Joy to the Wolves (Red Wolf #1) - Terry Spear Page 0,81
had that cabinet since Brooke was a child. A vague memory of finding a secret hiding place when she was about ten suddenly came to her.
Brooke set the sleigh bells and postcard down on the desk and ran her hands over the cabinet, trying to recall where the hidden compartment was. She opened a drawer, nothing. She pulled out the drawer, and up above it was a narrow shelf full of papers. They had to be something important, or her great-aunt wouldn’t have hidden them there.
Josh joined her in the office. “I worried about you. Is everything okay?”
She spread the papers out on the desk and smiled. “Yes! Here are the authentication papers on the Chinese vases, paintings, and other valuable items in the shop. They’re all for real! And”—she read over a handwritten sheaf of papers—“a list of where my great-aunt had ‘hidden’ her treasures.” Excited about the prospect of finding the other items, Brooke couldn’t wait to get started. “A note from her also to me.” That saddened her, making her wish she could have spent more time with her great-aunt before she died.
Brooke read the note out loud. “‘You were the daughter I always wished I’d had. The months you spent here with me in the shop during the summers were some of my fondest memories. You were always helping me with the shop, always so good with the customers, and well read on antiques.’” Brooke’s eyes filled with tears. They’d butted heads so much on how to set up shop in a better way that she hadn’t thought her great-aunt had appreciated all Brooke’s hard work.
“‘Your father and I didn’t always see eye to eye, which is why we didn’t live in the same place. But you were always my bright spot. Knowing how much you loved treasure hunts, I have left a list of treasures for you to find. It’s cryptic, should the list and this note find their way into the wrong hands. Many of the items are now truly valuable. I had no need to find buyers for them as I lived comfortably with what I made on the usual sales in the shop. Nor did I want to deal with selling them through auctions that would have cut into the profits too much. I know with your computer genius, you will find buyers through your own resources. Your dad said you were the one who always found the collectors who would pay top dollar. And I wanted this to be your legacy. I have every faith you will find the treasures and dispose of them and the proceeds in a way that will make you happy. Love you with all my heart, my little wolf. Love, Your Great-Aunt Ivy.’”
Brooke wiped away tears and hastily pulled a tissue from the box of tissues on her desk. She sighed heavily. “She always set up a treasure hunt for me in the shop. Part of it was finding stuff she’d lost track off, which I loved doing for her too.”
Josh took Brooke into his arms and gave her a big hug.
“She and I butted heads. But I always loved the time I spent with her. Sometimes, she’d give me clues to find something I collected myself. Sometimes, it was to locate something valuable out of a box of items, just to see if I could. She always made it fun for me. At night after the store closed, we’d straighten up, put more merchandise out, and then head to the house for a meal we both planned.”
“So what did you collect?”
“Marbles, at the time. I had some vintage ones worth a lot of money. One opaque Lutz marble that had a lot of pink in it sold at auction for $25,000. I have one similar. I have some onionskin marbles, galaxy pattern marbles, painted sulfide marbles, pontil birdcage marbles, just a whole lot of different ones my great-aunt picked up eons ago and gave to me on my treasure hunts.” She couldn’t believe her great-aunt had left her a treasure list. “We should go to the house, have dinner, and talk to Lucas.”
Josh released her and looked over the list, smiling. “Man, as long as this list is, you may have hit pay dirt.”
“If we can find all this stuff, it’s in good condition, and I can sell it.”
“True. I suspect you can, and she knew you could.”
“But the real fun is in finding it.”
With the rest of the papers in hand, Brooke walked out