Carl knocked on the motel room door. A moment later Cathy Harris opened the door.
"Can we come in?" Lindsay asked, almost apologetically.
Cathy walked away from the door, without saying a word.
Carl and Lindsay walked into the room, as Perry got up from the bed.
Lindsay took two cellphones from her pocket.
"Here, these belongs to youse."
She passed the cellphones to Perry.
Perry put the cellphones on the desk in the room.
"So, is everything sorted out?"
Lindsay nodded.
"As far as we can determine, it is, but we have some bad news for you."
"What now?" Perry moaned.
"It seems that your sister, Angie, is involved in this."
A shocked look came to Perry's face.
"Angie? I find that very hard to believe."
"Sorry, man," Carl joined.
"It seems that Angie was the one who set up this kid Noel. That is why she talked to you about getting him on the crew. She offered him ten grand to burn down the motel."
"Why the fuck would she do that?" Perry barked.
Lindsay answered.
"She is working with Jackson Lamont. We figure dat Lamont offered her a pile of money to do this."
"But this makes no sense," Perry sighed.
"What does anyone have to gain?"
Lindsay took a deep breath.
"That bes the million dollar question, Perry. And that bes the question we hopes to have answered, once we find this prick Lamont."
She took a deep breath.
"But for now, Ise wants to apologize to you, Cathy and your crew and wese hopes that wese will still be able to work together."
Perry nodded.
"Cat and I understand. I know you had to get to the bottom of this shit. And I am sure the crew will feel the same. This is a shock to everyone."
He sat on the edge of the bed.
"But Angie. That just puzzles the shit out of me."
"I am sorry to bes da one to give youse dat news, Perry, but wes felt youse had the right to know."
"I understand, Lindsay. Still don't make it any easier."
Lindsay nodded.
"I know."
She took a deep breath and smiled slightly.
"Look. To say we are sorry, why don't youse take yer crew to the Pub. Have a few drinks and a meal, on us and let everyone unwind for a few hours and in the morning wese will get back at it."
Lindsay offered her hand.
"What do youse say?"
Perry stood and shook her hand gently.
Cathy followed with a hug.
"This is just weird. I don't believe Angie is involved in this."
"Well feel free to get hold of her, if you can. She doesn't seem to be answering her phone. We have the cops looking for her."
"I will try to get hold of her. And I will get hold of my crew," Perry assured Lindsay.
Carl shook his head.
"No needs. Ise jest sent a TT to let everyone knows to send yer people to the Pub. Why don't youse and Cathy goes there and talks to your peoples."
Cathy passed Perry his jacket, as she sat, to put on her boots.
"We will talk to our people and I assure you that we will all be back on the job in the morning."
"Ise jest texted Clayt and told 'e to stop work fer da day and join your people at the Pub," Carl informed Perry.
"Spend some time together and gets to knows each others, better. And lets get dis ting behind us."
"Sounds good," Perry agreed, as he slipped on his boots.
"And I will try and get hold to Angie. She really has some explaining to do."
~~~~~
Jackson Lamont walked through the doors of the Parsons Pond Club. The older woman was not behind the bar. There was a younger woman wiping down the bar top.
"At least the scenery has changed."
"Morning. 'ow can Ise 'elp youse?"
Jackson looked around the club.
"Some things never change," he sneered, as he saw Calvin Parsons, sitting at the same table, alone.
Jackson threw a hundred dollar bill on the counter.
"Bring me a double of your best scotch and a couple beer for Calvin. You can keep the change."
Jackson walked to the table.
"What the fuck do you want?" Calvin snapped, without looking up.
Jackson sat at the table.
"Just on my way to St. Anthony to get my helicopter and get the fuck out of here."
Calvin looked up.
"Bad weather coming in. Best you take care," he informed Jackson, with a slight smirk on his face.
Jackson laughed, as the young woman put the drinks on the table.
"I am overwhelmed by your concern, but I am sure my pilot can manage a little bad weather."
Calvin sat back in his chair.
"So. What brings you to my humble abode, once again?"
