River Rocks: A West Virginia Adventure Novel

by Steve Kittner

  In a few seconds they bumped the bank with the raft and Josh jumped off to go survey the campsite. He looked around in disbelief. The tent was cut up with a sharp knife and was lying flat on the ground. The rope securing their boat had been cut, sending it downriver to who knows where. Their sleeping bags and gear had been searched and ransacked.

  “This is unbelievable,” Josh said.” Who would do this and what were they looking for?

  Eddie looked around. His thoughts went right to what Mayor Billingsworth had told them about Collins. He would stop at nothing. He knows where to hide the bodies.

  “Collins,” Eddie said.

  “The boat that we heard,” said Tiny from the raft.

  A chill ran up the spines of every man there. It must be true. Collins really could be mentally capable of taking lives to acquire this gold. The knife cuts in the tent were disturbing. Collins would know that, with the kids camping and not in their campsite, they would likely be on the trail of the gold…tonight. This would make Collins even more desperate and take him to a new level of insanity.

  Josh had a piece of the tent fabric in his hand and then tossed it onto the ground as he glanced up to his house. A light appeared to be on but towards the front of the house and not the back. Josh thought this was unusual but gave it no more thought. “Well, what’s done here is done. We may as well get across the river and get our gold,” he said with a slight look of concern on his face.”

  Burl and Tiny looked at each other, both holding their backpacks and thinking alike. They would keep their packs close to them for the rest of the night. They prayed the unthinkable wouldn’t have to happen but if it did, they would be ready. Eyes and ears must be sharp from here on.

  Josh and Eddie stepped back onto the raft and John Hopes grabbed the long pole and gave a shove to move them away from the riverbank. He poled them straight across the river about two hundred feet to the sandbar and, as he did that, all of them stood silently on the raft contemplating the campsite.

  All seven of them knew that they had to put what they had just seen behind them and move on quickly but cautiously to the task at hand. It was disturbing and they were pretty sure that the boat engine noise that they had heard earlier was that of Collins running up and down the river. But how did he know the kids would camp that night? Or did he simply come to cut the boat loose so they would have one less means of river transportation and just got lucky to find an empty campsite to tear apart and inflict some intimidation on the young boys? If so, it had worked, to a point. But it wouldn’t stop them. Not tonight! Because apparently, somewhere on their sandbar, encased in the stone trestle, was a big pile of gold. About three million dollar’s worth, and they all intended to find it.

  The milk-jug raft drifted to a stop perfectly in about six inches of water and about four feet from the dry sand bar. John Hopes placed the long pole in its storage position and the guys began jumping off the raft and onto the rocks while handing digging tools from ship to shore. Brad tied off his raft to a large old log that lay across the bar and stood proud, once again of what his river-craft could do.

  The fog was still dense and rolling along the river as they approached the one o’clock hour of the morning. The moon radiated its light through the water droplets of the fog and gave the old tunnel of the trestle an eerie look. Thick vines hung down either side of the trestle looking like the dreadlocks of a Rastafarian and Josh couldn’t help thinking of Bob Marley and his North Shore Reggae Blues. Weird time to think about it but that’s what popped into his head.

  Elton Mansfield spoke up softly, “Well gentleman, we are at the location. Can we see the final clue and see if we can finally make history?” He smiled without showing teeth.

  Tiny pulled the deer hide from his backpack and the men came to huddle around it, Hopes bringing the lantern which was showing signs of running out of fuel. Tiny held one side of the deer hide and Mansfield held the other and they all began to try to make sense of what it said in relation to the sandbar and the train trestle with its tunnel.

  “We need to verify the trestle number. We have to be sure,” John Hopes reminded them.

  They all looked up at the arch of the tunnel where the trestle number was supposed to be. They saw nothing. Josh pulled the flashlight from his pocket and beamed it upward to the apex of the tunnel entry. The highest point of the tunnel entrance. The rocks were beautifully arched overhead, expertly cut and laid into place but the number could not be seen for the fern, vines and other vegetation that draped the tunnel entrance. John Hopes made a mental note of something while biting his cheek.

