Part 19 (1/2)

aPerhaps he knows the answer.a aHe?a I asked, trying so hard to hide the terror in my voice. All at once, I was standing beside him, following his amazed look. aIs that what I think it is?a Lying on the ground was a corpse, well, a pile of bones, really, covered with the tattered remains of his clothinga”a saber and pistol still clutched in the bony fingers. It was like something out of some pirate movie, with the skull smiling up at us with a hideous grin.

With that, Maggie was at my side. She let out a small gasp and held my arm.

aHe must have run out of paraffin,a I offered and felt the nails in my forearm once again.

I heard Peter chuckle quietly as I wrenched my arm away from Maggieas death grip.

aThat explains why he never came back,a Peter said. aHe never left.a aBut why not?a I asked and looked around.

aWhy would he just lie down and die?a Bridget asked as she crouched down next to the skeleton.

aCareful, Brig,a Peter warned softly and knelt beside her. aPoor b.a.s.t.a.r.d.a Maggie knelt beside the skeletal remains. aPerhaps he didnat just lie down and die.a I joined her and aimed the flashlight beam at the skeleton. aWhat are you thinking, Dr. Winfield?a I asked.

Maggie reached out and Peter quickly stopped her. aPlease donat disturb anything.a Maggie agreed. aI was just going to point out the reason why he never left. Take a look at his skull.a We all leaned forward and blinded the poor sea captain with our flashlights.

aOkay,a Bridget said. aWhat are we lookina for?a We examined the bones, and I hid my impish grin and said, aWell, the thigh boneas connected to theahip bone and hip boneasa”a aIf Iam not mistaken,a Maggie interjected, aI believe thatas a bullet hole in the left frontal bone.a aGee, I love anatomy talk,a I said and glanced at the smirking doctor. aSo we can a.s.sume that someone else was here and killed the poor slob, or he was very careless with his pistol.a aI opt for someone else,a Peter said.

Suddenly, my mind raced. aOkay, howas this for a scenario,a I started. aThis sea captain came down here with an accomplice because quite frankly, he couldnat carry this trunk by himself and they found this hiding place. The other guy got greedy, shot this poor b.a.s.t.a.r.d, and walled up this place, and the narrow entranceway back there, effectively creating a good hiding place. He waited until the dust cleared but obviously never got a chance to come back for his ill-gotten booty.a There was silence for a moment or two until Peter spoke. aI would tend to agree with most of your scenario. However, as we said, those two rock walls we just broke down came down far too easily. Iam no geologist, but I will wager those walls were recently formed.a I gave him a curious look. aHow recent is recent?a Peter scratched his chin in thought. aIs yesterday too recent?a aAre you saying what I think youare saying?a He looked a bit confused. aI-Iam not sure. What am I saying?a aYouare saying that these walls were constructed recently, which means someone has to have found the treasure before we did,a I said and glanced at my fellow adventurers.

aTim Devereaux,a Maggie said and looked at me.

aWhy not Russell?a Peter interjected. He looked at Bridget. aYouare quiet, Brig. What do you think?a aI have no idea,a she said.

aWhy not both?a I offered. aOkay, letas run this up the flagpole and see who salutes: Maybe Russell found the treasure and walled everything up. He called Bridget who said he sounded excited, and this would be a good reason why. He then gets killed for his efforts. Now who killed him?a aAll points lead to Tim Devereaux.a Peter shrugged.

aWhat about The Omega Group?a Maggie said.

I was stumped.

Peter stood slowly. aI have to call the museum, but I hate to leave this down here unprotected. However, I donat see how that can be avoided.a aWhy donat you go back and get Constable Reardon, make your call, and Iall stay herea”a I said and knew the interruption was coming.

aNot alone, you wonat,a Maggie countered seriously.

I tiredly rubbed my forehead. aDo you think that pistol still works?a I asked.

aI think I should stay,a Bridget offered.

I could actually feel Maggie glaring in the darkness.

aI think Brig is right, Maggie. Iad feel better if one of us stayed with the trunk,a Peter offered.

Maggie grudgingly agreed and left with Peter.

aPlease donat touch anything,a Peter begged me as he walked away. I noticed he didnat include Bridget in his plea, which annoyed me, but I said nothing.

With Maggie and Peter promising to come back as soon as possible, Bridget and I sat on the pile of rocks with one flashlight, one shovel, one pickax, and one skeleton. I glanced at Bridget who gave the darkened cave a nervous glance. I gently b.u.mped shoulders with her. aCome here often?a I asked.

Bridget laughed. aYou do know how to treat a woman to a good time, Miss Ryan,a she said.

aOnly the best. Thereas a cemetery Iad like to show you tomorrow.a As we were laughing, I heard a voice, aGlad youare enjoyina yourselves.a I immediately stopped laughing and gave adem bonesa a skeptical glance before I aimed the beam of the flashlight toward the tunnel entrance.

There stood Tim Devereaux, grinning slightly and holding a gun. aThis is unexpected. And where is Sullivan and everyone else?a he asked.

aBridget and I got adventurous on our own,a I said, keeping my eye on the gun.

