Page 356 of The Romance Adventure

“It was good,” I say, referring to the flavor.

“Yeah, it seems like she didn’t want to raise her son with Glandman in the picture. Whether it was punishment or preservation, who knows?” Magnus says.

CJ wipes his mouth on a paper napkin. “Or Aunt Lorena had a plan to get close to Glandman because he had something she wanted. Maybe she and Chip were playing a long game.”

Royal shakes his head. “How does that help us in this situation?”

“If we knew what he may have had...”

“A lot of money. An ego the size of the Caribbean...” Royal goes quiet. “A lot of property, oceanfront especially.”

Ryan says, “You’ve mentioned that he may not have been exactly what he seemed.”

CJ shrugs, then slides his eyes my way before flicking them back to his brother. “Are any of us?”

Forget tiptoeing, my pulse is ready to race to the other end of the island.

“If Chip was looking for treasure, the crown, or the Crimson Tide, it would’ve been beneficial for him to have access to as much ground as he could cover.”

“So that’s why our grandfather and Glandman went into business together?”

“Could be.”

“But that still doesn’t explain Aunt Lorena’s involvement or sudden un-involvement.”

“Keep your enemies close,” CJ smiles.

Despite having just eaten ice cream, I’m suddenly overheating. Then I talk myself out of it. There’s no way we’re enemies. We’re competitors, seeking the same thing.

“So, Chip and Glandman formed an alliance. What about the third guy?” Ryan rubs his temples as if this is far more complicated than he expected.

I’m trying to keep up, too.

CJ says, “We found the initials J-A-G in the journal. Could’ve been code—Chip used a lot of those—someone he didn’t want to mention, shorthand for a jaguar, or it could be an acronym.”

“Juggling Actors Guild?” Ryan asks.

“Juicy Apple Grove?” Isla says, taking a bite of her second ice cream.

“Just Another Guess?” Royal says.

CJ smirks. “Or Jerkovic, Almeida, and Glandman.”

“Jaguar,” the whispered word slips out of me. I hope no one heard, not that they’d necessarily know who that is.

“JAG was what they named their development firm. I found the articles of incorporation when I was going through Chip’s office,” CJ says.

“When was that?” Royal asks.

“When he moved from the frigate to the brigantine.”

“Speaking of the brigantine, we should keep an eye out for the Dark Seas.”

“Saw it last night,” CJ says.

I nod, trying to find a good place to insert myself into the conversation, but I still feel like an outsider.

“Does knowing about JAG help us get closer to the crown?” Royal asks.