by Lynn Patrick
“Not exactly. I was waiting for you to come outside so I could speak to you. Alone. I think the thief has been at it again.”
Not expecting that, he asked, “Why? What’s missing?”
“Nothing expensive like that silver candelabra. Just one of our new shovels. When Tyrone went to fetch the planting tools, he couldn’t find it. He said he looked around the coach house, but it was gone. I’m assuming you didn’t borrow it.”
“Nope. Not me.” His mind was already whirling. “What in the world would the thief have wanted with a shovel?”
A smile hovered on her lips. “To dig for buried treasure?”
Rick couldn’t help but laugh. “I don’t think Red Flanagan buried his booty. Legend says he had a hidden room where he kept a secret stash. If that’s true, I haven’t found it yet.” He’d asked Mr. Phillips about the partial map that had been made of the tunnels, only to be told it was here in the safe as Cora had suggested. So much for that. Phillips hadn’t been willing to give him the combination.
“So you’ve looked for it?” Heather inquired. “The treasure?”
“Not exactly.” He’d been busy making more small repairs around the estate in addition to the security checks.
Her brows pulled together over her now serious blue eyes. “I can’t believe someone is creeping around here at night. And messing with our stuff, too. First the sod cutter was damaged and now one of my shovels is missing.”
“You know what? I’ll replace it.”
“That’s very generous of you, but it’s not your responsibility.”
“It went missing on the property, and I have a discretionary fund for supplies and equipment. Don’t worry about it.”
“Um, okay, I guess.”
“I can get a new one when I go into town a little later,” he said, adding, “I’m having dinner with an old army buddy.”
“Oh.” She frowned and looked away. “I’d better get back...”
“Later.”
Nodding, she jogged off, obviously in a hurry for some reason.
Rick sighed. If only he could be going to dinner with her.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
TAYLOR STRUGGLED OUT of the booster seat in the neighbor’s van when they got to where Mommy worked. She jumped to the ground while Mommy helped Addison.
Why did they have to come here after camp? This was the place where that big man stopped her from having a good time with her dog.
“Mrs. Sola, thank you for driving them here,” Mommy told Zooey’s mother.
Addison waved to Zooey in the backseat, and their friend waved back.
“No problem,” Mrs. Sola said. “I live practically across the street.”
“We’re not going home yet,” Mommy said. “We have just a couple more plants to put in. Then we have to spread mulch and put away our tools.”
Taylor sighed. “How long?”
“Maybe fifteen minutes. You can sit on the terrace and wait for me...” she pointed to the side of the house that had that glass place with plants inside “...or you can walk around as long as you stay together.”
“Yay! We get to see the lake!” Addison shouted, already running.
“Stay away from the water!” Mommy yelled.
As if seeing the lake was some big deal, Taylor thought, when all she wanted to see was Kirby.
Taylor followed her sister, stopping short when she saw Addison talking to that man. Tyrone had told her he was The Terminator. She wasn’t sure what that meant, but she would call him that, too. Right now, he was bending down and staring at Addison through those dumb sunglasses.
“So how is your dog?” he asked.
“He’s great!” Addison said. “Now he lives with us.”
“Your mom is going to let you keep him?”
Addison nodded. “He was a stray and he needed a forever home. He’s our dog now.”
Taylor scowled. Kirby was her dog!
“Yeah, I know what it’s like to have nowhere to call home,” The Terminator said. “I’m something of a stray myself.”
Taylor moved away from them. Mommy said they could walk anywhere, so she walked around the house, stopping by the glass room, where she peered inside. So many plants. And flowers. Mommy said it was too early for most flowers now, but there were tons of them on the other side of the glass.
It looked like a cool place to hang out.
Why not?
No one was going to miss her, anyway.
* * *
“OKAY, READY TO GO,” Heather said when the tools were safely locked up in the coach house. She was being extra careful about them now.
Addison was entertaining Rick, if the smile on his face was any indication. While she watched, the little girl made expansive gestures, Rick nodding like he understood everything.
“Hey, Addison,” Heather called. Rick looked in her direction. “Gotta go,” she told him.
“I’ll walk you to the parking lot.” He was talking to Addison, but Heather realized his attention was focused on her.
“Have a nice night,” Amber said as she and Tyrone headed for the EPI truck.
“You, too.” Heather realized she didn’t see Taylor. When Addison took her hand, she asked, “Where’s your sister?”
Addison shrugged. “She ran off somewhere.”
Heather looked to Rick. “Did you see where she went?”
“Sorry, no.”
“Taylor!” she yelled. “We’re going now!”
But no little blond head poked out from anywhere.
Thinking that Taylor was playing a game with her, she called again. “Come out, come out, wherever you are!”
And got exactly zero response.
Now she was getting a bit concerned. “I’d better look for her. Addison, are you sure you haven’t seen your sister?”
Addison’s little face puckered as she shook her head a second time. “I was talking to Rick.”
