Freedom's Treasure (23 page)

Anna carefully disposed of her used napkins and shoved the clean ones into her pocket. She never knew when she’d need one and that had been a hard learned lesson a long time ago. She reflected on what purple soda could do to tan shorts and shuddered.

She strolled up and down each side of the street. She stopped at several outdoor stalls local vendors had set up and before she knew it she had arms full of shopping bags. She nearly shook her head at her own shopping weakness and decided she was allowed. She had to replace everything she owned, didn’t she?

Time had slid by and when she reached the motel she discovered it was close to time for the fireworks show to start. With a sigh she unplugged her headphones and stuck her phone on the charger. She felt like another shower was in order and wondered if she was stalling her trip to the park to see Elisa.

Anna reminded herself that Hunter would be busy helping with the fireworks show. She was ready to see him and hash out their issue but, at the same time, she desperately wanted to delay it. She had a solid idea in her head of how the conversation would go and if it didn’t follow the script she didn’t want to be disappointed. She truly hoped Hunter was the man she had thought, merely with a few rough edges she could eventually grow used to.

Anna took her camp chair out of the back of her truck. She slung the strap over her shoulder and double-checked that she had her phone and various snacks and drinks tucked into the backpack she continued to borrow from Hunter before sliding that onto her opposite shoulder. Feeling loaded for bear she made her way to the park and looked for the giant willow tree near the gazebo. It was time to reclaim her pride.

Had Anna been paying attention she would have seen someone else with that same goal in mind. Dock followed Anna from a distance, thankful she was wearing a bright yellow shirt. It helped him to keep her in sight.

The weight of the gun in his waistband reminded him that his goal was finally in reach and the woman in front of him was the final tumbler in the lock he’d been attempting to pick for nearly two decades.

The sun sat heavily against the trees, the bright glare beaming directly into Anna’s eyes. She slipped her sunglasses on and breathed a sigh of relief. She retained a lingering headache from the sleeping pill she’d taken and the emotional upheaval of the day before.

She walked carefully across the grass, winding her way through the mini-campsites people had set up throughout the day. Children ran around with their faces painted and carrying different foods from the vendors set up in the park. Anna eyed an elephant ear with great interest and made a mental note of the location of the stall. As soon as she checked in with Elisa and got settled she’d have to buy one. She c
ould practically taste the sugar and cinnamon on her fingertips.

She took a note of some teenagers clustered around something near the water. She kept watching as she strolled to the tree and laughed when they splintered into groups and a large, definitely illegal, firecracker exploded with a scream and a bang. It had been years since she’d taken the time to enjoy the actual celebration of Independence Day and she decided to savor every moment of it.

She spotted the large tent set up directly underneath the willow tree. The branches draped the ground around the tent giving the casual observer random glimpses of the activity happening underneath. A small grill smoked just outside the entrance and Anna caught the smell of cooking chicken drifting along the breeze. Laughter and genial arguments carried with the scents and Anna’s spirits lifted. This simply had to be Elisa’s tent.

Anna slowed her steps when she was halfway there. She turned slowly and looked with fresh eyes at what was happening around her. The sun glistened on the lake, Government Lake, she thought it was, as small rowboats drifted across the water. Children played at the sandy beach, splashing and screaming at the fish jumping in the center of the lake. Some couples strolled hand in hand and snuck kisses while others slow danced to the music playing on the different machines around the park.

Anna saw old man Peterson dancing with his wife, slowly spinning her around before elegantly dipping her with a long kiss. Anna’s heart clenched and she ached for her laptop. She ached for Hunter.

She stiffened her spine and continued her trek to Elisa’s tent, shaking off the need and morose thoughts. This was a day to celebrate and, damn it, she was going to do exactly that.

Anna’s legs felt like they were struggling through quicksand as she went the last twenty yards to the tent. There were several chairs set up in the shade and facing the lake. Anna gathered the fireworks were to be lit off from a small island she only just noticed. She’d never seen fireworks over a lake and she was excited at the concept.

