Chapter 4 #2
By the time they reached the end of Tide Street, the crowds had thinned. The street dead-ended near the outskirts of town, forcing anyone traveling farther to either turn right or left. Straight ahead stood one of Moonlight Bay’s oldest cemeteries.
“I’ve never ventured inside,” Ronin said. “Never had a reason to since I have no one buried here.”
“There are a few cemeteries around Moonlight Bay,” Adeline said.
“This one is different in that instead of headstones, large stone crypts mark the graves. Most of the supernaturals buried inside are founding family members, and oftentimes it’s their entire families.
” She grimaced. “I should know. My family’s crypt goes back nine generations, and even my parents are buried inside. ”
“I’m sorry,” Ronin said as Mason pulled Adeline to him and kissed her temple.
“Let’s go in,” Emory said.
Princess Muffin Top walked through the gate ahead of them. “Try not to embarrass yourselves or me. I have a reputation among the dead to uphold.”
Ronin held back and let the others go ahead, shutting the wrought-iron gate carefully behind him. The cemetery was filled with tiny stone houses with peaked roofs and narrow doors. Moss covered a lot of the stones, and vines curled around iron fencing and crypts.
They hadn’t gone very far when several ghosts suddenly appeared.
“Adeline!” A translucent older woman waved from beside a stone bench. “And you brought your friends!”
“Hi, Mrs. Parker!” Adeline called.
Another ghost floated through the wall of a crypt. “Well, look who finally came for a visit!”
“Hey, Mr. Thurston,” Emory said. “You’re looking spry today.”
Ronin looked at Mason. “They really do know everyone, don’t they? Even the dead.”
Mason shook his head. “I stopped being surprised by anything involving these women weeks ago.”
A young boy materialized next to them. He looked about fourteen, with shaggy hair and clothes that appeared to be from another century. “Tempi! I haven’t seen you in a long time.” He frowned. “Or have I?”
“Hey, Caleb,” she said softly. “No, it’s been a while since we’ve stopped by for a visit. Work keeps us all busy most days.”
“Did you want to play tag?” Caleb asked.
“We’re searching for treasure,” Adeline said. “Wanna help?”
The boy’s ethereal form glowed blue and green. “Of course! It sounds fun!”
Mason read the clue aloud and then showed the boy the picture.
The young ghost tapped his translucent mouth with a finger as he thought. “Stone houses guard the dead. That’s the crypts, right? Pirates sleep beneath your tread...” He turned and pointed deeper into the cemetery. “There are three pirate crypts in the back section.”
“I remember,” Tempi said. “We used to hang out near those.”
“Exactly.” Caleb floated backward. “Follow me.”
They followed him along the winding stone path, passing more crypts and old markers. Ghosts called out greetings to Adeline, Emory, Tempi, and Princess Muffin Top as they went.
“You girls sure are popular,” Ronin said.
“We had a lot of friends,” Tempi replied.
“Most of them were dead,” Princess Muffin Top snickered.
“Friends are friends,” Adeline chided her cat.
Caleb stopped in front of a large stone crypt with a weathered pirate ship carved over the doorway. Two stone columns framed the entrance, and an old stone bench covered in moss and vines sat nearby. “This is where you guys used to sit and plan.”
Tempi smiled. “I remember.”
Ronin glanced around. “So where’s the clue?”
Caleb floated away, laughing as he went. “You’ll find it.”
“We’re looking for a vase,” Mason said.
“I don’t know why I can’t remember seeing that,” Adeline said.
The group spread out, and Mason checked around the crypt entrance while Emory examined the stone bench. Tempi walked along one side of the crypt while he walked on the other side, running his hand over the old stone.
“Found it!” Adeline shouted as she stuck her hand inside a small vase two crypts down.
“Good job, honey,” Mason said.
Adeline hurried back to them and unfolded the paper. An anchor with a kraken tentacle wrapped around it had been stamped at the top with another clue written beneath it. “Here, Mason. Read the next clue.”
Princess Muffin Top suddenly stood, the fur on her back rising.
“What is it, Princess Muffin Top?” Adeline asked.
The cat looked at the vase Adeline had found the clue inside. “Something isn’t right. That symbol—the anchor and kraken—I’ve seen it before.”
“Right,” Adeline said. “We just found it.”
“No, not the one drawn on the back of the clue. The symbol itself.” The Maine Coon began pacing...then suddenly stopped. “And I know exactly where I’ve seen it.”
Tempi frowned. “Where?”
Princess Muffin Top turned and took off down the path. “Follow me!”
Mason sighed. “I guess now we’re following the cat.”
“You get used to it,” Adeline said.
They hurried after Princess Muffin Top as she darted between the crypts, cut down a narrow path, and headed toward the far edge of the cemetery.
“Slow down!” Tempi called. “Do you know how hard it is to run in this mermaid dress?”
“I have four legs, Witch,” Princess Muffin Top called back. “Keep up!”
The path ended near an old crumbling stone wall overlooking the water. Beyond it, the ocean stretched out in the distance. Waves crashed against the rocks below, and Ronin glanced up as a seagull screeched overhead.
Princess Muffin Top jumped onto the stone wall. “There!”
Ronin moved closer to examine the rock. Sure enough, carved into one of the stones was the exact symbol printed on the clue—a kraken tentacle wrapped around an anchor.
Adeline stared at her cat. “How did you know this was here?”
Princess Muffin Top lifted her chin. “Because unlike some people, I pay attention to my surroundings.”
Tempi snorted. “You’ve been running the streets of Moonlight Bay for over twenty years. You aren’t fooling anyone.”
“Exactly. I know things.”
Ronin ran his fingers over the symbol in the rock. The stone shifted slightly beneath his hand. “Hold on.”
Tempi moved beside him. “What?”
“This rock is loose,” he said.
Mason stepped closer. “Can you move it?”
Ronin gripped the edges and pulled, but nothing happened.
Tempi lifted a hand. “Move.”
“Excuse me?” he mused, turning to look over his shoulder at her.
“Move, Seawald.” She grinned at him. “Watch the air elemental work her magic.”
He stepped aside, and she moved her hand through the air, causing a gust of wind to slam into the loose stone. It popped free and landed in the grass.
Ronin grinned at her. “Show-off.”
Tempi took a small bow. “You’re welcome.”
He bent down and peered into the small hollow in the wall. Inside was a folded piece of old paper. He reached into the opening and carefully pulled it free. The paper was yellowed and brittle, nothing like the fresh parchment Lucinda had used for the treasure hunt.
Adeline frowned. “That isn’t Lucinda’s clue.”
“No,” Mason said, stepping closer. “It definitely isn’t.”
Princess Muffin Top jumped down from the wall and strutted toward them, her tail high in the air. “Eureka!” She looked up at the group. “I believe we’ve just found our first real clue.”
Ronin turned the old paper over in his hands. Whatever was written on it had faded with age, but he could make out part of a drawing...and a word that made the hair on his arms stand up.
Crimson.
“That’s not part of Lucinda’s treasure hunt,” Tempi whispered.
“No,” he said. “It’s not.”
Princess Muffin Top sat down and began grooming a paw. “Well, now, this just got significantly more interesting.”