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He hesitated a moment then looked at her intently, "The one Archer left for you."
She came alone. The others offered to join her, but she needed to do this alone. When she reached Morgan's grave, Quinn was resigned to do what she needed to. She knelt down in front of Morgan but her eyes were on Archer's grave.
"I really miss you but you did find me and we love each other just as we had. I won't lose you again." She kissed her fingers and ran it over his name then took the small shovel and started digging. She thought it was going to take longer than it did but she almost had the sense that she was being guided to dig in the right place and when her shovel hit metal, she whispered, "Thank you."
When she revealed the box, it showed its age but her fingers traced the letters she had scratched into it all those years ago and the memory made her smile.
"It really does mean love," she said to the still air.
She returned to the great hall to find that Constance was talking a mile a minute. An old parchment, folded, with markings on it sat on the table before her. Quinn couldn't help taking a step closer to it.
"Is that it? The Codex."
"Yes. Amazing, isn't it?" Tessa was completely in awe.
Quinn turned to Constance. "How was it?"
Her smile was answer enough. Derek was sitting near the fire and Quinn decided now was as good a time as any to ask him.
"Derek, what did Gabriel ask you when he spoke to you the other day?"
"He wanted me to tell him how I learned about the Scarcliff treasure."
"How did you?"
Derek hesitated a moment before he answered, "There was a party at Whispering Winds and it was announced at the party that they would be unveiling the treasure soon."
"What party?" Quinn pressed.
He looked down for a moment before he replied, "It was a party for Gabriel and you."
Quinn felt her legs go weak and it took a few minutes for her nerves to calm enough so she could ask, "Our anniversary party?"
"Yes."
"Was Katherine there?"
"Yes."
Nick spoke from across the room. "You found the box?"
Quinn started to answer when a moment of clarity made her laugh in disbelief. What she held really was the Scarcliff treasure. The ring that had sent her back to Archer, her betrothal ring, had been Morgan's once upon a time. It explained how she saw the ring in the future. Time travel altered when the ring was made but the ring itself was a constant. She held up the box to Derek.
"This is the Scarcliff treasure. This is what you've been searching for, but the jokes on you, Derek because its value is not monetary but sentimental. And only to me."
For a minute, Derek said nothing and his disappointment was almost palpable since the man had been searching for the Scarcliff treasure for a long time. Admitting defeat, he pulled a hand through his hair and chuckled, "Why am I not surprised?"
Quinn turned her attention to Nick, "I don't have the key." Quinn placed the box on the table. Nick walked over to look at it, a strange expression crossing over his features.
"What's wrong, Nick?"
"I think I have the key for that."
"Really?"
Nick didn't hide his excitement as he continued, "I always wondered what it was for. Tried every lock in the castle but never found what it opened."
Quinn stood and reached for the box. "Let's see if it fits this."
