by Jane Jamison
Josh dug into the large duffel bag they’d brought along and handed his cousin a flashlight. “What are you looking for?”
“I don’t know. But there has to be a reason why someone made this hole.”
Josh leaned closer, trying to see into the darkness, too. “Like some kind of hiding place? But for what?”
Will put his head through the hole and shined the light down inside it. “Holy shit.”
Josh glanced at her as she came up behind them. “What is it, cuz?”
Reaching into the hole, Will grabbed something then brought it back out. Tatum’s mouth fell open as she gawked at the bar of gold in his hand.
“Damn. Is that what I think it is?” Josh took the bar from Will so Will could bend over and retrieve another one from the dark space.
Will brought the next one out and gave it to Tatum. She took it, stunned at the heaviness. “Who would put gold bars in a wall?”
“Beats the hell out of me,” added Will.
“How many of these things are in there?” Josh brushed the bar off and studied it. Its golden sheen gleamed in the firelight.
“Lots.” Will got another bar out then stepped away from the hole.
Josh hefted his bar from hand to hand. “Do you remember anything about our family having a bunch of gold, Will?”
Tatum felt left out. “What are you talking about?”
Josh took his bar to the table and sat down, studying the bar. She and Will joined him.
“Not really. Maybe something about some of them losing a big sum of money? I don’t know. Could’ve been gold. I’m not sure if it was lost or stolen or what the hell happened. I never paid much attention to the stories that have circulated over the years. I figured they were just wild stories that had been passed down from generation to generation.” Will looked thoughtful as he hefted a bar from one hand to the next. “They probably got twisted and distorted in the repeated tellings. We’ll probably never figure out who put the gold here, and frankly, I don’t care. The present day squabbles are enough for me to handle.”
“Do you think one of your ancestors stole the gold? I mean, why else would someone hide it instead of putting it in a bank or spending it?” She skimmed her hand over one of the bars.
“We McLeans aren’t thieves, Tatum,” objected Josh.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean anything by that. And the same can be said of the Baldwins. I just can’t figure out why anyone would hide gold.”
Josh wiped his hand on his jeans, ridding it of the dust that covered the bar. “I agree with Will. We’ll probably never know what really happened so why speculate about it? Our main question is what to do with it now. Should we split it three ways?” He raised his hand. “That’s my vote.”
Tatum shot him an exasperated look. “We can’t do that. This has to belong to someone.”
They stared at each other as the same thought hit them. Tatum swallowed, almost afraid to ask. “That’s the more important question now, isn’t it? Whose gold is it now? With the land dispute still up in the air, both sides are going to lay claim to it.”
She stared at Josh as he broke into loud, boisterous laughter. “What’s so funny?”
Will shrugged. “Beats the hell out of me.”
Josh’s laughter ended abruptly. “Don’t you get it? Our wonderful families who have been at each others’ throats for years are going to go ape-shit about this. Instead of finding a way to end the feud, I think we just gave it more fuel.”
“Oh, my God, he’s right.” Tatum turned loose of her bar like it was covered with fire ants. It hit the floor with a loud thud. “Put it back, Will.” She rubbed her hands together as though to get rid of any bad luck that might’ve come with touching the gold. “Put it back and we’ll pretend we never saw it.”
Will studied his bar. “I don’t think we can do that. Someone, someday is going to find it again. It might as well be us.”
“Do you want to keep the feud going?” Didn’t he understand the complications the gold brought? “Don’t you realize how hard that makes it for us? As though it wasn’t already hard enough.”
“Yeah, I can see both points here.” Josh leaned back in his chair, balancing it on the back two legs. “If we forget we ever saw it, the feud goes on as it always has. But if we turn it in, then maybe that’ll get each side talking. Who knows? Maybe they’ll even try to get along so they can figure out who it belongs to.”
Will tilted his head. “Look who’s suddenly an optimist. But it doesn’t matter what the families do. We have to turn it in. Just think what this money could do for all of us.” He rested his forearms on the table. “Think of what this money could do for the town. Our families are lucky. The recession hasn’t hit us as hard as it has for most folks. Funneling this kind of money into our town’s economy could help so many other families. Can we afford not to tell everyone about it?”
She didn’t want to believe Will was right, but could she risk it? Could she sit by and watch some of the kids whose families were losing their homes suffer and know that she could’ve helped? “Fine. Then how do we do it? How do we tell everyone?”
Will rose, tugged on his coat, and took the flashlight with him. He was out the front door without answering her. She and Josh hurried to the window and watched as Will grabbed another duffel bag from the rear seat of their pickup then headed back inside.
He shook off the snow covering his shoulders and head. “The storm’s almost blown itself out. We’ll be able to leave soon.” Shaking off his coat, he headed for the hole in the wall. “And when we go, we’re taking the gold with us.”
“Then what? Are you planning on hiding it under your bed?” She crossed her arms, waiting as Will dug the gold out and handed each bar to Josh who put it in the extra duffel bag.
“Nope.” Will shot her a grin. “I’m taking it straight to the bank and handing it over to Crazy Cartal.”
