Chapter 8 #3
She hoped he wasn’t expecting a response to that.
The trail became even steeper, the rungs spaced farther apart, forcing her to stretch uncomfortably between each one.
The sound of rain hitting the metal echoed in her ears.
By the time they reached the narrowest ledge, Scout’s leg muscles were screaming.
She couldn’t go any farther. She pressed herself flat against the rock wall, her fingers digging into the cracks for stability, her eyes squeezed shut so she couldn’t look down.
Naki, who’d been climbing swiftly, gracefully, like he’d done this a hundred times before, called to her as if he knew she was losing it. “We’re almost to the summit.”
She hoped Naki was telling her the truth. Her dad used to trick her into enduring long hikes. “Just around the bend, Scout,” or “Over this hill and we’ll be at the top.”
Naki’s deep voice swirled around her. “You’re doing just fine, Scout. Just fine.”
She opened her eyes, looking up toward Naki, and let out a long exhale.
Pull it together, girl, she told herself.
You are a ranger for the National Park Service, for heaven’s sake.
Slowly, steadily, she put one foot in front of the other until she reached the summit marker.
With one hand braced against the marker, the other gripping her knee, she leaned forward, dragging in sharp, uneven breaths.
Out of shape? Maybe. Not used to the altitude?
Possibly. Or—Elizabeth would no doubt argue—just another lovely symptom of acrophobia.
But she was here, wasn’t she? She hadn’t avoided the climb. That had to count for something.
Naki, not even breathing hard, was already scanning the area, walking carefully over the uneven boulders.
The rain had slowed to a drizzle, the world eerily quiet except for the occasional rumble of thunder in the distance.
He paused for a moment, hands on his hips, facing the Gulf of Maine.
“Even under gray skies, isn’t it spectacular?
The ocean stretches out in every direction. Look at that view, Scout.”
But she was trying very hard not to look. “You think the gold will be tucked in a rock like last time?”
He spun around to face her. “‘The hive upon the hill hides a secret within its stones, but only for those bold enough to climb to its peak.’” He lifted his hands. “Where else could it be?”
True. There wasn’t much else here besides boulders. They combed the area, each taking a section, until Naki called to her. “Scout. Can you come over here?”
She turned to see him down on his knees, peering under a nondescript boulder.
“Can you fit your hand in this crevice?”
Oh, not again. Her poor hand. She wished she’d thought to bring gloves. She crouched down beside him and squeezed her left hand—not her scratched-up right hand—into a small opening in the rock. She pulled it out again. “I have to get lower.” She lay on her side on the wet boulder and tried again.
This time, her arm was able to get farther in, deeper, deeper, until she was able to feel something cold and hard.
Her fingers ran around the edges. “I think it’s .
. .” She wiggled closer so she could put her hand around the sharp corners.
“I think it is!” She tugged and tugged, and it started to move, so she wiggled herself back a bit.
Naki braced her shoulders to give her support, and for a moment, his nearness almost undid her.
The way his hands held her—strong and firm, but so gentle too.
She squeezed her eyes shut. Get to work, girl.
She pulled once more, and it loosened enough that she could get her fingers around it.
Slowly, out it came. A tarnished brass box.
Naki took it from her and waited to open the box until she sat up. Inside was a sack, just like the other box, with gold coins inside. Scout’s and Naki’s eyes caught, sharing a feeling of awe.
“All this time,” she said, “it’s been here. Think of the thousands of people who have summited this trail every summer and stood on top of a treasure without knowing it. Hidden in plain sight.”
Naki tipped his head. “Not exactly plain sight.”
“How’d you figure out it could be underneath?”
“That cranny in the rock. It seems the lighthouse keeper has a fondness for crevices.”
She stretched out her aching hand and shook it. “In the most difficult-to-get-to places.”
A smile played at the corners of Naki’s mouth. Good night. If that man ever gave her a full-out smile, Scout might keel right over in a dead faint. She shook off that thought. Sheer nonsense. She’d known him about a minute.
Fortunately, he had no idea what was running through her mind.
He folded the sack and placed it back into the box. He rose to his feet. “Let’s get down the mountain. The descent is usually easier than the ascent.”
The rain had stopped, and Naki moved ahead, steady and deliberate, but the slick ground kept Scout’s eyes right on the path ahead, step by step.
She had to focus, though her mind was swirling with questions and she needed answers.
When they descended to the part of the trail that led to the trailhead, she said, “What do you know about the lighthouse keeper that you didn’t want Chase to hear?
” When he didn’t respond, she wondered if he didn’t hear her or if he was ignoring her.
But then Naki slowed and glanced back at her. “His death appears to be suspicious.”
Scout stopped in her tracks. “Suspicious?”
Naki nodded, then he started down the trail.
That only got her mind spinning with more questions. She hurried to catch up with him. “Do you think the murderer was in on it with him? Or do you think he knew that the keeper had turned off the light that stormy night and was blackmailin’ him?”
Naki stopped and turned to her. “I never said anything about murder.” He started down the trail again.
She hurried after him. “It makes sense that he might have been murdered, doesn’t it? Someone else wanted that gold.”
