"Guys we're coming up on Freedman's Church. The church Denmark built for all the slaves he freed." Pope said as they drove past the church on their way to the tree.
"There it is, Angel Oak." Kie said.
"Holy shit that thing is big." Logan said looking the tree.
"That's what she said." JJ laughed but stopped once he saw the unamused look on his friends faces.
"Oh, shit. Tides coming in." John B said as they pulled up to a road that is covered in water and mud. "Um..."
"Hey, wait a second. Look. They already cane through here. Those have to be Limbrey's tire tracks. Guys, we gotta go." Pope said eagerly.
"Mm, what do you think chief?" JJ asked.
"I'm thinking it's looking a little dicey." John B said.
"Yeah, I'm gonna have to agree with that statement." JJ said.
"Okay, clearly, they made it. No?" Kie asked.
"I say we just hold our breath's and speed right through." Logan said.
"In a two wheel drive, I don't know about that." JJ said.
"Why are y'all acting like you're not gonna do it anyways? Like when have y'all ever done the safe thing? I mean, Logan literally set her house on fire and left the country." Sarah said looking at them. Logan raised her hands in exasperation.
"When are you guys going to forget about that?" Logan asked. Her friends ignored her though.
"She's got a point." John B said and JJ turned to the front.
"Speed is your friend here, buddy." their blonde friend said. "So, put her down in second and hammer down, brother."
"Stick to the high ground in the middle, John B." Pope said.
"Also, don't crash." Logan said and John B chuckled sarcastically.
"Thanks thief." he said. "All right, ready? Here we go." He started driving and everyone was yelling at him, telling him what to do.
"We're alive." Kie said once they made it to the other side.
"I told you we'd make it." Johnny boy said.
"That's my girl" JJ said, talking about the van.
"You know, getting replaced by a van is so exhilarating, you guys should try it some time." Logan said to them and the girls laughed. JJ just turned around and kissed her.
"Nothing can replace your crazy ass, babe." he said then looked up front again. John B stopped the van and they all got out. "Angel Oak is right through here. All right so word to the wise, definitely know that gators nest back here, so keep your eyes peeled, okay? You don't want to step on a mama gator. That's the last thing you want to have happen."
"Thank you for your precious information Crocodile Dundee." Logan said to him.
"Shut up, I'm trying to help." JJ said laughing.
"They nest?" Kie asked and JJ hummed.
"Seems like a good place to park." Sarah said.
"All right. You don't wanna be a Pat Womack. She had her calf chewed off by a gator, right? You know that right?" JJ said.
"That's actually not true. Pat Womack was injured in a car accident, but I hear you." Kie corrected him.
"Okay, just live in ignorance. But like, she had her calf chewed off by a mama gator. I know that for a fact. They like the brackish water. Wait, hold on. I see something." JJ stopped them all.
"What are you doing?" Kie asked as JJ just bent down picked up a stick and hit the water.
"Right, wake them up, that's smart." Sarah said to him.
"I was just making sure it wasn't a gator. That's all, all right?" he said walking ahead with the others.
"Thank you so much for your bravery." Logan said ruffling his hair. He swats her hands away.
"You're so lucky I love you, Logan Pierce." JJ said pulling her to the front.
"Okay, I just wanna make this crystal clear so you don't lose your shit and cause another riot. I am here for Pope and not you." Sarah said to John B as they were at the back, walking together.
"You're here for Pope and not me? That the case? Then why are you back here walking with me, huh, Sarah Cameron." He said as they walked through a bush and she let the branch hit him in the face.
"I don't know. Why am I?" she asked then walked ahead. Pope shushed them a they all hid behind a tree watching Rafe, Limbrey, Renfield and a construction team digging up the bottom of the tree.
"I don't see shit." Rafe told Limbrey. "You sure this is the right spot?"
"It's there. The garment will be in the cross and the cross will be at the foot of the tree." Limbrey said to them.
"Alright well, whatever we find, I get my cut." Rafe said to her.
"The actual garment. You understand the significance." She asked Renfield.
"I do Carla, completely." He said as he got a chair for her out of the trunk.
"One touch of it, and I'll be healed, and this long nightmare will be over." She said.
"Your lips to Gods ears." He spoke.
"Does that mean that if I touch this garment my insanity will be healed?" Logan whispered to Kie who just elbowed her in the stomach and kept listening to Limbrey.
"I know you don't believe it, but countless stories over millennia prove that... miracles happen" she said and sat down watching the team keep digging. She jumped up when they hit something. "Hey wait! Stop! Please stop! Did you hear it? Hey get in there boy. Do it by hand. This has got to be the cross." She looked into the hole. "It's smaller than I thought. It looks like a-"
"Casket" Rafe interrupted.