Realizing she was scaring her daughter, Heather gave her a quick hug. “I’m not upset with you. I’m sure Taylor is just hiding on us. You can get in the SUV and wait while I find her, okay?”
“’Kay.”
Heather made sure Addison went straight to the vehicle and climbed in the back before taking her eyes off the girl. “I don’t know whether to be annoyed or worried.”
Rick told her, “I don’t think there’s anything to worry about, but I’ll help you look for her.”
“Thanks.”
Heather was pretty sure Taylor wouldn’t like Rick getting in the middle of things, but she didn’t care at the moment. She didn’t appreciate her daughter trying to scare her like this. Truth be told, it was working.
They set off over the grounds, heading south toward the boathouse. Heather’s worried gaze continually flicked out to the lake, though she’d cautioned the twins over and over not to go near the water.
“Taylor, honey, it’s time to go home!”
She tried keeping her voice normal, as if nothing was wrong.
What if Taylor decided to play at the shoreline and a big wave swept her out into the lake? But surely she would have screamed and someone would have heard her.
“Taylor, where are you?”
With each passing minute, her fear that something had happened to her child grew, making it harder and harder for Heather to breathe normally.
“I’ll check inside.” Rick indicated the boathouse.
“Wouldn’t your cell have warned you the camera went on?”
“I’ll check, anyway. You keep going, and I’ll catch up to you.”
Heather swallowed hard and nodded. She kept walking, calling out for Taylor every few seconds. A few minutes later, she was at the property fence line, and Rick jogged over to her.
“The boathouse was empty. No sign of anyone having been in there. Sorry.”
“Rick, where could she be?” Heather was fighting tears now. “I was only gone for—”
“Hey, don’t blame yourself.” He put his arms around her and rubbed her back. “Taylor’s a little kid. Something got her attention, and she probably went off to investigate.”
Heather leaned into him, appreciating his attempt at comforting her, even if wasn’t working. “But why isn’t she answering when I call her?”
“Come on.” His arm around her shoulders, Rick led her back toward the house. “Maybe she can’t hear you.”
“You think she wandered off the property?”
“Not necessarily.”
He didn’t let go of her until they reached the terrace, where a couple of the guests sat talking.
“Have you seen a little girl wandering around here?” Rick asked.
“No,” the man said.
“I hope she’s all right,” the woman added.
“Thanks.” Heather swallowed hard.
Rick examined the ground as they walked closer to the house.
“What are you looking for?”
“Footprints. The rain might have stopped yesterday, but the ground is still damp.”
Heather looked, too, but Rick was the one who spotted the prints in the garden area outside the conservatory.
“Made by little sneakers,” he said, then turned his attention upward. “And someone opened the conservatory door.”
Heather could see the door hadn’t quite latched properly. She never would have noticed if Rick hadn’t pointed it out.
“Thank goodness. She’s probably inside.”
Rick opened the door and indicated Heather should go first. As she met his gaze, she hoped he could read the depth of her gratitude for his help.
The conservatory was warm and humid and filled with tropical plants. Greenery and bromeliads and bird of paradise. But the orchids were most spectacular, several cultivars in different colors dotting every area in the large room.
“Taylor, are you in here?”
No answer.
“Taylor, come out now!”
Assuming her child was hiding from her, Heather started searching the conservatory, taking a small pathway into a jungle-thick area. Rick searched in the other direction.
When it became obvious Taylor was nowhere to be found, Heather asked, “Can she get into the house from here?”
“She can if the door is unlocked.” Rick was already heading for it. “I’ll check.” He jiggled the handle, but the door didn’t budge. “Nope.”
“Where else could she be?”
She noticed him running his hand along a wall.
“Wait a minute. You said there might be secret rooms...”
“There are hidden passageways here and there in the house. Tunnels.”
“Tunnels?” Heather’s heart beat faster. Was there no end to the mysteries around here? She fought back her rising panic. “Could Taylor have found her way into a secret passageway?”
“I doubt it. The entry spots are concealed and not easy to open.” He slid his hand under a potting bench. Heather heard a sharp click and part of the wall popped open. She moved to join him and saw a dozen stairs leading downward into darkness.
“There’s no light?”
Was her child down there? Heather was quickly losing her sense of equilibrium, her breathing rapid.
“It’ll be okay.” Rick pulled out his phone and turned on the flashlight app. “This is good enough for me to take a look. You stay up here and watch for her.”
“All right.”
Remaining in the conservatory, Heather walked over to the windows to look outside but turned at a noise behind her. Taylor stood there, barely a yard away. Relief flooded her.
“Rick!” she called. “You can come back. I found her!”
“Are we going home now?” Taylor asked as if nothing was wrong.
Heather could finally breathe again. The little girl looked just fine other than some streaks of dirt on her clothes and skin. She and Addison used to love to hide in tiny spaces, but Heather couldn’t imagine where she’d done so in here. Under one of the tables? Or behind a large potted palm?
