Hunter's Hope

by M. J. O'Shea

  Alo went to reach into his backpack when the noise of sirens erupted in the tense quiet. Perry looked at the police cars that were arriving, and turned to run.

  “Not so fast.” Jack lunged for Perry and tripped him.

  Alo launched himself across the roof and landed right on top of Perry. He reached out and hit the gun out of Perry’s hand. The police sprinted across the grounds and into the building, and it was too late. Even if he got out of Alo’s grasp, Perry didn’t have anywhere to go.

  The police split up once they hit the roof and grabbed Perry and the still, bleeding, dark-haired woman. Alo supposed she’d be known as his accomplice if she survived, or Watson’s if she could be persuaded to talk.

  He still had no idea who she was beyond a presumably fake name or what she was getting out of any of it. Probably jail time at this point. Hopefully not death. Alo still couldn’t believe Perry had been mixed up in all of this. And that he’d shot someone over it.

  It all seemed so, so not worth it.

  They dragged themselves out of the French jail after a couple of hours of giving translated statements. Alo was exhausted. What an ending to everything that had happened.

  “Everyone okay?” Jack asked.

  “Define okay,” Kendra said.

  “Alive. Not wounded?”

  Alo laughed. Nothing was funny. “I’m okay. I suppose.”

  He was still reeling at everything that had just happened. The woman was, in fact, dead. Perry was arrested. It was over.

  They... they’d done it. They’d found his great- grandfather’s treasures.

  “Do you guys want to keep our rooms for tonight or do you want to head to the airport?”

  “I’m in favor of going to Sofia, grabbing the last of it, and going home. It feels like we’ve been gone for months,” Kendra said. “Plus, I’d kind of like to get out of here.”

  It hadn’t even been two weeks but Alo couldn’t agree more. It felt like they’d been on the run for months. Brad nodded and he did as well. Then Jack pulled out his phone to check available flights to Bulgaria.

  “The next one without a million layovers isn’t until tomorrow at noon, guys.”

  “Then I guess we’re keeping our rooms. Let’s head to the hotel. Maybe we can get some decent dinner too.”

  He couldn’t believe the thought of dinner was appealing. But strangely it was.

  Alo followed Jack back into their hotel room. It all looked exactly like it had that morning, but everything somehow seemed blurry. He’d just seen a woman get shot. The “nearly getting shot at himself” part was almost normal by then. But the sound of her body hitting the pavement still echoed. Alo couldn’t stop thinking about it.

  “Hey, kid. You want to take the first shower?”

  Alo looked at Jack. “Not really. I don’t think I want to be in there alone.”

  Jack gave him a small smile. “I think I can help you out with that.”

  Chapter Ten

  When they walked out of the baggage claim in New York, there was a wall of noise.

  Jack had never seen so many cameras or flashing lights. There were paparazzi calling his name, Alo’s, even Kendra’s and Brad’s. Government officials were waiting to take their statements.

  Jack and Alo had decided back in Europe that it would be wise to notify the right agencies, get them on their side. He was used to cameras, and in a way used to attention, but the chaos in front of them was nothing like he’d ever seen before.

  Jack hadn’t ever liked big crowds. He didn’t mind when people were milling about, walking, in general staying the hell away from his personal space. But the paps were pushing. Hard. They shouted out questions, some much ruder than others, trying to get a reaction out of them.

  Jack’s heart picked up. When he’d started this whole thing he’d just wanted to save his damn show. He’d been shot at. Twice. He’d been nearly arrested, he’d broken quite a few laws... and now this. Hell no. Jack wanted his bed and a scotch. In either order.

  He felt a hand on his elbow. Jack looked back to find Alo standing there, looking at him hopefully. Intimately. The cameras flashed faster and faster, and Jack pulled his arm away.

  The last thing he wanted to hand to the damn network was some May-December love fest to go along with their huge find. He and Alo were different. They were something else.

  “No, kid. Not here.”

