Chapter 13

CHAPTER 13

Saturday afternoon arrived with a crisp chill in the air, the kind that hinted at the approaching winter. Chloe wrapped a scarf around Oscar’s neck after he’d climbed out of their truck.

“Are we going to find treasure today?” Oscar asked, his eyes wide with excitement.

“Maybe not treasure, but hopefully we’ll see something interesting,” Chloe replied with a smile. She took his hand and they walked toward the entrance of the old steamboat museum. Liam was waiting for them.

“Hey there,” Liam said with a smile. “Are you ready to do some exploring?”

“We’ve been looking forward to it,” Chloe said. “I’m sorry we had to change the time to the afternoon.”

“It doesn’t matter. The construction crews were working this morning, so it’s just as well we weren’t here,” Liam explained. “They’re trying to get as many tiny homes built as possible before Christmas.”

Oscar tugged at Liam’s sleeve. “Where’s Trixie?”

“She’s on a play date with Rex, my friend Steve’s dog.”

Oscar’s smile faded. “Was she sad she couldn’t come with you?”

“She was sad she wasn’t able to see you, but she loves playing with Rex. They get up to all kinds of mischief.”

Oscar leaned close to Liam and held his hand. “I like mischief, too,” he whispered.

Liam smiled. “Well, maybe you and I can find some mischief of our own later,” he whispered back.

Oscar grinned, his eyes sparkling with excitement. “Promise?”

“Promise,” Liam replied, giving Oscar’s hand a gentle squeeze.

Chloe’s heart squeezed tight when she saw the complete trust on Oscar’s face. “You two are up to something, aren’t you?”

“Who, us?” Liam feigned innocence, and Oscar giggled.

Chloe opened one of the heavy wooden doors. “Well, before you do anything, come inside. It’s cold out here.” The familiar scent of old wood and history enveloped Chloe as she walked inside. “I love old buildings. If this one could talk, it’d have so many interesting stories to share.”

Liam looked around the room. “I’m hoping the building has lots to say about Eleanor and the Prohibition.”

Chloe sighed. “So do I. Did Pastor John say if any areas are off limits?”

Liam shook his head. “The construction crews have finished for the day, so we can wander through the entire building. The only issue is the county’s health and safety rules. We can’t be here on our own, so Richard, a foreman on the tiny home project, said he’d show us around.”

Just then, a man emerged from a side door, wiping his hands on a rag. He was tall and solidly built, with short brown hair and a friendly smile.

When he reached Chloe, she grinned and gave him a quick hug. Richard was married to Paris, the owner of the flower shop at the end of Anchor Lane. During the summer, they’d had many barbecues together.

“Hi, Richard. It’s good to see you.”

“It’s good to see you, too.” He returned her smile and ruffled Oscar’s hair. “How’s my dinosaur expert doing?”

“I’m good. I got a book out of the library yesterday and guess what?”

Richard’s smile widened. “What?”

“The Tyrannosaurus rex had teeth as big as bananas! It needed its ginormous teeth to catch its food.”

“I didn’t know that,” Richard replied. “I’ll have to read more books on dinosaurs.”

“You could read some of mine. I’ve got lots.”

“I’d like that,” Richard told him. “Next time Jack comes to play with you, we’ll choose a book.” With Oscar happily thinking about dinosaurs, Richard turned his attention to Liam. “Hi, I’m Richard. I’m assuming you’re Liam?”

“That’s me,” he confirmed, shaking Richard’s hand.

“Pastor John said you’re looking for a room in a drawing?”

Chloe took the copy of the sketch out of her bag and handed it to Richard. “We’re trying to find this room. We’ve already seen the storage rooms and we don’t think it’s there, but it could be somewhere else in the building.”

Richard studied the sheet of paper. “It definitely looks like the old steamboat museum, especially with those beams. It’s not the entrance, so that’s out. We’ll could look in the next room, although I don’t think it’s that one either.”

They walked into the large open hall, comparing the sketch to their surroundings.

Liam frowned. “Apart from the red-brick walls, I don’t see anything that matches what’s in the drawing.”

