She makes a face. “What’s Oak Island?”
“I’m telling you, this one sticks with me. Several people have died trying to dig up whatever’s buried two hundred feetdown on this Canadian island—Oak Island. Every time someone gets close, the pit floods like it’s protecting something. Whole families have gone bankrupt chasing it. The worst part about it? Some people think it’s cursed bones down there, not gold.”
There’s something triggering about the story for me. Still is.
“That sounds… unpleasant. But honestly it just sounds like an old tale.” She leans back against the counter next to me, making it easy to rest my hands on her shoulders.
“Promise you, this bloke isn’t half as nuts as he pretends to be,” Deo tells her, squeezing some barbecue sauce into his mouth.
She presses back into my hands and sighs as I knead her shoulders. “The only conspiracy I’ve ever heard is that nothing in history is what we’ve been told. That humans were a lot more advanced and something wiped out all the technology, and now only the top elite of the world have it and they hide it from us.”
Rett turns slowly to stare at me, a distressed look on his face.
Partially true… the elite holding the power and most of the wealth do keep secrets. Dangerous secrets.
But he doesn’t say anything as Deo digs around in the fridge, pulling out a Chinese takeout container. He sniffs in derision. “Mmm. Only Americans go on about conspiracy theories. Rest of the world knows it’s bullocks.”
I jump down from the counter, taking the leftovers from Deo to toss them out. “Are you fixin’ to get food poisoning? I’ll throw something together.” Turning to Biz, I ask, “Hungry? I can whip up the hash you liked last week.”
Anything to distract from where the conversation was heading.
Rett snaps out of his mood, grabbing her hand and pulling her into the living room, with Deo right behind them.
She calls over her shoulder, “Sounds incredible.”
We’ve been on the road to the West Point vs. Duke basketball game for less than an hour, and I already regret not insisting that Biz and I travel alone. I want to meet her friend, and I need to dig into the Abbott family, but this isn’t going to be an easy trip.
First, Mya recruited her boyfriend, Deo, to drive. Fine. Makes sense. Then she extended an invite to her friend Jen, who asked Liz to come. Okay, but Deo told Rett he could come. Jen and Rett dated off and on in the past, ending in a dramatic blowout at the start of the school year.
It’s a packed vehicle, tensions high.
“On a dark desert highway, Cool Whip in my hair. Warm smell of Doritos rising up in the air.” I sing along toHotel Californiaby the Eagles.
Bizzy, sitting between Rett and me, chuckles to herself.
Rett mumbles, “I think I’m getting an ear infection.” He took cold medication at the gas station we stopped at on the way out of town, not that it’s stopped his apparent misery.
“Did anyone else’s foul-mouthed, bingo-playing grandma blow cigarette smoke in their ear when they complained of an earache? No?” The only person even humoring me with a smile is Bizzy. She’s been fidgety, quieter than normal.
“My nanny would give me saltines and ginger ale,” Jen responds, shooting a glare at Rett before focusing on me. “Are the two of you dating?”
Bizzy looks at me with wide eyes.
I debate my wording. “I was pretty sure if I was going to start dating again, I was going to make them read out loud and tell me what continent the United States is on.” It’s a cop-out, making ajoke of the question because I don’t know what we are. We kiss, we talk for hours, but then she pulls away.
Liz turns to look between us. “You’d make a cute couple.”
Rett sighs, his head dropping onto Bizzy’s shoulder, his eyelids growing heavy. We’re interrupted as Deo is too busy bickering with Mya to pay attention.
“Okay, one more curb and I’m driving.” I tell them.
“I think we are… dating, that is. Right?” Bizzy asks, laying her hand on my leg.
Thank you, God. I’ve been seeking a response for days.
“Yes. We are.” The kiss I press to the side of her head makes Liz and Jen say “Aww.”.
My happiness over her admission is short-lived. When Liz reaches over to Jen to jostle her arm, a bracelet she’s wearing catches my attention. Gold with a figure eight and green stone.
