Sometimes Dead Men DO Tell Tales!

by David W. Smith

  Beth remained quiet as they continued on their way. It made sense. It did fit in with what she knew about Walt Disney. “Too bad Walt didn’t live to see the opening of Pirates...or any of the additions he had planned before his death. He would have been so proud of what they did.”

  Adam pulled into his parking spot at the apartments. He just nodded his agreement as they headed for his place.

  When Adam started throwing some of his clothes into a gym bag, Beth became confused. “Oh. I thought we were going to stay here.”

  He gave her a guy’s grin. “As much as I’d like that, it isn’t safe here either. We need to find someplace else to stay. Help me go through these research papers. See if there’s anything that might help us with the clue.”

  Beth sat on the sofa, taking up some of the papers with shaking hands. She couldn’t concentrate as her mind went over and over what happened with Lance. When she thought about Adam snapping closed the lock onto her garage, she gave a startled gasp. “Adam! Where are the diary and the animation cels?” She couldn’t see them on his desk.

  Adam looked up from his computer and the information he was transferring to a diskette. He planned on clearing his hard drive of anything useful. “Don’t worry. I put them back in my safe yesterday. I started getting nervous with them just lying around. Even before Lance started going screwy.”

  Relieved, she went back to the notes littered throughout the room. “Your handwriting is as bad as ever. From what I can tell, I really don’t see anything that could help. Should I throw them out?”

  “No, no, leave them scattered around like they were. Unfortunately, Lance still has a key and I don’t have time to change the lock. Grab up that big book there about Walt and we need to leave. I have the computer cleared. I think.” Frustrated, he ran his fingers through his hair as he looked around. This was his home. It wasn’t in his nature to run and he wanted to face that dirty…. He wanted to have it out with Lance once and for all. If he didn’t have Beth to protect, he would do just that. But, he did have her, thank goodness. And he had to make sure he didn’t do anything to screw it up again like he did five years ago.

  “So where are we going? A motel?”

  “Wow. Two offers in one day! I’m deeply touched, sweetheart.”

  Beth gave him “The Look.” He chuckled at her and merged onto the freeway and headed east. When the 91 Freeway came up, he took the northbound ramp heading towards Yorba Linda.

  “You’re going to pull your parents into this?” Beth was surprised as she realized where they were headed.

  Adam was more concerned than he let on. He wasn’t sure at all that going to his parents’ house was a good idea. But, he didn’t have a lot of options from which to choose. Later, if he came up with something better, they could leave. “Well, they adore you. Always did. For some reason,” he added under his breath, knowing full well she could hear him.

  She sniffed. “At least they have good taste. Didn’t they…uh, like any of the other girls you brought home?” She tried to make it sound as if she didn’t care. But deep down, she was anxious to know and was being just plain nosey. On Tobago he had acted like he didn’t have a girlfriend and had been considerate and attentive. But they had been in a wildly romantic location and had been all alone. Now they were partners in this treasure hunt. He hadn’t talked about his personal life other than his construction company. It wouldn’t hurt to find out who else was in his life.

  “So, are you asking if I’m seeing anyone?” Eyes on the traffic, he didn’t turn to face her.

  “Oh, well, no…,” she broke off, embarrassed he had seen right through her. She should have known.

  Hiding his smile by checking the side mirror, he knew exactly how to answer her. He had been planning on that question coming up at some point and he was ready. “You know, Beth, we’ve known each other a long time. If you want to know something, just ask. You don’t need to beat around the bush.”

  Not recognizing her own speech, she walked right into it. “Okay, fine. Are you dating anyone?”

  “None of your business.” He didn’t know how he managed not to laugh. He could see her turning red, apparently remembering the words she had thrown at him at the car show.

  To break the silence that was uneasily growing since his joke, he asked about Disneyland. “Tell me something, Beth. I don’t understand how Lance could actually hold down a job at Disneyland. He’s always been with me since we found the diary. Either we were following up the clues or we were researching them. I don’t see when he ever could have been on the job.”

  “You missed your exit.” She pointed at a freeway off-ramp as they barreled past it.

  “I know a short cut. And how do you know which exit to take? They moved since we were…since you last…. They moved,” he just finished, not wanting to bring up their past and his hand in its termination.

  Beth smiled at his stumbling. “I like their new house. The view is amazing.”

  His eyes narrowed at her. “When were you there?”

  “Apparently when you were off minding your own business.”

  Darn if she didn’t always get the last word! “One for you.” Taking the next off ramp, he headed away from the freeway. “So, what about Lance?”

  She thought before answering. “He would have to be on a part time basis—even in Security. Part Time employees have a more flexible work schedule. I was Full Time, but even my hours varied depending on when the Keel Boats would be running. Let me you ask this: Who made all the arrangements for your trips?”

  Adam’s answer was immediate. “Lance did it all.”

  “And you were together every day.”

  “Yes…. Well, no, now that I think about it. There were always a few days before we’d fly out. I figured it was because of the availability of the flights we had to take.”

  Beth didn’t think so. “Lance could have had to work on those days to meet his time requirements. And, on some days he could’ve been on the late shift and not gotten off until really late.”

