Whisper In The Dark (The McKinnon Legends-- The American Men Book One) (14 page)

“Miranda told me the men were spies for the Confederate Army, but the book was kept for personal reasons. I have to say it was surreal, but beside the point. She also knew Kyle died for this information, Robert.” She handed him the index from an old set of encyclopedias.

“Why would anyone kill over an encyclopedia?” Robert furrowed his eyebrows.

She rolled her eyes. “Don’t be dense, cowboy. Open it.”

He looked at the cream colored book with the dark green binding dating from the seventies. He had a set just like it at his house which his mother had bought them as kids to help with schoolwork.

She had found a new use for an old standby. He opened the cover and flipped back the first fifty pages revealing the well-worn book tucked neatly inside the cut out. This book cost Kyle his life. It looked innocent enough yet anything that was a secret usually was far from innocent.

“Mr. Lyles was right in that whoever killed Kyle was looking for this. And I figured out why.”

Robert pulled the book out of its hiding place.

“This is a code book, Robert, used by a radical group of men who believed their cause was righteous and honorable.”

The Knights of the Golden Circle was a secret order of Southern sympathizers who usually resided in the North before the Civil War erupted. The order was enthusiastically received in the South as an idea began to form of a new widespread annexation of territory.

“So why did they call themselves Knights of the Golden Circle? What exactly was this Golden Circle they were sworn to protect?” Robert asked now seeing the path down which all her research had taken her.

“The ‘Golden Circle’ was going to be territories in Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean forming a circle.” She smoothed out the old map tracing the outline with her fingernail.

She went on to explain their prime objective was to provide a force large enough to colonize the northern territories of Mexico and the West Indies so slavery interest could be extended. Texas became a hotbed of activity. At one point there were thirty-two chapters within the Lone Star State.

“Were you able to find any evidence of them still being around?” he asked knowing secret societies were always still around in one form or another.

Kate shook her head. “Probably not in their original form, no. However, who can actually say? They were secret then and could well still be around as a secret sect,” she said shrugging.

The Knights focus shifted after the outbreak of the Civil War, and much of the energy and resources were pulled to work on bolstering support for the new Southern government. The Knights of the Golden Circle reorganized and regrouped calling themselves the American Knights and then again as the Sons of Liberty.

“What I do know is there was also a large presence in Missouri.” She let the inference hang.

Robert was smart picking up on the connection. “Jesse, Frank, and your great-great-grandfather?”

“My guess is yes.”

She had been doing some digging and there was no real hard evidence the Knights were run by Jesse James as some would suggest. However, it would not have surprised her one bit if he and his boys were not a solid part of the society. The time frame was right and the ideology was tailor-made given the deep hatred so many had for the Northern soldiers.

“And Nathaniel? I thought he was more moderate in his philosophies,” Robert asked turning the small book over again looking at the embossed cover, puzzling over the insignia. He had seen this design before. Where he had seen it hung just outside his recollection.

Katherine agreed. “He was, just as so many were when the war began. However, the hypocrisy of the military leadership and brutality the Northern soldiers inflicted on so many families who were just trying to survive could drive even a mild man to action.”

It was not enough the South surrendered. The occupying troops continued to burn, rape, and kill long after Grant’s army walked away from the treaty table at Appomattox.

“Yeah, an ugly part of our history to say the least. Many a moderate was driven to take sides from that aspect alone,” he agreed totally.

“I got as much from several letters I found addressed to Nathaniel from Major William Morris, head of the Confederate Signal Bureau. Apparently, they were close friends.”

“Nathaniel was a Confederate spy?”

“A hanging offense, but yes. I guess he thought
in for a penny why not in for a pound
.”

"Definitely it stands to reason that he was involved with the Knights."

Kate did not see him involved at first. He did not own slaves, so the draw of expanding slave territory was probably not on his agenda, but soon after the war broke out, he then was involved and deeply.

