Chapter 17
Tales of Flynnagan Rider
The Heart of the Matter
In my happiness for my mother, I had forgotten about Ethan and the duel the next morning. The knock on the front door took me surprise.
There, in the early morning mist, stood Ben Mason, Ethan Carver's house servant, here he's second. He tipped his hat as we stood in the doorway asking me whether I wanted to use guns or knives.
"Neither," I said, brushing past him.
I walked into the mist where Ethan was waiting for me. He had his gun drawn.
"One more step closer, Rider and you're dead."
"You wouldn't shot an unarmed man, now Ethan, would you? Besides, let's talk this out."
Ethan shook his head. "What's wrong, Rider? Getting cold feet?" His gun was still trained on my forehead.
I came closer "Come on, Ethan. You should know me better than that. And the only thing that this will result in is my mother suffering the death not only of her husband, but of her only son as well. You don't want that hanging around on your conscience do you? Besides, you'll be hanged for murder. Is that what you really want? "
Ethan's hand started shaking. "One more step, Rider and I'll…"
I kept moving closer. "Listen, Ethan, I know a few secrets I can share with the rest of the world. I was told a few things last night by one of our prominent citizens. Now if they're true, I know just who to speak with and you'll be a man ruined for life. Think carefully about what you're getting involved in, Carver. After all, a reputation is all a man has "
I finally reached him and was able to take the gun out of his shaking hands. I threw it as far as I could, which sent Mason running after it.
"Now," I said, "I'll choose my weapon."
And I punched him squarely on the jaw. He tumbled like a house of cards in the wind. Poor Ethan, he always did have a glass jaw.
"I'm sure you remember I placed first in our boxing class at the academy." I said, looking down at the unconscious Ethan, I looked up to see Mason standing in the wood staring straight at me. He was shaking his head and shrugged.
I laughed and continued to walk back toward the house. I was told later that the gun was never recovered.
XXXXX
It was late. The Stabbingtons were just about getting ready to close the Winnebago for the night when the trailer's phone rang. Elliot scrambled up from his lower berth to get it.
Edward, who slept on the upper berth and Lisa, who slept on the other side, all sat up and tried to listen in on the phone call. It sounded like good news.
And it was.
"Well," Elliot said, "we got one piece of evidence back," as he hung up the phone.
"Boy, was that quick," Lisa answered, her arms folded against her chest. "Are you going to share?"
Elliot ignored her comments.
"We have word that Rapunzel is not Gothel's child. The tests proved inconclusively that she isn't the mother."
"Do we everything we need?" Edward asked.
Elliot nodded and held up the vial. "While you two were out getting dinner, we had a little visit from the rock star herself. She willingly gave us a sample. Turns out she was getting a bit suspicious herself."
"She knew of the investigation?"
Elliot shrugged. "I guess she knew something or she wouldn't have approached our little trailer now would she?"
"So what's next?"
"We have to contact the King's. Apparently, her blood type matches their samples. We still have to wait for the DNA tests to prove that she was kidnapped. We do have eyewitnesses, but it was 18 years ago. We need to prove that Greta had done the deed. There are fingerprints on that stroller and the quilt Rapunzel was covered up in. If they match, that's it. We take Greta in for questioning. Anything else you want to know, dear sister?"
"No," Lisa said, lying down again. "That's plenty."
XXXX
"Come on child," Greta laughed, "be serious. You know that book is a fairy tale. Flynnagan Rider is a product of someone's imagination. How can you believe in something that just isn't true?"
Rapunzel smiled and shook her head. "He's real, Mother. Flynnagan Rider did exist. His name was Thomas Flynn Rider and he was born in 1756 and that you worked for him and his family. He had children who eventually took over the business and he and his wife went off to finish their adventures together. I Googled him, Mother; it wasn't hard to do."
Greta stared at her. "You can sure find a wealth of information on that thing, can't you? I had no idea any of that was there and I had no idea..."
Rapunzel slapped the book shut. "There's a trailer out there, Mother. They've been watching this house for days or haven't you noticed."
Greta eyes rolled up. "Of course I know that it's out there. This has happened before you know. I've been under investigation and it's gone nowhere. The Stabbingtons hit a dead end. There is no evidence to convict me."
Rapunzel smiled. "I was too young to supply a blood sample last time, Mother. This time, I'm a little bit older."
She turned around to leave, but Greta stopped her. "Alright, I'll prove to you that I'm innocent," she said as she reached for the necklace.
"You see this? It was given to me by my aunt years ago. She said it was magic and warned me never to put in on, but I did. I haven't taken it off yet, but I will now. I love you, Rapunzel, and I'm going to prove it."