The Cove Conundrum Read online

  But suddenly, I heard a mass of voices.

  I glanced out toward the front and realized there was a teeming throng of people filling the main street. The door to the shop opened and they began pouring in.

  "Do you serve coffee here?" asked an older man with leathery skin and a permanent sunburn.

  "We do!" I said, my brain clicking into high gear. "What can I get for you?"

  "A coffee," he repeated like I was an idiot.

  "One coffee, coming right up," I replied, going over to fill up his cup.

  "And leave enough room for like, two inches of cream. And could you steam it?"

  "So... a latte...?"

  "No. A coffee," he replied. "Charge me for a coffee, but put two inches of steamed milk on top. And stick some sugar in there also."

  The line was forming behind him and now it went clear out the door and onto the sidewalk.

  I wasn't going to argue the point. "Um... so, what brings you to this island?" I asked as I pumped the pot and put the milk under the frother.

  "We heard on the news a map was stolen and there is hidden treasure here."

  I just about dropped the cup. I looked down the line and realized many of them were carrying metal detectors.

  "We're going to sweep your beach and see if we can find anything."

  A woman with a raspy smoker’s voice picked up The History of Seaside book and shouted across the room. "Does this book have that map in it?"

  I handed the coffee to the man and started up the order for the person behind him as I answered. "Nope. This is the first I've heard about any treasure."

  "It was on the news," she growled at me, throwing the book on the counter. "Are you all trying to hide it from the public?"

  I held up my hands in apology. "I'm afraid you have the inside scoop."

  Granny suddenly pushed her way through, her bright tracksuit standing out sharply against the plaid flannel and Polartec. "My goodness! Welcome all you lovely people! A pleasure having you visiting us. I'm just going to get behind the counter and give my granddaughter a hand. Get you all exactly what you need, lickety-split."

  She walked behind the counter, washed up, and muttered to me, "Where did all these people come from? They look like the sort that wrestles alligators on a Saturday for entertainment."

  "Treasure hunters," I replied. "They heard Lottie's story that the map was a treasure map."

  Granny paused for a moment in shock, and blinked at me. "You're kidding. I mean... I thought it might stir up a few people but..."

  "Have you seen the map?" shouted the lady. "Or is this all some sort of internet hoax?"

  "Quite real," said Granny, flashing her a wicked smile. "I have seen it with my own two eyes and between you and me, I think someone buried something near the old cannery."

  I couldn't believe what Granny was doing.

  "The old cannery? Is that on a map in this book?" the lady asked, holding up The History of Seaside again.

  "It most certainly is," replied Granny.

  The lady pushed her way to the front. "Well, skip the coffee and just sell me this book."

  "Sure!" said Granny. She called out to the line. "I can take anyone with retail-only sales over here! Coffee and pastry orders go to my granddaughter."

  Half the crew left the coffee line and pushed their way over to the bookshelf to grab up the last remaining copies.

  Finally, we reached the end of people and the store was quiet for a few seconds. I turned to Granny. "There was nothing in that book that looked even remotely like a treasure map."

  "Well, I know that and you know that, but I am most definitely not telling those people who came here to steal Seaside's precious treasures the correct directions. They can all head out to the cannery and go waving around those metal detectors like a bunch of fools. If they find something out there, well, good for them. But the absolute nerve," she huffed.

  The bell over the door rang and Madison came sauntering in, typing on her phone. She narrowly missed running into a chair, and I gotta admit, I was a little sad.

  "OMG! Did you see all those people who came over from the ferry? Trevor's Saloon is STILL hopping." She cast a judgemental gaze around Bitter Beans. "Too bad things already died down here."

  "What do you want, Madison?" Granny asked, folding her arms. "Because whatever harebrained scheme you're cooking up, I want none of it!"

  "It's not for me," she replied, shutting her phone off. "It's for Hal and the documentary crew. We were going to tape some interviews in Trevor's Saloon because it is so cute now, but there are so many people in it. And you don't have that problem—"

  "Get to the point, Madison."

