Emerald Fire

by Monica McCabe

  “Are you thinking about where they could be hidden?” Chloe asked from behind him.

  “NorthStar is old. Over the years, there’ve been a few buildings lost, but no record or family stories of finding a cache of jewels. Something like that would surely leave a mark. Dad and I have taken down a couple structures on the verge of collapse. Nothing found.”

  “What about Ronan’s house?”

  “Maybe, but we replaced the electrical wiring three years ago and pretty much had to tear down the interior walls. We didn’t find anything.”

  Finn also disqualified the old cordage shop. Definitely the right time frame, and he supposed it could be possible, but he doubted it. Making heavy sailing rope had been a dirty job. The scent of tar permeated the long and narrow building. Hard-packed dirt floor, twin metal tracks used to stretch the hemp, and a flame-heated boiler for the tar, it wouldn’t have been a safe place to store any kind of valuables.

  “That leaves the old dry dock and the lumber corral,” Chloe said. “Anything else?”

  “There’s the Lobster Shack and old Harbor Master’s Cabin.”

  When they left the animal trail and moved onto the wider cart path, Chloe stepped up beside him. “I still think your dad’s house has the most potential.”

  She was right. It would be logical for Mathis to hide the jewels in his home. But they’d done extensive remodeling to modernize. Nothing unusual was found. “Something would have shaken out with all the tearing down we did.”

  “But Mathis built that house,” she said, keeping at it. “Surely he included a cubby hole or a secret room.”

  “You really do like spy novels, don’t you?”

  She shrugged. “I like mysteries. And puzzles. Mathis is both. The inscription on the chalice says he was a true and faithful friend. Probably Desmond’s only one based on his reclusive lifestyle. That kind of loyalty isn’t easily broken. He would take special care in seeing his friend’s prized possession well hidden. The house must hold a secret something.”

  “Not if he built it before he went back for the emeralds,” he reasoned.

  They were making good time on the walk back, but they still had a ways to go before finding cell phone service. As late as they were, his dad had probably paced a hole in the floor waiting on them to call and check in.

  “Mathis could’ve added it later. And if not the house, that dry dock is huge. Probably a hundred places in there alone.”

  “It’ll take weeks to thoroughly rip apart NorthStar. How much time off do you have? Don’t you need to go back to work at the museum or library or whatever it is?”

  “Elliston Curator Foundation,” she said pointedly. “And I’m commission based. Freelance. Occasionally I go in to help work on a collection, but time off isn’t an issue. I probably should check in with them, though.”

  “So this means you plan on sticking around and bothering me for a while, doesn’t it?” He said it more as a way to distract her from tonight’s lack of success, but suddenly he wanted to hear her say yes.

  “I’m staying as long as it takes,” she replied. “That’s what team members do. You’ve got that spare room. You just need to get some furniture.”

  “No, I don’t.”

  “Yes, you do. There isn’t any, remember?”

  “I’m on a strict budget these days,” he declared truthfully. “Afraid you’ll have to bunk with me.” He’d have to remember to pick up some more coffee.

  “Tell me you are not saying that I’ll have to sleep with you in order to stay at NorthStar?”

  “What? The price of room and board too high?”

  She gasped. “You are being outrageous!”

  He laughed because he couldn’t help it. He loved getting her riled up. He liked it even more when the mild historian turned sea siren and seared his skin with a lust that was anything but proper.

  “Outrageous is one of my better qualities,” he said with a smile. “Besides, I guarantee you won’t regret it.”

  “Wow. You’ve got a serious ego problem.”

  He laughed again. “Says the lass who melts every time I kiss her.”

  “I do not!”

  This night may have been a bust, but he’d end it on a high note. He planned on proving to Chloe just how wrong she was and enjoying every minute of the process.

  He stopped on the trail. “Want me to prove it to you?”

  “No.”

  “Liar.”

  Even in the dark, he could see her scowl. “You are unbelievably arrogant.”

  He shrugged, giving in on that one and started walking.

  “Ronan has a spare room,” she declared. “I can stay there and search for the emeralds in the house.”