  Alo’s face twisted in pain, but he nodded. Jack let himself be pulled along by the airport security that had materialized to deal with the paparazzi. The next thing he knew, he was inside the back of a blissfully silent town car. Alone.

  Alo was still shell-shocked in the town car home.

  He sat in relative silence and tried to absorb Jack’s obvious dismissal. They’d fought their way through a sea of photographers and questions to a bank of cars that had obviously been set up by someone. Alo had slipped into his own car and turned to say something, anything, to Jack or Kendra or Brad, but they’d all been gone already. So Alo shut the door and gestured for the driver to leave.

  It seemed so anticlimactic, to drive through New York, see things that looked just like they’d looked when he’d left—maybe a little icier but that’s about it.

  He wanted the city to look like it had changed, like it felt different inside the same way he did. Alo didn’t know how he’d fit back into his everyday life the way he was. Everything they’d been through had changed him. Jack had changed him.

  Alo knew after all of this was settled, after it was really over, he’d have to slip back into his normal life. It had only been two weeks, give or take a couple of days. Still, Alo felt like he was in a different lifetime. He didn’t know how he was going to go back.

  He had to wade through another roving pack of photographers at his house. Alo hadn’t thought about just how big the news of their finds was. He supposed it should’ve occurred to him that this would rock the globe. Millions and millions of dollars in art. The two paintings were worth that on their own. He still wished the press would leave him alone.

  “No comment at this time,” he repeated over and over while he fought his way up the stairs to his front door.

  His mother was waiting to usher him in. Alo was relieved to be away from the noise.

  “Where’s Dad?” he asked.

  “Still in Florida. He’s coming up with your grandfather in a couple of days.”

  Alo simply nodded. Then he pulled his mom into another long hug. “I was so worried about you,” she said.

  “I’m fine, Ma.”

  Probably not the best time to tell her about getting shot at. Twice. She’d hear that Dr. Perry had been arrested soon, if she hadn’t already. And that Watson was suspected, although Alo somehow doubted they’d ever be able to pin anything on someone like him. But until then it was better to keep her in the dark. She’d be happier that way.

  “I’m still so glad you’re home, sweetie,” she said to him.

  He still heard the clamor of the press outside their front door. He wondered when they’d give up. Or how they even got the tip in the first place. Probably Jack’s people. Alo didn’t have much of an idea how the publicity game was played, but he did know that the more buzz their adventures got, the more likely Jack’s show was to get a record number of viewers. Alo put it out of his head.

  “I’m glad I’m here too. Sorry for all this mess.” Alo gestured at the door. “I don’t know why I didn’t think this would happen. I just wanted to find the stuff. Prove I wasn’t crazy and give Grandpa something, you know? So he could feel a little more connected to his father.”

  “I know, sweetie. Just come into the kitchen. Drop your bags near the stairs.

  Alo did, except he bent over and pulled one little package out that he couldn’t bear to mail. He followed his mother to the kitchen. “I’m guessing you have the rest of the packages with you?” he asked.

  His mother nodded. “I didn’t open them. I’m rather afraid to see what’s in them.”

&nbs
p; Alo cracked a grin. “You’re probably right about that. But we’ll open them together. There are... some incredible things.”

  “I’d imagine.”

  “I’m going to help get it all back to whoever are the rightful owners, but I thought you at least deserved to see it all first. If for no other reason than as an apology for what’s probably going to come in the next few months.”

  His mom put a hand on his shoulder. “You did what you thought was right, baby. We’ll deal with it. It will be okay.”

  Alo’s hands shook as he held out one of the packages.

  “I didn’t mail this. I just.. had a feeling about it. I think you’ll want to see it before the rest.” he handed his mother the plainly wrapped box. “I did some research on it on the plane to confirm my suspicions. Or at least try. It’s Russian, if I’m right. Late eighteenth century. ”

  Alo’s mother peeled open the paper on the package. Inside was the pendant from Krakow — a drop of clear, complex amber hanging from a setting made of intense yellow gold. Alo may have gotten his looks from his father, but his mother shared his love of history. She looked up at him, eyes wide.