Naki pivoted so quickly Scout had to stop abruptly to keep from walking right into him. “Why do you think the lighthouse keeper took the gold in the first place?”
“Greed, I suppose. But he knew that if he suddenly showed up in town with gold coins, he’d be found out. So he hid the gold and waited. But he never got to find it because someone else found him first.”
“That’s one theory.” He started down the trail, his head turned slightly so she could hear him. “But here’s another. What if he didn’t care so much about taking the gold as he did about not wanting anyone else to get it?”
But that theory made no sense to Scout. She was just about to tell him so when her foot slipped on the slick path. She yelped, windmilling her arms for balance, but before she could hit the ground, Naki caught her.
He steadied her by holding her tightly against him and didn’t let go immediately. She couldn’t ignore the small jolts that ran through her body, nor could she stop her runaway thoughts. He smelled so good, a heady mix of cedar and rain-soaked earth that made her lightheaded.
“Got your footing?”
“Yes. Thank you, sir,” she said, looking down to break the spell.
Be a professional, be a professional, be a professional, she repeated to herself, like a mantra.
But a question burned in her throat, and before she could stop herself, she looked up and blurted it out.
“That little boy . . . the one who ran into the library for ice cream money, is he your son?”
For a long moment, Naki didn’t respond. His eyes moved over her face, landing on her lips. “I have many sons and daughters. When this is over, come to Penobscot Indian Island and pay us a visit.”
There it was. The confirmation settled in her chest, solid and undeniable. Now she knew for sure. Married, married, married. Probably to that gorgeous woman from the library talk—the one who hovered near him, eyes locked on his every move, like he was the center of her universe.
Naki released her, scooped up her hat, and handed it over. “Let’s keep moving.”
Scout adjusted it, frowning as she realized her pink ribbon was gone—must’ve slipped off in the fall. She cast a quick glance around, but it was nowhere in sight. Meanwhile, Naki was already several steps ahead, not waiting. With a sigh, she gave up the search and hurried after him.
When he reached the trailhead, he stopped to wait for her. “Before we get to the jeep, call Ranger Rivers to update him. Ask him how much he wants the reporter to know.”
“Right. Of course.” She should’ve been the one to think of calling the chief. But something about this man—his intensity, his presence—knocked her off balance.
Good night. Get it together, girl. She was a ranger, after all.
Chase sprawled out along the back seat of the jeep, head and shoulders against one window, feet propped against the opposite window. The steady drum of rain on the roof had slowed to a quiet tap-tap-tap, the kind of rhythm that could lull someone to sleep—if his brain wasn’t working overtime.
For a minute or two after Scout hurried away to catch up with Naki, he considered following her.
He knew she’d left the jeep because she didn’t want to be alone with him.
If there was any doubt that he’d botched things with her by taking Maisie’s envelope, it was now clear.
He had. And he wanted to repair that damage, sooner rather than later.
But then he realized that her abrupt departure had provided him time.
Precious, uninterrupted time. He flipped open his notebook and started writing in quick, urgent bursts.
The skeleton of a story—something big, something real—was starting to take shape, and for the first time in months, Chase felt like there was hope for his newspaper.
But still so many questions to find answers to.
He was so focused on writing that he nearly jumped out of his skin when the jeep door opened with a loud creak. Scout climbed in first, drenched and muddy, her hair plastered to her cheeks. Naki followed close behind, holding a small old brass box.
Chase’s jaw dropped. “No way. NO. WAY.” He pushed himself upright, his notebook slipping to the floor. “That’s it? You found it? You actually found gold?”
Scout shot him a look, her face a mix of exhaustion and triumph. “He did.”
“I want details,” Chase said. “Where you found it, how you found it.”
“Give us a minute to dry off, Chase. Then you can ask questions. Ranger Rivers gave us the go-ahead to give you the scoop.” Scout got two towels out of the back of the jeep and tossed one through the open jeep to Naki.
Chase reached down to pick up his notebook to get ready to start writing.
Waiting for Scout to return to the driver’s seat, he tapped his pen against the paper.
It amazed him that Naki had cracked the clue.
Yesterday’s and today’s. His sixth sense for these things was .
. . unnerving. Like a human treasure compass.
Next clue, Chase decided, he’d be in on the hunt. Front row seat.
Text conversation between Maisie and Frankie:
Maisie
Hey Frankie! Where are we meeting for carriage road maintenance tomorrow?
Frankie
Dunno.
Maybe the ranger station? That’s where we met last time. But sometimes they change it. Fun fact. Did you know they use crushed rock to “salt” the carriage roads for drainage? The ranger told me that’s why they hold up so well.
Uh-huh. Except for the parts that don’t.
Fun fact: In the winter, they maintain the roads but they don’t use actual salt because it’s bad for the horses’ hooves. Isn’t that cool? So where should we meet tomorrow? Oh! The ranger told me to bring gloves cuz lots of roots need clearing so the tourists don’t trip and die.
Maybe the roots should be left alone. Give natural selection an opportunity to weed out idiots.
LOL! So, see you at the station at 8?
Pause. No response.
Is that a yes?
Frankie?
Dunno.
Close enough! See you then!