"Just wanted to give you another chance to work with me."
Calvin shook his head.
"You still have a hard on for Tuckamore Bay?"
Jackson nodded, as he sat down.
"I will have that shit-hole and the treasure that it hides."
Calvin shook his head, laughing.
"You really are a dumb fuck, aren't you."
"And how is that?"
"There is no fucking treasure in Tuckamore Bay. There's no gold in dem dar hills."
"I have proof that there is."
Calvin picked up a beer and sat back in his chair.
"And what proof do you have, Lamont?
Some old letters?
A core sample that shows a trace of gold?
A story that Xavier Parsons found gold coins?"
Jackson stared at Calvin.
"What are you saying?"
"Its all fucking bullshit, you idiot. All bullshit. Fuck you are a dreamer."
Jackson shook his head.
"Impossible. I have proof."
"You have what I gave to your son in law. Which reminds me, Jackson. What ever happened to good old Simon Hirst? I read that he disappeared while on a trip with you.
Pretty fucking convenient, if I do say so myself.
How is that daughter of yours taking this?"
"You keep Gail out of this. And Simon was an asshole. He got lost in the snowstorm, somehow. Didn't listen to what he was told."
"Fuck Jack. Do you ever stop lying. I know it was you that sent in those goons to Tuckamore Bay, not Simon. Although he did take the fall for you and I guess you just had to tie up that loose end. And you are so lucky that old Henry Tucker survived. If he had of died, none of those goons would have come out of there.
But then again, maybe that's what you hoped would happen. Simon goes in, fucks up, someone gets hurt and the people of the Bay do your dirty work for you.
And then what? Were you going to swoop in there, all apologetic, promising to help them in any way?"
Jackson was quiet.
"Maybe you did that anyway. Did you, Jack? And when that didn't work out you had to get rid of the one person who could nail your fat ass to the wall.
So poor old Simon had to disappear."
"You best be careful at what you are accusing me of?"
"Or what, Jack? You gonna make me disappear, as well?
I don't think so. You are out of your element here, Jack."
Jackson smirked.
"Simon disappeared in a snowstorm. RCMP were satisfied with that."
Calvin chuckled.
"Yea, I bet that is exactly what happened. There be many who have disappeared here on the Rock as well. Just an accident."
Calvin laughed as he finished his beer.
"Anyway, Jackson. I will repeat what I said earlier. This gold thing is fucking bullshit. I got all that info from Betty French and I, let's say, expanded on it a bit."
Jackson stared at Calvin.
"What the fuck is that supposed to mean?"
"Well, let's start with the core sample.
Yea, there was a small trace of gold in the original samples. Everyone around here knows dat there were traces of gold in Tuckamore Mountain, but never enough to send in some mining company to explore farther. Just bes a few sprinkles through there.
Old Xavier added a few specks of gold dust to the samples to try and get some interest in the Bay. Remember, at that time, the Parsonses had a real hard on for the Doves. Xavier wanted the government to believe there was gold and give him a claim, so he could fuck over the Bay.
He wanted to be able to go in there and tear apart the mountain and anything else that got in his way."
"You telling me the samples were tampered with."
"Ding, ding, ding," Calvin laughed.
"Give the man a kewpie doll."
"But there were letters."
"Yea, about that. It is amazing what you can do with computers these days, ifin youse knows what to do."
"You telling me those letters were fake?"
Calvin nodded, while sipping his beer.
"About as fake as one of your hard ons, Jackson."
"But the coin that Xavier had on him."
Calvin laughed.
"Hey Fran?"
"Yea Uncle Cal."
"Tell Mr. Lamont about the gold coin that Xavier had on him, when they found his body."
"Youse means da one dat 'e found when 'e were a little boy?"
"That be the one."
Fran laughed.
"'e found dat down 'long da shoreline, when 'e were but ten or 'leven year old. 'e kept it all dose year, as a gud luck charm."
Fran laughed harder.
"Lot of luck dat brought 'e weren't it?"
Calvin leaned forward.
"So you see, Jackson. It was all a scam."
Jackson's face started turning red.