  Eddie looked around on the sandbar. “Josh, help me find a long skinny tree for a pole.” Josh didn’t know why yet but he helped his friend look for something long and skinny lying on the sandbar. They shined the flashlight around. Brad jumped on the raft, grabbed the pole for propelling his vessel upstream and jumped back to the sandbar. Is this long enough?”

  “Oh yeah, maybe so,” Eddie said. He then walked over to the tunnel entrance and held the pole high in the air up to the ferns and vegetation that covered the highest stone in the arch. Everyone followed. Eddie began working the pole up and down to remove the plants, dirt, vines and all other leafy things that blocked the one stone that they needed to see. He worked hard at it for a couple of minutes and by then was covered with the dirt and sand and plants that had fallen down on him. He stopped when it felt all clear to him and they all backed up for a better view. Josh beamed the powerful flashlight up at the top stone once again and there it was. Deeply engraved into the limestone was the letter E and then the number 21. Trestle E-21.

  They were at the right spot!

  There were smiles all around on the sandbar and Josh clicked off the flashlight. No need to draw any more attention than necessary, even at one o’clock in the morning. Only the dimming lamplight provided illumination as they once again directed their attention back to the final clue, the deer-hide document recovered from the upstairs washroom of the Crossroads Tavern.

  Key from the door 6 O, 2 D, 8 O, 1 D

  Tiny then explained to Hopes and Mansfield what they believed the code represented: an over-and-down series of counting blocks to get to the vault. Hopes and Mansfield agreed that it could be very likely, and at least was a good thing to try first. The question was, once again, just as in the old basement, where do they begin counting?

  Burl mentioned, “You know what puzzles me about this is on the first deer hide, it said Sand is a Vault. This trestle is limestone. Solid heavy limestone. So what could that mean?”

  Mansfield looked up at the trestle and thought a minute. “That’s a good point. Maybe it’s referring to the sand of the hills around it or of the sandbar.” He shrugged.

  Burl stroked his beard while thinking about that. “Could be.”

  Josh said, “The real question is where do we start? There must be two hundred stones in this trestle. Same problem as before.”

  As they were all looking and walking closer to the entrance of the tunnel, Eddie noticed that John Hopes had his head cocked a little and was in thought about something while looking up at the engraving above the tunnel entrance. Eventually he had everyone’s attention as he began to smile. Now it was his turn. Now John Hopes knew something about the trestle that everyone else didn’t know, even Mansfield.

  “What is it John? What do you know?” Elton pleaded.

  John walked over to the mouth of the dark tunnel. The creek water ran steadily off of the hill and down through the tunnel and now across Hope’s feet but he didn’t care. He had something figured out and could now be just minutes from 162 pounds of gold being rediscovered after over a hundred years. He looked back at the others and pointed up at the engraving. “There,” he said, “that stone right there. That’s where we start. It’s called the ’keystone.’ Look!”

  He walked back over to the deer hide that Tiny was again holding. “It says Key from the door”. It means start with the “keystone. The keystone above t
he door or mouth of the tunnel! I guarantee it! That’s the rock we need to start with and if we follow that pattern, we will find the vault.”

  Mansfield got excited. He knew that. He knew the top rock in the arch was the keystone. It had been for centuries. How could he not have thought of that? Look at the pictures of ancient Greece. Arches! Keystones! Start with the key above the door!

  “Tiny, bring that hide over here!” Mansfield said excitedly.

  They all ran to the mouth of the tunnel.

  ……………………………………………………………………………………

  His steps were calculated and slow as he beamed his government-issued flashlight through the door of the old basement. This door should not be so easy to open. Footprints. Lots of footprints on the dusty old floor. Too many for just two kids. Who were all these people? They had already been here for sure and now were gone.