  “You said Russian? Eighteenth century?”

  Alo nodded with a smile. “I’m nearly certain.”

  “And —“

  “I don’t know who the last owner was. But I believe the first owner’s name was Catherine.” He smiled softly.

  Charlotte Green nearly dropped the necklace on the the kitchen table. “This can’t be here. In our house.” Her hands were shaking.

  Alo had gotten used to it over the past couple of weeks — handling treasures that had such immense worth they almost seemed unreal. He put his arm around his mom’s shoulders and steadied her hand with his own.

  “I thought this was gone forever,” She whispered.

  “They’ve never found the rest of the amber — a whole room full of it has disappeared and all that is left are rumors. But this necklace… I think it’s a part of the room. I’d heard about it before once or twice. Saw a picture that looks just like this in a textbook. “

  His mother nodded. “They say that Catherine loved the room so much, she wanted to carry a piece of it with her always. So a small piece was removed and polished and made into a necklace for her. She eventually had a bracelet made to match but the necklace was the only piece made out of the original amber.” Charlotte Green had tears in her eyes.

  “I know you loved Catherine, Mom.” Alo remembered his mother talking about how she studied the queen when she was in college. “Isn’t it amazing?”

  His mother nodded. She was clearly in shock.

  “You want to try it on for a moment? I won’t tell anyone.”

  Charlotte choked out a laugh in the middle of her tears. “Yes.”

  Alo gingerly undid the clasp, which despite years hidden still slid open with ease. Then he draped the necklace over his mother’s neck and let the stone fall. It was beautiful. Alive somehow, like it had absorbed all the lives of the people it had touched. Like it was grateful to be free once again.

  His mother took the necklace off after a few heady minutes. Alo understood. He would’ve been afraid to touch it as well. Together, they opened the rest of the treasures the team had found. His mother exclaimed time and time again. Alo watched as her nerves grew as well.

  “We can’t leave all of this here in the house, you know,” She finally said. “Not even for a day.”

  “I know.”

  “I can’t believe this. It feels unreal.”

  “And it’s going to get more unreal, I’d imagine. Getting the rest of the pieces back where they belong, even finding someone to help me do that is going to be... challenging.”

  She looked nervous. Alo didn’t blame her. He wanted to just hand the lot over to the next government official he could find and let them deal with it, but he didn’t know if that was the right answer.

  “Who? Where do we even go?”

  “I don’t know. I want to make sure it’s right. I want these pieces to go back to where they actually belong, not just to the museum with the most cash.”

  Alo’s mother nodded. “But first, we need to get it out of here. As soon as we possibly can.”

  “I agree.”

  Three days later, the family started arriving for a family get-together. As Alo had told Jack, they didn’t usually celebrate Christmas per se, but since Hanukkah didn’t always match up with breaks from school, they typically did some fun activities and gifts around Christmastime as well. And Alo had to admit—he had a weakness for the holiday, even if it wasn’t technically his.

  Nobody from the extended family usually spent the holiday break in the New York townhouse, but apparently things were different that year—nearly all of them were on the way or already there. He supposed there wasn’t much of a mystery as to why.

  Alo had decided to deal with what he’d found after the rush of family was gone. He’d put in a few calls, but the process was going to be very long. For the time being, he and his mom had snuck the treasures out of the house and locked the treasures in the most secure bank deposit box they could find. Alo knew it wasn’t even close to good enough but it was the best they could come up with until a better idea came along.

  “Alo, sweetheart. Are you awake yet?” His mom knocked on his door.

  She’d probably done that a total of ten times since he started high school. Alo kept his third floor clean. His parents rarely ventured up there. Just the fact that his mother was hovering outside his bedroom door was enough to know she was worried about him.

  Alo was worried about himself, to be fair. He’d spend most of the past few days moping around the house. Moping in his bedroom a lot of the time. Usually around the holidays, he was impossible to slow down. He baked, he decorated, he dragged his family out for walks around a festooned Manhattan. His mom had to notice the difference.

