“It’s the one we have. Are you satisfied yet, or are you going to keep harassing us?”
Helen stormed the tree hut in a fit of rage. “I’m not going to be bested by a kid! We’ll take them to McCragg’s house, and we’ll talk more there. I feel we’re too close to the Rethman’s place.”
Diana had been listening to Elise intently when Elise had told Helen her version of the ‘map’ she had. She admired Elise’s courage and wished she could be as brave, even if she and Elise were somewhat like “enemies.”
Now the other two pulled Diana and Elise up and they walked to the edge of the tree house. Elise stared at Helen, Even though she seems to be mean, I’m sure she has a smidge of a good heart. I just hope one day someone will uncover her good side and steer her in the right path to eternal life before it’s too late.
CHAPTER 15
Searching
At about two-thirty in the morning, the Rethman and Simpson parents walked back in from the dark outdoors. They were exhausted and both physically and mentally drained. The girls all rushed over to them.
“No luck,” Mr. Simpson sighed.
Mr. Rethman had already phoned Diana and Whitney’s parents about the girls’ disappearance. They were on their way home as soon as possible.
“We just let the police know about this,” Mr. Rethman told the girls as he slipped his boots off his tired, blistered feet. The girls had never seen their parents so exhausted.
“They’ll be here any minute,” Mrs. Rethman explained, referring to the police. She sat down as best she could. “I hope we can find them.”
The girls nodded. They could tell their mother was stressed and worried to the point of breakdown.
Arianna, always the tenderhearted one, tried to hold back her tears. Her bottom lip began to tremble, and then she couldn’t help it. Her two friends tried to console her as best as they could. Lexie wiped tears away from her eyes and Adara and Austy were beginning to sniffle. Mrs. Rethman’s eyes were red and swollen. The girls could tell their dad was trying to be brave for his wife. It was hard for him, though, and he looked like he also was going to have a breakdown any moment.
The Simpsons stayed with them the rest of the night, helping to look for the missing girls. The girls all stayed inside together. Some slept, and others stayed up crying or talking. All had taken on a sad mood. Elise and Diana, on the other hand, had problems of their own.
……
The two girls were thrown into a vehicle that the thieves called a “ranger,” and the man hopped into the driver’s seat. Helen Kren and the lady sat in the front row of seats with the man. Elise and Diana had been put in the back row by themselves. They began to drive off and Elise heard the man say, “I forgot to lock up the hut!”
“Well, we ain’t going back now, Bert,” Helen snorted.
Bert let out an unsure breath and then drove them off deeper and deeper into the woods. Higher and Higher over the mountains’ slopes. The vehicle didn’t make much noise as they went along. Farther and farther they drove from the Rethman’s home and into the deep dark. Elise and Diana both had their hands tied, and they both had tears streaming down their cheeks. The moon shone through the treetops, and Elise looked ahead at it as they traveled, wishing she were at home in bed.
It had been such a long day! Elise couldn’t believe that it was still Sunday. It was still the same day she had gone to church. That seemed ages ago! Elise closed her eyes as the vehicle bumped along through the woods. She was scared. She didn’t know what was going on. She was tired and hoped that she would fall asleep and awake to find that this was just a nightmare and that she was in her own bed at home.
She couldn’t sleep at all that long drive through the woods. They drove for a long while, staying in the woods or going up the huge mountain-like hills around the area. Elise’s eyes grew heavy, and she dozed off lightly, until the vehicle abruptly stopped. She and Diana both sat up in the back.
“What is it?” Diana asked.
“I don’t know,” shrugged Elise, as the three adults stepped out of the vehicle. They had stopped in front of a small cabin in the middle of the woods. No other houses or cabins were around. It was quite a secluded area. A lantern swung on the front porch, making the front of the cabin visible. When Helen Kren opened the door for Elise and Diana, they started to climb out. Their kidnappers pulled them along toward the wooden cabin door. Elise was scared. Her heart had never been pumping so fast as it had been ever since she and Diana were captured. Helen banged on the door. It opened a couple seconds later and a man’s voice said, “I’ve been awaiting you.”
Helen and the other two walked forward, pulling Diana and Elise with them. The lady shut the door.
“We have brought them.”
“I see.”
Elise looked around her. They stood in a small living room. Animals that had once been alive were hung up on placks or put on display around the room. Elise was disgusted. Who would want to kill animals just for the sport of it? She liked it when her dad hunted because her family got to eat the animal’s meat, but whoever lived here, it seemed, didn’t hunt for that reason. A gun hung on two pegs above the door for safety, in case a robber came.
“Well, have a seat in the kitchen, Helen. Put the girls in the bedroom. Bert and Amy can come with you as well.”
Helen nodded and pulled the girls to a door by a fireplace. She opened it and threw them inside. The girls didn’t have their hands tied anymore, but Elise lost her balance when she was pushed in and fell down, hitting her head on the edge of a bed. She landed hard on the ground and rolled over. The side of her face was slit on something sharp. She cried out in pain and surprise and Diana was immediately at her side. It was so dark that Diana didn’t see the blood slowly sliding down the side of Elise’s white face. Nor did she see the broken whiskey bottle that had been the cause of Elise’s pain. Elise’s eyes felt like they were spinning a million miles per second. She could feel the blood trickling to her chin and she closed her eyes. She had a terrible headache and she felt as though she were falling into a bottomless pit. She lost consciousness.