“Where were you?” Heather demanded as Rick came up behind her.
Taylor’s expression suddenly darkened when she saw him. “Nowhere.”
“Never disappear on me like that again! You scared me.” When her daughter didn’t say anything, Heather added, “Taylor, do you hear me?”
The little girl shrugged. “Yes.” Her mouth tightened.
She was being Taylor-impossible, as only she could be, Heather realized. No sense in having it out here. Besides, she wanted to wait a bit, so she could first reasonably explain why Taylor should never scare her like that again. She turned the girl toward the door.
“You and I are going to have a talk when we get home.”
Glancing back, Heather saw Rick staring after them, his expression thoughtful. She silently mouthed thank you, and he simply nodded in acknowledgment and waved.
Taylor remained sullen all the way to the parking lot, but once inside the SUV with her chatty twin, she seemed to be in a better mood. She left the girls to themselves on the ride home, while she calmed down. She’d never had a scare like that before. She was beginning to feel a little creeped out by the Flanagan estate. Thieves and now secret tunnels. She hadn’t even asked Rick if the intruder had gotten in via a secret passageway or broken a window. They hadn’t had time to talk.
“That house is like a castle,” Addison told Taylor, “from one of our books. And you were like a princess kept there by a dragon. That’s why we couldn’t find you.”
“A big ugly Rick dragon!” agreed Taylor.
“Oh, he isn’t so ugly,” objected Addison.
“He’s mean!” said Taylor.
“No, he isn’t.”
“Girls, girls,” said Heather. How did they manage so often to make things into an argument? “Rick is not a dragon.” Though she had no idea if one might dwell in the mansion’s secret tunnels.
Addison leaned forward. “But Taylor is a princess.”
“Well, I can agree to that. You’re both princesses.”
“And we’re in a punkin.”
“Uh-huh, this car is a pumpkin,” Heather agreed, enjoying the imaginative play. “And we’re going home to our own little castle where I’ll serve you sloppy joes for your royal supper.”
“And then we’ll stay up late and watch a movie!” Addison went on enthusiastically.
“I don’t know about that.” But Heather laughed. Then she started thinking about whether or not she wanted the twins to set foot on the estate again. Considering they were at camp nearby and needed to go home with her, she didn’t have much choice. She was just going to have to be careful. She told herself that the thief who’d been haunting the mansion wasn’t interested in children. She also assured herself that the hidden tunnels weren’t easily accessible. At least that’s what Rick had said.
She was glad to get home. When Taylor ran straight to Kirby’s kennel, Heather said, “Addison, will you take Kirby out to the yard, please?”
Taylor protested, “But he’s my dog!”
“He belongs to the whole family.” Including Brian and Kristen, Heather thought.
“Why can’t I walk him?”
Taylor was shouting at her, but Heather forced herself to remain calm. “Because you’re filthy from whatever you were doing. You need to wash up and change into clean clothes. Right now.”
Her little face screwed into an angry expression, Taylor left the kitchen. And Addison got the dog on his leash. He was wagging his tail and staring at the little girl ado
ringly.
Addison started for the back door but stopped halfway through the kitchen. “Kirby is so happy here in his forever home.”
“He is, isn’t he?” Heather said. “That’s because he’s not a stray anymore.”
“Rick’s a stray. Can we help him get his forever home?”
A stray. Heather had to chuckle, though she was touched that Addison wanted to help him. “Don’t worry about Rick, honey. He’s not in any danger of going to the pound.”
Addison considered that. “Okay,” she said at last, and took the dog out the back door.
Leaving Heather leaning on the refrigerator to get her balance back. Both girls were basically good kids who got out of hand once in a while. Especially Taylor. Lately, she had become impossible at times. Heather vowed she would find a way to cope, as she always did. This was simply a new phase, one that Taylor would grow out of. Tyrone had called it the psycho sixes. At least Taylor hadn’t broken anything.
She opened the refrigerator and pulled out a package of ground beef for the sloppy joes, vegetables to make a big salad and fruit for dessert. As she prepared dinner, she heard the water running in the bathroom, then a few minutes later, the television in the living room.
Needing to use the bathroom herself, she left the kitchen. Taylor was at the DVD player. Though she wanted to know what her daughter was up to, it could wait.
In the bathroom, she saw that Taylor had simply stepped out of her dirty clothes and left them in the middle of the floor. Shaking her head, she picked them up to put them in the hamper. Before doing so, she checked the pockets to make certain nothing was in them and pulled out a piece of paper.
A folded-up ten dollar bill.
A ten dollar bill that looked kind of weird. It had a gold seal and the words Gold Certificate. A closer look showed her that it had been minted in 1922, nearly a century before.
Where in the world had Taylor found this?
Her mind immediately went to Red Flanagan’s secret treasure that Rick had mentioned.
Heather headed for the living room to find out where her daughter had gone when she’d disappeared.