The Keepers of the Rose

by DJ Dalasta

  The reason Anna came to Boulder was simple, to find out about Malcolm Cooper and the organization he worked for. The gold ring was the key. The solitary rose etched into its band held great significance and she needed to figure out why. Hopefully, the seller had answers.

  They made the drive from the Denver airport to Boulder in under an hour. Nate insisted on using the GPS navigation system though Anna already knew the way. As an avid skier in her younger years she had been a frequent visitor to the small mountain town. But that was almost a decade ago, though it seemed much longer and if she ever picked up the hobby again, she’d likely have to learn it from the beginning.

  As they drove through the city, she realized it hadn’t changed much. It was bigger, of course, adding a collection of comforts and convenience that catered towards the city dweller. But the natural, earthy feel was still there and in just a few minutes she could be hiking or climbing without a building in sight. At heart, she knew this was the type of place she could call home.

  They passed out of town on a two way street called Canon View Road and followed the steady path for a few miles snaking up into the mountains. Finally, Anna spotted the wooden mailbox they were told about. She couldn’t miss the large carved form of a grizzly bear, mouth agape, asking for letters and correspondence.

  “This is the place,” she said. Nate turned onto the long driveway that worked its way through giant blue spruce trees on either side. It eventually stopped, coming to a rest in front of a four-car garage tucked underneath a beautiful cabin style house. She could already see the immense valley spread out behind the structure, overlooking the mountain’s peaks, spiraling towards the sky. She was slightly jealous.

  They moved to the door and knocked, waiting underneath a wooden arch hanging high over their heads. The door opened and a scrawny young man peered at them. He had the beginnings of a beard and wavy blond hair, uncombed. But that was the style. He kind of reminded her of Nate.

  “Hi, are you here to see the ring,” he said. His voice was high for a young man.

  “Yes we are. I’m Anna. This is Nate.”

  “Come on in, I’m Randy,” he opened the door full and let them pass inside. The floor plan was wide open. They stepped directly into the living room that opened up to a beautiful ornate kitchen on their left. A bank of windows overlooking a lush valley occupied the far wall. Anna gasped at the view.

  “This is gorgeous,” she said.

  “Thanks, you can have a seat, I’ll get the ring.” Randy slid into the other room while Nate and Anna sat in a large oversized leather couch. A neatly carved wooden coffee table rested in front of them.

  The young man came back in, carrying a small container. He knelt on the opposite side of the table. He set the box on the surface and opened it. Anna peered at the ring. It was identical.

  “That’s it,” she said to Nate. “That’s the ring Malcolm Cooper wears.” She looked up at Randy. “Where did you get this,” she asked.

  “It was my grandfathers, he passed away three weeks ago.”

  “I’m sorry,” she said quickly. “May I ask why you are selling it?”

  “I was going through his stuff and well, he never told anyone where he got it or what it was from. He would only say that it was the biggest mistake of his life and that he’d never wear it again. So I figured I didn’t need it and he didn’t want it so why not get some money for it and see it off.”

  “So he never told you anything about it.”

  “Nope.”

  “What about your mother, or father, would they know?”

  “They’re both dead. They died when I was three, my grandfather looked after me.”

  “Oh, I’m sorry.”

  “That’s ok,” Randy stood up. “So do you want it?”

  “Actually, we were hoping for more of the story behind the ring, what it stood for, who gave it to you, that kind of thing. We’d like to know what it is before buying it.”

  Randy frowned. “I don’t know anything. Sorry.”

  “Well, did your grandfather keep any documents, papers about things. Maybe a journal, diary,” Nate asked.

  Randy started nodding, “you know I think he kept a journal but I haven’t read it, of course. I suppose I could go through it and see if he says anything about it. It’s upstairs in his things, I’d have to look for it.”

  “Could you, we have a plane to catch this evening and would love to see this go through by then.”

  “I’ll go have a look,” he said. “Help yourself to something to drink, there are sodas and water in the fridge.” Randy ran upstairs.

  “You do realize how much he wants for the ring,” Nate said to her.

  She didn’t need reminding. “If we get the information, then I’ll decide I don’t want it. But there’s no need to let him in on that right now. Besides, I don’t think he needs the money, I’m guessing his grandfather did pretty well and left everything to him.” Nate just nodded. Anna picked up the ring and slipped it over her finger. It was much too large. The carving was exquisite. The gold was faded but a good polishing would bring it back to life. She put it back in the case as Randy came down the steps once again.

  “Found it,” he said waving a black book above his head. “His journal. Now I just have to find out what exactly the biggest mistake of his life was.” The young man sat in a chair across from them and opened the book. He started skimming through pages. “I’ll have to read this whole thing when I get the chance, my grandfather was very secretive. But if you bear with me, I’ll try skimming to see if he says anything about it.”

