Page 58 of Pepper, the Biker & the Vanishing Body

“Get moving,” Josh ordered, giving Stone another nudge.

Ian gave me a gentle kiss and moved me and the chair comfortably close to the table before taking the seat next to me. “Please tell me you saw a doctor, Pep.”

“I did. Dr. Wagner at urgent care gave me a thorough once over and took X-rays. No serious damage done except to my pride.”

Beau smiled, though I heard the chuckle beneath it. “Wow, Pepper. Ian is right when he says life is never dull with you around.”

This time I laughed. “And that’s with no effort.”

We all laughed and plunged into the appetizers on the table, all of us hungry, as we considered supper choices.

Beau moved his chair closer to Amy, slipping his arm around her. “So, from what I could gather from the rapid-fire conversation, this biker dude wants you to help him find this so-called treasure, that he’s not entitled to, if it even exists.”

“Some believe that Verbena Willow was buried with a necklace her father had crafted for her and in today’s market it could be easily worth half a mill,” Amy said.

Ian reached out to take my hand. “Are you really all right? I saw your head hit the floor hard.”

“He’s right,” Amy said. “You did go down pretty hard.”

Ian’s hand left mine to feel the back of my head and I winced when he touched a spot.

“A small bump,” Ian said and signaled the server. “A bag of ice for the bump she got on her head, please.”

“Right away,” the young woman said and hurried off.

“If Ignatius kept such detailed records and receipts wouldn’t there be something on the purchase of such an expensive necklace?” Beau asked.

“You would think,” Amy said, “but so far, we haven’t found anything in the Willow documents to confirm a treasure even exists.”

“Maybe he hid the information so no one would know about the necklace and disturb his daughter’s tomb,” Beau suggested.

“Or the necklace and more are hidden somewhere in the Willow Mansion,” Amy said.

“Not there. Wasn’t that the words scrolled across the page of the picture of Verbena’s tomb that was torn out of that book you got at Kate’s, Pep?” Ian asked.

“And the reason my mom may have been hit on the head and her pockets turned inside out,” I said. “Someone was looking for her keys to the Willow Mansion thinking the necklace might be there.”

“But in Ignatius’s grief over losing his daughter, the necklace became worthless to him, and he had it buried with her, never wanting to look upon it again?” Amy said as if reading the words from a novel.

“It would explain why someone wanted access to the tomb,” Beau said. “They believed the necklace rests with Verbena.”

“But what proof could they have gotten that it wasn’t there and turned their search to the Willow Mansion?” Amy asked, but no one had an answer.

“What about the fellow that caused your mishap with the rake? Were you able to see who it was?” Ian asked.

“Unfortunately, no, but my first thought was the vanishing guy though that could be because he wore jeans and a hoodie. Strange, though, that the guy chose to squat on Willow land.”

The manager of the restaurant brought a bag of ice. Ian took turns with me holding it to the back of my head, until supper was brought to the table. We ate and talked about more than the Willow mystery and I had a better time than I expected since I thought I’d be quizzed endlessly about the rake incident, but thankfully my friends spared me.

We stepped out of the restaurant to see two police cars parked near the back of the parking lot, their lights flashing.

“They found a body. Haven’t heard if he’s dead or unconscious,” a man said as we stopped beside him and the woman with him.

I looked at Ian and I could tell by his expression that his thought was the same as mine. Could it be the guy who kept vanishing? We ran toward the police cars.

“Is there any time Pepper is not involved when a body is found?” I heard Beau say and Amy laughed as they followed us.

“I was just coming to get you two,” Josh said. “I think he’s a match to your guy.”

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