The B Girls - By Cari Cole Page 0,33

tailgate looking at something.

He looked up at the sound of their feet crunching on the gravel and walked over to greet them. "Hello ladies." He let out a low whistle. "You look like you've had a tough time of it."

"You have no idea," Jane said looking him over.

Lucy rolled her eyes. Leave it to Jane to try and flirt when she was dirty, scratched, and bug bit.

The ranger smiled and shook his head. "Oh I think I have a pretty good idea. I thought you ladies were going to check in with me before you went into the back country."

"We didn't think about it this morning. Too worried about my aunt," Lucy said.

He got the point. "She didn't come home last night?"

"No. We decided to see if we could figure out what she was working on. I admit we weren't expecting it to be as rugged as it is here. But we made out okay." Even though they hadn't found any sign of Belle, they'd made it out in one piece--with the map.

He nodded. "Well, I really hope you'll check in with me if you come back. I like to know who's in the back country and when they're expected back."

"So you can locate our bodies more easily?" Jane asked with a wry smile.

He laughed showing a beautiful set of teeth. "Something like that."

"So, did you find what you were looking for?" he asked.

"As a matter of fact. We found the homestead Belle was researching."

"We dug up a cookie tin hidden by one of Lucy's ancestors," Mae blurted out before Lucy could poke her.

Leonard frowned. "You ladies were digging for artifacts on federal property?"

"No! I know better than to mess up an archaeological site." Lucy held up the tin. "This was hidden under the hearthstone of the cabin by one of my--I'm not sure how many greats--grandparents. He fought for the Union in the Civil War. Didn't make him too popular in these parts I imagine."

"That's interesting." He held out his hand. "Mind if I take a look?"

Actually Lucy did mind but she didn't really have a choice. "Sure." She bared her teeth in a pretend smile as she handed him the tin.

He pried the lid off and reached inside, pulled out the map and unfolded it.

"Civil War era, you say?"

Lucy wasn't sure whether admitting that would be good or bad but lying to a federal agent didn't seem like a good idea. "We think so."

He looked it over. "A treasure map? Who'd you say buried this tin?"

"A man named Paul Morris. He and his wife homesteaded here before the war."

He looked pained. "I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask you ladies to come back to the office with me."

Mae looked like a deer caught in the headlights. "You're arresting us?"

There There Little Lady

Jane muttered, "Well hell." Mr. Ruggedly Handsome was morphing into Officious Prick.

Flop sweat greased Lucy's palms but she stood her ground. "You're making a mistake."

"Now, I didn't say anything about arresting anyone. But I can't just let you walk away with what might be a valuable artifact." He studied the map.

"I think it's a clue," Mae said.

Lucy wished she could cast a spell to make Mae lose her voice. "I think it's just something my ancestor created for his own amusement. I doubt the map means anything."

"Whatever it is, we need to determine if it belongs to you or the US Forest Service." He put the map back in the tin and put the lid on. "Now, you ladies don't look like the criminal type. And since I have this tin and the license number of that van, I figure I can count on you to follow me back to the office so we can discuss this."

Jane gave him the "eat shit" look.

"Of course we'll go to your office," Lucy said.

He nodded. "I'll drive slow so I don't lose you."

He watched them get in the van before taking the tin and getting in his truck.

"He's got the map," Mae said. "I can't believe it."

"I can," Jane said. "He's an officious prick. I thought he had romantic potential but I was wrong."

"He's just doing his job. I should have checked the rules for Cohutta before we came." Lucy blamed herself. She knew the rules about digging. Artifact hunters and amateur archaeologists frequently caused irreparable damage to archaeological sites. Damage that made it difficult or impossible for the pros to obtain meaningful data on the site. She should have warned Mae and Jane to keep their mouths shut.

"But