left her something. She then called Lyssa, sharing her news about the engagement and then asking Lyssa if she could manage the bakery for a few days while she went out of town.
Khizar was on the phone at the same time, making the arrangements for the flight. He watched as Jacqui threw together some clothes and shoes for a few days away, and closed up her apartment.
They stopped by Khizar’s hotel so that he could get his things as well. Jacqui roamed his hotel suite while he packed. She hadn’t been in his hotel while he was in Milwaukee; he always came over to her house.
That fact had bothered her a little, but she understood when she saw his hotel suite. The rooms were almost as luxurious as their hotel in Hawaii, but they were a bit cold. Not uncomfortable, just not homey feeling, and Jacqui could understand that Khizar would want to spend time in a friendlier setting.
This was the style she was going to have to get used to, Jacqui thought. The luxury she could handle, even if she had to talk Khizar from going over the top all the time. But maybe when they traveled, they could find different kinds of places to stay.
She realized she didn’t know how often they would travel. Jacqui assumed that Khizar traveled quite a bit—he’d told her stories about some of his trips. But those were for business, and they hadn’t talked about how much he would continue to travel after they were married. Or if she might travel with him.
Jacqui was so happy. She was in love with Khizar, and thrilled that he had proposed. Even though there was still a lot they needed to talk about, she knew they’d work through it.
In fact, this trip would be a good time to talk through some of those issues. They’d have time on the flight. Not to mention that working together to solve the puzzle her great-uncle had left her would bring them even closer together.
One of the best memories she had of her parents was a seemingly mundane moment, as the best memories so often are. Her mother had bought a DIY kitchen island, with two drawers in the middle and shelves on one end. It had needed some assembly, which had of course turned into an all-night project.
Jacqui remembered her father putting on music and spreading out all the pieces and instructions in the middle of the living room floor. Her mother had brought out two glasses of wine and they’d sat in the middle of the floor and figured out the instructions together. They’d laughed when he’d installed one of the drawers upside down, and then when she’d done the same thing with the shelves.
What stood out to Jacqui, even all these years later, was that her parents worked together. They were partners; they relied on each other.
That kind of relationship was what she’d always wanted, and Jacqui knew that this trip would show that she had that kind of relationship with Khizar, even if they still had details to work out.
When they got to the airport, the pilot was waiting with the jet ready to go. According to the coordinates etched on the fake diamond, they needed to go to Alabama, a two-hour flight. The pilot had filed a flight plan to get them to the closest airport, and Khizar had arranged to rent a car from there.
They looked over a map while they ate breakfast, and Khizar tapped a spot of green with his index finger.
“The coordinates put us here, in the Talladega National Forest. Looks like it’s a forty-minute drive from the airport.”
Jacqui nodded. “We’ll want to stop and get a good GPS from an outdoors store.”
“Good idea.”
Jacqui had been planning to bring up a discussion of what their married life might look like, but before she knew it, the plane was descending and they were in Alabama. That was okay, though. They’d have the flight back, and plenty of time after they found whatever William Bauer had left for her.
Khizar picked up the four-wheel drive SUV from the rental counter, and they stopped at the first outdoors shop they saw to buy a handheld GPS to help them when they got into the forest.
It was a gorgeous drive, winding through hills and wooded areas. They stopped at a scenic overlook to get their bearings, and then drove to a parking lot at a trailhead.
The parking lot only had one other car parked there. Jacqui wasn’t all that surprised they were almost the only people in that location; it was a weekday morning, and not summer yet. They’d seen a few other cars driving around, but it was mostly quiet on the road.
There was a stream running next to the trail, which led up a gentle hillside. Khizar picked up the GPS and Jacqui grabbed the backpack she’d bought at the same time. She’d gotten a small first aid kit and a couple of bottles of water, just in case.
They walked along the paved trail, pointing out birds and the occasional rabbit.
“It’s beautiful out here,” Khizar said, his tone reverent.
Jacqui agreed. “I’m guessing this kind of forest isn’t what you’re used to back home.”
Khizar shook his head.
“Not quite like this, though there are mountains along the northern border of Nudushan. Though, to be fair, hiking was never my favorite thing to do.”
“My adopted parents used to take me hiking when I was a kid. My dad is kind of an outdoorsy guy, and he tried to teach me things like how to start a fire and set up a tent.”
Khizar looked at her, interested. “And did you enjoy those things?”
“Nope.” Jacqui smiled at him. “I tried to, because it made my new dad happy. But I think he fi
gured out pretty quickly that the outdoors life wasn’t for me.”
They rounded a bend in the trail and stopped at a clearing in the trees. The spot was on a natural terrace in the hillside and looked out over a valley. The same stream they had seen at the parking lot ran through the valley, though they were too far up the hill to hear it.
The breeze whispered through the tree leaves. Jacqui thought it was one of the most peaceful spots she’d ever been in. Tucked to one side of the clearing with the best view into the valley was a bench.
It looked a little out of place on the trail. A black wrought-iron structure held up long boards of dark wood that formed the seat and back of the bench.
“Interesting,” Khizar murmured.
Jacqui looked over his shoulder at the GPS unit. “We’re here?”
“Looks like it. Actually, I think the bench is sitting right on it.”
They walked over to take a closer look at the bench. On one of the wooden slats backing the bench, Jacqui could see written words. She sat down on the bench and traced the letters, reading the words out loud:
“What matters most is always under the surface.”
“I wonder what it means,” Jacqui said thoughtfully.
Khizar tapped her on the shoulder and motioned for her to join him behind the bench. She stood and moved, then gasped as she read the metal plaque fixed on the back of the bench. Donated by William Bauer.
“Your great-uncle donated this bench,” Khizar said. “He must have had a reason for inscribing this quote here.”
Jacqui slowly walked around the bench again, thinking. She looked for other clues.
“Under the surface…maybe under the bench?” she mused.
Khizar knelt and ran his hand under the wooden seat, and then over the bench legs for good measure. He shook his head.
“I don’t feel anything unusual,” he said, standing again.
Jacqui crossed her arms, taking in the whole little area. They’d passed a few other spots on the trail where the path widened, or even made place for people to stop and rest. At each of them, the asphalt covered the whole area, widening out and then narrowing back into the trail.