  She had him there. No real argument for that fact. “I’ve got Simonelli. You can’t have him if you don’t stay at my place.”

  “Seriously? That’s called blackmail, you know.”

  “It’s called incentive.”

  “Hmmm. Simon does make the world’s best coffee. It might make putting up with you worth it.”

  He wanted to grin, but didn’t dare, and found himself looking forward to the next few days. Maybe weeks. The realization that he’d grown used to having her around caught him by surprise. He didn’t want to see her head back home to Boston. Not yet.

  By the time they made it back to the SUV, it was after eleven. He slung off the backpack and tossed it on the hood, then dug in his pocket for the keys.

  Chloe rounded to her side where she waited for him to pop the lock, but instead it was the sound of a gun cocking that echoed in the quiet night. Finn went completely still, assessing the direction of the threat.

  “Chloe, dear,” came a feminine voice from behind him. “What a surprise to find you back in town.”

  Finn shot a quick glance at Chloe, only to see tight-lipped anger and a rigid stance, which made it pretty easy to guess the identity of the voice. Turning around, he faced a tall blond woman dressed in solid black and waving a semiautomatic pistol. She was clearly pleased to have the upper hand.

  “You, I don’t know,” the woman said. “But I regret to inform you that you haven’t chosen your friends wisely.”

  “What the hell do you want, Lisa?” Chloe snapped.

  Chapter 27

  “What I want, dear niece, are the emeralds.” Lisa stepped closer. “Why don’t you be a good little girl and hand them over.”

  Finn could kick himself into next week. He should have been paying attention to their surroundings instead of visualizing what he planned to do to Chloe when he got her home. He’d relaxed his guard, feeling secure in the dark of night and middle of nowhere. Now the black widow wife had the drop on them.

  “Sorry about your luck, Aunt Lisa.” Chloe stressed the relationship part, spitting it out like it tasted bad. “No emeralds, no life insurance money, and no yacht to steal. Your criminal plans are just flushing down the toilet, aren’t they?”

  “You’ve got a nasty little vindictive streak, don’t you?” Cold malice flowed in Lisa’s voice. “Take her bag, Owen.”

  A shadow exited the woods and aimed for Chloe. Her anger worried Finn. It clouded reason and pushed people to react dangerously. He could easily see her doing something he’d regret. So he alternated between keeping a wary eye on the gun, guesstimating how many bullets it held, and watching a rail-thin stick of a guy slither up to Chloe and yank the backpack off her shoulders.

  “You’re an idiot, Owen.” Chloe let him have the bag without a fight, but she didn’t hold back her tongue. “Do you know you are in league with a murderer?”

  “Shut up, cuz.” Owen stepped back and unzipped the backpack. “Who do you think came up with this whole idea? She’s just playing her part.” He stuck a small mag light between his teeth and scrounged around inside, carelessly tossing everything out including the journal, before throwing the empty bag on the ground. “Nothing,” he spat.

  “Told you we d
idn’t have them,” Chloe mocked with satisfaction over his lack of success. Finn understood her reasons, even sympathized, but they stood on the wrong end of a gun. Goading him wasn’t the best idea.

  “Check his bag,” Lisa demanded, pointing the gun at Finn.

  Owen flashed his light straight in Finn’s face, momentarily blinding him before sidling up to the hood and snatching his bag. As Finn blinked to clear his vision, the fence post retreated far enough away to dig through the contents without feeling threatened.

  “Mike and Brett are dead because of you.” Chloe was on a roll and not hiding the disgust she felt. “Two good men are gone, their families devastated, but that doesn’t faze you, does it? You still darken the world with greed.” She didn’t seem to care they were at gunpoint. Or that Lisa Banks was a woman with everything to lose.

  “Too bad the same can’t said about Jonathan,” Lisa replied nastily. “Where is he hiding at, by the way? Some backwater hospital in the Caribbean?”

  “He’s onto your game,” Chloe snapped. “And you are going to rot behind bars for murder, insurance fraud, and being a lousy wife.”