Chloe held the sheet of paper in front of her and slowly turned around. Liam was right. The high ceiling and exposed beams matched, but the layout didn’t quite fit. “Maybe some renovations changed the interior. Or perhaps we’re in the wrong part of the building.”

Richard ran his hand along his jaw. “The main construction area is too big for what you’re looking for, but there’s another room beside it. The volunteers use it to sew curtains for the tiny homes. Let’s look in there.”

He led them through another set of doors and along the side of a cavernous room. Filled with seven tiny homes in various stages of completion, it was a light, bright, and cold room.

Chloe pulled her jacket closer. “How does everyone keep warm in here?”

“We have a large furnace,” Richard explained. “It keeps everyone warm and dries the plaster and paint on each house. Working inside means we can triple the number of homes we’re building.”

Liam looked around the construction area. “Where are these homes going?”

Richard slowed to a stop and pointed at the closest homes. “Those three are going to Bigfork. The ones behind them are going to Somers. We’ve sent our tiny homes as far west as Moses Lake in Washington, and as far east as Chinook. After Christmas, we’re starting a contract that’ll supply twenty tiny homes to a community in Cranbrook, north of the Kootenai National Forest.”

Chloe’s eyes widened. She hadn’t realized the homes were so popular. “And all this started from an idea Pastor John had?”

Richard nodded. “He heard about a similar project in Bozeman and decided it could help our community. We’re providing accommodation for people who can’t find anywhere to live and employing fifteen people. On top of that, another twenty volunteers give us their time and expertise each week. It’s a win-win for everyone.”

Richard looked down at Oscar. “What do you think of this room, Oscar? Do you think a Tyrannosaurus rex would fit in here?”

Oscar looked around the room and nodded. “A bunch of dinosaurs could live here. But they’d need trees and water, and lots of other stuff.”

Chloe smiled at the rapt expression on Oscar’s face. He was probably imagining a forest full of dinosaurs living in the enormous room. “When we get home, you could draw a picture of what this would look like with dinosaurs in it.”

“That sounds like a great idea to me.” Richard smiled at Oscar, then kept moving. “The room I want to show you isn’t far away.”

He led them through a doorway and into a smaller room. After looking at the walls and ceiling, they all agreed it wasn’t the right place.

Richard studied the drawing again. “It kind of looks like my workshop, but not quite. Come with me.”

He took them down a corridor and into another room.

Liam looked at the high ceilings. “Do you ever get lost? It’s like a rabbit’s warren in here.”

Richard smiled. “I don’t usually come this way when I’m heading to my workshop. This part of the building has its own entrance.”

Chloe studied the half-finished pieces of furniture and the tools that were neatly organized around the room. Sunlight shone through the tall windows, giving the workshop a warm and welcoming feel. “This is a lovely place to work.”

“I’m lucky to be able to use this part of the building. It’s where I do most of my work,” Richard explained. “But the room we’re looking for is just beyond here.”

They followed him to a large wooden door at the back of the workshop. Richard pushed it open, revealing a storage room filled with more pieces of furniture.

Chloe’s heart quickened as she looked around. The exposed brick walls, the beams, and the arched windows were a better match with Eleanor’s sketch.

Richard stood in the middle of the room. “If my customers order more than one piece, I store the furniture in here until I’ve finished their entire order. That way, I can send everything to them in one delivery.” Richard walked across to one of the windows. “Did you notice the fancy scrollwork around the window frames in the drawing? As far as I know, this is the only room in the building that has windows like that.”

Chloe studied the window behind Richard. If he hadn’t mentioned the shape of the window frame, she never would’ve noticed it. Holding up the sketch, she compared Eleanor’s drawing to the actual window. “This is it,” she whispered. “We’re standing in the same room where the meeting must have been held.”

Liam looked over Chloe’s shoulder at the drawing, then let his gaze roam around the room. “It definitely looks like the same room.” He walked over to the far wall, examining the area above the window. “The beams line up perfectly with what’s in the sketch.”

Richard joined them as they worked out where each piece of furniture in the drawing would have sat. “It’d be amazing if we could find the still.”

Chloe looked down at the drawing. “If I didn’t want anyone to know what I was doing during the Prohibition, I’d make sure no one could find the still.”

