Chapter 18
Lana
It’s a man, shrouded in dark clothing. He steps closer, and I instinctively move behind Caleb, one hand gripping the back of his jacket. Scout’s growl deepens, his body tense and ready to spring.
“Who are you?” Caleb calls out, his voice steady but with an edge—the tone of someone prepared for violence if necessary.
The figure stops about twenty feet away from us. He raises his hands slowly, showing they’re empty. “I’m not here to hurt you,” he says, “I just want to talk.”
“Who are you?”
“I’m Richard Green, Margret’s ranch foreman. I apologize for the dramatic entrance—and for your tires. I needed to ensure you’d hear me out.”
“Slashing our tires is a strange way to start a conversation,” Caleb replies, his posture still defensive. Scout hasn’t relaxed either, which keeps my guard firmly up.
Richard sighs heavily. “I understand how this looks, but please—it’s about Margret. And Danny. There’s more to this story than you know.”
“We’re listening,” I say cautiously, though I don’t step out from behind Caleb.
“Not here,” Richard glances around nervously. “These woods have ears. I have a cabin about half a mile north. We can talk there.”
Caleb and I exchange a look. Following this man, who just disabled our vehicle, doesn’t seem wise, but we’re stranded either way. And if he wanted to harm us, he could have tried already.
“Why should we trust you?” Caleb asks, voicing my thoughts.
“Because Margret’s in danger,” Richard replies, his voice dropping. “And so are you, now that you’ve found that box.” He gestures to Caleb’s pack, where we’ve stashed our discovery. “The people coming for it won’t be as polite as I am.”
A chill runs through me that has nothing to do with the winter air. “What people?”
“Please,” he says, ignoring my question. “The cabin’s warm. I have coffee. And I can get you back to Jake’s afterward.”
Caleb turns to me, his voice low. “Your call. I don’t like it, but we don’t have many options.”
I consider our situation—stranded in the cold with potentially valuable documents and gold, someone following us even before Richard appeared, and no way to contact Jake. The smart move is to get to a safe place and figure things out.
“Lead the way,” I tell Richard, “But Scout stays between us.”
Richard nods in agreement and turns north, moving at a careful pace through the snow. Caleb and I follow, maintaining distance, with Scout padding vigilantly between us and our unexpected guide.
“Did you see anyone else out here?” I murmur to Caleb as we walk.
“No,” he replies quietly, “but Scout did. And it wasn’t Richard—he came from a different direction.”
This knowledge sits like ice in my stomach. Someone else is watching us, tracking our movements. I find myself scanning the trees constantly, jumping at every snapping twig.
After about twenty minutes of tense hiking, a small log cabin comes into view, nestled among towering pines. Smoke curls from its stone chimney, suggesting a warm fire within.
“Here we are,” Richard says, approaching the door. “It’s not much, but it’s secure.”
He unlocks the door and steps aside, allowing us to enter first—a gesture meant to reassure us, I suppose.
The cabin interior is surprisingly cozy—a single room with a stone fireplace, a small kitchen area, a wooden table with chairs, and a narrow bed in one corner.
The walls are lined with books and maps.
Scout sniffs every corner while Caleb positions himself where he can see both Richard and the door. I remain standing, unwilling to let my guard down completely.
“Coffee?” Richard offers, moving to the woodstove where a pot sits warming.
“Just talk,” Caleb says firmly.
Richard nods, pouring himself a mug before sitting at the table. “Margret doesn’t know I’m meeting you,” he begins. “She thinks I’m checking on the livestock.”
“Why the secrecy?” I ask.
“Because she wouldn’t approve of what I’m about to tell you.” He takes a sip of coffee, his hands trembling slightly. “The Wolf treasure isn’t what you think it is.”
“Meaning?” Caleb prompts when Richard pauses.
“Thomas Wolf didn’t just hide gold and maps to copper deposits,” Richard continues. “He hid evidence—evidence of crimes committed by the mining company that forced him out. Murders, land theft, corruption.”
I frown, trying to process this. “Evidence from over a century ago? Why would that matter now?”
“Because the company still exists,” Richard says grimly. “Under a different name, of course—Northern Tier Mining. NTM. They own half the mines in this province alone.”
The name clicks in my memory. “They’re the ones pushing for the access road through Jake’s property.”
“Exactly.” Richard nods. “They know what’s buried on that land—both the minerals and the evidence. They’ve been searching for decades.”
“And Margret?” Caleb asks. “Where does she fit in this?”
