Treasure in Paradise Read online

  “Sounds suspicious.”

  “There’s more. I found an instance where Destination Properties had arranged to buy a piece of oceanfront property in the Bahamas, but before the deal was finalized it was discovered there had been a chemical spill on the grounds. The owner couldn’t afford to have the spill cleaned up, and there are very few buyers who are willing to take on such a liability, so the property ended up selling to Destination Properties for a fraction of their original offer. Of course,” Kyle qualified, “there’s no way to prove these things weren’t simply coincidences, though I’d be surprised if they were.”

  I sat back and looked out the window. I couldn’t help but remember my theory that perhaps Buck had been out at Garrett’s house looking for the map when he saw something he shouldn’t have. Was it possible Buck had run into Norton while he was tampering with the property in some way so as to assure that he’d end up winning the bid to buy the land? I hadn’t noticed anything odd from a cursory look, but it seemed prudent that we took a closer look around.

  “I’m beginning to think that Buck’s death and Norton’s bid to buy Garrett’s land are linked in some way, but I really have no way to prove it.”

  “I’ll keep looking,” Kyle offered. “If we can find enough instances where Destination Properties just happened to buy a valuable piece of land for pennies on the dollar due to some sort of an unfortunate incident, maybe we can make a strong enough case for people to stop and take notice.”

  Kyle went back to his search for additional case studies to use against Destination Properties while I went into the kitchen for some coffee. I had several goals for the day. The first was what Kyle was working on, finding out what he could about Destination Properties in the hope of coming up with ammunition I could use against Greg Norton and his campaign to take Garrett’s land; the other was to refine my suspect list by speaking to anyone I could, and hopefully narrowing the pool. There was no way I was prepared to believe the deputy’s assertion that Buck had died of natural causes in spite of how much everyone we talked to seemed to love the guy.

  I took out my notebook and considered the entries. I currently had Toby Upton in the yellow zone. I hadn’t had a chance to speak to either Adam or Beth Joyner, so I’d yet to add a color to their names. Greg Norton was firmly in the red zone until I could prove otherwise. I hated to do it, but ever since Deputy Savage had announced that Buck’s case was closed I had to consider him a suspect, so I added Savage to the yellow zone as well. If he’d been the one to kill Buck himself, he would most likely have had the presence of mind to move the body long before we arrived on the island, but I couldn’t help but feel he was covering for whoever had, which made him a suspect of sorts.

  I’d also added a column for people I wanted to interview. Meg had originally been on the list, but now that I’d spoken to her I crossed her off and added Mamie Sue and Digger. Meg mentioned that Digger was off work on Mondays and Tuesdays, so unless I happened to run into him on the beach my talk with him would need to wait. I remembered that Mamie Sue owned a shop that rented bikes, so I called Gertie and asked for directions and then headed into town to see what, if anything, I could find out about Norton’s presence on Garrett’s property.

  Once I arrived at my destination I let myself into the colorfully decorated shop and walked up to the rental counter.

  “Mamie Sue, my name is…”

  “Tj,” the buxom blond with big hair finished. “Gertie told me you were coming by. Aren’t you just the cutest little thing this side of the Mississippi?”

  I wasn’t sure how to respond to that, so I just got right to my question. “I met with Meg from the museum yesterday and she told me that you had seen Greg Norton snooping around on Garrett’s property.”

  “I surely did. Talk about a rooster in the hen house. The man is going around telling everyone about all the good his company is going to bring to the island in spite of the significant damage his resort will do to the native turtle population. Those of us who belong to the Turtle League have tried to convey to the area’s population just how catastrophic to the environment a resort such as the one Destination Properties plans to build will be. Norton has done a passable job countering our argument with rhetoric while secretly working to sabotage this year’s eggs.”

  “He’s been damaging the eggs?”

  “Moving them. His claim is that the turtles have found other nesting grounds and will eventually stop laying eggs on the beach at Turtle Cove all together as evidenced by the sharp decrease in numbers being reported by volunteers this year. I had a feeling that man was up to no good, but Norton did seem to have the math to back up his claims. There have been less eggs. I thought we might be in trouble until I caught the man in the act of bagging up the eggs. I swear the man backpedaled all the way to the Mason Dixon line when I threatened to call the sheriff.”

  “Did you?”

  “I did, but Mr. Norton’s fancy attorney managed to convince the man that I was mistaken in what I’d seen. Unfortunately, I didn’t have any evidence to support my claim. I told Digger what I’d seen and he promised to take care of the man once and for all.”

  If Norton had been my victim, I would assume that taking care of things was exactly what Digger had done, but I still didn’t see why Digger would kill Buck. I asked Mamie Sue if she knew where I could find Digger, but she reported that he was out on his boat and wouldn’t be back until the following day. I decided to track down the next name on my list, Adam Joyner. Chances were if he was working with Buck prior to his death he could provide me with something useful about his activities during that time period. I called Kyle and let him know what I was doing. Hopefully he and I would both have come up with useful information by the time we met for lunch in a couple of hours.