She set the heavy backpack down and set up her chair next to the one on the farthest end. She had never been much of a sitter and she felt the urge to wander and explore the park before the show began. She didn’t see Elisa and when she peeked into the tent she saw it was empty. Mentally shrugging her shoulders she grabbed her cane, phone and a bottle of water from the backpack. Anna removed the heavier clothing and struggled to get the backpack slung over her shoulder. She slipped a few dollars into her pocket and set off on her exploration.

Dock was getting tired of following this chick around. Didn’t she ever stop moving? He was locked in on her backpack. He knew the journal was in there, it had to be. He’d taken a chance and already searched the motel room while she was busy shopping on
Main Street and had found nothing.

Dusk was settling over the park and he knew the fireworks would start within the next half an hour or so. That, he figured, was his best chance. If he ended up having to shoot her the explosions and bangs of the official and unofficial fireworks would cover the noise. He wouldn’t kill her, that wasn’t in his plan, but if she didn’t cooperate with him he’d definitely be causing some damage.

He made casual conversation with random busybodies while she waited in line for an elephant ear. He watched her stroll through the crowd as she ate the monstrosity. His stomach curled and he couldn’t believe she would put that garbage in her body. A nice body, he thought, and perhaps the junk food he’d been watching her cram into her maw all day led to that but he knew damn well she’d end up at 300 pounds if she didn’t cut out some of the fat and sugar.

Dock turned and scanned over the lake. He completely failed to notice the streaks of orange and pink crossing the clouds and instead felt completely tuned in to every molecule of Anna’s being. He couldn’t take the anticipation anymore. The time had come to approach Anna. He’d try talking to her first but if she wasn’t more than forthcoming he was prepared to take it to the next step.

He swiftly turned to where he knew she would be standing and considered the actual approach. He slowed his walk, tried to put a casual look of surprise on his face when she turned and spotted him.

“Anna! Hi! I didn’t expect to see you here,” casual, friendly, butter wouldn’t have melted in his mouth and Anna knew it.

“Hi, Dock! How are you?” Anna didn’t know why but she desperately wanted to edge away from the man with far too happy of a smile. It seemed to her that a man generally acted awkwardly around someone who’d seen them take a punch and not as excited as a puppy.

“It’s well enough. Hey, I’m glad I bumped into you here.”

“Why is that?” Anna looked around their surroundings. He’d approached her when she’d been in a corner of the park and there weren’t many people around. Anna wondered why she thought of the bystanders as witnesses in her mind.

“I wanted to ask you about that map you found.”

“Excuse me?” she squeaked.

“You know the map Samuel drew. I looked all over and I just can’t figure out where his starting point is; where the X is going to be. I wondered if you had any thoughts about that.”

This time Anna didn’t fight the urge. She lengthened her pace and started angling back toward the large crowd of people.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Dock.” She saw him reach around his back and she considered running. He must have sensed it.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you.” The gun seemed to shine with the last few rays of light from the sun. “Over the past couple of days my trigger finger has grown itchy.”

“Oh my God,” she whispered, “what are you doing?”

“I guess we’ll find that out together,” he answered. “Now, about that map?”

“I don’t have it with me,” she answered, her stare never leaving the gun in his hand. The hole pointed toward her was huge and unwavering.

“I know that, Anna. I have it. I took it from your laptop yesterday,” he grabbed her arm and stopped her movement. “Where’s the journal? I need it to figure it out.”

“I don’t have that either.”

“I don’t believe you.” He yanked the backpack from her shoulder and began digging through it. “It’s not in your motel room or your truck so you have to have it in this bag.”

“It’s not in there. I don’t have the journal, Dock.” Sincerity rang in every word and he whirled on her.

“Where is it?”

Anna gulped. “I left it at Hunter’s.”

“Well isn’t that damned convenient? I had planned on asking him to join our little party but it was going to be much later.” The malice caused Anna to flinch back. Dock turned the gun back to her midsection. She heard a soft
snick
. “That was the safety being turned off. Red means dead. We’re going for a ride. Start walking. My truck is close. Don’t try to signal or do anything stupid, Anna. I’m not afraid to shoot you and take my chances with Hunter. Start walking and look casual.”

