Entry 17
“Evelyn stop!” Charlotte’s scream echoed in my ear as I ran across the sandbar to the island.
Welcome, Evelyn Terry! Welcome home! I could smell the gardenias and the sweet air, feel the warm wind, and hear the rustle of palm trees.
I’m almost there I kept telling myself. Tears streamed down my face as I thought of seeing Aggy again.
I would apologize for cursing her to two hundred years on this island.
For separating her from her family and those she loved.
I’d bring her home. I clutched the treasure in my hand and hoped it would be enough for the island to release her and the others.
There was a large gust of wind, and then suddenly I saw a figure running toward me in the other direction. For a second, I faltered. Their appearance was fuzzy, as if I was viewing them through water. Was it Charlotte? My heart seized. The person grew closer and then became clear. It was Aggy.
“Evelyn!” she cried, her arms wide-open reaching for me.
“Aggy!” I cried, rushing forward and grabbing her tight.
The two of us were crying. It had only been a few days, and already I missed her terribly.
I pulled back and looked at her. Her skin had color to it once more; her eyes were no longer red and sickly.
I didn’t hear her cough. “You look well. Are you alright?”
“We’re all well,” she said, squeezing my shoulders so tightly, it hurt. “The moment the treasure was returned to the island, it was as if none of us had ever been ill.”
I let out a choked sob.
Aggy’s gray eyes were bright. “You saved us. If it weren’t for you, we wouldn’t be here.”
“But I also cursed you,” I said through tears. “Or at least, I thought I did.” I grabbed her hand. “I found a new way off the island. Now that you’re well, you don’t have to stay.”
Aggy’s face fell. Her smile was sympathetic. “That isn’t how this works, my friend. We must stay here till the next Blood Orange Moon.”
“Why?” I asked, confused. “The sandbar is here. I can lead you all off.”
Aggy squeezed my hand. “The island knows we benefited from its treasure. Those coins saved our lives. We have to pay the island back, which we will do by protecting it till the next Blood Orange Moon.” Aggy nodded behind me. “It’s why she isn’t welcome here.”
She. Charlotte. Don’t trust her. Aggy’s note. “You know then the woman that befriended me?”
“Yes.” Aggy’s face clouded over. “She is not the only one who wants to exploit the island’s treasure, I am afraid. You were allowed back because you don’t seek to gain anything personally.”
I showed her the coin again. “That’s not true. I want all of you back! Where is everyone? They must be beside themselves with worry being trapped.”
Aggy sighed. “They don’t know how long they’ve been gone.
To them, it feels like minutes since we saw you last. Axel and Gil are still arguing.
They don’t know it’s been days. It’s how the island works.
” She smiled at her surroundings. “I understand its mystery, and someday, you will too. I promise.” Her eyes searched mine.
“I know what my job is here and what your job is too. You and Kimble both must stay in Greenport. The others and I must stay here.”
“I don’t even know where Kimble is,” I said, aghast. It felt like we were having the same argument we’d had just days before.
“I risked everything to be here,” I told her, thinking of Charlotte’s threat.
“The Rudds are on to me. Axel told them about the treasure. Mr. Rudd is threatening to take everything the Terrys have.”
Aggy grasped my hand. “We both know you will never let that happen.”
“The island must want me here too,” I said desperately. “I keep dreaming about it. And others searching for the treasure.” My heart seized as I thought of the woman in my dream. “Why else would the island let me return? It doesn’t want me to leave you behind. Why would you want me to?”
Aggy pulled me in despite my protests and hugged me. “It’s our debt to be paid to the island for saving our lives. I will make sure the others understand. I’ve made my peace, Sparrow. You need to as well. There is work to be done. Lots of work. When the time is right, you’ll know what to do.”
I was so mad. I didn’t understand. “If I go back without you, no one will be able to help you get off this island in two hundred years. I will be long gone. Don’t you understand that?”
She smiled through her tears. “That’s where you’re wrong. Didn’t you read my note?”
I thought of the paper hidden under the mattress in my room. I’d read it over and over, but it never made sense. “Find Everly Benedict, age twelve, June twenty twenty-five.”
“Remember her name! Now you need to go,” Aggy stressed. She squeezed my hand again. “But first, I need the treasure you brought to the island.”
The coin hadn’t stopped whispering to me since we arrived. “If I give you this coin, Charlotte will kill me. She’s waiting on the beach, and she’s angry. I won’t be able to get past her without it.”