  “I’m awake. I’ve just been reading a few chapters of my book.”

  Staring at the ceiling and pretending to read is more like it.

  “Do you want to talk about it?” she asked.

  “You can come in, Mom. It’s fine.”

  Alo’s mom cracked the door open and slipped into the room. She came over and perched on the side of Alo’s bed. There wasn’t a book in sight, so that jig was up. All Alo got was a soft, sad look.

  “What’s going on, baby?” she asked.

  His mom hadn’t called him “baby” in years. Alo tried to smile. “I don’t know. Adrenaline letdown?” He shrugged. “I just feel weird.”

  “Are you sure it’s just adrenaline?” His mom had a kind look on her face. Understanding, maybe.

  “I don’t know.”

  Alo did know. Of course he did. His big IQ had to be good for something right? It was Jack. Sure, he missed the excitement of running through Europe searching for hidden treasure. But that wasn’t it. Not at all. Every time Alo closed his eyes, he felt Jack’s kiss. Every time he tried to fall asleep, he felt Jack’s body next to his, remembered his skin, the way it felt when Jack slowly opened him up from the inside.

  Alo wanted it back. He missed Jack. It had only been a couple of days. He hoped the feeling faded.

  “I think you might be missing your young man,” Charlotte said.

  “Mom. Can we not?” The last thing Alo needed was to discuss his “young man” with his mom.

  “I just want to make sure you’re okay. I worry about you still, you know. Just because you’re not a little kid anymore doesn’t mean you’re not my baby.”

  Kid....

  Screw him. Seriously.

  Alo pushed the thought of Jack out of his mind. He figured it would last about—yeah. There it was. He’d managed a whole one second without thinking about him.

  “I’ll be fine, Ma. Just a bit of a letdown, right? I still have to figure out what to do with... the stuff.”

  “Your father and I will help you with that. Let’s just get through family time first.”

&nbs
p; The first to arrive was Alo’s dad with his grandfather in tow. Alo was happy to see his father back home, and he was glad to have some time to discuss everything with his grandpa before everyone else descended on the house. His grandpa looked older—which shouldn’t have been as surprising as it was. Alo hadn’t seen him in over four years. He somehow expected everything to stay the same.

  “I’m proud of you, Son” was the first thing he said to Alo after a long hug. “I’m glad someone solved the mystery of those letters. They’ve been sitting there for years. Just think of how much more could’ve been saved had someone been able to figure it out before you.” His grandpa cupped his face.

  Alo’s throat felt thick. “Thanks, Grandpa.” Alo had thought he was too old to care about his grandpa’s approval. Apparently he wasn’t.

  “Come into the kitchen, Dad. I’m sure Charlotte has some tea ready,” Alo’s dad said. He stopped and gave Alo a short, tight hug before he led his own father into the Green’s kitchen.

  Tea and snacks with his family helped a little. Alo made it a few minutes without thinking about Jack, instead of a few sad seconds. It was good. Exactly what Alo had needed—he hadn’t even realized. Alo had forgotten how much his grandfather made him laugh.

  Alo didn’t like it as much as soon as the rest of the family got there. Sure, there was baking and endless chatter, but he felt like he was in a spotlight, which wasn’t his favorite place to be. They drilled him with questions, they wanted to see pictures, they wanted to go see the treasures themselves, which thank God, his mother knew to refuse. All in all, Alo was glad when December 27th rolled around and the rest of the family departed.

  Jenny, who seemed like she was from another lifetime and not just a couple of weeks ago at the library, called and asked Alo to go out on New Year’s. He didn’t want to go, but he made himself. A kiss on the cheek was all he got to ring in the New Year. Alo somehow wanted to cry. He refused to let himself.

  Life had calmed down a bit since the holidays. Sort of. The press had gotten bored with him, which was a huge relief, but he’d been so busy that he barely noticed the days going by.