……
It was Monday morning, the following day, and still they hadn’t found the girls. The Cox parents had just arrived and were desperately looking for the girls. Mrs. Cox was as frantic as Mrs. Rethman. The police were also searching. They were asking Mr. Rethman many questions to help them try to get on the right track. Mrs. Rethman had fainted from worry and fatigue, but she awoke when Adara held a bottle of a strong-smelling remedy under her nose. She had immediately asked if Elise and Diana were found.
The police telephoned the local airline and told a helicopter to scan the mountains. While the police were all doing their work, Mr. Rethman called a “family meeting,” and he told them they were all going to hop into the van and search for the girls. The Simpsons were heading to town to search more, and the Cox parents and Whitney were also going to search in their van. Austy asked her dad if she could ride Midnight to search for the girls instead of going with the family in the van. “It might be better if there are more of us looking in different places,” she said, trying to get her case accepted.
Her dad thought for a while and then finally nodded. “I guess that would be all right. Be careful, and Adara, you go with her.”
Austy and Adara both nodded their heads and ran to the back to get Midnight and Ranger saddled and bridled. The other Rethmans ran to the front and jumped into the van so they could also search for the girls. As they drove along the curvy roads, they were searching left and right for the girls. They drove for a long time in silence, just gazing out the windows, searching. It was a sunny day, and the scenery would have been gorgeous as always to the Rethmans, but not today. It was almost as though the sun wasn’t shining at all. To them, it might as well have been a rainy, dull day because that’s what it seemed to be.
CHAPTER 16
The Letter
Elise opened her eyes to see Diana staring down at her. Light
streaked into the room through the window. She was lying uncomfortably on the hardwood floor of the bedroom in the little cabin. Having a splitting headache and a hard time remembering things at the moment, Elise asked where she was. Diana reminded her of all that had happened, and then she said, “I was awake nearly all night. I was so worried about you for some reason. You came to not long after you lost consciousness, but you fell asleep a little later. You kept waking up and screaming. Helen came in once and demanded to know what was going on. I told her you were having a nightmare and she said to tell you to knock it off,” Diana told her.
Elise rubbed her head, trying to take in all that Diana was saying. “I don’t remember anything during the night, but now I recollect what all took place yesterday.”
“They’ve been doing a lot of talking in that kitchen, and I can’t make out exactly what they’re saying.”
Suddenly, they heard footsteps coming toward the door.
The girls quickly sat against the wall as the handle turned and the door opened. Helen Kren walked in with a bowl and set it on the ground. It had two apples and two slices of bread in it. Elise had been so scared lately she’d hardly even thought about food. Her stomach made a loud rumbling. Helen looked at her disgustedly.
While they were eating, Helen told them, “We’ve been talking among ourselves a lot. We’re going to give you girls one more chance. We will let you go if you promise that you will tell your father that he has to give you the box and the key. Then you will meet me somewhere and hand it over. If you don’t do this, your family will be in danger. Are we agreed?”
Diana looked at Elise. Elise could tell that she wanted to say yes to just get it over with, but Elise said, “You trust us not to report you when we get home?”
Helen’s piercing eyes tore through her. “You know what’ll happen if you tell the police!”
Elise gulped. She knew Helen would get even if she told the police about all that had taken place. “Well then, you might as well not let us go because we will report you.”
Diana stole a glance at Elise. Helen barred her teeth and shook with fury. She barged back out the door.
“Well, that was handled well,” Diana slumped, sliding from the wall to the floor. She grabbed a slice of bread and an apple out of the basket and began to eat. Elise did the same. She was so hungry.
As they were eating, they heard a raised conversation coming from the kitchen. The girls each put their ear against the door to try to catch what they were saying.
They could hear Helen raging about how Bert had been spying on the Rethmans for a few days, and instead of walking back to Amy to report all that had taken place, he had stolen a horse and ridden it back in the dark. “What was I supposed to do with a horse?” she shouted.
“Well, you said ya sold it to that Tuscola farm, so it’s fine now,” the girls heard Bert answer.
Helen went on about how careless he was and how he wasn’t cautious when he dug in the woods at night. “Someone could’ve seen your light,” she shouted at him.
“Then ya shouldn’t have me doing your dirty work at night!” he yelled back.
Elise gasped at what Helen and Bert had been saying.
“That wasn’t enough food,” Diana complained, looking at the empty bowl when the shouting had stopped.
“We need to escape,” Elise changed the conversation. “I need to tell my parents about all of this, and I’m also supposed to have cross country practice today.”
“So that’s all you care about right now? Cross country practice? Our parents are probably worried sick right now!” Diana exploded.
“I know, but knowing that I have practice and that our parents are worried about us will motivate me to try as hard as I can to get away.”
