Haunted Waters by Jerry B. Jenkins, Chris Fabry Page B
Authors: Jerry B. Jenkins, Chris Fabry
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thump.
Seconds passed.
“Hello?” Leigh called. “Anybody home?”
We yelled for her to let us out.
“Who’s the guy with the gun?” she said, opening the door.
“Long story,” Bryce said. “Where is he?”
Chapter 71
I tore through the living room ahead of Mom and Ashley, only to find the guy with the mask on the ground in our front yard holding his leg. The laptop lay on the concrete like a wounded animal. The monitor had broken off, and pieces of plastic were scattered all over. The Creep was holding the gun on the man.
“Randy!” I shouted. “What happened?”
“This guy was coming out while we were going in,” Randy said. “I must have surprised him, because he turned and tripped over that snow shovel. The gun flew out of his hand. What was he doing?”
“Trying to destroy the evidence,” Ashley said, gathering up Mom’s laptop.
There was no siren now, so the 911 call must not have gone through. Mom called the police.
A few minutes later an officer cuffed the man, then pulled his mask off. He had a patchy mustache and dark hair.
Ashley gasped. “The deputy! You came to our cabin!”
The man cursed us as he was led to the squad car.
We explained what had happened at the cabin.
The officer said he had read about it. “You saying this guy might be the one with the gold?”
“Could be why he came here,” Ashley said. “We have a picture of him talking with Winkler, but he had his back turned to the camera. We didn’t even know we had it.”
“Uh, actually we didn’t have it,” I said. I had hooked the laptop to a monitor and was looking over Mom’s e-mail files. “I guess it never came through.”
“He came here to destroy a file that didn’t exist?” the officer said. “Real sharp.”
Leigh was peering into the man’s truck. “There’s a suitcase behind the seat.” She tried to lift it, but it was too heavy. Randy pulled it out with a grunt and put it on the ground.
The guy in the squad car kicked the back of the seat and hollered.
Randy clicked the latch and opened it. “Holy gold mine!”
The nugget was still in its glass case, and when the sun hit it, the thing sparkled like a mountain stream.
The officer pushed his hat back on his head and chuckled.
Dylan ran and stuck his head inside the suitcase. “Can I hold the shiny rock?”
Chapter 72
Sam was as surprised as we were about the deputy. When Bryce told him the man had been in our house with a gun, Sam’s face fell. But then he said he was glad that Bryce hadn’t moved the snow shovel.
Mom was relieved her book was safe, and from then on she began e-mailing it to herself and printing each chapter after she finished. She called Hayley’s mom and explained what had happened between us and asked if we could try to be friends again. Hayley was allowed to come to our house, but only if Mom was home.
Bryce and I decided not to call Randy The Creep anymore. It was the least we could do. Bryce was wary of Boo for the rest of the week, but the bully left us alone. Coach Baldwin had him scrubbing bathrooms during gym class. I guess it helps to have friends in high places.
One afternoon the sheriff came and apologized for all that had happened. He explained that the deputy and Winkler had worked with the store owner to steal the gold. The boy at the store turned out to be the owner’s son, and he had told his father about giving the memory stick to Bryce.
“When the exhibit opens again, we’d like to have you up to see it,” the sheriff said. He handed Sam the miner’s hat and a soggy monkey and raccoon.
“We’d like that,” Sam said.
The sheriff mentioned the reward, but Sam took him outside to talk.
We kept watching for a newspaper story of the gold heist to tell who had cracked the case. Finally, The Gazette linked the deputy with Winkler and the shop owner and exposed their plan. The report never mentioned that a 13-year-old taking a picture threw a wrench in the heist.
Dylan kept asking
Seconds passed.
“Hello?” Leigh called. “Anybody home?”
We yelled for her to let us out.
“Who’s the guy with the gun?” she said, opening the door.
“Long story,” Bryce said. “Where is he?”
Chapter 71
I tore through the living room ahead of Mom and Ashley, only to find the guy with the mask on the ground in our front yard holding his leg. The laptop lay on the concrete like a wounded animal. The monitor had broken off, and pieces of plastic were scattered all over. The Creep was holding the gun on the man.
“Randy!” I shouted. “What happened?”
“This guy was coming out while we were going in,” Randy said. “I must have surprised him, because he turned and tripped over that snow shovel. The gun flew out of his hand. What was he doing?”
“Trying to destroy the evidence,” Ashley said, gathering up Mom’s laptop.
There was no siren now, so the 911 call must not have gone through. Mom called the police.
A few minutes later an officer cuffed the man, then pulled his mask off. He had a patchy mustache and dark hair.
Ashley gasped. “The deputy! You came to our cabin!”
The man cursed us as he was led to the squad car.
We explained what had happened at the cabin.
The officer said he had read about it. “You saying this guy might be the one with the gold?”
“Could be why he came here,” Ashley said. “We have a picture of him talking with Winkler, but he had his back turned to the camera. We didn’t even know we had it.”
“Uh, actually we didn’t have it,” I said. I had hooked the laptop to a monitor and was looking over Mom’s e-mail files. “I guess it never came through.”
“He came here to destroy a file that didn’t exist?” the officer said. “Real sharp.”
Leigh was peering into the man’s truck. “There’s a suitcase behind the seat.” She tried to lift it, but it was too heavy. Randy pulled it out with a grunt and put it on the ground.
The guy in the squad car kicked the back of the seat and hollered.
Randy clicked the latch and opened it. “Holy gold mine!”
The nugget was still in its glass case, and when the sun hit it, the thing sparkled like a mountain stream.
The officer pushed his hat back on his head and chuckled.
Dylan ran and stuck his head inside the suitcase. “Can I hold the shiny rock?”
Chapter 72
Sam was as surprised as we were about the deputy. When Bryce told him the man had been in our house with a gun, Sam’s face fell. But then he said he was glad that Bryce hadn’t moved the snow shovel.
Mom was relieved her book was safe, and from then on she began e-mailing it to herself and printing each chapter after she finished. She called Hayley’s mom and explained what had happened between us and asked if we could try to be friends again. Hayley was allowed to come to our house, but only if Mom was home.
Bryce and I decided not to call Randy The Creep anymore. It was the least we could do. Bryce was wary of Boo for the rest of the week, but the bully left us alone. Coach Baldwin had him scrubbing bathrooms during gym class. I guess it helps to have friends in high places.
One afternoon the sheriff came and apologized for all that had happened. He explained that the deputy and Winkler had worked with the store owner to steal the gold. The boy at the store turned out to be the owner’s son, and he had told his father about giving the memory stick to Bryce.
“When the exhibit opens again, we’d like to have you up to see it,” the sheriff said. He handed Sam the miner’s hat and a soggy monkey and raccoon.
“We’d like that,” Sam said.
The sheriff mentioned the reward, but Sam took him outside to talk.
We kept watching for a newspaper story of the gold heist to tell who had cracked the case. Finally, The Gazette linked the deputy with Winkler and the shop owner and exposed their plan. The report never mentioned that a 13-year-old taking a picture threw a wrench in the heist.
Dylan kept asking
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