“But we know it close enough to certain to believe it’s the truth,” Roger finishes, also in a whisper.
“We weren’t sure we should tell you at all.”
“But if people are searching your house because they think you have clues to the treasure, then you need to know so you can protect yourself.”
I shake my head. “Why does everyone think that someone ransacked my house looking for things related to the treasure?”
Clearly, they did. But how does everyone else know it?
“Because of what happened at the museum during Cooper’s wedding,” Maria replies. “The actual audacity, to do that in broad daylight while a wedding was going on just outside.”
Oh.
That makes sense.
“Adrenaline junkies.” Roger snorts. “I hate people who’re that bold. But to answer your question, there’s been people over in Sarcasm asking things they shouldn’t be asking.”
“Things about things that Roger didn’t even know until about six months ago himself.” Maria reaches for him.
Roger finds her hand with his meaty paw and squeezes it. “Loyalty to Annika is the only reason we’re not telling the world. She’s happy here. That matters most.”
“This sounds ominous,” I murmur.
Maria leans further over the table. “The treasure isn’t in Shipwreck.”
I make a noise between a croak and a gasp. “You think it’s real too?”
Crap crapcrap. That was loud.
I drop my voice to a whisper again and repeat myself. “You think it’s real?”
“Oh, it’s real,” Roger says. “Been real forever. And the reason nobody’s ever found it is because it’s not here.”
“How do you know that?”
He smirks at me. His dark beard has turned nearly pure white since I first met him several years ago, and his balding forehead reaches almost all the way back to the nape of his neck, whereas he had a little more hair on top a few years ago.
But that smirk—that smirk saysI might be getting old, but I’m not getting dumb.
“You didn’t think I’d give you everything I had for a museumhere, did you?” he says.
I shake my head. “Of course not. Not with the history between?—”
I cut myself off with a gasp.
He tilts his head toward me, anow you’re getting itif I’ve ever seen one.
“The treasure is the real reason why the towns fight?” I’m having to fight myself to remember to keep my voice low. “Oh my god. Is the treasure in Sarcasm?”
His chair creaks as he shifts in it.
“We don’t know for sure, but we think so,” Maria says. “When Bailey comes home from college for Thanksgiving in a few weeks, the three of us are going to figure it out.”
My brain is spinning.
The treasure not being in Shipwreck would explain why it’s never been found, which,duh.
That’s something all of the Rocks said to me recently too.If it exists, it’s not here.
