Chapter Four
“So, you knew it wasreal?”Asa asked.
Miss Amy looked at him and a single tear fell down her face.“All my life, my grandpa told me stories of the old pirate, he made him sound almost noble, but he also warned me that he was still a pirate and they did bad things.He taught me over those years that a pirate’s treasure would bring everyone out of the woodwork to try and cash in on the deal.Those rumors would bring people to the mountain looking for something that may or may not even be real.He used to tell me this mountain was a work of God and they would destroy this sacred place if they had the chance.When he was a younger man, he bought the whole mountain.He wanted to keep this place intact and he told me it was our family’s job to protect this mountain.”Miss Amy shook her head.“But that was a long time ago.I never knew what happened between my dad and Simon because he never told me but before he died, he said Simon believed the treasure was real and that one day he would come back to try to take it.My father asked me to stop him from destroying the mountain.”
The room went quiet as everyone listened.
Taking a deep breath she went on, “I never told him about what grandpa had handed over to me right after he and Simon fought.He gave me his grandfather’s diaries.Those are the same dairies Simon thinks are his grandfather’s.They aren’t, these diaries belong to the old pirate himself.I never read them until now.I buried them years ago and they stayed buried until I had Asa get them.I never trusted Amos, you see.I knew who he was all along, but I was lonely all those years ago and I let him stay because he was another body in the house.I knew those trips he used to take weren’t always on the up and up, but I never expected them to be as bad as they turned out.I knew he was searching the mountain for the treasure but I also knew he would never find it, not without the map and I had the map.I guess I wanted to see just how long he would stay here looking for it.”She shook her head.“Amos has done so much damage over the years.I don’t even know how to make amends for everything he’s done.I can’t say I’m sorry he’s sitting in a cell.Maybe now everyone he’s ever wronged can begin to heal.”
Chandler just shook her head.“He wasn’t the only one, you know.Ross Baker was the worst I think but Amos set him up and Ross used the rage he had from the lies his mother told him.It was just complicated, you know?”
Sophie sighed.“Life gets that way sometimes.My dad never got over believing the family was holding out on him.He always thought the damn treasure should have been divided up and sold off to make their lives better.”
Miss Amy nodded.“The only problem with that is the treasure was stolen from its rightful owners by the pirate.This family never owned it in the first place.We still don't, despite what Simon thinks, it is still stolen goods.And there are no limitations on stolen goods.”
Asa shrugged.“And now there’s probably no people from Nikolas’s family line alive anymore.”
Miss Amy shook her head.“There might be a direct descendant and if there is that treasure belongs to them, not anyone in my family.But I have no way of finding that out.”
“Well, if we find the treasure we can get word out and see what happens.”Asa rubbed his jaw.“We just have to be careful, you know?We don’t need to start a stampede of Russian hooligans trying to cash in on the cash.”
Miss Amy nodded.“But before we can even look for the treasure we have to deal with Simon and Emma.”
Jolene made a face.“They are sitting in a jail cell right now, the one you need to find is Patsy.You have no idea what she could do.”
Sophie nodded.“That girl was raised to be an absolute bitch of entitlement and her mother taught her to go for the gold.”She shook her head.
Jolene agreed, “She’s an outright bully.In school, she’s been in trouble so many times, Emma had to take her out.That just made Patsy happy.She now roams our town and has a payoff route.”
“A payoff...”Rock stared at her.
“Yes, he does shakedowns.”
“What?”he tucked his head back.“You mean like for lunch money?”He scoffed.
“I mean for lunch, dinner.Hell, a whole buffet.She brings home cash.Buys frivolous junk with it too.Or pizza, junk food, soda and other stuff."
“So, she’s a born criminal?”Rock asked her.
Nodding, Jolene sighed.“She...”
“What?”he asked.
She looked so forlorn for a minute.