"There was too much tying him to the faction. The name of the ranch, Thaddeus’s handwriting in the code book, and vastly increased wealth through unexplained means are just a few of the clues," she said.

“Why the increased wealth? Where does that fit in?”

“The American Knights were given the task of securing the gold and currency smuggled out of Southern cities just before Northern troops would occupy them.”

“Ah, that’s right.” Robert nodded his head slowly as he cleaned his glasses. “I think I remember Kyle saying something to the effect that they hid the gold and whatever else of value they could for the rebuilding of the South once they ran the Yankee devils back home.”

“Still waiting on that one?” she teased.

“You are welcome to stay, Kate. You were born in Texas, so having a New York address all these years does not count against you,” he teased.

She laughed softly. “How magnanimous of you, kind sir,” she said with a thickened Southern drawl batting long lashes dramatically.

Robert rolled his eyes gently shaking his head. She had been a smart-ass as a kid and some things never changed. What was changing was how he was feeling, and he could no longer deny it. He was falling in love with her.

“So, you think Thaddeus decoded part of the book and found some of this buried gold?” He felt the quickening in his blood. There just might be something to this legend after all. That made Kate an even bigger target.

“Yep. I was looking back over some old records. He made four trips to Arkansas and a long expedition to Apalachicola, Florida.”

“So?” Robert shrugged, playing the devil’s advocate. “He liked to gamble in Hot Springs and was fond of the coast. That proves nothing, Kate.”

She acknowledged he was correct on that point.

That in and of itself proved nothing, Robert was right on that count. However, there also was reported to be a million in gold bars buried near Wickes in Polk County, Arkansas.

“Look at this photo I found.” She handed him the photo.

Robert took the magnifying glass she handed to him and studied the photo. “Thaddeus, I presume?” he asked looking back at her.

She nodded in agreement.

“And what do we have here?” Scrutinizing the dim photo further, he saw instantly to what she was alluding. It was just barely visible from under the tarp, in the bed of the wagon, very plain if you knew what you were looking for.

There in that bed was a neatly stacked row of bars lying on the bed. If the size of the tarp covering the bed and the number of armed riders was any indication of the amount he had discovered, then that would explain the wealth he displayed during his lifetime.

“Gold?” he asked thinking it sounded lame even to his ears.

“Well, it is definitely not bags of flour.”

“Is there any way to identify where this photo was taken?” he asked turning the photo over and looking on the back.

“Unfortunately, no. There are no identifying markers,” she said taking the photo back from his outstretched hand.

“You said a million? In today’s market?”

“No, a million in 1864 money. Closer to 16.5 today.”

Robert whistled through his teeth. No wonder the legend refused to die.

“You think he really found that stash, don’t you?”

“I know it is speculation even with the photo, but yes, I do. Look here.”

She pulled out a faded receipt showing where he had converted two gold bars into usable coin from a bank in Little Rock just four days before he was found dead in Hot Springs.

“All right, I’m listening,” Robert said after reading over the documentation.

She pointed out there was no way he could convert that kind of gold around here and not raise suspicion. Her hypothesis was he made his trips to New York, St. Louis, and Kansas City to cash in a gold bar or two. He would gamble some and then come home.

Robert thought the theory was possible. “And then after the money ran out he would make another run.”

She nodded in agreement. “Precisely. But there is more.”

She discovered Kyle was mapping the interior of the property lines. “This is why he was way out there where the authorities found his body, Robert.” She pointed to the map.

Some of his notes were in shorthand, but she had managed to narrow the search grid. She pointed to a small spot on the survey of the eight thousand acre ranch.

“Turtle Creek,” she said pointing to a dry creek bed which once flowed with spring water as cool and clear as a winter night. She hoped the gold had not disappeared along with the natural spring waters.

“You think he buried his gold there?”

Kate shrugged, “Possibly. However, this entry is in Nathaniel’s handwriting.”