Diana stood up and walked around the room. She tried to turn the door handle but it was locked. Elise stood up also. Her head was spinning and she didn’t know if she could stand for long. She felt extremely hot. Elise grabbed Diana’s arm and said, “Look, Diana, I know we don’t like each other, but we’re going to have to work together in order to escape.”
Diana looked at her hard. Then she softened a little. “All right, but that doesn’t mean I like you while we try to get away. It just means that I want to get away as much as you do.”
Elise nodded. “All right, let’s try to escape!”
……
“All right, you go left and I go right,” Austy said as soon as they had mounted the horses.
“No, we need to stay together,” Adara finalized.
“Fine, let’s go!” They urged their horses through the grass and onto the trail in the woods. They rode until they reached the end of their property line where the creek was.
Adara reined in her horse. “That’s the farthest we can go.”
Austy looked on ahead. “We need to go farther.” She kicked Midnight in the sides as a signal to go on. Adara hesitantly followed, looking cautiously at all the trees and brush around them. Austy and Midnight went down the creek bank and galloped up to the other side with Adara and Ranger close behind.
“Look!” Austy pointed to the ground. She slipped off Midnight’s back. There were horse prints in the mud by the creek edge. “They went this way!”
“How can you be sure?”
“I know it! Let’s go on!” Austy pulled herself back up into the saddle. They rode on a small trail.
“I think we’re on to something,” Austy said. Low branches hung over the trail, making the girls dunk low on their horses here and there. Finally they reached a wider trail.
“Look, are those fresh tire tracks?”
“Adara, what if the girls were kidnapped here, and then they were thrown into a truck or small vehicle and driven away?”
“You don’t know if they were kidnapped or not,” Adara stated.
Austy looked around. The woods surrounding them was thick. “What if someone’s spying on us?”
“Stop it, Austy. You’re giving me goose bumps.”
After looking around, Austy brought her gaze upward and gasped, “Look up there!”
Adara stared where Austy was pointing. Nestled in the branches of a huge tree was what appeared to be something like a tree house.
“Maybe that’s where the man who owns this property hunts from. Or maybe it’s where he stays when he’s hunting.”
Austy swung out of Midnight’s saddle and gave her reins to Adara. “I’m seeing what this is.”
Adara stiffened. “I’m staying here.”
“That’s fine. You’ll be the lookout.”
Austy rushed to the bottom of the tree. She walked around it and saw a ladder. She peeked around the tree at Adara and grinned. Adara shook her head and looked away from her.
Austy began to climb up the ladder. When she reached the top, she stepped onto the small deck and then came face-to-face with a small wooden door which was the entrance to the tree house. Austy tried the handle. To her surprise, it was unlocked. She opened the door and stepped inside. It was a messy place. Papers were in piles everywhere. She sat down and began to flip through a pile of letters. Her heart was pumping like mad. She pulled out a letter addressed to a Bert Duncan. It had already been opened before, so Austy shakily pulled the letter out of the envelope. She began to read:
Dear Bert,
As you know, I have been out of jail for over a week now. I have been working with Dean McCragg to figure out where something that belonged to my ancestors is buried. It is precious, and we are trying to uncover it. However, we don’t think we are on the right track because we haven’t had much luck. It would be an honor if you and your sister could join us with our search. I know you and her both despise Mr. Rethman also, so I think we’ll work together well. If you have any questions, give me a call.
Please join us,
Helen Kren
Austy stared in shock at the paper. What did it mean? She was confused. She wanted to look around some more, but she heard Adara yelling for her to come back. She stuf
fed the letter back into the envelope and rushed down the ladder.
“Figured anything out? I was starting to get a little…”
“Scared? Yeah, I thought you would.”
Adara glared at her. “Did you find anything worthwhile?”
Austy climbed back onto Midnight’s back and rode up beside Adara. She told her about the letter. Adara seemed perplexed. “What do you think it means?”
“I’m not sure but I’m aiming to find out. We have a mystery to solve.”
CHAPTER 17
Escaping
Diana and Elise walked around the room trying to find a way to escape.
“I’m just so scared right now. I never imagined anything like this could ever happen to me,” Diana said.
“Same,” Elise agreed. “We have to get out of this together and move on.”
Elise went to the small window and pressed against it. “You think we can escape out the window?”
Diana shrugged. “We can try.”
“We’re skinny enough. If we get it open, I think we can wriggle out.”
“Is there a latch?”
“There is! Help me try to open it.”
Both girls worked together to lift the small rusty latch. Then they started to pull the window up. It creaked and Diana gasped.
“Shh… I don’t think they heard it,” explained Elise. They opened it all the way. “All right, now we can get out.” Elise squeezed her body through the window easily. Soon she was outside. “Your turn, Diana.”
Diana made it out the window as well. They were both free!
“Now, let’s run! We have to get out of here!”
The two girls ran off as fast as they could. “Which way’s home?” Elise asked.
“I don’t know. We got here in the dark.”
“Wait, what direction are we facing?”
“North, I believe.”
“Good! My home faces north, so we have to be on the right track. Let’s go!”
The girls sprinted as fast as they could away from the small cabin. It was windy and they were eager to escape.
Map to Treasure Page 8