Tim stepped into the beam of the flashlight. aThatas unfortunate.a aYou canat be thinking of killing us,a I said, although I thought otherwise.

aAnd why is that, luv?a he asked.

aI found the doc.u.ments and Constable Reardon has them, so Omega is out of the picture and youall never get your money.a aKate, darlina, Omega has been out of the picture for a little while now. Seems theyare pulling outa”a aWhy is that?a I stood. Bridget stood, as well, and took a step away from me.

Tim took a step back and raised the gun but said nothing.

aCould the reason be murder?a I asked. aI believe The Omega Group wanted the property to excavate this historical find, but murder is too high a price. But not for you, right, Tim?a aYouare treadin on dangerous ground,a Tim warned.

I was going to heed the warning. However, I was on a roll now. Pieces were falling into place. aThe doc.u.ments I found had you signing over your portion of the mill for a million bucks,a I said, then it dawned on me. aWhich is why you killed Brian, am I right? Somehow he gained possession of those doc.u.ments, and when he didnat tell you they were hidden in the grandfather clock, you threw him over that stone wall.a I noticed Bridget inching away from me and wondered what she was doing. I had a nervous feeling she was going to try to be heroic.

aHidden in the clock?a Tim asked and laughed. aBrian was a clever man, but troublesome, this is true. So was Devine. He played the double-cross to perfection. I believe Devine gave Brian the doc.u.ments, trying to see how far he could go with him. At the same time, Devine, the lying b.a.s.t.a.r.d, was telling me about Omega and how I could make a lot of money if we found the treasure first,a he said and laughed. aAnd he did. I canat believe Devine found it. He was actually giddy when he told me, the fool. He was even going to tell Sullivan. And ya know I just couldnat let that happen.a He stopped and took a deep tired breath.

I just stood there and hoped head keep talking until Peter came back with the constable. aSo you killed Russell, as well,a I said.

aYes, I did,a he said. aOnce he helped me block off the two entrances, I waited until we got out of the cave and hit him with the shovel.a aI hoped the tide would take Russell as I hoped it would have taken Brian.a He stopped and I noticed he looked a bit perplexed. It was then it became clear to me.

aWhatas wrong? Canat understand how they found Brianas body so quickly? You thought the sea would take him. After all, you replaced the rocks on that wall, didnat you?a I knew I was right about that. aMade it look as if nothing was out of place. It was a nice clean murder until Constable Reardon found Brianas pipe by that wall. You must have overlooked it. Pretty careless.a Bridget chuckled quietly and shook her head. aI told ya, theyad find the body. I told ya not to kill him that way. You have such a nasty temper. You almost bungled the whole thing.a I shot an incredulous look from Tim to Bridget, then back to Tim, who shrugged in a helpless gesture. aIt was dark, Brig. I didnat see him drop the b.l.o.o.d.y pipe.a I must have looked like a prize jacka.s.s, gaping at both of them.

Chapter 27.

I was still gaping like a jacka.s.s. Bridget chuckled quietly. aPoor Kate. Ya didnat figure on this, did ya?a aNo, I did not,a I answered her. I was stunned. aWhy?a Bridget smiled slightly. aMoney, what other reason? Do ya have any idea how much this is worth? Peter was right, the idealistic fool. Itas worth millions, tens of millions. When Brian changed his will, and I saw that he was giving the whole thing to Mac, I knew we needed to move quickly. Russell was sent to stop Peter. However, that didnat work.a My mind was racing. aRussell tried to kill Peter,a I said. aHe tried to scare us into leaving by tossing me around after I had dinner with you in Donegal.a aYes. Russell was to kill Peter and I would take care of Brianas will. Tim would take care of Jamesas unwillingness to play nice. Unfortunately, we are at this point,a Bridget said.

I looked at Bridget. aSo when Mac and I picked you up the other day, there was no phone call from Russell, was there?a I asked, knowing the answer.

aNo. Tim was with Russell at the time and I

neededa”a

aAnd you needed to make sure you were with us for what... an alibi?a I asked, trying to fit this piece together.

aPartly. I also needed to make sure you picked up Tim, so both of us would have an alibi,a she said with a smug grin. aYa see? But I have to tell ya, youare very good. Ya had me worried when ya found out about my being married to Russell. How did ya, by the way?a aI remember seeing your name on your diploma that hung on the wall. It said Bridget Donnelly-Devine. The university corroborated that fact,a I said. aYou conniving b.i.t.c.h.a Bridget let out a rude laugh. aI told ya: All men kill the thing they lovea”Oscar Wilde.a Then I set my attention to Tim. aSo you killed James, as well?a I asked, but knew the answer to that, too.

Tim nodded. aAt first, he was all for it, then he talked to Brian and wanted him to keep the mill in the family. Bridget and I knew that Brian would never do that. James got cold feet and refused to sign,a he said and grinned. aIn the end, he did. It was nice and clean, theyall never find him. Youare a pain in my a.r.s.e, Kate, and as I said, I thought for sure the tide would have taken Devine, and theyad never find him.a He took a deep breath before continuing. aWho knew he had the strength to struggle up the cliff,a he said and looked at Bridget. aHe was a strong lad.a I looked back and forth at them. aYou two are some piece of work,a I said and didnat hide the disgust in my voice.

Tim glared at me and took a step closer. The beam of my flashlight s.h.i.+ning in his face gave him a menacing look.