“You will,” Aggy said firmly. “No one can cross my best friend, Evelyn Terry, and get away with it.” Aggy cupped my hands with her own. “I need this coin for Gil, but I promise I’ll keep the treasure safe. Everly Benedict will need it later when a bigger threat appears.”
“Lady Adrienne,” I whispered.
Aggy’s smile slipped from her face. “Yes.”
She didn’t ask how I knew. The wind blew past us again, the whispers growing louder and louder. Thank you! Evelyn Terry! Thank you!
Suddenly I could hear Charlotte yelling. Aggy pulled me in for another hug. We were both crying now.
“You’ll hear from me soon,” she whispered. “I promise.”
“Winks?” I sobbed into her shoulder, which smelled like verbena.
“Yes. Cross my heart and hope to die, which I won’t now, thanks to you.” She pulled away. “Godspeed, Evelyn!”
“And to you, Aggy!” I said, trying not to get emotional again as we let go of each other. The sky started to mist, the fog rolling in around her, and then I saw the sandbar retreating. I rushed along it, hearing Charlotte’s shouts growing as I returned to shore.
“You wicked child,” she spat, moving back and forth like a fox stalking the chicken coop. The green ring on her finger was so mesmerizing, I focused on that instead of on Charlotte’s face. “I warned you not to cross me. Now you will pay.”
I tried to calm my nerves. “You wanted me to find a way back on the island, and I did.”
“You were supposed to take me with you!” she roared. “I need that chest!”
I tried not to let my fear show. “I couldn’t carry it on my own.” I held out my fist. “But I did get you more treasure—for now—till we can figure out how to both get on the island.” My heart was beating fast now. “Let me past you, and I will give the treasure to you.”
“I’m not a fool, dear. Show me the treasure first,” she purred.
I could hear my own heartbeat. I felt the bile rising in my throat as I moved toward her, wondering how I’d ever get past. Aggy, help me.
I took a tentative step, and Charlotte lunged, reaching out and throwing her arm around my neck.
I felt the gem on her ring dig into my skin.
It burned. For a moment, I could hear whispers, and I wasn’t sure if it was the island or the ring.
“Open your palm. Now,” Charlotte said.
Shaking, I did as I was told. I think we both knew my palm was empty.
Charlotte held me tighter. “Where is the treasure you took from me?”
“On the island,” I managed to say. “Where it belongs.”
Charlotte started to squeeze my neck harder, and I felt like I couldn’t breathe.
“That was a mistake. Without that piece of eight, you have no bargaining power. You’re of no use to me now.
I’ll find someone else to do my bidding.
” She held me tighter, and I fought to stay conscious.
“I’m not waiting another two hundred years to get what I’m owed. ”
“Let her go!”
My eyes fluttered open, and I saw him running down the beach toward us, holding something up in his outstretched hand. It was another piece of treasure.
Kimble.
I couldn’t believe my eyes. He was back.
Charlotte let go of me immediately.
“Is this what you want, Gracey?” Kimble taunted, holding the coin high above her head. “Or is it some other name now? Cara? Cecilia? You’ve never kept a name long.”
“That’s the beauty of who we are now.” Charlotte—Grace—glared at him, her eyes aglow. “We can be so many things. We have the time, Jonas—or should I call you Ansel?”
“You are who you always were, no matter the name,” Kimble told her, circling her now. “A spider weaving deadly webs.” He flipped the coin in his hand. “Give me the kid, or I rip that precious ring off your finger and call for her myself.”
Evelyn heard Grace inhale sharply. “You mangy mutt, you wouldn’t. You’d be sacrificing yourself too,” she retorted.
“What do I have to live for?” he asked. “Now choose: the girl or this coin.”
Grace pushed me to the sand hard and lunged for the coin. Kimble tossed it to her and reached down to help me.
“You alright, kid?” he asked, helping me up.
“Yes.” I was still trying to catch my breath.
Grace laughed. “Don’t tell me you’ve gone soft, Jonas.”
“Get out of here, Gracey, or I’m coming for the ring.”
I didn’t understand their argument, but I knew I was safer with Kimble than Grace.
The two looked at each other.
Then Grace ran off down the beach. I could hear her laughing, her voice carrying on the wind. “See you in two hundred years!”
She disappeared into the fog, and I finally exhaled.
I pushed Kimble away. “How could you let her run off with the treasure? You spent weeks searching for it!” I yelled at him. “Now neither of us will be able to break the curse!”
His smirk was irksome. “You really know nothing about Tesouro Eterno, do you?” He looked at me hard. “Let’s go, kid. We’ve got a lot to talk about, and two hundred years is not as long as you think.”