  "—I very generously wanted to see if you could use some free publicity. I'll send over Hal and his crew to film the interviews."

  "As a favor to me?" Granny reiterated, making it very clear she understood exactly who this arrangement was benefitting.

  "For the good of the community," said Madison with a pout. "I don't know why you all are so against me. I mean. Really."

  I raised my eyebrow. "You mean other than you trying to sabotage me at the bakeoff and your friends inspiring murderous rage and you getting Hal to hire people Nate had rejected and you swearing at me that your biggest goal was to ruin Nate's life?" I turned to Granny. "Maybe we are being a little unfair."

  "No," Granny replied.

  Madison rolled her eyes. "Whatever you think about me, don't cut off your nose to spite your face. This is a really good opportunity for you to get some great publicity and free coverage of your store. I have an interview with Lottie and don't make me say what a horrible coffee shop you run."

  "You wouldn't dare," said Granny.

  Madison walked toward the door and held up her phone. "Call me!"

  "I burned your number!" I shouted.

  "I'm like a bad penny, Paige. You can't get rid of me! If you don't have my number, call your old boyfriend, because I'll be with him. Anytime. Day or night." She walked slowly out of the door like she had just delivered the fiercest burn.

  "She's probably going to replay that sentence in her head, convinced she was so brilliant."

  Granny rubbed my shoulder bracingly. "Idiots attract idiots."

  Speaking of which, the door opened and Lottie came walking in.

  "Hey!" I said. "Don't you have a ferry to catch?"

  She looked a little sheepish as she tried to pretend like she had a reason to be in the store. "This place is so cute! It's like an old general store!"

  "You can just use the bathroom," I let her know, hoping to cut to the chase and chase her out.

  "Oh!" she said, surprised. "No. That's not why I'm here. But thank you. Um... I was just wondering... Have you seen Nate?"

  I shook my head. "Not this morning. We have been slammed. Something about a news report about a treasure map—"

  The way her face went white as a sheet told me the whole story.

  "You planted a story that there was a treasure map inside of the time capsule and it was stolen, didn't you?" I asked, folding my arms.

  Lottie held up her hands in apology. "I swear, I was just telling the news."

  "With some embellishment," Granny pointed out.

  "I am only reporting what my sources told me," Lottie insisted.

  "So... someone told you there was treasure on that map...?" Granny pressed.

  Lottie shrugged. "That's what multiple sources told me."

  Granny looked at me, surprised at Lottie's answer. "Well, I'll be..."

  "But wouldn't someone here on the island have mentioned it after all these years, Granny? I mean, you've lived here your whole life. Surely someone would have heard this rumor." I turned to Lottie and pressed. "Who told you this?"

  "I protect my sources," Lottie replied.

  "Well, maybe I'll go out and get myself one of those metal detectors myself," said Granny.

  But before we could say another word, Madison walked in with Hal.

  "Oh. You're here,"
said Madison, spotting Lottie. She folded her arms like the reporter had really messed something up. "I thought you were going to be interviewing me in my boyfriend's saloon."

  "I just came in for a cup of coffee," Lottie insisted.

  "There's plenty of coffee at Trevor's bar," Madison shot back.

  "Yeah..." Lottie replied, motioning to the espresso machine. "But this is more of a 'coffee' shop."

  "You mean, Trevor's place doesn't feature coffee being brewed by your ex-boyfriend's new girlfriend?" Madison challenged.

  Lottie's cheeks flushed. "Excuse me?"

  Madison gave her a little Cheshire cat smile. "You're not the only one capable of doing a little investigative investigation."

  "That's not why I came in..." Lottie said, turning to me in protest.

  But there was something about the way she said it that caused me to wonder.

  "Didn't we already get rid of you, Madison?" I asked.

  She puffed up and flicked back her ponytail. "I was just bringing over Hal—"

  "Who I didn't say could take over my shop!" Granny pointed out.

  "I can find another spot!" he apologized.

  But Madison continued talking. "And, two birds with one stone, was coming to find my reporter."