  The post office was in the center of the downtown district, which was really just a few square blocks where all the shops and businesses were located. I walked in to find a man behind the counter looking into a box in front of him, along with Deputy Savage, who was standing on the customer side. I walked up beside Deputy Savage and looked into the box as well.

  “Kittens,” I said with a smile. I looked at the deputy. “Are they yours?”

  “No. I’m more of a dog person myself.”

  “I found the box with the kittens at the back door near the loading dock,” the man behind the counter explained. “The post office doesn’t deal with the delivery of livestock, so I called Deputy Savage.”

  I frowned. “Who would mail kittens?”

  Savage turned the box so I could see the address. “Santa Claus, North Pole” had been written in crayon, and the only return address was a hand-drawn picture of a house with a tree beside it. “I don’t suppose you’re in the market for a kitten?” Savage asked me.

  I looked at the four little furballs. “They’re adorable, but I’m afraid our household already consists of four cats, three dogs, and a parrot. What will happen to them?”

  “I’ll make sure they’re either returned to their adult owner, if one can be found, or adopted into good homes,” Savage promised. The deputy looked at the man behind the counter. “I should be going. Call me if anyone comes around looking for the little darlings.”

  I watched as the tall deputy picked up the box and headed out the front door.

  “You don’t have an animal shelter on the island?” I wondered.

  “’Fraid not. Don’t worry though; Rick will make sure the kittens are well taken care of.”

  “Has he done this kind of thing before?” I turned and stared at the door Deputy Savage had just gone through. “Taken responsibility for stray and abandoned animals?”

  “Many times. Now, how can I help you?”

  I looked at the man, who had the name “Adam Joyner” embroidered on his shirt. “I’m staying out at Garrett Hanford’s place for the summer and I wanted to be sure you
had my name, as well as the names of the others who will be with me, should we receive mail sent in care of the resort.”

  Adam handed me a form. “Fill this out.”

  “I’m really enjoying my stay in your town,” I said to him as I began to fill out the form. “The locals are all so nice. I feel right at home.”

  “Gull Island is the home of a lot of nice folks.”

  “I’ve really found that to be true. I guess you heard about Buck Barnes. Pretty much everyone I’ve met has been so helpful in trying to help me understand what happened to that poor man.”

  Joyner gave me an odd look.

  “Doesn’t seem like it would really be your problem to understand a matter like that.”

  I paused in my writing and looked up at him. “I suppose that’s true, but considering I’m the one who found the body, I guess I’m just curious. Seems that most people in town were really fond of Buck, although I’ve found a few exceptions.”

  “Buck was a good guy,” Adam assured me. “A bit of a dreamer, but a good guy.”

  I slid the completed form across the counter. “I heard he was onto a treasure before he passed. I find the whole thing very interesting.”

  “You into treasure hunting?” he asked as he entered the information I’d given him into the computer.

  “No, I can’t say I’ve ever been involved in a treasure hunt, but I imagine it would be a fascinating thing to do.”

  “Fascinating, maybe, but the end of the rainbow can be as much of a disappointment as the map that leads you there. I think I have everything I need to ensure that you get your mail while you’re on the island.”

  “Thank you. I appreciate that.” I turned and then moved back to the counter. “You must know everyone in town, given the job you do. I don’t suppose you know might know the identity of two men that had been seen with Buck prior to his disappearance?”

  Adam frowned. “Why are you looking for them?”

  “I’m just curious. Besides I heard that there are some people who think your wife could be a suspect, but my money is on the two strangers.”

  I watched a myriad of emotions cross Adam’s face. “What do you mean my wife is a suspect? Beth wouldn’t hurt a fly.”

  “That’s not what I heard. I’ve been told that when she found out you’d joined Buck in his treasure hunt she threatened to hit him upside the head.”

  “Sure, she was mad. She had every right to be. But Beth didn’t kill anyone. She had no reason to.”

  “Unless I’ve been given false information and you’re actually the one who funded the project. Spouses have been known to become quite violent when money is involved.”

  Adam shook his head. “Buck was looking for a backer for his treasure hunt, but it wasn’t me who gave Buck the money he needed, although he could be a convincing salesman. He told me he got the money he needed form another source, but still needed help with the actual dig. Somehow he talked me into taking a leave of absence from the post office. Buck assured me he had a way to get the map and knew where to find the treasure. He seemed to know stuff only someone who had actually seen the map would know, and I got caught up in the moment. But I didn’t kill him or harm him in any way, and neither did Beth. I really liked the guy. He used to sweep up here two days a week and we’d chat.”

  “Do you think he tried to con you?”

  “Buck? No. He really believed he had a way to get the map. I’d stake what’s left of my reputation on it.”

  “So if you didn’t fund the project, who did?”

  “The two men you asked about. Buck referred to them as Dilly and Lambert. Those are the only names I know.”

  “Do you know where I can find them?”