  Lisa lifted her gun in a back and forth wave. “Perhaps you haven’t noticed that I’m armed? How about you shut that vile mouth of yours before I get tired of listening and just shoot you.”

  “Not yet for Christ’s sake,” Owen said. “She’s our only link to the goddamn emeralds because his pack is empty, too.” He kicked the offending bag away and turned to Chloe. “You’ve been on the trail for years. You expect me to believe that you found nothing out there?” He pointed toward the pitch-black woods.

  “I don’t care what you believe, jackass.”

  Finn groaned inwardly, but when Owen took an angry step toward Chloe, there was no choice but to block his path.

  Owen froze and stared at Finn as though trying to gauge if he could take him on. There wasn’t a chance in hell of the little runt coming out on top. Owen had only one advantage, and that was his cohort’s gun currently aimed their way.

  “If you know what’s good for you”—Owen sneered with the bravado that came from knowing the odds were currently in his favor—“then you’ll stay the hell out of this family squabble. Got that?”

  Okay, Finn was beginning to realize why Chloe disliked her cousin so much. How had she put up with this guy her whole life? He’d known him all of fifteen minutes and already wanted to punch him in the face.

  Rather than act on that inclination, Finn leaned casually back against the front fender of his Ford, glanced around at their complete isolation, and wished he could get his hands on any sort of weapon. “I don’t believe we’ve met,” Finn said to Owen. “The name is Finnegan Kane.”

  “Couldn’t care less,” Owen replied. “You’re nothing but a problem.”

  Finn gave him a nod of acknowledgement. “And here I’ve been on my best behavior. How about I try your girlfriend instead?” Finn asked. “Maybe she has better manners.”

  Chloe gave a sharp bark of laughter from behind him. “The only time I’ve seen Lisa bother with polite manners is when she had something to gain.”

  A loud boom shattered the stillness of the forest. Chloe let loose a startled squeak, Owen swore at his partner in crime, and Finn ground his jaw in fury. Lisa held the smoking gun high above her head.

  “Shut up, all of you!” Lisa brought the gun back their direction. “This is getting us nowhere, and I’m tired of listening to insults. How about we get down to business?”

  That was one bullet gone from a clip that could hold roughly fifteen. Maybe thirteen, since the pistol looked like a compact Beretta. But it was dark, and he was far from an expert on gun manufacturers.

  “I’m not doing business with the likes of you,” Chloe said, indignant.

  Flying bullets didn’t faze an angry Chloe. He should’ve known that after seeing her in action against the pirates.

  “I wasn’t asking,” Lisa declared. “It’s a direct order. You’ve been nothing but a pill since the day I met Jonathan, and now you’re costing me a lot of money.” She waved the gun back and forth between Chloe and Finn. “Is the Emerald Fire at the bottom of the sea?”

  “Sadly, yes,” Chloe sighed dramatically. “But the upside is that it’s well out of reach of your claws.”

  “You are a fool,” Lisa snapped. “That was a ten-million dollar yacht.”

  “Not anymore I’m afraid.”

  Owen shook his head. “Why do you always have to interfere? Why can’t you just leave well enough alone?”

  “Sorry,” Chloe said unapologetically. “Karma doesn’t reward thieves and murderers.”

  “You never did know when to keep your mouth shut.” Owen shoved Chloe hard enough that she had to catch herself on the vehicle to keep from falling.

  When Finn got his hands on the weasel, he was going to bleed.

  “Enough,” yelled Lisa. “I’ll give you one last chance. Where are the emeralds?”

  Chloe moved up to stand closer to Finn. “Told you she was money hungry,” she said to him.

  “I’m sorry I ever doubted you,” he replied.

  Another bone-jarring bang filled the air, followed by the sound of shattering glass behind him. Damn it to hell! The windshield had taken a direct hit. He’d just replaced it less than a month ago, even paid extra for impact-resistant glass that was apparently worthless. It couldn’t stand up to one lousy bullet.