  "I'm not 'your' reporter," Lottie pointed out.

  Madison gave her a simpering smile. "You're late and everything is behind schedule."

  "Listen," Lottie threw back. "I am singlehandedly responsible for all the crowds on this island today, I haven't had my cup of coffee yet, and I think the words you are looking for are not 'you're late'. I think they are 'thank you'."

  "You did what?" Madison scoffed. "You think you're responsible for all of this."

  "My little story has brought all of these treasure seekers to the island."

  "Treasure seekers..." repeated Madison with disbelief.

  "The map went missing." Lottie turned to Hal. "And then you said—"

  "Don't you go dragging me into this!" he said holding up his hands to stop her. "I was just repeating a rumor and you're the one who went and had to spread it out into the world like it was a fact."

  Lottie turned to us. "Hal heard a rumor that during the war, a bunch of valuables were hidden somewhere on the island."

  I scrutinized him for some sort of tell. "You knew there was a map in there... didn't you?"

  "I had no idea whatsoever!" he insisted. "I'm just a documentarian. I did some research before I showed up and happened to mention to Lottie a rumor I found."

  Madison however, could have cared less about the discussions about the missing map. She leaned forward at Lottie. "I can't believe you're claiming that you're the reason why everyone is on the island. I was the one who hired everyone and suggested we make it a big event."

  "I'm here because Richard asked my boss to send me," Lottie informed her.

  "Because I created an event worthy of coverage."

  "That event was a train crash."

  "This whole island is a train crash," growled Madison. She turned on her heel and glared at Lottie. "I'll be over in my boyfriend's bar if you want to continue this conversation." And then she stalked out.

  Lottie rolled her eyes and groaned. "Sorry about that. I guess I should go over to Trevor's bar and buy a cup of coffee to placate the locals."

  I walked behind the counter and brewed Lottie an Americano on the fly. "Don't worry. Madison isn't local."

  Lottie took the cup from me and gave me a smile. "How much do I owe you?"

  "On the house," I said.

  "You're going to send me into the poorhouse, Paige!" Granny joked.

  "Just this once..." I promised.

  "No, really," said Lottie, taking a few dollar bills out of her pocket. "I insist."

  "Don't worry about it!"

  "I don't like debts." She shoved them into the tip jar. "Consider it a tip." And then she smiled and walked out, too.

  I turned to Granny. "She seems... nice."

  "Don't let her fool you, Paige," warned Hal with a twinkle in his eye. "She's just making sure that she won't feel bad if she ever has to write a smear piece about you."

  "Well, we have so much drama here," I replied.

  Hal hooked his thumb toward the door. "With all the drama I'm seeing, I'm thinking you all might want to reconsider that reality show angle."

  I laughed as I brewed up his regular order and he was already pulling out exact change.

  "Well, if you two will excuse me," said Granny. "Time for me to go on my forced march around the island. Gotta keep fit and trim for my next hot date."

  "Oooo! Richard headed back soon?" I teased.

  Granny snapped me with a towel and then headed toward the door. "You better believe it, kid."

  Hal smiled as he watched her go. "I could do a whole television series just on that woman."

  "Speaking of which, how goes the interviews?" I asked.

  "Well..." he said, thoughtfully. "We have some good information, but there's no real... ending." He shook his head. "I could have sold this project if something had been in that capsule. Done a feel-good story about all the objects and what Seaside decided to put back in there. But now? There's no real... conclusion. Just a lot of questions with no answer." He seemed defeated. "These projects cost money and the big hope is to have some sort of a finished product afterward to help you recoup your costs."

  "Oh..." I said, putting his cup on the counter as I rang him up. I hadn't really thought about the money that had been sunk into this project. "What are you going to do about it?" I asked.

  He leaned against the counter and mulled it over. "Well... I have this thought..."

  "Yeah?"

  "But I might need some help with it."

  I folded my arms and braced myself. "Am I thinking that this help might involve me?"

