Smiling at his jest, she watched out the window as he tore across the property in the little truck. She wasn’t sure, but she didn’t think the manufacturer meant for the vehicle to go that fast. When he was out of sight, she went to the refrigerator and began pulling out glass containers filled with the delicious-looking food Rachel had prepared. Gemma hurriedly put dishes in the microwave and emptied bowls onto plates. By the time Colin returned, everything was ready.
He looked at the many dishes spread on the counter and grinned. “I guess Rachel knew a Frazier would be staying to eat.”
As he picked up a plate, he handed her an old spiral notebook. On the battered cover was written in big block letters PRIVATE PROPERTY OF COLIN FRAZIER. SNEAKS WILL BE PUNISHED. THIS MEANS YOU LANNY. “I’m about to see all your secrets?”
Colin had his mouth full of deviled eggs and olives. “All of them in the year I was thirteen.” He wiped his hands on a napkin and took the notebook from her. “My grandfather—Dad’s father—used to tell us kids stories about our ancestors. I think half of them were a pack of lies, but I still wrote them down.”
“What kind of lies?” Gemma was filling her own plate.
“According to my grandfather,” Colin said, “it was our family, the Fraziers, who started this town, not the McTerns or the Harcourts. But only my sister, Ariel, believed him. We used to tease her that she wanted to be a princess so much that she’d believe anything.”
“Sounds like she had a real fun childhood.”
“Don’t worry about Ariel. She can hold her own. Anyway, I used to write down some of the stories Gramps told us. Unfortunately, I decided that Mr. Wilson’s geometry class was the best time for me to write. I still don’t know how to use a protractor. Here it is. The Heartwishes Stone.”
“Heartwishes?”
Colin handed the notebook to her, filled his plate, then sat down at the table.
Gemma sat across from him and read aloud.
Grandpa Frazier’s story number 7
The Heartwishes Stone was given to a Frazier man who saved his clan. He was a big, strong man who moved a rock that had sealed them in a cave. A witch gave him the Stone to say thanks. She said that any Frazier who made a wish from his heart would get the wish if the Stone was nearby. It works for lady Fraziers too.
“Think I’ll win a Pulitzer?” Colin asked.
“Half of my football players can’t write this well.” She was rereading the little story and wondering if this was a subject for her dissertation. Family myth. It was a possibility.
“You look like a calculator started clicking in your mind.”
She looked across the table at him. “I have an ulterior motive for wanting this job.”
“Oh?” he asked as he buttered a slice of homemade bread.
She told him about her need of an original subject to write about for her dissertation.
“Finding something around here that’s old but has never been written about shouldn’t be too hard,” he said. “Jean says Edi-lean is as weird as if a bunch of Martians had set up a town in the U.S.”
“From what I’ve seen, I agree with her. Is there any crime here?” Gemma cut into a slice of cold roast beef.
“We had more than our share last fall, what with all those agent
s from the FBI and the Secret Service, plus several detectives from the Fort Lauderdale Police Department.”
“Oh right,” Gemma said, still looking at the notebook. “I’m looking forward to meeting this detective. Mike Shaw, is it?”
“Newland. I tend to forget Sara’s new name,” he said. “You want some more tea?”
“Sure,” she said. “So tell me what happened.”
“Nope. That’s Mike and Sara’s story. They can tell you when you go to the cookout.” He stood up. “I’ve got to go to the office for a while. You want to go with—?” He broke off. “I guess I’m getting too used to you being with me.” He picked up his plate and took it to the sink.
“I’ll take care of this,” she said. “You go on and see about saving people. Oh! I forgot to ask if there’s Internet service in here.”
“We had a router put in, so you have wireless. You look like you’re dying to get rid of me.”
“That’s not true . . .” she began, but stopped. She didn’t want him to leave but she couldn’t say that. “Yes, you’re right. I can’t wait to dive into the books in the library. Tomorrow morning I’ll tackle the storage room. The garage is last. What?”