“Check for text messages once in a while,” I said to Clara. “I’ll keep you in the loop.”
Diesel and I exited through the root cellar in the Wessels’ backyard. It was locked from the outside, but that wasn’t a problem for Diesel. No one was out and about when we emerged. We walked toward the bank building and watched it from half a block away. It looked abandoned. Windows and doors were boarded over. No one stood guard at the door. We continued on to the warehouse on First. It had no doubt been impressive when it was built. Today it looked quaintly historic. A single loading dock in the back. Two stories. Lettering on the door said AMMON ENTERPRISES. No guys standing guard. No tingles. No glow from the rock.
“I don’t think he’s here,” I said. “I don’t think anyone is here.”
“Ammon has a house in southern New Hampshire that’s a fortress. It’s a huge stone monstrosity set in the middle of a hundred acres. I have someone checking it out. In the meantime, I think we should negotiate for Gramps.”
“Are you willing to give them the coin for Gramps?”
“Yeah. They have the stone. I don’t see where the coin is going to make a difference. The stone, the coin, and all the tea in China isn’t going to awaken Mammon. Rutherford, Ammon, and their followers are already delusional and greedy. A couple more degrees of greed won’t make a big difference. Ultimately I need to get the stone and the coin back anyway.”
“I have Rutherford’s number programmed into my phone.”
“Make a deal.”
I called Rutherford and told him I had the coin.
“I want to swap the coin for Gramps,” I said.
“I knew we could count on you. Mr. Ammon will be pleased. He’ll insist that we prove the authenticity of the coin, of course.”
“The coin is divided into eight pieces, and it has the chop marks needed to read the map. Beyond that, I don’t know how to prove its authenticity to you, since I’m the only one able to sense the power of the stone.”
“As luck would have it we picked up a gentleman named Hatchet. He’s a little odd, but we’ve been assured he?
??s your equal. We found him wandering around naked on Brimstone Island, and he’s now in service to Mammon.”
“I think he’s already in service to someone else.”
“Finders keepers,” Rutherford said. Very jovial.
Good luck with that one, I thought. I wouldn’t want to tangle with Wulf.
“Where do you want to make the swap?” I asked Rutherford.
“We would like the transaction to take place at Mr. Ammon’s country residence in southern New Hampshire. You can come at your convenience. And you must come alone.”
“Okeydokey,” I said. “See you soon.”
I disconnected and looked over at Diesel. “He’s in the New Hampshire house. They want me to come alone. And they have Hatchet.”
Diesel’s face creased into a wide grin. “They have Hatchet?”
“Rutherford said they picked him up naked on Brimstone and you know…‘finders keepers.’?”
“It’ll be more like ‘finders weepers’ when Wulf shows up. He’s not good at sharing.”
I texted Clara that we had a lead on Gramps, but that they should still stay underground until we returned.
“We need to use your car,” Diesel said to me. “We can’t fit Gramps in the Porsche.”
“I’m supposed to go alone.”
“I’ll wait by the car. I’m not sending you off completely alone.”
That sounded like an okay plan. I didn’t want to go alone. And I wasn’t sure my junker car could make it to New Hampshire and back. At least I’d have Diesel to push me to a service station or zap up a new car.
It wasn’t a far walk to the bakery. Diesel let us in, and we packed a lunch for us and a bag of food for Clara, Glo, Josh, and Carl. I texted Clara that food was waiting for her in the tunnel. We locked up behind ourselves and chugged off in my car. We made a fast stop at my house, so I could take a shower and change my clothes. Men can be heroic when they’re wrinkled and smell bad. Women work better with a little lip gloss and clean hair. I gave Cat fresh water and a new bowl of food. I grabbed my tote bag, and Diesel and I took off for New Hampshire.