  He gave a little half-laugh. "You're a wise woman, Paige. Madison is about to drive me over the edge and I gather she's not exactly a power player when it comes to the decisions of this town."

  "Oh, she usually forces her way through. And then it implodes disastrously."

  "I'm hoping to avoid disastrous implosions."

  "Which is why you're mentioning it to me?"

  "You're the one who asked..."

  "You're the one who came into my shop looking all hangdog," I laughed.

  He held up his hands in defeat. "Okay. So, here's my idea. We have all these people here on this treasure hunt. I stopped a couple and they're digging through the cannery and going through the coves. I'm thinking that we make this a show about the hunt. Just funding for a couple days to follow people around, find myself some heroes and villains, and maybe if they find something, we might just have a story."

  "I'm not sure how Nate is going to feel about turning this into an 'event.'"

  "Well, I know that these sorts of documentaries can sell for big bucks. It might even be worth more than whatever treasure anyone ends up finding."

  I regarded Hal for a moment. I liked him. Sure, he had a swagger to him and I was getting the sense he could sell ice cubes to Eskimos, but I felt like he actually was trying to help the island.

  "Sure," I said. "I'll talk to Nate."

  Chapter Fifteen

  Nate and I walked hand in hand down Main Street.

  "So," I said, after I finished passing along Hal's proposition. "It might be a good way to drum up some business for Seaside."

  We dodged a pedestrian who decided walking down the middle of the boardwalk was the best place to be.

  Nate threw his head back and groaned. "I should have sold Seaside to that cruise ship company."

  "It's not so bad," I laughed.

  "Here I try to make this a historic site and it is turning into the Disneyland of treasure hunting."

  He cringed as we passed by Wanda's storefront. She had pushed all the mermaids to the back of her shop and redecorated with a treasure-hunting theme. Her pithy shirts with sayings like, "It Is Wine o'Clock" were folded up and put away. Inste
ad, two sleep shirts hung in the window. One had a tired pirate who was saying, "Grog-gy" and the other had a saucy pirate saying, "Look at me Booty."

  "Hal said he heard a rumor there might actually be a hidden treasure on this island," I informed Nate.

  He shook his head. "I just am a little suspicious."

  "Maybe we can ask Holly or Richard if they've come across anything," I said. "They're really good with local history. I mean, if anyone had heard this rumor, they probably would have."

  "Maybe I should... I just can't believe that someone would steal everything out of the time capsule. That seems like a much bigger mystery to me."

  "Well, obviously anyone who stole it did it because it was valuable. It is just up to us to figure out what the real treasure is about."

  Suddenly, Johnny walked out of his dive shop and started locking up. He was dressed in a blue and white striped shirt and a terrible pirate costume, like something you'd pick up in the clearance section of a Halloween outlet.

  "What are you doing?" I asked.

  "Oh, hey Paige! Ahoy! Hey, coz!" he said, flipping up his plastic eye patch and waving his hook.

  "Why so fancy, Johnny?" Nate asked.

  He let out an overwhelmed huff. "People just wouldn't leave me alone," he said. "They just kept coming and renting tanks. Getting into the water with no idea what they were doing and wrecking the seabed. All the sea cucumbers need a nap. If people have no idea where this treasure is, they can just as easily go looking for it in a place that won't hurt the sea cucumbers."

  He had a point.

  "But that still doesn't explain why you're channeling your inner Long John Silver," Nate pressed.

  "So, I started up a tour company to help them dig for buried treasure." He leaned forward. "I'm not charging anyone or anything. That would be wrong."

  "But you know there's no treasure here, Johnny," Nate continued.

  "Part of growing up is accepting that the older you get, the less you know." He shrugged. "Plus, there's a field that needs to be plowed at some point. Figure, we'll let them dig around there and maybe they'll find something. Like, maybe a potato. And even if they don't, hey! We got the soil turned!" He then pulled something out of his pocket and leaned forward to show us. "Plus, I took some of the change from my tip jar and am just going to throw it on the ground so they all feel like winners."