Ever seen a pirate angry?
That’s Pop right now.
He’s shrunk a little in stature since the first time I saw him, but he’s in full pirate regalia, from the boots to the sword to the coat to the hat to the bird on his shoulder.
“You stole my diary,” he yells at me before we’re fully out of the car.
Sloane jumps in front of me like she needs to protect me from the old man’s wrath, and my heart does that pitter-patter thing again.
“Whoa, deep breath, Pop. It was me. I took the pictures. Davis doesn’t have your diary.”
His eyes cross. “You took pictures of my diary?”
“Rawk! What do you want on your tombstone, sucker? Rawk!”
I move to get in front of Sloane, but she flings an arm out and holds me back.
And my heart pitter-patters harder.
People don’t protect me.
I protect them.
This woman will be the one to break me.
“Someone’s going to get hurt looking for the treasure.” Sloane’s voice is calm and measured, and she doesn’t flinch when Pop takes two steps toward her. “Your family will get hurt looking for this treasure. You think the people who are breaking into the museum and into my house will stop with me? They’ll target Tillie Jean next. Or Grady and Annika. Or you. Or any of your other kids or grandkids.”
Pop growls.
“Rawk! Watch the fucker’s blood pressure! Rawk!”
“Good point, Long Beak Silver. Pop, let’s go inside and have some food and talk about why we need to find this treasure now.”
“Nobody’s finding the treasure.”
“Because you already found it?”
He snorts.
That’s not a good sound.
“Where’d you find it, Pop?” Sloane says.
“I didn’t find it,” he grumbles. “Been all over that damn nature preserve. My whole damn life. Figured it out without all of that fancy internet stuff you can do nowadays. And I’m telling you, it’s not there. And I’m also telling you, I want my diary back.”
“Rawk! Hand it over and walk the plank! Rawk!”
“Shouldn’t that beor?” Sloane says to the parrot.
“Rawk! Fuck off! Rawk!”
“Max will be so disappointed in you.”
“Rawk! I love Max! Rawk!”
“Exactly. Wait.Wait. Are you sure the diary’s missing, Pop? We don’t have the diary. When did it go missing?”
Shit.
