Part Eight

Morning came without a word from either Spot or Bambi. They had nothing to say to each other. Spot gathered his spade and half-full canteen and readied for the final step of the quest. They would find the bracelet today. Spot could feel it in his bones.

�Bring your entire pack.� Bambi ordered, breaking the silence between them. �As soon as we find the bracelet, we�re leaving.�

�Fine.�

Slinging the pack onto his back, Spot followed after Bambi. They explored one cave and found absolutely nothing.

�If we find the right cave,� Bambi spoke up as they explored another cave, �then we can leave from there. It�s supposed to lead to an opening at least two miles from the caves.�

�So it�ll be a shortcut?�

�It should be. If we head back for the beach, we�ll head back to the port, which should take about a day again. And we�ll head for home.�

�Don�t forget, you�re stayin� in my lodgin� house till th� auction.�

�Why do I have to do this again?�

�Cuz I don�t wantcha runnin� off with th� bracelet.�

�Spot, even if I did run off with the bracelet, the highest amount of money I could get for it would be at the auction. All you�d need to do is rally up all your newsie buddies and I�d be found in no time.�

He pushed a vine away. �Ya got a point there. But I think I got �nuther reason why I�d like ya t� stay.�

�And what�s that?�

�I think I�m startin� t� like ya.�

Bambi sneered. �I�m flattered.�

�No really, I�m serious. Not that I�d consider cheatin� on Louisa, but I�m startin� t� see ya as different than th� way I saw ya b�fore. Maybe if we spent a couple days t�gether, we could work out all th� differences we got.�

She didn�t reply for quite some time. And by the time she did, Spot could tell that what he had said had completely caught her off guard.

�I�ll think about it.� She responded. �No guarantees.�

�We got a couple days. Ya�ll come up with �n answer once we get t� Brooklyn.�

The narrowness of the cave suddenly began to widen. And the further back they went, the wider the cave grew. Finally, after a tedious trek, they reached an enormous cavern with dirt thickening as the ground. There was a narrow slit through the wall ahead, barely wide enough for one person to squeeze through.

Spot�s mouth dropped as he scanned over the cavern. Not only was it large, but it had green writing on one wall. And his heart leapt. This was the cavern where the bracelet was! Bambi stuck her torch into the ground and rushed to the writing.

�What�s it say, what�s it say?� Spot demanded childishly.

�It says, �buried here is the bracelet of Lief Larson.�� She drew back and grinned widely. �We�ve found it.�

�And I must say, it�s about time!�

Spot froze at the voice. He hadn�t spoken, and neither had Bambi. She turned her head and stared and Spot with huge eyes, then they both turned and looked over Spot�s shoulder.

�Angus?� Bambi stammered.

�Took you long enough.� He brandished a pistol and loaded it. �I�ve been waiting here a whole day and you still hadn�t shown up.�

�How th� heck wouldja get �ere?� Spot demanded.

�Bambi�s notes.�

�You couldn�t have gotten those notes!� Bambi shrieked. �I burned them!�

�No, you didn�t.�

�Yes I did!�

�I saw everything. You lit them on fire and dumped them in your waste bin, but by then, the fire had died out. Only the outside was incinerated.�

Spot glared at Bambi. �You idiot! Ya should�ve made sure!�

�I was in a hurry! I�m sorry, Spot.�

�Now�s not the time for apologies.� Angus interrupted, pointing the pistol at Bambi. �Now get out your shovels and start digging.�

�Do as he says.� Bambi muttered lowly.

Spot didn�t know how to react. This tiny little man was holding a loaded gun, and she wasn�t going to do anything. She�d taken out a man twice that size with an even larger loaded gun as well! Why wouldn�t she do it now?

�Bambi-�

�Don�t ask questions. He�s not to be underestimated.�

The tone in her last statement was enough to silence Spot. If Bambi would succumb to Angus�s demands, then he must be more than what Spot assumed of him. He then submitted to Angus�s demand and took the shovel out from his pack. The two began digging.

For two hours, they dug while Angus watched eagerly. With all this digging, Spot and Bambi were covered in perspiration and dirt and were absolutely filthy. Their backs were sore, their hands were blistered and their throats were burning. If they didn�t find the bracelet soon, Bambi knew that Angus would shoot them and find the bracelet himself.

She shuddered at the thought, a shudder that Spot caught in the corner of his eye. And he knew that if Bambi was afraid, then he was in trouble. That was when he jammed his shovel into the ground and felt something hard blocking the spade. Thinking it was a rock, he dug around it to free it. But it wasn�t a rock. It was rectangular shaped.

�Bambi�� he uttered.

Bambi threw her shovel aside carelessly when she saw the outline in the dirt. Dropping to her knees, she frantically dug with her hands around the object. Angus came running to watch with greed glimmering in his eyes.

�Yes! This is it!� Bambi exclaimed, pulling up the box.

The box was completely coated in thick dirt from having been hidden for a thousand years. But there was a lock, and the keyhole was blocked with the dirt. Bambi pulled out a hairpin and cleaned out the keyhole for the key to unlock.

�Spot, get the key.�

Wary of Angus, Spot reached into his shirt and drew out the key. Removing it from his neck, he fitted the key to the lock and turned. The lock snapped open.

