The Sunstone Brooch : Time Travel Romance Katherine Logan (no david read aloud TXT) 📖

“About three inches wide, and with a square-rigged sail makes it one and a half inches tall. What do you suppose it’s doing here?”

“It’s another marker. Take yer pictures and come on down.” He waited for her and then climbed down first so he could catch her if she slipped. When they reached the ground, she sat to put her shoes back on while he scrolled through the pictures. “It’s another X marks the spot.”

He pocketed his phone and picked up two long, thick sticks, staked them in the soft ground, crisscrossed them, and then wove a piece of twine around the stakes to hold back the bramble bush. The string didn’t come in handy every day, but it had often enough that he never finished dressing without a piece in his pocket, along with his Swiss army knife.

“It’s a tight squeeze. The trunks won’t fit. We’ll have to unload them here. I’m going in to look around.”

“Good,” Kenzie agreed. “And while you’re there, why don’t you scare away the rats and make sure there aren’t any booby traps.”

“Like the search for the Holy Grail in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. I doubt we’ll find either a treasure or booby traps, Kenz. Kentuckians didn’t see Vikings very often.”

“Ha! Ha! Try again. Erik was here a few days ago.”

The opening behind the boulder was about three feet by three feet and looked almost as dark and foreboding as any hole he’d ever seen. Only adventuresome young men and undeterred lasses like Ensley would have dared crawl in there with just a penlight.

“How in the world did those two teenagers find this?” she muttered.

“I was wondering about that, too. Pass the lights and generator through as soon as they bring the trunks. I’m going to get a few initial pictures.”

“Mr. Boy Scout, did you bring a flashlight?”

David dug into his pocket. “Damn. Where is it?”

“I saw you put it down on the stainless steel table before you put on your jacket. Did you forget to pick it up?”

He’d been watching Meredith cry over JC and barely got his jacket on.

“Use your phone,” Kenzie said.

“I don’t want to use up my battery. Paul!”

“Coming!”

“Bring me a flashlight.” While David waited, he struggled to manage his overactive sweat glands and a racing heart. Was he sure he wanted to do this? Hell, no. Kenzie complained about rats but wasn’t afraid of them. She’d go inside without giving it a second thought, but he’d rather battle his demons than send her into an unknown situation by herself.

Although it wasn’t unknown, Ensley and Austin had been inside the cave recently, and he could send them back in. But they might overlook details that could be significant. Paul could go in and set up the lights, and if there were clues or signs, he’d spot them.

But to send Paul in there, I’d have to admit my irrational fear.

The trunk’s metal handles clunked against the leather sides when Paul set the gear down in the crunchy underbrush. “Where’s David?”

David stuck out his arm. “Right here. Give me a flashlight.”

Paul opened the trunk and handed one to him. “I can’t believe there’s a cave in there. How’d you find this, Austin?”

David wiped his sweaty face and waited to hear Austin’s explanation so he could give his racing heart another moment or two to slow down. Unlikely, but he could hope.

“It was dumb luck!” Austin and Ensley joined the others at the bramble bush, carrying another trunk. “JC and I were looking for a place to drink a stolen bottle of whisky and confront our cave fears. He ran ahead of me and hid. I was mad as hell that he was hiding because he had the bottle. I almost pissed my pants when he jumped out from behind that bramble bush. He was laughing his ass off, lost his balance, and fell backward.

“I watched him try to get out of the bush. It was too dense for a gnat to wiggle through, much less JC. I’d give anything for a video of it now. But while he was struggling with the damn thing, he found the entrance and didn’t tell me. He just climbed in and disappeared. When I stopped laughing and realized he was gone, I got pissed again. Anyway, a few minutes later, he yelled at me to get over there. I was excited about the cave, but he’d dropped the damn bottle when he fell, and all the whisky was watering the damn bramble bush.”

David chuckled. He didn’t have any trouble picturing that fiasco. He’d sneaked his own purloined bottle of whisky out to the barn when he was a kid. The joke was on him when he realized he’d stolen a bottle full of tea. Auld Fraser had an odd sense of humor.

“Where’d everybody go?” Sean yelled.

“We’re over here,” Kenzie hollered back.

A moment later, the weight of another trunk crunched in the underbrush. “Where’s the entrance?” Sean asked.

David stuck his arm out again and waved. “Here. The bushes and shadows keep it well hidden. Unpack the lights and generator and slide them to me. As soon as I get the lights set up, I’ll do a short video of the cave. I want to be sure we don’t destroy any evidence once everybody gets in there.”

“Ensley and I probably messed shit up the other day,” Austin said.

“I’ll recognize yer footprints,” David said. “If I don’t see anything else on the cave floor, the rest of ye can come in. Give me the Canon and a few minutes to set up.”

“Hey, McBain…” Kenzie knelt to be eye level with him, speaking softly. “This isn’t the best time to mention this, but…you’re claustrophobic and hate caves. Are you sure you want to do this? Austin and Ensley have already been in there. Let them set up the lights.”

“Aw, geez, Kenz. I almost forgot. Thanks for the reminder,” he said in a voice laced with sarcasm. There was no way out