"He put it in a casket. Denmark put it in a casket. Get it up." Limbrey chuckled.
"Lets go" Renfield said. They started taking it out of the hole and the pogues watched them.
"They got the cross? What do we do? What do we do?" JJ said panicking.
"What can we do?" John B asked him.
"Be careful" Limbrey said as Rafe and Renfield started opening it. "Don't touch anything inside." They finally opened it and Limbrey had a look of disappointment on her face.
"It's just a corpse. Sorry Carla." Renfield said.
"We must have missed something." She said and got up.
"Of course, yeah. Of course it's just a dead body, Jesus!" Rafe said.
"We just got the wrong place. We'll go back to the island room. We're going back! It's not over!" Limbrey said and they all packed up their stuff and drove away, leaving the corpse behind.
"Pope. Pope, wait. Wait! Shit." JJ said as Pope started moving forwards. The rest started following after. Pope ran up to the body and looked down at it.
"Cecilia Tanny, Denmark's wife. He wasn't talking about the cross. He buried her at the foot of the angel." Pope said.
"The true treasure." Kie said.
"His wife." John B said. JJ and Logan looked at each other and held hands. Pope bent down around the grave and everybody followed.
"Denmark was hung for burying his wife, and now they defiled her grave." He cried as he picked up a pendant that said Cecilia on it as Sarah picked up a ring.
"This must have been from Denmark. Her wedding ring." Sarah said.
"We can't leave her like this." Pope said.
"We won't" John B said to him reassuringly. John and JJ lifted up the top of the casket and hammered it back on the top. Pope got some flowers and placed it in the middle of it. Once JJ gets finished burying the casket Pope starts his long rant.
"I just don't get it. I mean you guys saw the map. He hides his gold so no one finds it for 170 years. And then he sends a message to his son Robert to come here to his mother's grave, but the message never gets to him. If Denmark wanted him to find the cross. I know we're in the right spot. It just feels like-"
"Like we missed something?" JJ said looking up at the tree. "Guys. Come here." JJ and Logan climb to the top of the van. JJ points at a hole in the tree. "That looks like-"
"The painting in the island room." Logan said.
"Its worth a shot right?" JJ said
"Yeah" Kie said
"Let's do it" John B said.
"Go for it." JJ pushed Logan in front of him.
"No way am I doing that." Logan said.
"You do it" Sarah said.
"Sorry. I... I got shot so..." she said.
"She did get shot." Pope said.
"Yeah. No, I'm gonna do it. It's just..." JJ hesitated.
"He's scared." Kie whispered.
"I'm not scared, dude." he said.
"You do seem scared." Logan said. He stuck his hand in and everyone looked at him expectingly.
"There's something in here. Wait" He started screaming and that caused everybody else to start screaming. the pogues were all jumping up onto the van while Logan tried to grab him. JJ started laughing and everybody fell back.
"You asshole." Pope said.
"Oh, man. I got all of you on that one." JJ said in amusement.
"Oh, yeah, real original." Pope spoke.
"I hate you, JJ" Logan said as he put his hand back.
"Wait, but seriously, there's something in here." He pulls something out and he hands it to Pope. JJ jumped off the van and Logan was about to grab his hand for help but he turned the other way. She just shrugged and stayed up there.
"HMS Royal Merchant." Pope said with excitement.
"Give it to the captain." JJ said and took it out of his hands and extended it. "Here we go. Its a spyglass."
"There's something on the ends." Kie said.
"An inscription right there. Look at that shit." John B said with a smile.
"What does it say." JJ asked.
"'You've come this far, Do not falter. The cross is on the Freedman's altar.' Freedman's altar! The cross is at the church!" Pope yelled.
"What are we doing here guys? We got it!" JJ told them.
"We got it!" Pope yelled. They all start running around getting into the car. "okay let's go!" John B was about to start driving when they heard a banding from above them. They all looked at each other than up.
"God?" JJ said.
"It's Logan. We forgot Logan up there!" Kie said and JJ hopped out of the car.
"Shit. Hey babe." He said looking at her. She just stood there with her arms crossed.
"Don't 'hey babe' me. You forgot about me." she said and put her hands out. JJ grabbed them and helped her down.
"Okay, but I had a really good reason to." JJ said and she just slapped his head and got into the van. Once JJ got in again they drove away.
~~~~
Sorry for the short chapter and the very long wait. I'm honestly not too confident about this book anymore and have lost interest. BUT I will finish it.
- A.J.