We got out of the van and carried the things we needed. I grabbed my bag for safe keeping. I sent a Morse code message to Betsy, telling her how things were going. We stopped at the front door. I was right next to Ben as his father appeared before us.
"Dad."
"Where's the party?"
"Well... I'm in a little trouble."
"Is she pregnant?"
I held back my laugh as best as I could because we just kidnapped one of the caretakers of the Archives for a treasure hunt. And she hadn't fallen for Ben. I found it to be a little amusing.
"Well, if she is, are you gonna leave the woman carrying your grandchild standing out in the cold?"
His father let us in. I overheard Abigail whisper to Riley.
"I look pregnant?"
He shook his head very quickly.
"This better not be about that dumb treasure," Ben's father whispered.
I continued to pay little attention to the gesture his father was giving. I just wanted to get the letters and leave ASAP before Ian caught up.
"Dad... I need the Silence Dogood letters. Yeah, it's about the treasure."
"And he dragged you two into this nonsense?" Patrick pointed at the rest of the adults.
"Literally."
I didn't say anything.
"I volunteered."
"Well, un-volunteer, before you waste your life. And what about you?
"Me?" I asked.
"Yeah! How did you get into this mess?"
"Well, um, it's a very long story that doesn't involve Ben, actually."
"It's a waste of time and your life, too."
"Knock it off, Dad."
"Sure, sure, I know, I'm the family kook. I have a job, a house, health insurance. At least I had your mother, for however brief a time. At least I had you. What do you have? Him?"
"Look, if you just give us the letters, we're gone."
It felt really awkward to be in the middle of this father-son feud. I stepped back a bit to where Riley and Abigail were.
"You disappoint me, Ben."
"Well, maybe that's the real Gates-family legacy. Sons who disappoint their fathers."
"Get out. Take your troubles with you."
"I found the Charlotte."
Patrick stopped right in his tracks and turned to face Ben.
"The Charlotte? You mean she was a ship?"
A very wonderful ship. Too bad Ben had to blow it up!
"Yeah, she was beautiful. It was amazing, Dad."
"And the treasure?"
"No, no. But we found another clue that led us here."
"Yeah, and that'll lead you to another clue. And that's all you'll ever find, is another clue. Don't you get it, Ben? I finally figured it out. The legend says that the treasure was buried to keep it from the British. But what really happened was the legend was invented, to keep the British occupied searching for buried treasure. The treasure is a myth."
"I refuse to believe that."
I second that!
"Well, you can believe what you want. You're a grown person. What am I doing? Do what you want, Ben. Do what you want."
Ben's father left the room. I was relieved at the end of the short argument, but I was also quite upset at the unstable condition of the father and son relationship.
"He's probably right. You don't even know if there is another clue."
"Well, I can think of a way where we could find out. And we can find out right now."
We cleared the dinner table and placed the things we needed on the table: Q-tips, lemon slices, gloves, tissues, and other chemical items found in your basic kitchen. I knew the better way to look for the map, but I let them do what they wanted. As Ben and Abigail laid the Declaration on the table, Ben's father peeked in.
"Looks like animal skin. How old is it?"
"At least 200 years."
"Really? You sure?"
"Pretty darn."
"Now if this thing's in invisible ink, how do we look at it?"
"Throw it in the oven."
"No!"
"Uh-uh."
Yeah, no! We're not throwing the most important American document in history in the oven, even if that's the way to read the map.
"Ferrous sulphate inks can only be brought out with heat."
"Yes, but this..."
"It's very old."
"This is very old, and we can't risk compromising the map."
"You need a reagent."
"Dad, it's really late. Why don't you get some rest?"
"I'm fine."
I sighed. My pager went off.
"Excuse me."
I left the room, leaving the three adults to discover the code on the back of the Declaration. Betsy got back to me in time.
Betsy: informed Teacher. Need anything?
Me: will be heading to main Philly. May need money. Ben's account compromised by FBI.
Betsy: asking Teacher about account.
I waited and waited. Ben and Abigail just found the code written on the back of the document.
Betsy: one near Franklin Institute. FBI might go there. Heard about Dogood letter donation.
Oh. Great. So much for finishing on the earlier side.
Me: account under?
Betsy: John Hart. Last digits are 1776. Password is 5111779
Me: history is very inspiring. Meet me in Philly if you have anything to pass me.