Richard’s expression softens. “She believes her great-grandfather wanted the gold used for the community. She’s not wrong, but she doesn’t know about the evidence. I’ve kept that from her to protect her.”
“What about Danny?” I ask, swallowing and feeling the pain where his arm had pressed.
“Danny discovered some of this on his own,” Richard admits. “But he’s only interested in the gold and mineral rights. He has no idea what he’s stirred up by making his search so public.”
“And you know all this how?” Caleb’s voice is skeptical.
Richard stands and moves to a bookshelf, where he pulls out a false panel, revealing a hidden compartment. From it, he withdraws an ancient leather portfolio.
“Because Thomas Wolf wasn’t just Margret’s ancestor,” he says, placing the portfolio on the table. “He was mine too, my great, great Uncle, through my mother’s side. Margret and I are distant cousins; she doesn’t know it.”
He opens the portfolio, revealing yellowed documents, newspaper clippings, and photographs. “I’ve been collecting this information my entire adult life, adding to what my grandfather left me.”
I step closer, drawn by the historical treasure before us. One photograph shows a group of men standing before a mine entrance, their faces grim beneath coal-smudged skin.
“That’s Thomas,” Richard says, pointing to a bearded man in the center. “Taken three months before the mine collapsed, killing twenty-seven men. A collapse that NTM’s predecessor company caused deliberately to silence workers who were organizing.”
The implications are staggering. If true, this goes far beyond hidden deposits of gold or copper. This is about corporate crimes buried for generations.
“What exactly are you asking of us?” Caleb questions, his voice measured.
Richard looks up, his eyes intense. “Help me find the final cache. According to my research, Thomas hid the most damning evidence in a location he called ‘the heart of darkness’—somewhere on what’s now Jake’s property. With what you found today, we might finally have the key to locating it.”
“And once we find it?” I ask.
“We take it public. All of it. The historical crimes, the corporate lineage to NTM, their current attempts to seize the land.” Richard’s voice grows passionate. “This could stop them from destroying more communities, more lives.”
“Or it could get us all killed,” Caleb points out bluntly. “Corporations with that much to hide don’t play nice.”
Richard’s face hardens. “They already killed Margret’s brother. Jeff didn’t fall from that ridge—he was pushed, not by Danny, but by NTM’s security contractors. Danny just happened to be there, arguing with his father. He’s a convenient scapegoat.”
My head spins with these revelations. If Richard is telling the truth, we’ve stumbled into something far more dangerous than a treasure hunt.
“Margret believes Danny killed his father,” I say slowly.
“I know,” Richard replies, his voice heavy with regret. “I let her believe it because the truth would put her in their crosshairs too.”
“I need to see everything,” I say, stepping forward to examine the documents more closely. “If what you’re saying is true—”
Richard’s eyes lock onto Caleb’s, unflinching. “Every word is true,” he says, his voice dropping to a whisper. “On my life.”
My phone starts to ring, and I glance at the screen. It’s Mia. I swipe the screen and step away to take the call.
“Hello?” I say, stepping away from the two men.
“Lana, it’s Mia.” Her voice sounds urgent. “You need to get back to Jake’s house right now.”
My pulse quickens. “What’s going on? Are you okay?”
“We’re fine, but we found something in the east field—something big. Kane thinks it might be the main cache, but there are markings we can’t decipher. We need that cipher key you mentioned finding.”
I glance back at Richard and Caleb, who are still examining the documents spread across the table. Richard is pointing to something, speaking in a low, intense voice.
“We’re pretty far out,” I tell her, keeping my voice down. “Someone slashed our tires.”
“What?” Mia gasps. “Who would—”
“It’s complicated. I’ll explain when we get there.” I hesitate, uncertain whether to mention Richard. If what he’s told us is true, we could use his help. But if he’s lying... “We’ll figure out transportation and head back as soon as possible.”
“Hurry,” she urges. “And Lana? Be careful.”
The call ends, and I stand frozen for a moment, trying to process everything. Part of me wants to trust Richard—his documents seem authentic, and his story makes a disturbing amount of sense. But another part remembers how he tracked us through the woods, disabled our vehicle.
I move back to where Caleb and Richard are hunched over the portfolio.
“Caleb,” I interrupt, touching his arm lightly. “Can I speak with you outside for a moment?”
He looks up, instantly alert to the tension in my voice. “Of course.”
Richard watches us with wary eyes as we move toward the door. Scout follows at my heels, still keeping himself between Richard and us.