Page 2 of Hiding out with a Royal Billionaire

When they got to the top of the stairs, they broke out into a full run for the door at the end of the narrow hallway. Brooks reached it first, but he held it open and let Skye go in first.

“Ugh. I can’t even enjoy it.” But secretly she was grateful for Brooks’ chivalry. It was almost as if he were born with it. She’d always felt important and special to him even when they were scrappy kids, and she knew he’d just as soon have her eat mud as get the first cookie, he still offered it and still let her go first.

His actions made her more courteous as well, and they both approached the trunk together. They knelt in front of it, the lock hanging, dangling in a tantalizing temptation. Brooks pulled out the lock cutters, a huge metal tool which he clamped onto the lock ring and squeezed. Too easily, the lock fell to the ground.

Skye held her breath, and they both leaned in closer while Brooks reached forward and lifted the lid.

At first she thought it was all corroded and gross because all she saw was green but then Brooks put on a pair of gloves and gently moved some of the green mossy substance aside to reveal the warm yellow tones they’d been waiting for.

“No way! We did it!! There’s actually treasure in the Voyager Conquistador.”

“Did you ever doubt?

Skye reached forward and picked up a gold and remarkably shiny coin. “How does it still look so good?”

“I don’t know. The sediment must have protected it from the acidic wood deteriorating all around it. And the water was cool. It must be more pure too because other metals wouldn’t have lasted.”

“This is so cool. So what does this mean?”

“It means. That the Voyager was right where we thought she would be. That she was obviously carrying wealth, and that…”

They both fell backward and the trunk slid towards them a few inches. The boat burst ahead with a ton of speed.

Brooks closed the lid and pushed the trunk forward to a closed cabinet. “Help me open the door.”

Skye rushed forward and lifted the latch to open the cabinet door. Inside was a safe. “Wow, this is really lucky you have this.”

Brooks didn’t say anything. But he slid the box forward and into the cabinet. Then he closed the safe, typed in a code, and closed the cabinet door after. He picked up his radio. “What is it?”

“We’re being chased.”

“The Green dragon?”

“No, these look like local pirates. We might know the guy in the lead.”

“Do we stop and talk reason?”

“I don’t think they’re about reason today.”

Skye felt like she was seeing a whole different side of Brooks. “Are they after the gold? And what was that spear all about? Who are the green dragons?”

“So many questions. Which I will answer. But first, let’s just get out of this mess, okay, preferably without losing the treasure we only got to look at for five seconds?”

“I’m so with you there. What do we do?”

“Well, I’m pretty sure we can out race them, but if I know these guys, they will have people at all the normal ports, searching for us, and the boat and the gold.”

“So we go somewhere not typical?”

He tapped her nose which at the moment she found more annoying than endearing. “Precisely.”

2

Brooks tried to be reassuring, but the pirates behind them were closing in. If he couldn’t get enough distance between them, he’d never be able to go to port at all, a typical or typical. And he wasn’t sure what to do about it.

They raced across the open waters which were thankfully clear except for a yacht or two with their sails up. Today would be a perfect day to put up their own sales, sit back on deck and relax into the swell of waves.

The spear had been shocking enough. For the Green Dragons to even know where he was, know where the boat was…or perhaps he’d led them to it. At least he’d led them away now, hopefully convincing everyone involved that the ship had given up the last of its treasure.

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