  Adam pulled over in front of a neat two-story house, white with blue shutters. “That might explain why he fell asleep so much on the sofa.”

  “I thought he always did that.” Beth looked at the peaceful house and wondered if they should be there. “Do you think this is a good idea, Adam, really? I really like your parents.”

  He helped her out of the truck and chuckled in spite of his worry. “I do, too, Beth. They’re my parents.” He pulled their bags out of the truck’s bed. “We’ll have to explain some of it, but they don’t know about any treasure or what we’ve been searching for.”

  “Won’t be easy.” Beth turned to face him, her face a mix of emotions. “It is so unlike Lance. Without a full explanation, they might not understand.”

  “I don’t understand either, so we’ll be even.” Adam led her up the walk. There was a huge pot of pink flowers hanging on the porch Adam hadn’t seen before.

  “Oh, the fuchsias are doing great!” Beth touched the petals as Adam reached for the bell, still wondering how Beth knew so much. He hadn’t been gone from her life that long, had he?

  Margaret and John were delighted to see them. They were even more delighted to see them together, yet they were puzzled by the bags in Adam’s hand. Adam gave them a quick hug and asked his dad to come outside with him. Margaret took Beth to the kitchen where she was fixing dinner.

  “Sorry we didn’t call ahead. This was kind of impromptu.”

  Knowing the young woman as well as she did, Margaret could tell Beth was upset. Her eyes looked miserable, despite her smile and her attempt to talk normally. Margaret just hoped Adam hadn’t done something stupid again. “That’s all right, dear. You know you’re welcome any time. Here, help me cut up these tomatoes.” Beth would talk when she was ready; Margaret just bided her time.

  Adam surprised his dad when he asked if he could park his truck in the garage. “I just need to get it off the street, Dad.”

  As they wal
ked toward the back of the house, his dad bit back all his questions and asked just one instead. “You haven’t gone and done something boneheaded again, have you?”

  Adam stopped short. “What do you mean ‘again’? What have I ever done that was boneheaded?”

  His dad just looked at him and tilted his head.

  “Okay, fine. There have been one or two things.… But no, it isn’t that. I’d rather tell you and Mom together.”

  “You in trouble?”

  Adam watched the garage door slide soundlessly up its tracks and disappear overhead. “Depends on how you define ‘trouble,’ but maybe. Yes. I need Beth to be safe.” Adam’s blue eyes were a mirror image of his father’s as they stood in the shade of the garage looking at each other. “I can’t tell you all the particulars right now, but it also involves Lance.”

  His father’s eyebrows shot up at that. “Lance? That boy’s never been a lick of trouble since we’ve known him. You two fighting over Beth?” He couldn’t help a chuckle escaping his lips. Now that would be interesting.

  “Beth?” It took Adam a minute to understand what he meant. “No, it’s not like that. For some reason she never liked him that way.”

  Both men stood shaking their heads slowly side to side, same expression of disbelief on their faces.

  “Let me pull my truck out. Maybe by that time you’ll decide what to tell me.” John’s pickup roared to life and he backed down the driveway, pulling over to the side so Adam could park inside the garage. ‘Michaels Construction’ was still stenciled on the doors of his F250.

  “We might need to borrow Mom’s Audi.” Adam was looking at the other vehicle in the garage when John walked back to his side.

  “That’s up to your mother. So, you going to tell me or make me guess some more?” John asked not unkindly as he leaned against the garage wall. Adam usually was forthright with them so this hesitancy was unusual. But, he had Beth with him again, and now there was a problem with Lance—two people he knew Adam liked better than all the rest of his friends. If Adam’s silence was unusual, then the problem must be as well. John wouldn’t push. It wasn’t his way. “So, how are you doing with my company? Have any customers left?” He led Adam inside the house after the Silverado was out of sight.

  Adam knew full well his dad kept up with Michaels Construction since he retired. The foreman Scott had worked for John a lot longer than Adam had. Their golf games every Sunday were for more than just golf. However, John wouldn’t butt in. Adam knew when the company was turned over to him, it was his. But he also knew his dad was up on current developments and ready with any advice Adam might care to ask of him. “Yeah, we’re going mainly into storage unit repairs now.”

  His dad groaned as if in pain. “Now that’s cruel, boy, just plain cruel!” He put a fond arm around Adam’s shoulders. They were smiling as they walked into the kitchen.

  Beth looked more relaxed as she set the table. She caught the look of ‘I don’t know either’ that was exchanged between John and Margaret and started to feel guilty. Adam followed the women back into the kitchen. He took one of the chrome bar stools at the island. Margaret swatted his hand away from the salad.

  “I thought you wanted me to eat my vegetables.”

  “Yes, but at the table, not with your fingers. Really, Beth, I did raise him better than that.”

  Beth smiled at the interplay. “You should have seen what he did with mashed potatoes in his apartment.”

  “Now don’t go telling tales, Beth,” Adam warned, “or I’ll have to tell her about that mess you left in your kitchen.”

  “Three dishes in the sink do not constitute a mess.”

  Margaret smiled to herself as she listened to them banter back and forth. It seemed like Adam was doing the first sensible thing in five years. Lord, she didn’t know how that boy could be so dense sometimes.