"I don't believe you."
"Believe what youse wants, youse dumb fuck, but I am telling you that there is no gold in Tuckamore Bay Mountain and the Tuckamore County treasure is somewhere at the bottom of the ocean.
Now, ifin youse wants to risk your life to try and swim dem waters to find the gold, then bes my guest. Many have and many have perished. They say there is a curse around that gold, but there is no curse. Just the icy cold, dangerous waters of the North Atlantic Ocean."
Jackson reached across the table and grabbed Calvin by the throat.
"You fucking bastard."
"Ise bes lettin' go of me Uncle ifin Ise were youse."
Jackson turned slowly to see the young woman, standing ten feet from him, with a double barrelled shotgun in her hands, aimed at his head.
"Now bitch, I would be putting that down, if I were you."
Fran laughed.
"I would be countin' to tree, ifin Ise were youse.
'cause dat best what Ise countin' to, 'fore Ise pulls dese triggers and blows your fuckin' 'ead off."
"I would be listening to her, if I were you," Calvin added.
"She is a feisty little lady."
Fran walked closer and put the shotgun to Jackson's head.
"One.
Two."
Jackson let go of Calvin and sat back, in his chair.
"Okay. Fuck. Okay."
Calvin rubbed his neck.
"So you see, Jackson, you have been on a wild goose chase."
"So why did you go along with all this?"
Calvin laughed and slapped the table.
"For the money, Jack. For the fucking money."
"What money?"
"The million dollars your son in law put into my niece's account."
Fran smirked.
"Yes, Ise tanks youse fer dat. Helped me and Uncle Calvin buy dis place."
"Fucking idiots."
Jackson threw his hands into the air.
"I am surrounded by fucking idiots."
He stood up quickly, knocking the chair over.
Fran raised the shotgun again.
"Ise bese takin' it easy dere, mainlander. Don't bes beatin' up our furniture."
Calvin stood up.
"So what was it that you invested into Tuckamore Bay?
I heard it was about fifty million. And how many million did Simon invest for you?"
Calvin walked around the table and stood by his niece, taking his cellphone from his pocket.
"You got duped, Jackson."
He went to his contact list and pulled up the number for Clayton Dove.
"Parsons Pond had an old feud with Tuckamore Bay, that went back years and years, but the people of the Pond now realize that our very survival might actually lay in the hands of the people of the Bay. There be a lot of work goin' on in the Bay and the people of the Pond could use the work.
It is time that we end the feud and we reunite our villages."
"Fucking hillbillies."
Calvin laughed.
"We are the hillbillies?
I don't think so. You came into our province thinking you were this high and mighty God. But youse got fucked over by a bunch of, how did you say it, backward hillbillies."
Calvin tapped Clayton's number.
"Who's the fucking hillbillies now?"
Calvin turned his attention back to his cellphone.
"Clayton Dove? Calvin Parsons here. Now before youse starts mouthing off, just listen. I have someone here that youse might be interested in.
A guy by the name of Jackson Lamont."
Calvin held the cellphone from his ear.
All three could hear Clayton yelling, screaming and cursing.
"Wow, Jack, they don't like you. If I were you, I would get the fuck out of here."
Jackson hesitated.
Fran pushed the shotgun into his belly.
"Git da fuck out of 'ere."
Jackson turned and headed for the door of the Club.
Calvin put the cellphone back to his ear.
"Clayton? Clayton? Calm down.
He just took off out of here. But Ise knows that he is gone to the St. Anthony airstrip. He has a helicopter there. Ifin youse moves fast, youse just might catch him."
Calvin ended the call.
Fran sat at the table laying the shotgun on a nearby table.
"Youse sure 'bout dis, Uncle Calvin?"
Calvin walked to the bar and got a couple beer.
"It bes time that this feud bes over, Frannie. We have no bad feelings for the Bay anymore and I am sure the younger ones of the Bay feel the same way.
If we can get Bill Williams and Matty Dove to work with us, we can all benefit."
Calvin sat down, raising his bottle.
"Here's to a new future for the Pond."