Chapter 9- The Cherokee Room and Teasing Mr. Locke
"I never saw a creek-"Joe started to say as they reached the top of the stairs.
"Shhh!" Mandie warned, putting her finger to her lips.
"I never saw a creek you had to go upstairs in your house to get to," Joe complained. Mandie and Alex didn't say anything as they looked at each other and then Joe before walking away. In a short amount of time the cousins had known each other they had gotten good at knowing what the other was thinking. It was almost like being twins instead of cousins.
"I'm Polly Cornwallis," Polly introduced herself.
"Joe," Joe said.
"Are you brave?" Polly asked in a sly tone. Alex rolled her eyes. Polly was scared of dark areas in the house, but to be this much of a flirt at twelve was just too much!
Joe cleared his throat nervously. " 'Course," Joe said, sounding as if he doubted his own bravery.
Joe and Polly followed Mandie and Alex to the Oriental room. "You do the honors, Cousin Alex," Mandie said as they stood in front of the trunks and doors that led to the tunnel.
Alex lit a lamp and handed it to Joe before opening the doors. All four of them were soon on their hands and knees, crawling through the tunnel. In no time at all they had reached the dark staircase.
"You first," Mandie said as all three girls looked at Joe, who was still holding the lantern.
"Me?" Joe pointed at himself.
"Of course you. My cousin said she thought you could help. Joe, it's only the dark. It can't hurt you," Alex said as the other two girls nodded.
Joe took another look down the stairs and walked down them slowly. The three girls held hands as they followed. The stairs didn't even creak as they made their way down. All Alex could hear was her racing heart and shoes on the wooden floor.
They stopped at an entrance that was covered with a piece of burlap sack. Joe looked at Mandie. She nodded and Joe moved the burlap. Below the entrance was a ladder that led into a square room that had the remains of a fire pit in it. The only light in the room were from windows high in the wall.
The four of them descended into the dark room and looked around. At a closer look Alex found an antler necklace similar to the one Mandie had on her leather pack. Against the wall a set of antlers, covered in spider webs, got Mandie's attention. She went over to it and touched it.
"Daddy told me the story a thousand times. He never said it was real," Mandie said in an upset voice.
"I'm sure he had a reason, Cousin Mandie," Alex said in a soothing tone.
"What reason, Alex?" Mandie asked.
"I don't know, but I'm sure he didn't mean to hurt you by not telling the whole truth," Alex said, wrapping her arm around Mandie's shoulder as Mandie picked up a dirty, frayed wampum belt.
"Fifty Cherokees escaped the Trail of Tears and hid in here for four years never seeing the light of day," Mandie said as they walked around.
"If the army had found out they would have killed your Grandpa and everybody in here!" Polly exclaimed.
"Nobody ever found out. Apparently Grandfather Shaw was smart when he hid them. He knew how to hide them without ever giving away that he was hiding fifty fugitives," Alex said, realizing that this had to be how she and Mandie had an Indian grandmother.
"My Grandpa was in the army. He hated Indian lovers," Polly admitted.
They continued to walk around when Mandie stopped in shocked surprise. "I think me and Alex are Indians," Mandie said.
"I know that already, Mandie," Alex said with a smile as they all looked at her.
"You do? Why didn't you say anything?" Mandie asked.
"I thought Uncle Jim told you. That's why I didn't. Like you I just found out about my Indian blood, but why would Uncle Jim not tell you that? Was he ashamed of it?" Alex asked as they entered a cave from the Cherokee room.
"I don't think so. Daddy taught me how to shoot a bow and arrow and he was always hunting with Uncle Ned and the Cherokee braves," Mandie said, pulling out her own antler necklace and smiling. They reached another door, and pushing it open, found themselves in a wooded area behind the house.
There was a creek that bubbled and gurgled right in front of them. "I told you we were going to the creek," Mandie teased Joe with a smile.
"Now where do you two think the will is?" Polly asked dejectedly.
"I don't know, but this wasn't a bad find," Alex said as Joe ran to the creek. He rolled up his sleeves and started to feel around in the water.
"What ya looking for?" Polly asked.
Joe pulled out a crawdad from under a leaf. "A crawdad. Come touch it," Joe said with a smile.
Polly made a horrible face. "He won't pinch you. I promise," Mandie said with a laugh and Polly squealed. Alex laughed as Polly ran to her and shrank.
"Well, now what do we do?" Mandie asked, looking at her cousin.
"Well, since we have to hide the fact that we're looking for the will, why don't we jump in the creek and make it look like we're looking for crawdads?" Alex ventured before a full-scale water fight broke out.
They all ran to the mansion, teasing each other about how wet their clothes were. Liza met them with a stern expression on her face. Bayne was behind her.
"Next time you're late, you'll be skipping dinner," Liza said sharply as Joe hid the crawdad behind his back.
"Sorry, Liza. We-uh-"Mandie started to say as she looked at Joe.
"Searched and searched all day long and finally found a crawdad," Joe said with a contrite look on his face.
"But Polly won't touch it," Alex said in an accusing voice.
"Will you?" Joe asked, making as if he were going to pull the crawdad out from behind him.
"No," Liza admitted, backing away.
"I know good and well you have not been at a creek. I'm quite sure you poured water on yourselves, in the bathroom," Bayne said in an accusing tone as he looked at all of them.
Alex nearly choked as she saw Mandie take the crawdad out of Joe's hand. She knew what Mandie was going to do and it would serve this pretender, who claimed to be her father's nephew, right.
"Oh did we?" Mandie said, waving the crawdad in front of Bayne's face. Bayne backed away, a nervous look on his face.
"They're delicious to eat. Especially raw," Joe said, wiping his wet hand on Bayne's vest.
"Don't forget butter and salt. I could eat 12 with butter," Alex chimed in as Gaynelle entered the parlor.
"Now that's a true delicatessen," Polly said. The man croaked in fear. Miss Snow then took the crawdad out of Mandie's hand.
"Oh my! You've got yourself a real keeper! Well, I have never seen one this big! Well, she's older than you are!" Miss Snow said. The four children grinned at each other. "Honey, you can't get a good look at it unless you're holding it," Miss Snow said, putting it in Bayne's hand.
Bayne stood there like he was being tortured until the crawdad bit him. "Ow!!!!"
The four children followed Liza, nearly wilting with laughter. "I thought you said that crawdads don't bite," Polly whispered.
"They normally don't, but Mr. Locke must have been holding it wrong," Alex said as they walked down the hall.
"I do have some more rooms, but they's much too much trouble to make up. It's precious," Liza teased as she opened the ornate wooden door to the nursery.
Alex nearly choked as she looked around at the nursery. It had been decorated for her when she was a baby and her crib was in the middle of the floor.
"Aw," Polly cooed as she looked at the flowered dresser.
"Joe, I'm glad you came," Mandie said. Joe grinned as the three girls stood. Alex was glad he came too. Right now they needed his help. Maybe now they could find Alex's father's will.