  “Take your time,” Anna said. She got up and started walking around the living room. She stopped at the bay windows and stared out over the valley. She didn’t see any wildlife at the moment but she could tell it was there. The land appeared to be mostly undisturbed habitat. Behind her, Nate closed his eyes and rested in the couch. Somehow he could get comfortable wherever he found himself.

  Fifteen minutes passed and Randy finally broke from his reading. “Ok, I think I found something,” he said. “My grandfather was in the Korean War, and here, June 20th, 1952 he wrote something interesting. It’s been quiet around here recently. A week ago we went out on a patrol and came across some old ruins. They looked ancient. We were told to leave them alone but some of the guys insisted on looting the site. So I joined them and found a set of really old stone plates. They look Egyptian but I can’t tell, I figure they’ll be worth something back in the states, we’ll see.” He flipped the page and kept reading. “July 12th, 1952. Something odd happened today. A civilian, on base, approached me. He wanted to see the plates I had from the looting almost a month back. I denied it of course, but he said he wasn’t interested in any kind of punishment but wanted to check them for monetary value. He seemed very interested.” He flipped two more pages. “July 18th, 1952. The civilian cornered me again. He said it would be worth my time if he could get a look at the plates. He handed me $250 cash, told me he’d be back again next week and there would be more where that came from. I think this may have value for me in the future. We’ll see how much I can extract from him.”

  “This is shaping up to be quite the story,” Nate said. “Does he get to anything about a ring?”

  Randy didn’t respond and flipped a few more pages. “August 1st, 1952. The civilian’s name is Piper, he said he’s part of an organization called the keepers of the rose and that they help keep in tact, ancient valuables.”

  “Read that again,” Anna said. She looked to Nate and he too was intently staring at the boy.

  “What?”

  “The organization part, what was it called?”

  “Ahh, it says, the keepers of the rose. Like the rose on the ring.”

  “The keepers of the rose,” Nate repeated. “I’ll look it up when we get back. That could be something,” he said to her. Anna smiled.

  “Keep r
eading,” she urged the boy to continue.

  Randy picked up where he left off. “I let him look at the plates and he offered me $5,000, for them. I’m suspicious how an organization devoted to ancient artifacts has money to do under the table dealings of this amount. Something’s not right. August 10th, 1952. I don’t even know what Piper does on base or if he’s even supposed to be here. He found me again and asked about the plates. I confronted him about the questions I had. He told me that they could use a man like me in their organization. He said they needed smart soldiers. He told me to hang on to the plates and that once I got state side to take them somewhere in Florida in order to get the most monetary value for them. He gave me a company name, Barrion Imports Exports and the name of an individual, Harrison Burr, and then he gave me a ring that I was supposed to present when I got there. It’s solid gold with a rose engraved on it. I don’t know if I’ll do it or not. We’ll see.” Randy paused for a moment. “So I think that’s the same ring.”

  Anna ignored his last comment. “Harrison Burr and Barrion Imports, Exports,” she said aloud. “Why does that sound familiar?”

  “Because Barrion is Sayla’s last name,” Nate swallowed. “And her father and uncle ran a business in Florida.”

  “Oh shit,” she said.

  “Yeah, oh shit,” Nate repeated. “Uncle Harrison.”

  “That certainly isn’t a coincidence,” Anna cringed. Rock had been duped. They all had been.

  “So you know somebody, that’s cool.” Randy interrupted. “You could probably put more of the story together by asking them. I wonder what ever happened to the plates, my grandfather never mentioned them.”

  “I can make a guess,” Anna said. “But we might find out if you keep reading. Can you skip ahead, maybe find if he wrote about ever going to Florida.”

  “Sure, give me a few minutes.” Randy started paging ahead. He quickly came to the end. “He’s still in Korea at the end here, but there’s more boxes up stairs, maybe he had more books. I’ll go check.” Randy ran upstairs again.

  “When did you last speak with her,” Anna asked Nate once Randy was out of earshot.

  “Yesterday, on her new cell phone.”

  “And,” Anna urged.

  “And I told her we were coming here, and I told her about the cabin in Tennessee though not specifically where since I don’t even know. I told her we were with Wallace and a couple of his friends and about Skylar. She basically knows everything. Now that I think about it, she was asking a lot of questions.”

  “So she knows we’re here.”

  “Yeah.” Nate nodded. His eyes focused behind her and his face suddenly became alert. “And we’re not alone.”

  Anna whipped her head around to check the front door. Two large shadows lingered on the other side. Then someone began pounding.

  Chapter 23

  Boston, August 2012