Page 49 of The Heir's Fortune
First, they walked past the ruins of the old house that had stood there years ago, where Cassandra and Devon had spent a great deal of time searching, although that had come to naught. Still, it had brought them closer together.
Next, they entered a second grove of trees, silence remaining. Madeline wondered if they were all beginning to sense the edge that she and Gideon carried.
They continued down the path, which was no longer created by man but rather tread through the grass by animals and people over the years, until Madeline heard the lapping of water against the shore. As they walked, eventually the couples all found themselves next to one another. Madeline wasn’t sure if it was due to being the two unpaired or whether it was meant to be, but she found herself walking next to Gideon.
“Is that the lake I hear?” she murmured to him, and he nodded.
“The lake is behind us now. We will follow the river it is attached to if I understand the map correctly.”
They continued around a few twisting turns until eventually, they emerged into a small clearing. In all her years visiting Castleton, Madeline had never visited this area, and she stopped so abruptly that Percy walked right into her.
“Ow,” Percy said, rubbing her nose, but Madeline couldn’t concentrate, for she was too busy turning from one side to the next.
“This is… unbelievable,” she said. A wide river stretched out in front of them, the edge of the lake pouring into a tiny waterfall, allowing water to trickle downward. “I didn’t even know this was here.” She looked at Cassandra. “Why didn’t you ever show me?”
Cassandra shrugged one shoulder. “I never came here much, and I always promised Gideon that I would keep this area his secret. Well, his and my father’s. My father always used to love coming here. I think sometimes my mother still brings him.”
“I understand,” Madeline said quietly, knowing how private Gideon was, how much it must be a respite to have a place he could come and have to himself.
“This is where the map has led us,” he said, dismissing all that Cassandra was sharing. “Now we must follow the compass.”
He pulled it from his pocket, holding it up in front of him, and they all waited as they watched him, seemingly without breathing.
“This way,” he said, nodding forward, and they all walked behind him, still in their pairs, Madeline just a few feet behind Gideon.
He stopped at the tree line, pausing and looking around.
“From the map, we are to continue straight through the trees.”
“There is nothing behind here but the hill beyond,” Cassandra said, and Gideon frowned, stepping forward, until he finally ducked underneath one of the tall trees.
“Where are you going?” Cassandra called out. “We have explored every inch of this land. You know there is nothing here.”
“This is where it is leading us so there must besomething. I just hope it is not another blood—er, beastly clue,” Gideon said, although his voice was muffled. There was a pause. “Here it is!”
Madeline and Cassandra exchanged a look of surprise.
“Herewhatis?’ Cassandra asked.
“I do not quite know what you would call this,” he said as they all ducked underneath the trees one at a time, until they were lined up beside him, staring at the side of the hill – only, Gideon was right. There was something there. A small space in the otherwise flat surface.
“Is it a cave?” Ferrington asked.
“It does not appear to be so, for I doubt anyone could completely fit within it. Certainly not stand,” Gideon said, frowning as he pushed forward, sticking his head and shoulders into the hole and looking around.
Madeline was trying to be patient, but she wished she could push Gideon out of the way to see what was within. She couldn’t imagine what Cassandra was feeling.
“I think we can fit a few of us in there,” he said, turning around. “We might not be able to stand, but there should be plenty of room.” He paused, a look of indecision on his face before he turned toward his sister, who was waiting eagerly, nearly bouncing on her toes in excitement. “Cassandra, why do you not go first?”
“Me?” Cassandra said, although her eyes did not hide her clear excitement at the opportunity. “You are not worried that it might not be safe?”
“Of course I am worried that it might not be safe,” he said with a bit of a sigh. “But there doesn’t seem to be any space for anything – or anyone – to be hiding in there in wait for us, and I know how important this is to you. You started this. You might as well finish it.”
She looked at him before taking his hand. “We started this together. Let’s finish this together.”
He nodded and provided her a step up in the palms of his interlaced hands so that she could shimmy her shoulders and the top of her hips through the hole. Gideon followed, and the rest of them waited.
Madeline knew they were all eager to know if there was treasure within, but they also knew that this was most important to brother and sister, and they should be the ones to discover whether this had come to anything. Madeline’s nails were biting into her palms, she was so nervous about what they might find.