“Oh, sure. That’s what everyone would do with a ton of gold. Give it to a banker.” She threw up her hands. “No, nix that. They’d give it to a crazy banker. Although if you do that, I’m wondering if you’re the crazy one.”
Will loaded the last bar into the bag. “Crazy like a fox, I hope.”
“I don’t understand. How is putting the gold in the bank going to help? Once our families find out about it, they’re going to go full steam ahead to claim it as their own.”
Josh hefted the bag, getting a feel of its weight. “I see where Will is going with this. Crazy Cartal will put it in an account that only we three can access for safekeeping. Then when each family hires an attorney to battle it out—which no doubt they will—the gold will be safe until the courts can make a decision.”
“Unless they hound us enough to withdraw the gold.”
The men shot her looks of dismay. Josh dropped the bag causing a loud boom. “You can’t give into them, Tatum. We three have to hold firm.”
“I’ll do my best.” She glanced at the window. The storm was coming to an end with vicious swirls giving way to light flurries. “So where do we say we discovered the gold? Once they know where we found it, they’ll figure out what we were doing here.”
Josh broke off a hunk of the remaining bread and offered it to her. It was old and stale now, but at least it was something to settle her growling stomach. “We have to tell them where, darlin’. It’s a critical piece in determining whose gold it is.”
“And it’s time that everyone knows about us, too,” added Will.
“But my father…”
“Your father’s doing fine and he’s a strong man.” Will poured her a glass of water from the one jug they’d brought with them. “You’ve got to ask yourself some hard questions. How much longer can you go on lying to him? Is it fair to keep lying to him? It’s time, sugar, to bite the bullet and just tell him.”
“He’s right, darlin’. We’ve been out all night. Don’t you think someone’s going to put two and one together and come up with the three of us? They’ll figure i
t out soon enough if they don’t already know.”
Will rubbed her shoulders, trying to comfort her. “Let’s get this done today so you don’t have to fret about it any longer.”
“No, please. Give it a day or so. You can tell them about the gold, but leave me out of it. They’ll be so preoccupied with starting the fight over who gets what that they’ll forget all about where we were. Plus, I don’t want to hit my father with both things at once. I’ll tell my family that I stayed at a friend’s last night.”
She could tell neither one of them liked the idea, but she had to have more time. Will opened his mouth to protest, but Josh stopped him. “Okay, Tatum, we’ll play it your way. But it’s only going to buy you a few days. We’ll swear Cartal to secrecy but only until Monday. He’ll have to report it on the bank’s records by then.”
“Thank you. A few days could mean all the difference as far as my father is concerned. So you two will handle the gold and spread the word? I don’t want to be a part of that, either. It’ll draw attention to us if we do it together.”
“Whatever you want.” Will hugged her. “Just get ready for the showdown.”
“I will.” She put on her sexiest smile. “We’ll leave as soon as the storm dies down a little more. But until then, let’s make the best of our time together.” She didn’t want to think that it might be the last time they’d have to share.
Josh grinned and started taking off his clothes. “I do love the way you think, darlin’.”
* * * *
Her mother had stayed at the hospital the night before and hadn’t even noticed that Tatum never made it home. Tatum shifted her position on the edge of her father’s hospital bed, thankful for small miracles.
Her spirit soared as she studied her father. She was thankful for big miracles, too.
She checked her watch. It was already midmorning and she hadn’t heard news about the gold yet.
What was taking them so long? Surely, they’d gotten Cartal to open the bank early. They’d wanted to get the gold into the vault before anyone showed up. Had they made it? Had they run into trouble? Had they convinced Cartal to keep the gold a secret until Monday? Her mind whirled with the questions that had no answers yet.
“Honey, is something wrong?”
She startled then plastered on a smile for her father. “Nope. Nothing at all.” No news was actually good news, right?
His steely eyes still shone with the strength she’d always seen in them. It was hard to believe he had cancer or had suffered through a heart attack. “You know you can tell me anything, don’t you? I’m your father and I love you.”
The intensity in his eyes seemed to grow stronger, reminding her of the many times he’d gotten her to confess to doing wrong. She was sure he had a magical way of looking into her soul and seeing everything.
“There’s nothing you could ever do that would make me love you any less. You know that, right?”
She fought back a tear. “I know. And I love you just as much.”
“Then tell me.”
She stood, unable to look him in the eye and lie to him again. But she’d asked Will and Josh for a few days and she had to stick with the plan. “There’s nothing to tell.”
Her father wanted to push her. She could sense his need in the air between them like a tangible thing. But he wouldn’t.
“Okay, then, how about my girl trying to beat her old man at a game of checkers. I’ve got to do something or I’m going to go batshit crazy sitting around this joint.”
She laughed, relieved that the questions were over. For now at least. “Sure, but don’t think I’m going to take it easy on you just because you’re in that bed.”
“That’s my little girl.”
“Yep. And I’ll always be damn proud of it.” She just prayed he’d still feel the same way once he found out about her and her McLean men.
* * * *
“They know about the gold.” Josh’s voice was filled with excitement along with a hint of worry.
