Page 31 of A Treacherous Treasure

He’d been going every day to the place where Mr. Fogg was digging, wondering if he would find the treasure there. The hole had become quite deep but there was no treasure, and though he considered each time whether he would confront the man, he had never encountered him again, only the evidence of his digging.

Now, looking at this map, he knew for certain that the constable was digging in the wrong place.

“What if these triangles are trees,” Thomas said, drawing their attention to the map. “And these wavy marks are fields. And this square here is Heywood House.”

“That makes sense,” Benjamin mumbled.

“But what are these lines here?” Caroline asked.

“That is the lane leading up to the house.”

“That means the ‘X’ is behind the house, not where that man was shooting at Mrs. Heywood,” Benjamin said.

While everyone was silently taking this in, Thomas said, “This map is very helpful, but it only gives us a general location for the treasure, if I’m interpreting it correctly. I can’t help thinking we’re missing one more clue that would show us exactly where to dig.”

“Could we be missing something in the letter?”

Rebecca Heywood was quite pretty when she raised her eyebrows in that hopeful way, with her dark blue eyes and her brown hair hanging in curls beside her cheeks.

“I didn’t bring the letter with me,” she said, “but I could examine it more closely.”

“And the family Bible? Did you examine it closely?”

“Not particularly. I was in a hurry and was only looking for Romans eight. And now Mrs. Heywood has the Bible. Or at least, she said she was taking it with her. With the management of the estate and trying to understand my new duties, I forgot to look and see if she took it.”

“Why don’t you let us come tomorrow,” Mother said, “and we will help you look, and also help you with your duties, your ledgers and books, if we are able.”

“Yes,” Thomas said. “Mother and I can help you with the management of the estate, and—”

“And I can help you look for clues,” Caroline said.

“And I.” Benjamin folded his arms across his chest and gave a side glare to Caroline.

“My brother and sister can help, if they can stop quarreling.” Thomas frowned at the two of them, but they hardly noticed.

“If you would not mind, I’d very much like to have your help, as soon as you are able to come.”

“We will be there early tomorrow, then.” Mother patted her hand.

Thomas was gratified by how kind his mother was to Rebecca Heywood. She obviously was in need of some kindness, after living with Arthur and his mother for the past two years.

The servant announced it was time for dinner.

Dining with Rebecca Heywood added something to their conversation that was quite enjoyable. Thomas was glad she lived so close, as she could come quite often. They all seemed to enjoy each other’s company, and tonight they were even more at ease with each other than before. But Thomas didn’t like keeping this secret from Rebecca Heywood.

He’d made up his mind to tell her that the constable was the culprit digging on her land. After all, she might be fooled into trusting him, and if he suspected she had seen him, he would surely kill her. He had to tell her.

He’d also determined to confront Mr. Fogg, but he was still deciding how to do it.

When dinner was over, Caroline played and sang one song then persuaded Rebecca Heywood to play and sing. He’d thought her playing was good, but hearing her sing for the first time, he was struck by how beautiful her voice was. And though some ladies’ faces distorted when they sang, somehow Rebecca’s looked even prettier, almost angelic, to match her voice.

But always his mind took him back to the fact that she was Arthur Heywood’s wife. She belonged to that man who had deliberately done all he could to harm Thomas, completely without cause, as Thomas had been his loyal friend since they were young children.

He wanted nothing to do with anything that belonged to Arthur, even rued the fact that his own land had to share a property line with Arthur’s. He forgave him for all he had done, or at least he was trying to, but that didn’t mean he could overlook the fact that Rebecca had been his wife.

Thomas was young, with a desirable estate. He could marry well, as well as he wished to, and he intended to marry a sweet, innocent girl who adored him.

He had no wish to marry anyone’s widow, especially Arthur Heywood’s.