Anna slid her trembling hands into the pockets of the cargo pants with which she’d replaced her shorts before coming to the park. She turned and jerkily started walking and made sure she didn’t touch gazes with anyone nearby. Something brushed her fingertips and she dipped her hand lower into her pocket. She felt the rubber casing of her cell phone and hope flared deep inside of her.

Her fingertips scrambled around the case until she knew which way her phone was facing. Fortunately it was not upside down as it nested the majority of the time. She started swiping her fingers across the screen and hoped her sensory memory was as good as she had given it credit for in the past. She thanked the fashion gods for pants with baggy pockets.

Elisa stepped out of one of the Portable Johns the city had set up for the fireworks celebration. It was humiliating to use them but it was far worse to wet yourself in public so Elisa had chosen the lesser of the two evils. She vowed to bring her motor home instead of a tent next year. Then she’d have a private bathroom and easy access to a sink and she’d even have access to an oven which, now that she thought about it, wasn’t such a bad idea.

Before she stepped down from the elevated claustrophobia tube she scanned the crowd. Near the parking lot she saw Dock and Anna talking. It was nice the girl had come but she should know better than to talk to Dock so closely. Elisa considered the body language of the two and decided they weren’t having a comfortable conversation.

It was getting dark and w
ithout her glasses Elisa couldn’t be sure what was happening. If she weren’t mistaken it looked like Dock was pointing at Anna, over and over. She squinted and found it didn’t help clear any details and, in fact, made her head hurt somewhat. She took a deep breath and released it. Anna was an adult and could make her own decisions, even poor ones.

Elisa decided to mind her own business and tried to shrug off what she’d seen. It didn’t make sense that the two of them would be headed to the parking lot when the fireworks hadn’t been set off. As she walked back to her tent she mulled over different scenarios, each one worse than the last.

“It’s not your place, old woman,” she mumbled to herself. After going back and forth in the debate Elisa reached for her cell phone. Whether Anna was up to no good or not, Hunter deserved to know that she had at least been at the park. That she left with Dock, well, Elisa couldn’t decide if she should tell him or not.

Thinking of the oddity of their body language she added a short sentence at the bottom of the text message and hit Send. There, she nodded, now she could relax and enjoy the show. She and Hunter could have a long talk when it was over. 

Hunter slapped his hand against his pocket to stop the vibration of his cell phone. It jarred his hip every time it went off and it had been shaking regularly. He finally reached into his pocket and checked the face. His battery was dying. Why it vibrated a million times when it had next to no juice was something Hunter would never understand. He hit the power button and shoved it back in his pocket.

He grabbed the oars and continued rowing old man Peterson over the small lake. OM Peterson must have been hitting the whiskey, Hunter thought, and wished it wasn’t rude to wear ear plugs when there weren’t sirens or guns going off. Add to it that every time the man spoke or even breathed the scent of stale whiskey would wash across Hunter’s nostrils. Briefly he wondered if he was sweating liquor but then the elder man took a pint bottle out of his pocket and took a swig.

“Hair of the dog that bit you, son?” he proffered the bottle and Hunter thanked the good Lord for his strong stomach.

“No, thanks.
I’m good,” the rolling burp that followed belied his statement but the older man chose to ignore it.

“Suit yourself,” OM Peterson took another long swig and put the bottle away. “Every year the missus wants to dance. Every year I hurt like a sumbitch when we’re done. This year I’m taking my medicine early.” He actually winked at Hunter, forcing the sick feeling man to laugh.

When they reached shore Hunter retrieved his spare cell battery from his jacket and popped it in. He was glad he’d started carrying one last year. Having a dead phone was never a good idea when you were mixing old men, alcohol and explosives. The phone ran through the start up and went silent. Hunter checked the display again and hoped he would see a message from Anna. No luck. He set it to silent knowing he wouldn’t be able to hear it over the fireworks and shoved it back into his pocket.