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Fred Ross was in his wheelchair at the edge of the water.
“Mr. Ross?” said Decker. “Going somewhere?”
Ross swiveled around in his chair and saw them. His mouth freed from the duct tape, he hurled one curse after another at them.
Baron started marching downtoward the old man and Decker followed.
Before they reached him, Ross lurched sideways and turned over his wheelchair. He started clawing his way to the water, his useless legs dragging in the mud.
Baron stepped in front of him and looked down.
Ross looked up at him. “If I had my damn shotgun,” he snarled.
“Only you don’t,” said Decker. “How’d you manageto get loose?”
“You didn’t tape my arms that tight. Had some wiggle room. All I needed. Probably thought because I’m old I’m weak. Well, I’m stronger than I look, fat boy, from working hard all my life and pushing myself around in that metal cage all this time.”
Baron said, “How did you know this pond was even here?”
Ross laughed. “How do you think I know?”
Decker knelt down next to Ross. “Why did you kill his parents?”
Baron shot Decker a stunned look and then stared back at Ross.
“They were Barons. Ain’t that reason enough?”
“Why in the pond?”
“Because I didn’t want to get caught, that’s why, you dumb son of a bitch.”
“Why were you up here in the first place?” asked Decker.
“Lookingfor it, wasn’t I?”
“The treasure?”
Ross eyed him shrewdly and nodded.
“How’d you even hear about it?” asked Baron.
“When she was younger, my grandmother worked up at your damnmansionas a maid. That fancy-ass butler was an old man then, and he would get drunk and run his mouth in the kitchen. Right before he died, he bragged to my grandmother that he wasgoing to be buried with Baron. He was so giddy about it. Like that made him somebody. And he said that Baron wasn’t going to leave much of anything to his kids. He was just going to hide his money from those spoiled brats because they were nothing to him. Somewhere up on the estate, he said. Well, she told my mom and my mom told me. One night years later, I went up there to look for it, but couldn’tfind it. Figured I’d get the damn Barons to tell me.”
“They didn’t know either, you idiot!” roared Baron. “Do you think if they did they wouldn’t have already gotten it?”
Ross ignored him and kept his gaze on Decker. “Only they wouldn’t tell me. I got even more pissed and knocked ’em in the head, put ’em in their fancy car, and drove it over here and rolled it right into thewater.”
“But how did you know about the path or the pond?” asked Decker.
“My grandma told my mom.” He looked at Baron. “She said the high-and-mighty Barons used to come here for picnics and shit. I figured I’d give ’em apicnic, all right. Twenty feet under.” Ross eyed the water. “And then I went back to work at the damn textile mill and got paralyzed.” He glared at the wheelchair.“Been trapped in that piece of shit ever since.”
“Well, they say God works in mysterious ways,” said Decker disdainfully. “But what are you doing here now?”
“Hell, I ain’t going to prison. Rather drown my ass.”
Baron pulled his gun and pointed it at Ross. “How about I do the honors?”
The old man grinned maliciously up at him. “Yeah, you go ahead, prick.Pull that trigger.”
