Well, here we are back in the attic looking for a clue. I have no idea what kind of clue really, but something that will help us find this treasure, or something else. This is a nice hotel, not overly large though, so where are John and Kathy staying? They are not in any of the rooms and obviously not in the attic, so where else? The basement? There is no basement however. And how is he doing these projections without electricity? I have already checked and there is no generator around. So where is he getting his electricity? Of course! Why didn’t I think of that before? He has a boat somewhere close by. That’s the only thing that makes sense. Hmm, I have an idea, actually 2 of them, but first things first. John, can you hear me? His image comes up against the wall. Yes, I can hear you, what do you want now? I want Kathy back, I know you have her, and I mean the original Kathy, not your friend.

Why?, he asks. Because she can help me find that treasure a lot faster, we work well together. And what’s the harm, we can’t get away from you. Okay, he said, she will be there shortly. He actually kept his word and Karin showed up, and it really was Karin this time. We looked around the attic some more. Meow, meow!=Me find clue! We all go running to where she is sitting. She had a book with an old piece of paper in it. Doesn’t make much sense, said Karin. No, but it must be a clue since it mentions wealth in it. We’ll go back to the castle in the morning and look around there, maybe then it will make more sense. We were all tired so off to bed we went. We moved our stuff to Karin’s room as she didn’t want to be alone, and I carried another mattress in for me.

The night passed all too quickly and I woke up to Muffin slapping my face with her tail. Meow, meow!=Time to wake up, it daylight now, can’t waste all day in bed. Hmm, it’s 6 am. Meow.=Yep, getting late in day already, need to eat breakfast. Now that I can agree with. Go wake up Karin, I said, and they were off and jumping on her right away. What a way to wake up, she said. Yep, I know it. Meow, meow!=Tickle fight! Meow!=Nooooo! Then Muffin jumped on Mr. Cat and they rolled all over the bed and onto the floor laughing and having a great time. Finally Mr. Cat gave in and they stopped. Meow!=Look at me! Look what Muffin do to me, how I get back to normal now? Waffles and bacon for breakfast everyone, said Karin. Meow!=That good way to do it! Mr. Cat certainly straightened out fast at that news. After breakfast we went up to the castle and looked around for about an hour. We’re not getting anywhere, said Karin. I agree, but there is something here, unless it’s under the rubble of that part of the castle.

I started looking at the stonework of that old castle. Then it hit me. “Look through the hole then dig like a mole for wealth that he stole”. There is only one tower still standing so we walk up to the top. Nothing unusual up there. We start down again…hey, wait, what’s this? Every so often there was a small hole in the walls of that tower, in different shapes. Then came one that was cross shaped, or perhaps X shaped. I looked through it and sure enough, there it was. Then I remembered seeing an odd colored stone on the floor there, just a little different than the rest. It’s that little shed that is made from stones, I said. Karin said she was told that little shed was probably hundreds of years old. Likely built at the same time as this castle, though kind of odd placed, certainly not hidden, but sometimes that can be the best place to hide something. Back down we went to the hotel and out to the shed. There was that stone, just a little different than the others alright. I scraped around the edges and discovered 2 spots where I could get in with my fingers, kind of like handles on that stone. I got a good hold of it and pulled, it came out quite easily. And in a hole under that stone…a small treasure chest!

To Be Continued.

©2020 Steve McLeod.