40 #3
“’Course, there’d be hell to pay. Stealing from their fellow patriots?
I’m guessing that’s the kind of thing that would get a man hanged for sure.
Meaning they’d need to hide the goods. If they had a sense of humor, maybe someplace on their neighbor’s property, where it wouldn’t be traced back to them. ”
“McLeans have always been a clever sort. Sometimes too clever.”
Mandy nodded. “I can see that. Hiding evidence of their evildoing in a cave already being used for evildoing.”
Isla didn’t answer.
“I would dare say,” Mandy continued after a moment, “given all your reading and roaming, that you’re the single best authority on this town’s history, let alone these mountains’ geography. Much to Mason’s chagrin, I’m sure.”
Silence.
“When did you realize the Dixon children had stumbled upon the same cave used by your ancestors to hide loot and the founding fathers to drug and abuse women?”
“I heard Mason’s account. He dug in that cave. There was nothing there.”
“Two months ago, there was nothing there. Then I remembered something you said—the children referred to it as a pirate’s lair.
Why pirates? Except, of course, pirates were known for stashing treasure chests.
X marks the spot and all that. Or maybe in this case, red witch, blue witch, white or black.
“There were more than just bones in that cavern. The experts also identified a faded granola bar wrapper—from the kids, I’m guessing. As well as an old iron padlock, such as the kind one might find on a two-hundred-year-old chest.”
Mandy hunkered down until she could look Isla directly in the eye. “Tell me. Who found the Continental currency first? You, or the children?”
Finally, a faint smile. “They did. I suspected. When William led me there the first time, I had a sense of déjà vu. I knew I’d read, heard something about the cave before. I was poring over various sources when the storm hit. And what happened…happened.”
“You placed the bodies there one by one. All through the night. At the end, you must’ve straightened, looked all around in exhaustion and despair, and spotted…”
“You could just see the top, protruding from the earth. The kids had been hard at work. Tough conditions for youngsters using spoons and garden trowels. But in another day or two…”
“You finished digging up the treasure chest and took it with you. Of course you wouldn’t want to leave something that valuable behind, especially as you already knew you needed to seal the entrance.
You hid evidence of murder and plundered a crime scene, all in a matter of hours.
Is it just me, or would your McLean roots be very proud of you? ”
Another ghost of a smile. “If I came into a chest of riches thirty years ago, don’t you think I might be living in something other than a hovel? As much as I do consider it home sweet home.”
“Maybe the currency had degraded to the point of no longer having value.”
“Oh, no. Each note was crisper than the last.”
“So you did find it! You took the treasure. I knew it! And then…?” Because now Mandy was confused.
Isla’s gaze flickered to the woodstove, then back to Mandy, then, once and for all, settled on the stove.
“No!” Mandy rocked back on her heels. “You didn’t.”
“I did. Each and every one.”
“Why?”
“Because it needed to be done. That cave, this town. They’re founded on a legacy of greed and corruption, pain and punishment.
I searched for Rita Light because the truth needed to be revealed.
And I burned the notes because a price needed to be paid, not just for the sins of the past, but for my own arrogance.
I honestly believed…I loved that little boy. I still did him irreparable harm.”
“You haven’t heard from William?”
A slight shake of her head. “Now what?” Isla demanded finally.
Mandy shrugged, rose to standing. “From what I can tell, nothing to see here. Besides, I think we can both agree you’re in enough trouble as it is.”
“It’s not such a big deal. What is this, if not a prison of my own making?
” Isla waved a hand around her tiny cabin, then hesitated.
“When they come for me…will you see to it Lovey is safe? Lydia and Lana will take her, I’m sure.
Or maybe you’d like an old dog; she’s the perfect type, remember: loyal, obedient, kind. ”
“You don’t have to worry about that just yet. The wheels of justice turn very slowly. Especially when, as town police chief, I am the one tasked with investigating the charges and all.”
A short nod of acknowledgment. Then: “When you hear from William, please tell him I’m sorry.”
“When you hear from William, you can tell him yourself.”
“I don’t think that’ll be happening. But that’s all right.” The Witch of the Woods peered out the window. “It’s time for the past to be the past.”
“Around these parts, no such thing. Take care of yourself, Isla.”
Mandy placed one more treat on the floor next to Lovey III, then showed herself to the door.
Clambering down the front steps, she thought she caught a flicker of movement out of the corner of her eye. Maybe a squirrel dashing across the snow. Or a bird taking flight.
Or two little kids, playing hide-and-seek while having the time of their lives.
She nodded once in acknowledgment of the memory.
Then Chief Grady, protector of all things Shereford, resumed her patrol.