Magic. Just magic. How did both of these men manage Frankie with just a look? It was like a superpower. Scout wondered how she could get it.
Then her phone vibrated again with another text. Grrr! She wanted that superpower to use on her mother too.
“And the gold,” Naki said, in that quietly authoritative tone, “was never recovered.”
Frankie jumped forward. “But how do you know for sure? I mean, this was like, way before scuba tanks were invented, right? Maybe it’s still down there.”
“Skilled divers from the tribe sought the gold. It was never located.”
“No way! So cool!” Frankie was practically shouting. “Like, this iswayback in the Dark Ages!”
Ignoring him, the chief redirected to Naki. “So what are your thoughts? Is there a chance that the gold was never on the ship?”
“Records indicate that gold was part of the cargo.”
“Or were there any survivors?” Frankie said. “Maybe a couple of ’em made off with the gold before the ship sank.”
“No survivors,” Naki said.
“Or...” Scout said, “did the lighthouse keeper get to the gold before the divers?”
Naki locked eyes with her. “I think that’s the theory we needto explore. Starting with those clues.” He put one hand on the desk, and Scout noticed how long and tapered his fingers were, how youthful. She wondered again how old he was. Then she reminded herself that he was probably married, with at least one child. Maybe more.Shake it off, girl!And with that thought came another text.Mother!
“Tim,” Naki said, “I would like to see the clues. In fact, I’d like to take them back with me to study them.”
A slightly panicked look filled the chief’s eyes. “I can’t find them! I left the envelope here yesterday afternoon. It was right here.” He opened a desk drawer. “I am absolutely, positively sure I left it here.”
“You can’t find it?” Naki’s tone was calm, but the slight edge to it made Scout’s stomach flip.
Ranger Rivers straightened up, looking both embarrassed and flustered. “I—I thought it’d be safe in the office. I didn’t think anyone would come looking.”
“Is anything else missing?” Naki said.
“No. I checked.” The chief shook his head. “No one knew about the envelope but the three of us.”
Scout’s heart skipped a beat. Her gaze flicked around the room, the reality of the situation sinking in. If someone had stolen the envelope, that meant they knew exactly what it contained. They had to. But how? How could anyone have known? And then her phone vibrated again. She pulled her phone out and powered it down. She kept her eyes down, fully aware everyone was watching her. She slipped it back into her pocket and got back to business. “Sir, perhaps it would help if you’d go back over the events of yesterday. Frankie and I brought the envelope to you.”
“Good idea. Okay. Before we went to meet Naki at the library, I locked it in my desk drawer. Afterward, I came back to my office and saw my phone left on top of the desk. I pickedit up and saw all these missed texts and calls. I’d completely forgotten that Maisie was due in yesterday afternoon. She’d been waiting for me at the Village Green.”
“Who’s Maisie?” Scout said.
“My granddaughter. I’m sure you’ll meet her soon.”
Frankie scoffed. “The whole town will meet her soon. Prepare yourself, Scout. She’s the most talkative girl on this planet.”
The chief scowled at him. “So I hurried to pick up Maisie, and we went out to dinner.” He pointed a finger at Frankie. “He joined us.”
“You didn’t have the envelope with you,” Frankie said.
“Of course I didn’t!” The chief’s tone sounded edgy. “No one in their right mind would take something of that importance to a greasy diner.”
“So, after you had dinner, what next?” Scout said. “What about today?”
The chief rubbed his jaw wearily. “I’ve been in meetings all day. I just got back to my office a few minutes before you arrived.”
Quietly, Naki said, “Let’s back up. Did you discuss the shipwreck with anyone at the restaurant?”
“No. Not a word.” The chief sounded adamant.
