Haunting Danielle 27 The Ghost and the Mountain Man Bobbi Holmes (best pdf ebook reader for android .TXT) 📖

“But there seems to be a connection between the deaths,” Ian said. “It looks like Bud, your parents and Teddy’s wife all died the same year—possibly the same month, and all under questionable circumstances. Walt said the three had been best friends. I’m not a huge believer in coincidences. If I were, I wouldn’t have researched some topics I have over the years.”

Lily turned to her husband and asked, “Okay, let’s say this is a story you want to research. Where would you look?”

Ian considered the question for a moment. Finally, he said, “It seems the one person who survived that year was this Teddy. What happened to him?”

“I know he closed his office in Frederickport and moved down to Astoria, where his other office was located,” Walt said. “My grandmother once mentioned he later remarried, but that’s about all I know.”

“Considering he lied about being in Frederickport the day of the fire, I would see what you can find out about Teddy, his life after your parents’ and his wife’s deaths,” Ian suggested. “It’s also possible you misunderstood the timeline of when Teddy arrived back in Frederickport. He could have stopped by Marlow House but didn’t return to his home until after the fire.”

“I think you’ll find something if you look,” Heather said.

Chris looked at Heather and asked, “Why do you say that?”

“Because Walt had that dream for some reason. It was telling him to look into it,” Heather said.

Danielle nodded. “I agree.”

“But I also want to know about that treasure of Bud’s,” Heather said.

“Any idea what kind of treasure it’s supposed to be?” Ian asked.

“When we mentioned the treasure to Ginny, she claimed not to know anything about it, not until Cory mentioned it,” Walt said.

“But Marie did say something,” Danielle interjected.

Before Danielle could finish her thought, Carla arrived with their breakfast. Lily took Connor from Heather and put him in the empty highchair by her seat while they passed plates of food around the table.

After Carla served the food and left the table, Chris asked Danielle, “What did Marie say about the treasure?”

Danielle retold Marie’s anecdote of a young Emily and then her daughter telling stories of Uncle Bud’s treasure and pirates.

“Pirates?” Heather smirked after Danielle repeated Marie’s story.

“So are we talking about a pirate treasure?” Lily asked.

“When I was growing up, there used to be a story about a pirate treasure buried up in one of the local mountains,” Walt said.

They all turned to him. “You never told me that before,” Danielle said.

Picking up a piece of toast from his plate, he gave a shrug. He said, “It’s just a story my grandfather told me.” Walt took a bite of the toast and then noticed his friends continued to watch him.

“We want to hear the story,” Heather said impatiently.

“I don’t think it has anything to do with Bud’s treasure,” Walt said, setting what remained of his toast back on his plate.

“Tell us anyway. I love a good treasure story,” Danielle said.

“That’s because you are always stumbling over treasures,” Chris teased.

“Now you sound like Adam,” Danielle said before taking a bite of bacon.

“According to my grandfather, about two years after he settled here, a ghost ship washed up on shore,” Walt began.

“Ghost ship?” Heather frowned.

“A ship without a crew,” Ian explained.

“Oh, you mean like the Eva Aphrodite,” Heather said.

“Yes. Apparently, the ship washed up during a severe storm,” Walt explained. “They discovered it the next morning, and no one was on board, and they didn’t know where it came from. That morning the local livery stable discovered someone had taken a carriage and horses during the night. Later, people started speculating that whoever had been on the ship had stolen the carriage and horses.”

“Is this the same livery that Bud’s sister owned?” Danielle asked.

“Yes, but this was before Bud was born. And probably before his sister was born. I imagine the stable was then owned by her future in-laws,” Walt said.

“So what does this have to do with pirates?” Heather asked.

“When they first inspected the wreckage, they found what looked like marks where someone had dragged something from the ship, like a large chest. There were some matching grooves left in the road, along with evidence of a carriage—which they believed was the missing one. Yet before they could search the wreckage for more evidence, or discover where it came from, another storm hit and washed the ship back out to sea, where it disappeared.”

“And they never learned where it came from?” Heather asked.

“No. The stories grew, and people were convinced the ship was one pirates had commandeered, and that when they washed up on shore, they had to move their treasure. It made for a good story.” Walt grinned.

“And they never found out what happened to the carriage and horses?” Lily asked.

“Not the horses, but months later they found what was left of the carriage up on one of the local mountains. Which mountain, I don’t know,” Walt said. “But that’s where that story evolved.”

“I assume treasure hunters searched for this elusive pirate treasure?” Danielle asked.

“If so, that was before my time. I heard the story years later, when I was about eleven. By then most people didn’t believe there was a treasure. Oh, there were those who speculated pirates buried it up in the mountains, but it was always said more in jest. Even if there had been a treasure, I think most people felt it was long gone. While they found the carriage, they never found the horses. The pirates—or whoever was responsible—obviously got away with whatever they took with them,” Walt said. “And whatever they took may not have been worth anything.”

“I don’t think Marie knows about this story,” Danielle said. “She mentioned pirates, but nothing about this story.”

“She may never have heard it,” Walt said. “It’s something I heard when I was a child, but I don’t recall anyone talking about it in later years.”

“But could this be the treasure Bud was supposedly looking for?” Heather suggested.

Walt