  But they had bigger problems. Lisa Banks was officially crazy and firing random shots in anger. You can’t reason with that kind of stupid. How long before one found him or Chloe?

  “You haven’t answered my question,” Lisa said with a calm that should probably scare him. “The emeralds?”

  “We’re a step closer, but it’s complicated.” This time Chloe tried to sound cautious, but her clenched fists belied the attempt.

  “Either you found them, or you didn’t,” Lisa snapped. “Which is it?”

  Chloe took a long deep breath before answering. “We found another clue.”

  Owen was pacing, his flashlight weaving drunkenly on the grass at his feet. Every few seconds he’d stop and stare at Chloe, frown, and go back to pacing. Finn doubted his agitation was due to worry for his cousin. More likely it stemmed from getting his hands on enough money to flee the country before everything came crashing down. That made him just as much of a problem as the woman with the gun.

  “Another clue?” Lisa’s laugh had more to do with scorn than humor. “You’re no use to me if you don’t know where the jewels are.”

  Things were on a downward spiral, and Finn needed to change the status quo. “Don’t be so fast to pass judgment. Maybe you should ask what it is we discovered.”

  Lisa shook her head. “You’re stalling. I don’t believe you found a thing.”

  “Your mistake,” Finn said with a shrug.

  The blonde stood silent so long that Finn started to worry she really didn’t care. Fortunately, they had Owen because he stopped pacing long enough to take the bait.

  “If my cousin is out here”—he waved around at the wilderness surrounding them—“then there’s a reason.” He shot the flashlight beam at Chloe. “What are you looking for if not the emeralds?”

  She lifted her hand, blocking her eyes. “The same thing I’ve always been looking for,” Chloe reasoned. “William Desmond.”

  “Did you find him?” Sarcasm dripped from Owen’s voice.

  “As a matter of fact, we did.”

  “Really?” Lisa jeered. “What good did it do you?”

  These two really needed to be taken down a peg, Finn thought with disgust. “That journal you tossed on the ground like its worthless?” Finn said to Owen as he pointed to the scattered contents of Chloe’s backpack. “The pages hold a key to the treasure.”

  “Hardly,” Owen scoffed. “I’ve heard that too many times to believe you now.”

  “That was before you met me,” Finn argued.
<
br />   “And who are you?”

  “I’m the man from NorthStar,” he said, liking the sound.

  Clearly it meant nothing to Lisa and Owen because they just exchanged mystified glances.

  “It means I’m the other half of a two-hundred year old puzzle,” Finn explained, though he barely understood himself. It was an unbelievable twist of fate that still had his head spinning. “It will take both of us, me and Chloe, to solve what remains.”

  Lisa kept her gun steady, but didn’t speak. She was probably deciding whether to believe him or not. For a few heartbeats, the only thing Finn could hear were night sounds, an owl, the scampering of nocturnal creatures on the forest floor, and Owen kicking through the contents on the ground, his flashlight looking for the journal in the darkness.

  “NorthStar?” Lisa finally asked.

  He debated how much to tell her, but they were out in the middle of nowhere in the dark of night. Perfect location if you were bent on murder. His immediate need was to get enough interest for them all to walk out of here on their own two feet. “It used to be a shipbuilding outfit back in the eighteen-hundreds. Now it’s a boat restoration business.”

  Lisa’s brows drew together. “I know what it is. You work for Sam Brady.” She said it like an accusation. “What I don’t understand is how that’s important to the emeralds.”

  She knew who he was. This might be a problem. Insurance fraud and investigators didn’t mix. Not from the guilty party’s perspective.

  “Where is my husband?” she asked, staring straight at him and ignoring Chloe.

  Finn shrugged. “Don’t know.”

  She leveled the gun his way. “Stop lying. Sam knows something, but won’t talk. He sent you to investigate.”

  No use denying it, his presence here would be hard to explain otherwise. “I went to St. Lucia to find the Emerald Fire. I found Chloe instead.”

  “You found the yacht.” Lisa said it as a statement of fact, and he didn’t contradict her. “I know Jonathan is alive. Where is he?”