  He stepped further into the basement and walked slowly with his flashlight pointed at the floor. Over by the long wooden table he spotted huge prints of a work boot of a large man. “Otis,” he said to himself. He considered the stairs and decided to go ahead and check the upper floors to see if there was anything disturbed. He prowled his way through the old tavern, checking every room and broom closet. He walked out of the last room on the upper floor completely sure that there was nothing to see and then noticed the old washroom at the end of the hallway. Leave no stone unturned, he flashed his light into the room, poked his head into the doorway and looked towards the big bath tub that was still there.

  Everything looked to be in order until he did a double-take with his flashlight at something lying on the floor. It was a board about as long as his forearm. This was curious. He beamed his light around the floor for missing boards but couldn’t find a hole anywhere in the bathroom. He shined his light up the walls to the ceiling, thinking maybe a ceiling board had fallen down. Nothing.

  He then zipped his light around the room at the walls and that’s when he noticed a gap in the wall over behind the bathtub, in the shelving area. He stepped over to get a closer look. Sheriff Collins’ mouth hung open in amazement as he looked at the hole, the secret mini-vault built into the shelving. He nodded his head slowly in disgust. He once again spoke to himself, “They found something else…and again, before me!” He looked around at nothing in particular, forming his next move. He would not be defeated by a couple of kids and an old mountain hermit! His eyes changed from crazy to insane as he ran out of the old Crossroads Tavern and down to his county-owned skiff. The muddy footprints on the downriver side of the island said that they had tied up there and were now gone, most likely back downriver.

  He would go downriver too…drifting with no lights and no engine. He would not see the shadowed figure standing on the north bank of the Elk River.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

  Josh Baker set the fading lantern on the rocks of the sandbar and turned the small pump shaft to unlock it. He then gave the lantern about twenty-five good pumps to bring the fuel pressure back up and brighten the light. It worked and he hoped that they would have enough fuel to finish their work that night. He set it down close to the entrance of the tunnel.

  Excitement filled the veins of every man on the bar as they gathered around the coded deer hide.

  Mansfield said, “Okay, from the Keystone… Josh put the flashlight on it…From the keystone, six over.”

  “Which way, right or left?” Josh asked.

  There was silence for a second as Mansfield looked back at the deer hide and then Tiny said, “Let’s go left first.”

  “Okay to the left, Josh, six over,” Eddie coached.

  The beam of light hit six stones and then the code called for two down. “One, two,” they all counted as Josh beamed every stone.

  “Now eight over,” Mansfield called out. Once again they all counted and, with the eight stones, they were now about fifteen feet inside the dark tunnel. Everyone repositioned himself so all could see the final stone as Elton Mansfield took a deep breath and called out, “One down.”

  Josh Baker also took a deep breath and slowly moved the beam of the flashlight straight down one stone. Everyone shuffled to get a better look. This stone, like all the others, was about three feet wide by two feet tall. They all studied it for a moment and Josh brought the flashlight closer.

  John Hopes suggested, “Are there any markings on it? Could be very small even. Anything at all?”

  There was nothing extraordinary about this particular stone. It was just like all the rest of the stones on that wall--limestone, pretty smooth, nicely cut, with a small amount of moss growing on it. Hearts thumped so hard in that tunnel that it almost sounded like jungle drums. Josh’s heart was beating so fast that he could hear it in his ears! Eddie too.

  John Hopes said, “Pass me a small hammer.” He wanted to try something. Brad ran out of the tunnel, splashing in the small creek, and grabbed a small chipping hammer. It had a chisel on one side and a blunt square head on the other side. He handed it to Hopes.

  Hopes took the hammer and looked over the stone. He drew the hammer back about eight inches and began tapping the center of the stone and then moved to the outside perimeter of the same stone. No change in sound. Solid rock! He then moved over two stones and did the same test. It sounded just the same. Solid rock. Everyone was watching in earnest excitement.