Betsy: break a leg, Bellator Eget Christi.
I went back into the room where the rest of the group was. They uncovered a Ottendorf cipher (or a book cipher) on the back and that's why we needed the Silence Dogood letters. BTW, Silence Dogood was a pen name of Ben Franklin so his works could be published in his brother's newspaper. And as well put by the riddle from the pipe, "The key in Silence" refers to Silence Dogood. Why else would "silence" be capitalized?
"So, Dad, where are the letters?"
"You know, it's just by sheer happenstance that his grandfather..."
"Dad."
"...even found them. They were in an antique desk from the press room..."
"Dad."
"...of The New England Courant. That's a newspaper."
"Dad, where are the letters?"
"I don't have them, son."
"What?"
"I don't have them."
Ben paused, walking to a chair and sitting down. He cleared his throat.
"Where are they?"
"I donated them to the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia."
"Time to go," Ben concluded as he got up from the chair.
"I still can't believe it. All this time no one knew what was on the back."
"The back of what?"
Oh dear God!
"No!"
Too late. Patrick already turned over the document and looked at the top of it. The expression of horror was visibly seen on his face.
"Oh, my God. Oh, my God."
"I know."
"Oh, my God. What have you done? This is... this is the..."
"I know!"
"This is the Declaration of Independence."
"Yes. And it's very delicate."
"You stole it?"
Riley pointed at Ben. I wasn't happy about him putting all the guilt on Ben.
"Dad, I can explain, but I don't have time. It was necessary. And you saw the cipher."
"And that will lead to another clue, and that will lead to another clue! There is no treasure. I wasted 20 years of my life. And now you've destroyed yours. And you pulled me into all this."
"Well, we can't have that."
Ding!
I pull out the roll of duct tape from my bag and look at Ben.
"Now it's necessary."
So I tied up Ben's father to a chair and left him a cup and the remote. I gave my signature adorable smile like I was innocent in all of this. I turned to see Ben packing up everything and I glanced at my watch.
"The FBI will be here any minute."
"We're keeping that in mind, Esther."
"I know, but I thought I'd also mention that I have a possible contact in Philly. She might be able to help us. But I don't know if she will be there."
"Not to be a harbinger, but the FBI will be here in less than 30 minutes."
Thank you for telling me that, Alex.
"We should get going," I concluded.
Ben grabbed something and led us to the garage where his father's car was waiting. I put my bag in the trunk. We got in and drove off.
"Your dad's got a sweet ride," Riley commented
"I think we should change clothes. We look kind of conspicuous, don't you think?"
"I'd love to go shopping, too, but we have no money."
I have some money in this private account that Teacher told me about.
"Here, I took this from his house. He usually tucks a few hundred dollars somewhere between those pages."
"Common Sense. How appropriate."
"When are we gonna get there? I'm hungry. This car smells weird."
I laughed. It felt good to laugh once in a while. Abigail turned her head to me.
"So, how did you know about the treasure before these two?"
I told her about the Society and how it was just a hair off from the Freemasons.
"That reminds me. Esther, you were mumbling a name when we were still in the Arctic. 'Alex', I think. Could you explain this, as well as this spiritual power the elder spoke off?"
That was not a subject worth discussing. It was a very old, well-kept secret. Only Teacher knew of it other than me. But Ben, Riley, and Abigail seemed like a trustworthy group.
"I have a particular gift."
"Well, I know that from the insistence of the elder, Esther."
"It's kind of split into 2 gifts. The one the elder was mostly pointing out was that I can see those who have moved on. I can see family members, soldiers, artists, and famous people. It depends on the reasoning. For example, if I wanted advice from one perspective, then I talk to the person that falls in the category."
"And the second half?"
"I, um, can travel through time in my dreams. I do not affect the real historic time stream, but I do affect history in my dreams. I've been traveling to the American Revolution recently."
"And Alex?"
"He's someone from the Revolution I met along the way. He's a really good friend and I see him all the time outside my sleep. Mostly as a guide when I'm in trouble or in a hurry."
"Okay. I was just curious"
"There seems to be a lot of that going around," I mumbled.
"Why don't you get some rest?" Ben insisted.
I let my head fall on the window as I looked out. The city looked really pretty with the lights on. I drifted into the past once again, but I didn't meet Alex. He was already on the war front and I couldn't do a thing about it. I simply let it go and watched the stars before the sun rose.