  During dinner Adam told them they had hit a snag with their project. Since his parents didn’t know about his trips to Missouri or Tobago—at least he didn’t think they knew—he left that part out. He said there had been a major disagreement with Lance over the direction the work had taken and that Lance didn’t take it very well. Adam threw in Lance’s conflict with his own parents saying it just added to Lance’s bad feelings. After stumbling around with the explanation for a few more minutes, Adam just stopped talking and pushed his food around on his plate. Beth’s look of misery had returned.

  John carefully wiped his mouth with his napkin and folded it on the table. “Well, Adam, that was interesting. There seem to be some holes big enough to walk an elephant through.…” He held up a hand to stop Adam’s protest. “But I understand there’s something going on you don’t like, it involves you two and Lance, and you can’t tell us the particulars right now. Correct?”

  Beth and Adam just nodded.

  His parents exchanged a look. Margaret nodded to John and he continued. “We trust both of you, and we know you’ll fill us in when you can.” John paused then, looking side to side, he used a fake whisper. “It’s not illegal, is it?”

  Adam and Beth both started to shake their heads no, then stopped and looked at each other, dumbfounded. What Lance and Adam had done in San Francisco was considered outside of legal. But they had promised not to do that again. So, what about the other things? Was it considered illegal to jump off the rides and take something hidden for forty years? They were just following the clues as they found them. Right? Lance had pulled a gun. That was illegal, wasn’t it? But they didn’t have a gun. Lance did.

  At their perplexed looks and prolonged silence, his dad sighed. “Okay, then, I take it you don’t know at this point? Are you putting your mother in danger, Adam?”

  “No! Well, I don’t think so. There was the gun….”

  “Adam!” “What gun?” “Who has a gun?” poured out from both of his parents.

  “Okay.” Adam held up a hand and took a deep breath. They were still staring at him. “Okay,” he started again. “Lance is very upset because his father cut him off and is no longer giving him any money.”

  “Always thought he should have a job.” At John’s mutter, Margaret kicked under the table. “Well, a man should work.”

  “Lance does have a job at Disneyland.…”

  “I meant a real job.” John gave a snort and then realized what he had said. “No disrespect, Beth.”

  “He works for Security,” Adam tried to continue.

  John looked relieved. “Then that would explain the gun.”

  “Dad, he pulled it on us. On Beth and me.”

  “What did you do, son?”

  Adam rolled his eyes. “We didn’t do anything! Lance wanted something he thought we had, or would have.…” He was talking in riddles again and all four of them were getting frustrated. “Let’s just say that Lance isn’t his usual charming self any more. He’s changed in the past few weeks. Pulling that gun shows he’s desperate. I needed to get Beth out of her place and I don’t feel my apartment is safe, either. That’s why I brought her here. We need to lay low while we finish our project. Once that is over, we can fill in the elephant holes for you. We promise.”

  John and Margaret engaged in that silent communication long-married people always manage. “Of course you can stay here. I don’t know what we’ll do if Lance shows up, but if he pulls a gun, I’m getting out my crowbar.”

  “I don’t think it’ll come to that, but thank you. We would like the use of your computer upstairs, if we can. I also don’t want to leave anything out to show that Beth and I are here. I’d rather it look like we’re out of town.”

  The rest of dinner remained uneaten, so Adam and Beth cleared the table and loaded the dishwasher. Margaret took Beth upstairs to get her bedroom ready, and then joined Adam and John out on the back patio. Adam looked out over the valley. Beth was right. The view was incredible. He finally relaxed in one of the recliners, and for a moment, they enjoyed the peace and quiet.

  “Dad, can you take over at work for me for
a few days? Scott has it all in hand, but I’ve had to put a lot of responsibility on him lately.”

  John was glad to be invited back to the business. The growing darkness hid the excitement in his eyes. “Sure, no problem, Adam. I’d enjoy seeing the crew again.”

  “Uh huh.” Adam wasn’t fooled for a minute. “And don’t go rearranging the files again. Took me months to get them straightened out.”

  “Hey, my system worked for me for twenty years.”

  “Yeah, that was the problem.” Adam gave a good-natured chuckle. “You hadn’t updated it in twenty years!”

  Margaret stepped in to avert the same argument they had had since Adam took over the business four years ago. “Adam, you’d better take good care of that sweet girl up there.”

  “Why? Don’t want to lose your insider information at Anne’s dress shop?”

  She was not amused by his joke. “From what you’ve managed to not tell us, this doesn’t sound like a joking matter, Adam. I mean it.”

  “Yeah, Mom, I will.” Properly chastised, Adam became serious. “If she’ll let me.”

  There he goes being dense again, Margaret sighed. Any fool could tell Beth adored him…any fool except Adam.

  “I’ll take care of Lance if he shows up here. You just finish whatever it is you’re working on.” John paused and looked straight at his son. “And, if it is illegal, you’d better have a darn good reason for doing it.”

  Adam just nodded. He knew he and Beth had to finish finding the treasure...if there really was an actual treasure to be found. And he knew they had to do it as quickly as they could.