  His eyebrows drew down in thought. The dim flicker of the lantern light undulated off the stone walls of the interior of the tunnel and danced in every eye that was looking on. Bullfrogs and crickets sang their songs along the muddy banks of the river, undisturbed by the treasure hunters who had invaded their night.

  Hopes spoke while shaking his head a little, “It doesn’t sound right; it just sounds solid like all the rest.”

  Burl Otis was biting his lower lip in thought. “How about we count to the right? Start all over and count to the right side and see where that puts us.”

  Everyone murmured their approval and feet started shuffling stepping from rock to rock.

  Elton Mansfield said the obvious, “Wait, wait, hold on. We don’t have to go back outside. This structure is symmetrical. The final stone will be right over there, directly across the tunnel from this stone that we just counted to. Josh, bring the light”

  Again, Josh Baker negotiated a couple of rocks and hit his flashlight on the tunnel wall. “Which one would it be?”

  Elton located the previous stone and then looked across the small creek that ran through the tunnel to the opposite wall. His arm came up and his finger pointed. “It would be right….THERE!”

  Josh followed the librarian’s finger and hit the light on the stone directly across the tunnel where he was pointing.

  “OK, now,” Hopes said, stepping across the small creek. “Look at this! This one looks different. Look at how much moss is on this one compared to the others. Maybe because it’s hollow?” He shrugged.

  “Oh my gosh! This could be it then!” Josh could not contain his excitement.

  Eddie repositioned himself for a closer look. They had worked hard for this moment and he wasn’t about to have a bad view of it.

  Josh, Eddie and their new buddy Brad had been totally engrossed in this adventure for the better part of two weeks. It had captured their spirit, ignited a passion and motivated these teenagers to get out of bed early in the morning to go chase their next lead or find their next clue and now they had done it! They had persevered and now it was the big moment, the moment that a century of Otises and Brookses and Franklins, and the Mansfield family, had dreamed of. And it was their discovery! They had found the Red Can and from then it had been a whirlwind.

  Josh Baker looked at John Hopes. Josh held his hand out for the hammer and John knew what he wanted to do and, yes, it was the right thing. Hopes handed the small chipping hammer to Josh and Eddie moved even closer. Josh took the hammer, drew it back about eight inches as Hopes had done and began tapping the center of the big stone. Boom,
Boom, Boom! Definitely different. They all looked at each other, smiling, and Josh did it again. He banged on the center of the stone and then moved over to the next stone and hit it just the same way. The hammer bounced off the next stone and the sound was flat. Josh went back to the mossy stone. Boom, boom, boom! It sounded like a bass drum compared to the other stones.

  Tiny Brooks moved close and rubbed the moss with his hand. He rubbed it hard so it would come off. He removed about a one-foot square of the green moss and took the flashlight from Eddie who had been holding it while Josh banged the stones. Tiny Brooks put the light up to the rock and studied it. He turned and smiled that big Tiny Brooks smile!

  “What?” Eddie asked. “What is it?”

  “Sand is a vault, baby!” Tiny said. “Sand is a vault!” He was laughing with triumph. “This stone and only this stone is sandstone, and it’s holding more moisture and growing more moss just like Mr. Hopes said! It was meant to be broken apart at some point. It was meant to be easy to remove!”

  “It was probably meant to be easy to spot, too, if you knew what you were looking for,” Burl Otis added, chuckling a little. “I have been through this tunnel many, many times and never noticed it.”

  “Yeah, you and a hundred other people!” Tiny said, still smiling.

  Brad stepped up and handed the sledgehammer to no one in particular. He set it on a rock in the middle of the small stream and everyone looked at one another. Who would do the honors?

  The big stone sat two layers up from the bottom. The bottom of the stone was at a height of about four feet and the top was at about the six-foot mark. Looks were exchanged and, by the process of elimination, without words. All eyes went to Josh and Eddie.

  Josh gave that little sideways grin of his and put one hand on the twelve pound sledgehammer and then the other. He looked at his best friend. They would never have a better moment of friendship and adventure together in their lives. This was their finest hour!