Disclaimer: I don't own the characters of The Lost World nor do I own the show, which I fell in love with years ago.
Hidden Past
Chapter 1
"Damn it, Marguerite, why do we have to take every treasure we happen to bump into?" Roxton was irritated. Marguerite and he were supposed to have a nice afternoon picnic. That is, until they happened to come upon a cave that intrigued the woman. She of course insisted that they check it out stating with widened eyes, "Maybe there's treasure inside." He objected, but she insisted anyway. He did his best to put up a strong stance stating he had no desire crawling through a most likely dark, unwelcoming cave, looking for bloody baubles, but of course that did not stop the heiress. She went anyway. After what felt like more than five minutes, standing outside the entrance of the small cave, he heard a yelp. He swore his heart leaped out of his chest as he scampered into the entrance of the cave, his gun ready to fire if need be. He arrived, only to find the damn woman with a grin to her face and her eyes lit up greedily. "Damn it, Marguerite, I thought you were in trouble," he fretted.
"Far from it, could you believe this. Treasure, John, pearls, gold, silver, diamonds!" her voice escalated with excitement.
Roxton just returned an irritated, distasteful expression. There's the woman he loved was, in one of the caverns, pulling out about half a-meter-long treasure trunk, grinning with giddy. This was supposed to be a romantic outing, some time to spend together, away from the crowded treehouse, but of course there had to be a cave and indeed there had to be something of interest inside for the heiress. "How wonderful for you." He turned preparing to leave.
"Hey, aren't you going to help me?"
He spun around glaring at her. "Not a chance. If you want to spend the day luggaging that back to the treehouse, then by all means, go ahead, but I will not help."
Marguerite stood, with her hands on her hips, gazing at the man with furrowed eyebrows. "What is your problem? You've been in a stink ever since I recommended coming into the cave."
He huffed. "Marguerite, what was our plan today?"
"To have…" she stopped herself. "Damn it, John we can have a picnic anytime. When do we ever just come upon a trunk of treasure?" She spoke with raised, exasperated tone.
Roxton exhaled with frustration, she swore his head was about to explode, with how red his face got. "I!" he yelled. "Will be heading back to the treehouse," as he quickly saw anticipated hope glimmer in her eyes, he barked. "And I will not be helping you with that bloody treasure!"
"Fine, you bastard, I'll do it myself!"
"Fine!" he barked again leaving her in the cave.
Marguerite glared at him as her chest heaved. "He could be so pig headed, obnoxious, self-fish, bastard!" she yelled at the open of the cave, intending for him to hear her burning frustration. She began pulling the heavy wooden trunk from the cave. She huffed, struggling and within minutes she gave up, realizing there was no way she was going to get the treasure back to the treehouse on her own. She growled with frustration, stomping her feet like a child throwing a tantrum. 'If he bloody knew why I needed the damn treasure in the first place! but I'll never tell him, never stoop to such a low lever, show such desperation. He doesn't need to know how much debt bloody Edmund left me in.' She was able to get away from dealing with the burden her husband left her by working as a spy for Britain in the war, but when the war over, somehow, they found her demanding payment for her husband's gambling debts. 'If he understood, no if he trusted me,' she mentally argued. 'I have no choice!'
She decided it was utterly useless trying to get the treasure out of the cave, so she did the next best thing, she opened the lid and shrugged off her pack and began emptying it. She then sorted through the trunk gathering the most valuable and intriguing items. She then held the items that were previously in her pack in her arms.
Waiting outside, Roxton watched as she hurried passed him, not saying a word. He sighed following the woman. He knew the day was over and there was no recovering it.
Marguerite refused to talk to him the entire way to the treehouse, even with they were in close quarters in the lift and it didn't help that they were both too stubborn to even break the silence.
Crossing the main room Veronica was surprised to see the dark hair couple. "Back so soon?" She smiled mentally, knowing that Marguerite must have done something. She had no idea what the man saw in the woman. She was nothing but conniving, greedy, selfish infuriating, and lazy woman.
"Don't asked," Roxton demanded passing the blonde hair woman. "Where is Malone and Challenger?"
"ERM…" Veronica perplexed, froze for a second allowing Malone time to respond to his location.
"I'm up here," he stated waving his hand from the top of the library.
"And Challenger is in his lap," Veronica stated watching as Marguerite moved to the dining room table. She watched her closely as she shrugged off her pack, opening the flap and emptying the contents on the table. "Where did you get those?" Veronica demanded her voice accusing.
"Malone we are going hunting," Roxton shouted.
"But…"
"Now, we need meat," he commanded.
Malone sighed knowing obviously something happened between him and Marguerite. "I'll be down," he moped.
Veronica watched as Malone sauntered down the stairs, somewhat annoyed. She watched the men gather the necessary items for the hunt and headed to the lift., stating they will be back in a few hours. Veronica turned her attention back to the dark hair woman, who was analyzing a large piece of diamond. "What did you do?"
Marguerite turned her attention to the woman, glaring at her. "What do you mean by that?"
"What do you think I mean, Roxton is upset and you obviously did something."
"Yes, isn't it always my fault. If he had just helped me, we could have continued with our day."
Veronica just rolled her eyes, shuffling over to the table where treasures now consumed it. She scanned the bundle glimmering from the light that expelled from the balcony. Her eyes then widen at the rock Marguerite picked up. It was a light gray rock with a familiar pictogram. She gasped moving back from the table as if afraid. The rock contained a three-horn goat like face with red gems for eyes. She remembered the image from a description by Assai when she was younger. She was also informed that it was a cursed rock that brought agonizing pain to whoever retained it and the people around them. Veronica told the heiress as much, but the dark hair woman just chuckled at the blonde woman's naivety and gullibility.
"Don't be ridiculous, it's just a rock, that story is obviously spoken to cause a scare," she demanded.
"Ridiculous or not I don't want it in my treehouse!" She stressed
"Find, I will get rid of the bloody rock, first I'll take out the gems," she smiled mischievously and with determination.
"No, the hold thing and all this garbage." She pointed to the treasure on the table.
"I beg your pardon." Marguerite eyes widen in shock. "I…I will not do such a thing."
Veronica folded her arms tightly over her chest. "It's you or your dirty treasure."
Marguerite stood stubbornly, glaring at the blonde hair woman. It was as if they were having a battle for power with their locked gazes. Marguerite finally huffed and surrendered, knowing she had very little say in a home that did not belong to her.
"Fine!" she yelled. "If that's how you'll have it." She gathered all the valuables, the valuables that any men or women in civilized society would beg for, would fall over for, break their back just to get.
"Where are you going?" Veronica asked, not intending to sound harsh, but came off so anyways.
"What the hell are you asking for, I am doing as you commanded, your majesty," Marguerite mockingly courtesy with viciousness in her voice.
Veronica rolled her eyes. "I mean I will reluctantly accompany you."
"Am I to be a burden, no thank you, I'll…I'll catch up with Malone and John." She made sure she had her weapon and everything she needed.
Veronica unfolded her tightly wound arms and left to head down to the lab as Marguerite took the lift down.
Veronica sillily told herself that it was the last of the issue, but she realized minutes later that it was just wishful thinking. She froze at the top of the stairs that led to the lab, turning back on her heels.