�Open it, open it!� Angus commanded impatiently.

Bambi removed the lock and lifted the latch. White sand began falling from the inside of the box until the lid was wide open. Then Spot reached into the sand to feel for the bracelet. He felt nothing.

His eyes widened in shock as he raised his eyes to Bambi�s. She said absolutely nothing but shared the same expression. She tipped the box and allowed the sand to pour out to uncover the bracelet. But when the sand was poured, there was nothing.

�Where is it?� Angus demanded, annoyed.

�It ain�t here.� Spot muttered in response.

�It has to be! All Wyatt�s research-�

�It was wrong, Angus.� Bambi admitted remorsefully. �Someone must have gotten to it years before we did.�

�No!� he reloaded the gun and pointed it at Bambi. �It�s here! It�s has to be!�

Then tossing the gun aside carelessly, Angus rushed to the pit Spot and Bambi had dug to find the box, snatched the shovel from Spot�s hands and began shoveling himself.

�It�s here. I know it�s here!� he repeated to himself.

Spot watched on, filled with pity that this man didn�t know how to tell himself when he was beaten. He stepped out of the pit and pulled his pack onto his back. All this time and the bracelet wasn�t even there.

Bambi stepped out of the pit as well, her soul dragging with her heavy feet. Hauling her pack onto her back, she glanced back at Angus, still digging in futile attempt to retrieve the bracelet. She pursed her lips together.

�Let�s go.� She forced past the lump in her throat.

Casting a glance back at Angus, Spot could tell that he no longer knew that he or Bambi even existed anymore. All Angus knew was the greed and stubbornness of not accepting the fact that the bracelet was gone forever. Where it was today, nobody knew.

He led the way through the narrow passageway that appeared to lead toward an opening. Fighting claustrophobia, Spot managed to make it through the tight passage with Bambi trudging behind him. Once they reached the opening, they found that it was blocked by a rushing waterfall, but managed to slip out on a thin trail to the outside.

�I can�t believe it.� Bambi muttered, taking control of the trek again. �All these years of researching and planning and absolutely nothing. Nothing!�

�Boy, ya got that right.� Spot mumbled. �If my goons ever hear �f this, I�ll be dog meat t� every borough.�

�I wanted to join Angus. I really did. But what would that�ve gotten me? Nothing still. If the bracelet�s not in the box, then it won�t be anywhere else.�

�Maybe it jus� wasn�t meant t� be.�

�Sure looks like that.� She heaved a heavy sigh. �Come on. We�ve got two days to get to the port. Then we can both go home.�

Spot followed Bambi, not saying a word in knowing that anything said could only hurt her further. It was a long, silent trip back to the port.

* * *

After staying overnight at a motel, Bambi managed to book a cabin on a ship heading back to Brooklyn. As she and Spot boarded, they agreed that although they would share a room, they would both respect each other�s privacy and set up a sheet over twine to cut the room in half.

While Bambi spent most of her time in the cabin, Spot found solace in more poker games. After another hot streak, he began to think of his quest with Bambi and other little things as well. When he folded out of a losing game, a thought suddenly occurred to him. He left the game and went to the boat deck.

A salty breeze was blowing softly. The sky was dark and stars were scattered all about with a brightly glowing crescent moon. This was the perfect place for Spot to gather his thoughts. He formed conclusions, memories and his own assumptions to determine that what he had thought of was most likely true.

He was ready to seek out Bambi when she suddenly appeared. Smiling softly, she stood beside him and stared into the water.

�I�m so sorry for dragging you into this, Spot.�

�That�s okay.�

�No, it isn�t. I should�ve told you in the first place that there was a risk involved that the bracelet wasn�t even there. But I was sure it was. Almost one hundred percent sure.�

�Don�t worry �bout it.�

�Well, is there anything I can do for you to make it up to you?�

He grinned. �Most definitely.�

She scowled slightly, not liking his grin. �As long as it�s appropriate.�

�It�s appropriate enough.� He responded. �I�d jus� like t� ask ya one thing.�

�Ask away.�

�Where is th� bracelet?�

Her eyes clouded over in disappointment and anger. �That�s not funny.�

�It ain�t meant t� be. Ya know what I�m talkin� about.�

�No, I don�t.�

�Yeah ya do. You got th� bracelet.�

�Spot, you saw for yourself. The bracelet wasn�t in the box. Someone got to it before we did.�

�An� that someone was you, wasn�t it?�

�It-�

�Lemme put it t�gether for ya. Ya told me a bunch �f things on th� first day �bout the days involved. Then ya correct yerself when we get in th� cave. Angus finds yer notes. Ya ain�t th� type of girl t� be that careless.�

�How-�

�An� then when Angus comes, ya don�t take �im out like ya did th� guy ya gave th� counterfeit money to. Ya coulda taken Angus out if ya took that uther guy out.�

�Angus-�

�An� then there�s th� notes. Ya told me that on one plate �f th� bracelet, it says �to Helen� in Greek. That wasn�t on th� notes. Th� only way ya�d know is if you�d have th� bracelet. An� I think ya dragged me along on this expedition cuz you already found th� bracelet �n� wanted Angus t� follow us so �e�d think that it wadn�t there when we found it. So tell me, Bambi, where�s th� bracelet?�

Part Nine

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