Tatum gripped her phone tighter as she walked through the entrance of the hospital. Her father was getting released today, and she wanted to be there. Although she’d been expecting a call from Josh or Will, she was still unprepared when it came. “So you told your family?”
“Yeah. And we guessed right about the gold. They’re already on the phone with their attorney. Your father’s going to hear about the gold soon, if he hasn’t already, when our lawyer contacts your lawyer.”
“Oh, Josh, did we do the right thing? Aren’t we just stirring the pot even more? Maybe we should’ve hidden the gold someplace else. Or made an anonymous donation to charity.”
She could almost see him shaking his head.
“Naw, it had to come out. But get ready. Our family’s ready to claim it because we found it in the cabin and on land they view as theirs. Hell, when we told them we put it under all three of our names, I thought their hearts stopped at the same time. So your family’s going to know you’re involved, darlin’. It’s time to come clean about us.”
She sucked in a hard breath. “I thought we were going to leave me out of the part about finding the gold?”
“We couldn’t. Otherwise, it would’ve strengthened their assertion that it’s theirs. Nine-tenths possession and all that. I’m sorry, but we had no choice and no time to let you know.”
“Did you tell them about us?”
“No. All they know is that you were with us when we found it. We told them you and Will were going over the logo for the show choir. They didn’t interrogate us, but they didn’t seem to believe us, either. And they’ll figure it out soon enough. But that still gives you a little time to tell your father. You have to do it, Tatum, and you’d better do it now.”
“I told you I didn’t want to hit him with both things at once.”
“I know and we tried to do it your way, but it didn’t work out. Tell him, Tatum. It’ll be better coming from you.”
“Okay, you’re right. I will.” It would be the hardest thing she’d ever had to do.
“I want to be there when you tell him. To support you and to let him know how serious we are.”
“You do? You’d come to the hospital with me?”
“Of course. Will and I would do anything for you. Fact is, it’d be easier to see him in the hospital than it would for us to get into the Baldwin home. But it’ll have to just be me. Will went with his brothers to bring Farah home.”
“Oh, Josh, that’s so great. I can’t wait to see her.”
“Yeah, it’ll be nice having her home safe and sound. She’s still recuperating from her gunshot wound. I can’t believe she likes being a detective.”
“Give her my best, will you?”
“Sure. But my focus is on you. How about I come to the hospital right now?”
She wanted him by her side, but the thought of her father seeing her walk into his hospital room with Josh by her side was too much to bear. She’d rather ease into the truth. “No. Don’t come. I think it’s better if I tell him by myself.”
“If you’re sure.”
“I’m sure.”
“All right. But if you need me, just call and I’ll be there as fast as I can.”
“I will.” She let out a ragged sigh.
“Darlin’?”
“Yeah?” She closed her eyes, picturing him with his mesmerizing McLean blue eyes and cocky grin.
“Remember that I love you.”
“I love you, too. And Will. Bye.” She clicked off the call and stared at the elevators in front of her. All at once her legs had grown stiff, but she forced herself into the car and pushed the button that would take her to her father’s room. She hoped no one else would be there. If so, then she’d have to make them leave. She wanted to tell her father about her love for Josh and Will in private.
Her father was on the phone when she came into the room. One look at his face told her everything.
He knows.
His gaze locked on her and
he waved her to the chair nearest him. She took the seat, thankful that they were alone.
“Yeah, Garner, that’s what I want you to do. I’ll be damned if I’ll let those McLeans steal gold that was on Baldwin land. Naw, I don’t care about possession being nine-tenths and all that shit.”
Tatum settled into the chair as her father listened to what their family attorney had to say. She’d rarely heard her father curse, and to hear it now was not a good sign. Her mouth went dry and she suddenly needed water. She took the pitcher that was always by his bedside and poured a drink. Downing it, she sent a quick prayer skyward and held the plastic cup between her hands as though the flimsy thing could give her courage.
“Garner, you’d better start earning your keep. I’ve had you on a retainer all these years, but God knows you’ve done fucking little about the land issue up to now.” His gaze shifted to her again. “I know Will and Josh McLean found it. And I know they’ve got it squirreled away in the bank of that friend of theirs.”
She squirmed in her seat. Just how much did he know?
“What’s that? Tatum’s name is on the account?”
Oh, crap.
The beeping of a monitor drew her attention upward. His blood pressure was rising. She met her father’s gaze and hated the look he gave her.
“But that’s a good thing, right? That means she can lay claim to at least a third of it. And you’ll take them to court and get the rest. Drop everything else and get on it right away.” He listened to Garner for another moment. “Call me when you have more to report.”
He dropped the phone in his lap and centered his full attention on her. “You want to tell me how your name got on an account full of gold? You want to tell me how you’re mixed up with those McLean boys?”
She swallowed and wished she was anywhere else. Her gaze drifted up to the monitor again and saw that his blood pressure had gone up yet again.
“Josh, Will, and I found the gold. We knew our families would go to war over it, so we put the gold into a joint account. It’s only to keep the gold in a neutral place until the courts can decide whose it is.”