  Adam wrote down an address in Charleston. “I’d be careful if I were you. Those men didn’t seem to me to be the type who would welcome an interrogation.”

  “Thanks.” I took the piece of paper and put it in my pocket. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

  As I left the post office I took out my notebook and changed Deputy Savage’s name on my suspect list to green, my code for likely innocence. I didn’t know why he was trying to cover up the murder, or even if that was what he was really trying to do, but anyone who would take a box of abandoned kittens home didn’t strike me as a cold-blooded killer. Besides, Doc had a good point that if Savage was the killer he would have removed Buck’s body from the attic long before we arrived.

  Adam seemed innocent as well, and I was willing to bet his wife was too, which left me with Dilly and Lambert and Greg Norton.

  I still thought that Norton was my best suspect, but I figured it wouldn’t hurt to have a conversation with Dilly and Lambert. We did still need to return the rental van, so I called Kyle and suggested that the two of us take a trip to Charleston. It was only an hour’s drive, so we’d have plenty of time to return the van and look up Dilly and Lambert before it was time to pick up the girls from kids’ camp. Just to be on the safe side. However, I arranged for Doc to fetch them if Kyle and I were held up for some reason.

  Charleston was a charming city filled with romance and history. The horse-drawn carriages and brick buildings that had stood the test of time grabbed me from the very first moment I saw them. This summer’s trip was my first to this part of the country, and if I’d known what I’d been missing, I would have come east much sooner. As we drove through the busy streets I couldn’t help but let my imagination wander to a simpler time when the city had first been built.

  “I know we’re in a hurry today, but we have to come back and do the tourist things here,” I said to Kyle after he dropped off the van and joined me in my car to look for the address Adam Joyner had given me.

  “It really is charming. We should bring the girls to the aquarium. I hear they have a turtle hospital you can visit.”

  “Sounds like fun. I’d love to spend a day walking around the old town. It looks as if there’s a lot of history just waiting to be soaked up.”

  “There’re a lot of historical sites to see up and down the coast. Maybe we can take a road trip at some point this summer.”

  “Sounds great,” I said, looking out the window. “I think we need to take a left at the next stoplight.” Thank goodness for cell phones with map apps. I couldn’t imagine trying to navigate my way around such a large city without one. Back home at Paradise Lake things were pretty easy to find because there was only one main road that encircled the lake.

  “Do we know what this address is to?” Kyle asked. “Dilly’s home? Lambert’s? A place of business?”

  “I’m not sure,” I admitted. “I guess I should have gotten more information. I’ve really been off my game lately, forgetting to ask all the questions I should during this investigation. I suppose I could call Adam Joyner. The number for the post office on Gull Island should be listed.”

  “Let’s see what we find when we reach the destination and then we can decide,” Kyle suggested. “Do we know anything at all about these men other than that they seemed to have been working with Buck?”

  I glanced at Kyle. “No.”

  “We had to come to Charleston to return the van anyway, and I don’t suppose there’s any harm in driving past the address, but if things look hinky at all we’re going to head straight back to Gull Island and do some more research before we start knocking on doors in a strange city.”

  “Agreed.”

  The address Adam had given me was to a townhouse in a decent, if not upscale, neighborhood. I wasn’t sure who lived there, but Kyle and I decided it looked innocent enough for us to knock on the door and see what happened. Kyle parked the car along the curb and we both walked up the paved walkway to the ground-floor unit. We knocked once and a teenage girl answered the door.

  “Can I help you?”

  “Hi. My name is Tj Jensen, and this is Kyle
Donovan. This is going to sound a little odd, but we’re are looking for two men named Dilly and Lambert. We understand one of them lives here.”

  The girl looked at us suspiciously. “Who are you exactly?”

  “Friends of someone the men used to know,” I said, stretching the truth somewhat.

  Kyle smiled at the girl. “I’m sure this sounds strange, but we just want to speak to them.”

  The girl shrugged. “My uncle’s last name is Lambert. He owns this townhouse. He’s out of the country, so my mom and I are staying here. He’ll be back on Friday. I can leave a message if you’d like.”

  “I would. Thank you.” I took out my notebook and turned to a clean page. I wrote down my name and cell number and handed it to the girl. “And the other man, Dilly? Do you know where we can find him?”

  “Dilly lives on Folly Island. I’m not sure of his address, but everyone there knows him. If you want to find him just ask around.”

  We thanked her and returned to the car. “What do you think?” I asked. “Folly Island isn’t that far out of our way.”

  Kyle shrugged. “I don’t see why not. We should call Doc though and let him know he should plan to pick the girls up from camp.”

  The drive from Charleston to Folly Island took less than an hour even with traffic. When we arrived we decided to grab a bite to eat while we fished around for information about Dilly. I had assumed Dilly and Lambert were friends who lived in close proximity to each other, but it appeared they lived a good thirty miles apart.

  We ordered roast beef sandwiches at a small café and asked the waitress if she knew where we could find Dilly, and she gave us the address of a local bar where he liked to hang out.