Thanks for the reviews everyone! Yup, these two love trouble methinks. These series should be renamed "Things Harm and Mac would do if Jackie wrote for the show" LOL!!!
Anyway, there are a few parts to their honey moon and the treasure hunt story. :)
Enjoy!
Jackie
PS: All mistakes are mine.
Tropical Trouble Part 3
Though it was only thirty minutes something about the whole ordeal seemed to last for hours. The absolute worst part was when the boat drifted over our hiding place and stopped. I was sure we were dead then and our dreams of buried treasure had gotten us killed.
They left and we waited before surfacing and making the painstaking jaunt back to shore. We weren't too far away from the Villa but, far enough that lugging SCUBA equipment would prove a hassle.
"I guess we know what they were looking for." Mac says as we finally make it to the beach and rid ourselves of our burden. I'm still holding the box tightly to my side and am more than ever, wanting to run into the relative safety of the villa.
"What the hell kind of weapon were they carrying?"
She removes her flippers, holding them with two fingers as she pulls the SCUBA tank back over her shoulders, grunting as the weight presses down on her. "My guess would be an APS rifle. It's derived from an AK and basically shoots a dart-like projectile."
Knowledge just like that just tacks on another reason why I love this woman so much. "How the hell do you know these things?"
"I'm a Marine, Harm. . .Certain things just stick in my head." That and having a subscription to rifle and gun magazines, I bet. "You can one-up me on aero-dynamical doo-dads." She adds.
Doo-dads?! In light of our current situation, I will have to ignore that comment, for now. Though Mac is no expert, she knows more about aeronautical doo-dads than most. "Here." I shove the box at her and remove the SCUBA gear from her shoulders. "Go inside, stow it somewhere . . . I'm gonna go return these."
Mac raises a brow and stares, words seemingly a-miss in this situation. "Harm. . .That body down there."
"Can't do anything about it, Mac. . .We don't even know who they are." And if they're locals, I'm pretty sure that they don't like tourists going around stealing their treasure.
I return the SCUBA gear without incident and return to hear an odd grunting sound coming from inside of the Villa. I know it's Mac, that much I can tell but, if there's someone else I wouldn't know. Worried, I press myself against the wall and slowly crawl to the bedroom where I find Mac standing on the box, her hands wrapped around the lock which she's pulling for dear life. Her backside is up in the air and I take a moment to pause and enjoy the view until she spots me.
Her eyes practically dig into me as she straightens and then hops off the box. "Rather than staring at my ass you could help."
"I could but, the view was too nice to pass up." I say cheekily before coming to her aid. I take a seat next to the box and give a tug at the lock.
Mac gives me an indignant looks that would wipe the macho away from most men. "You can't muscle that open."
"That's why I borrowed this." I wave a long, flat head, screw driver in the air and then slide it between the shackle of the old lock. I begin twisting to the side hoping that the force will either break the old lock or the hasp it's attached to. "There better not be a piece of paper with 'better luck next time' written on it." I joke between grunts as I realize that the old metal is probably better constructed than anything we have on the market today.
"Maybe you should have had your spinach." She teases and jumps back when the hasp gives and breaks away from the ancient looking case. "Oooh." Mac takes a place next to me on the floor and we stare at each other - two giddy kids on Christmas - as I pull open the box. From inside I pull out a tarnished silver cross about half an inch thick and five inches long with various little holes punched through the metal. I hand it over to Mac who carefully examines it as I thoroughly look through the box. "This is beautiful just need to remove the tarnish. Anything else?" She asks expectantly.
I search through the box, moving around some of the sand that had settled into it. The grains slip through my fingers and there's nothing else I find. "That's it."
"That can't be it." Mac says, taking the box away and doing some searching of her own. She purses her lips as her fingers move alongside the walls of the box searching for a clue that I know we won't find. "Are we sure there was nothing else inside of that cave?"
"There wasn't that much space to hide cases and cases of treasure, Mac." With a huff, she pulls out the map and places it on the floor. "I don't think there's anything else there. Unless the 'X' was a rouse which means that there might be another map."
"What the?" She says suddenly and takes the cross, placing it over the map. I'm reminded slightly of the Goonies and varying other treasure seeking movies when some obscure object points the way towards the goods. "I think it might spell something."
I peer at the paper as Mac moves the cross to several sections none of which are putting together discernable words. I barely noticed the letters around the paper, they were hidden within the small pictures on the map. "No no, flip it the other way." I direct and Mac tries again still not finding anything of interest. "Look. . .Doesn't this sound like one of the other islands?"
T-A-V-E-U. "Taveuni? Could be, I mean, we'd have to ask the concierge." If that's the case it can't be that difficult to get to. As to where we go after we arrive on the island, I'm not too sure. A knock on the door has both Mac and I nearly jumping out of our skins. "Go get that I'll hide this."
She does as I shove the box into a closet and Mac stashes the map back into her bathing suit. I might have to ask her about that method or enjoying finding the hiding spot. "It's the bellhop." She says and then opens the door to find one of the island natives wearing their typical, floral shirts. "Hello."
"Hello." He smiles at her and hands over a piece of paper and a pen. "Mr. Rabb forgot to sign his receipt for the SCUBA gear."
I walk over and take the paper and pen away from Mac and sprawl my name on a tiny line at the bottom. "Is there an island called Taveuni?"
Michel - that's what his nametag says - nods and his smile widens. "Oh yes, Sir. Very easy to get to. Tourists love Taveuni – rainforests, waterfalls and it has a rich history about hidden treasure."
"Treasure?" Mac and I say in unison and then turn to each other in shock.
"Oh yes, many locals and treasure finders go to Taveuni searching for Spanish gold. And from time to time we find a piece or two. . .jewels, coins, pearls." He fills us in and then points inside to the Villa. "Some say that there is a secret in this hotel that will lead to the mother load."
Mac's mouth widens just a bit more, any second now and I can imagine her salivating. "In this hotel?"
Michel nods enthusiastically, obviously proud of their history. "It is said that when this hotel was built, one of the builders, James Dumas, had a secret and that secret was hidden inside this very villa."
"In here. . .wow. . ." I'm trying to act surprised and it's obviously working as Michel gets more enthused with his story.
"Yes, they say the secret was something that would point to the treasure. James died during construction. Some say his brother knew where to find the secret but was afraid of being killed."
"Killed?" Killed? My brain flashes back to the men in the ocean and the one that never made it out alive. I do believe they were after the treasure though, how they knew about the location has me at a loss.
"Yes, many say James was killed because of a map. . .some say it was natural causes. We don't know for sure. . . It may be lore but, it's lore that we believe. Anyway, if you would like to travel to Taveuni, just let the concierge know. We can arrange transportation for you." He takes the pen and receipt and then disappears out of the walkway and to a golf cart that is parked just outside of the villa.
"I guess we're going to Taveuni tomorrow?" I ask my wife and she doesn't need to answer, that mischievous grin is response enough.
