Chapter 28
Nash had never seen two helicopters full of Cross and Stone adults look quite so determined. As Marshall expertly piloted the lead aircraft over the familiar landscape of Cross Creek Ranch, Nash squeezed Amy’s hand and watched his childhood home spread out below them.
“There,” Amy called out over the rotor noise, pointing toward the rocky outcropping marked on her map fragment. “That’s where we need to start.”
The helicopters touched down in a cloud of dust and prairie grass, and Nash helped Amy out while Porter immediately took charge of the operation with his typical ranch-boss efficiency.
The entire extended family spilled out of both aircraft—all the Cross and Stone siblings with their wives, creating quite the crowd on the Montana prairie.
“Alright, everyone listen up,” Porter bellowed, his voice carrying easily over the dying whine of the rotors.
“We’re going to grid-search this entire area.
I want every square inch covered systematically.
Trey, take your brothers and start at the north ridge.
Brooks, Hunter, Trent—you’re with him. Colt, you and Blaze work the eastern slope with Sierra and Eden.
Chance, you’re with me and Sadie on the southern boundary. ”
Nash watched with amusement as his sister-in-law Sadie saluted Porter with mock seriousness. “Yes, sir, General Cross.”
Porter shot her a look that was half annoyed, half affectionate. “Don’t start with me, woman.”
Nash grinned. Some things never changed—Porter would organize a family picnic like a military operation if given half the chance.
“What about the rest of us?” Cheyenne asked, gesturing to herself, Kelly, and the Stone women who stood ready for assignments.
“Kelly and Cheryse, you work with Chance and me,” Porter continued without missing a beat. “Kensi and Liberty, you’re with the Stone brothers on the ridge. Ava and Serenity, coordinate communications between the groups. Kat, you’re with Marshall when he finishes his aerial reconnaissance.”
“What about us?” Nash asked, gesturing to himself and Amy.
Porter consulted the map fragment Amy had saved. “You two take the center area, right here where the symbols are most concentrated. And Nash—” His expression grew serious. “Be careful. That’s close to where Dad always told us to stay away from.”
Nash felt a familiar chill run down his spine. Their father had been very specific about certain areas of the ranch being off-limits due to “unstable ground conditions” and “dangerous gas pockets.” As children, they’d obeyed without question. As adults, they’d simply accepted it as fact.
Now, walking hand in hand with Amy across the uneven terrain while the voices of both families spread out across the prairie, Nash couldn’t help but wonder what his father had really been protecting them from.
“Your dad was smart,” Amy said, as if reading his thoughts. “If he knew about the gold, keeping you boys away would have been the safest thing to do.”
Nash nodded, though part of him felt a pang of loss. All those years, the treasure had been right here, practically in their backyard, and they’d never known.
Around them, the organized chaos of the search was already in full swing. Nash could hear Colt’s voice calling out coordinates to Sierra, while Eden told Blaze about spot irregularities in the landscape. Trey’s military commands mixed with Kensi’s enthusiastic observations.
They worked in comfortable silence for the first hour, methodically searching the area marked on Amy’s map fragment.
“Nash, look at this,” Amy called out, crouching beside a cluster of boulders that formed a natural windbreak.
Nash hurried to her side, following her gaze to where she pointed. There, carved into the weathered stone, was the unmistakable broken arrow symbol they’d been finding everywhere.
“It’s here,” Amy breathed, her eyes bright with excitement. “We’re close.”
Nash felt his pulse quicken as he examined the carving. It was old—decades old, at least—and deliberately placed where it would be sheltered from the worst of the weather.
They expanded their search around the symbol, working outward in careful circles. Nash was so focused on scanning the ground that he didn’t notice the slight depression until his boot scraped against something that definitely wasn’t rock or dirt.
The metallic scraping sound made him stop dead in his tracks.
“What was that?” Amy asked, moving to his side.
Nash kicked at the spot where his boot had caught, and again came the distinctive ring of metal against metal. His adrenaline spiked as he dropped to his knees, brushing away loose dirt and dried grass.
“Amy,” he said, his voice tight with excitement. “Look at this.”
Together, they cleared away the accumulated debris of years, revealing the edge of what appeared to be another metal hatch. It was partially hidden beneath a large sagebrush that had grown up around it, providing perfect natural camouflage.
As Nash worked to expose more of the structure, Amy suddenly grabbed his arm. “Nash, look,” she whispered, pointing to a spot just visible on the metal surface.
There, etched into the steel, was another broken arrow symbol.
“Guys!” Nash shouted, his voice carrying across the prairie. “Come quick! We found another silo!”
The sound of running footsteps reached them within minutes as both families converged on their location.
“Well, I’ll be darned,” Porter muttered, dropping to his knees beside Nash to examine the hatch while Sadie peered over his shoulder. “Dad never mentioned this one.”
Trey appeared at Porter’s side, Ava and Kensi flanking him. “This is definitely military-grade construction.”
Porter nodded. “Same era as the other silos we found.”
Brooks knelt beside them with Serenity. “And if it’s hidden this well, there’s something important down there.”
“The broken arrow symbol is perfectly preserved,” Amy observed, running her finger along the etched metal. “Your father hid it perfectly and made sure this would be found by the right people.”
Colt, Chance, and Blaze dropped to their knees, pulling up the hatch. Nash felt Amy’s hand slip into his as they watched the others work.
Marshall appeared with Kat and a set of tools. “I grabbed these from the helo.”
Colt turned and grabbed a tool, using it to put leverage on the lid. “The real question is, why didn’t Dad tell any of us about it?”
Hunter and Cheryse nodded in agreement beside him.
Brooks grinned at them. “I might have to leave this out of the FBI report.”
Trent laughed. “Let’s do this,” he said, squeezing Liberty’s hand.
“Only one way to find out,” Chance said, and Kelly moved to stand supportively beside him.
Nash looked around at the assembled group—two entire families who had dropped everything to help him find Amy, who had risked their lives in a treasure hunt that had become far more dangerous than anyone anticipated. Now they were all here, ready to see this through to the end together.
Amy’s smile was radiant with determination as she squeezed his hand. “Let’s finish this.”
As the others worked to open the mysterious hatch, Nash couldn’t shake the feeling that they were about to uncover more than just gold. They were about to learn the truth about their father’s secrets and the treasure that had connected two families across decades of searching.
The sound of metal grinding against metal filled the air as the hatch finally gave way, revealing the dark opening below.
Nash felt Amy’s grip tighten on his hand as they all leaned forward—Cross and Stone families united.