“We must assume Thaddeus had to have found the Arkansas stash after this entry was written because Thaddeus is too old in the photo for the timeline to gel.” Robert was getting excited. There might actually be something to this hunt after all.

“There is something buried there, Robert, I’m just not sure what. However, Thaddeus could easily have hidden this gold along with what was already there.”

“Or not." Robert corrected her. "The only way we will find both together is if he knew where to find his father’s stash.”

“Correct,” Kate offered.

Robert pursed his lips. “So, in theory we could be looking at more than one treasure trove if they are not buried together.”

Nodding her head she sighed, “As if one were not enough to cause murder and mayhem.”

“Very well done, Kate. Excellent work. Shall we go get George and then pack a picnic lunch? I’ll get the four-wheelers ready.”

“Is that a date?” Kate asked teasingly, high from the prospect of the hunt.

“Could be,” he said, encircling her waist and pulling her down into his lap in the desk chair.

“I’ll be interested to see if all the hype surrounding you McKinnon men is true,” she commented thinking how kissable he looked. “It is a heck of a reputation.”

“And what hype is that, exactly?” he teased, running his palm up the inside of her thigh and pulling her in closer for a kiss. She hovered inches from his mouth.

“I hear you McKinnons really know how to show a girl a good time,” she said and then wiggled out of his reach. He let her escape. Every cat enjoys playing with his mouse a little.

“And your definition of a good time would be exactly what?” he asked raising a questioning brow.

The sexual tension was escalating between them getting higher and more intense each time they were together. He knew it would not be long at the rate the flirting was intensifying and the physical contact heating up before one or both stepped over that invisible line of no return.

He cursed the phone ringing on his belt knowing it broke the spell beginning to fill the air.

"Excuse me. I need to take this," he said to Kate and then stood up quickly taking the call after seeing the caller ID. “This is Robert,” he answered.

Kate could hear the frantic female voice coming through the earpiece.

“Candi, calm down. I’ll be there as soon as I can. I’m at my ranch, so it will be at least an hour before I can file the flight plan," he said then glanced at his watch. "I can be there before mid morning with the time difference.”

He ended the call with a promise to hurry.

“Duty calls?” Kate already knew the answer as she straightened the notes on the desk, tapping folders neatly into line and placing them back in the file drawer before locking the cabinet.

The fact Robert turned his back to her while talking was answer enough. It was not business. It was a personal matter, and it involved a young woman. It had to be a young woman. She was not sure how she felt about the fact Robert was dropping everything, including her and their quest for treasure, at the demand of this other woman. She was not sure how she felt about it, but knew she needed to get past it. He was not hers. They were just business partners.

“Yes, duty calls. This is a client who has McKinnon-Bride Security on retainer. I have to go.”

At least he was upfront with her, but not totally forthright, she felt sure. His body language gave him away.

“None of my affair,” she shrugged.

“I’ll get Chase to help you get George back to the ranch. Is that satisfactory?”

“And if it weren’t satisfactory, Robert, would it make a difference?” She was a picture of cool and collected. Looks  can be deceiving, she thought as she fought her initial reaction. Calm was not it.

“Not in this particular instance, no.” His face was a mask of stone, completely unreadable.

Kate did not like the change in Robert’s demeanor. Gone was the playful hint of intimacy, and in its place was a cool veneer covering him in a shroud of deception. She wasn’t born yesterday, and she had lived with a man who was an accomplished liar. You don’t come away from a relationship such as her marriage to Daniel Masterson and not learn a thing or two. There were so many warning flags flying and horns blaring one might mistake the scene for a Saturday afternoon parade.

“Kate, I have to go,” he said flatly.

“Apparently so.” She was not going to be the first to blink.

“I’m honor bound.” It sounded like a frail excuse even to his ears.

He was not sure how much, if anything, to tell her about Candice. Omission could be as much a sin if handled improperly, but he was not sure telling her was such a smart move either. Candi had been his girlfriend, and it had been a hot, flaming affair.