Richard nodded. “That’s true. I wonder if Percy’s found anything that could tell us where it went. Has he seen Eleanor’s drawing?”

Liam nodded. “He was the one who found it. I’ll call him tomorrow. If the still or any of the furniture is in Sapphire Bay, he might know where it’s gone.”

Oscar walked toward them, his eyes taking in every detail. “What’s that, Mom?” he asked, pointing to a spot on the wall where the bricks seemed uneven.

Chloe kneeled and studied the wall. Some of the mortar had fallen away, leaving a jagged edge around the bricks. But it wasn’t the mortar Oscar was pointing to. Wedged between two bricks was a small brass catch.

Richard kneeled on the other side of Oscar and looked at the catch. “I’ve never noticed that before.”

Chloe frowned. “In the sketch, the still is right here. Maybe the catch was used to tie a piece of rope or wire from the wall to the still. It might’ve stopped it from falling over.”

Richard pulled the catch toward him and a few pieces of mortar fell from the wall. “I don’t know whether or not that’s a good thing.”

Just in case the wall fell down, Chloe took Oscar’s hand and moved a few feet away. “The building’s old but well built. It seems unlikely this would be the only part of the wall to have damaged mortar.”

Liam kneeled beside Richard and studied the bricks that were a few feet on either side of the brass catch. “This part of the wall could have been modified after the original building was constructed.”

Richard pointed to the bricks a few feet away from the catch. “The bricks in the rest of the room were laid off-center, but these ones line up with each other.”

Chloe couldn’t imagine a reason why anyone would change the way the bricks were laid. She held Eleanor’s sketch in front of her, then looked around the room, trying to find any other differences.

Richard looked at Liam. “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?”

Liam nodded. “If it is a door, it’s been concealed for a reason.”

Chloe frowned. “Why would anyone …?” Her eyes widened. “Do you think it’s got something to do with the Prohibition?”

Richard nodded. “If this was the place where you could drink or buy alcohol, it’d make sense to hide the evidence of what was happening.”

Chloe bit her bottom lip. This was more than she’d ever thought they’d find. “If the bootleggers concealed a door in the wall, the brass catch probably opens it.”

Liam placed his hand on the wall. “Let’s see if you’re right.” He pushed the bricks surrounding the catch. As he did, a thin stream of dirt and dust cascaded down the wall, filling the air with a musty scent.

Chloe coughed and waved her hand in front of her face. “It’s been undisturbed for a while.”

Liam kept pushing. With a low groan, a small section of the wall shifted inward. The hidden door creaked open, revealing a dark passageway.

“Oh, my goodness,” Chloe whispered, her heart pounding in her chest. “There really is something behind it.”

Liam took his cell phone out of his pocket and turned on the flashlight. Crouching down, he wiped away the cobwebs and peered into the opening. “We’ve found the still in the photo,” he said excitedly. He moved out of the way and handed Chloe his phone. “It’s in an alcove on the right-hand side.”

She looked into the dusty passageway and grinned. Sitting beside the brick wall was a large, mottled-green copper boiler and a metal tube. The cooling coil was propped against the boiler, waiting for another batch of moonshine to be made. If that wasn’t exciting enough, it looked as though there was a tunnel a few feet away.

She handed Liam his phone. “Is that what I think it is?”

He shone his flashlight into the hidden room. “It looks like a tunnel to me. I wonder where it goes.”

Chloe turned to Richard. “Do you know if there are any plans for the building?”

Richard frowned. “I haven’t seen any, but I’ll ask Pastor John. Given the age of the building, I don’t think we’ll find anything, but it’s worth a try.” He walked to a shelf behind him and came back with a large flashlight. After studying the entrance to the tunnel and looking inside the hidden room, he glanced at Liam. “As far as I can tell, the tunnel’s safe. Do you want to have a look with me?”

Liam took some photos of the opening, then grinned. “I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”

Chloe searched Richard’s face. “Are you sure it’s safe?”

“The beams look solid and there are plenty of them to support the walls and ceiling. We won’t go too far.”

Liam slid his phone into his pocket. “If we think it’s unsafe, we’ll come straight out.”

Chloe still wasn’t sure it was the best thing to do, but she was as excited as they were to see where the tunnel went. “Promise me you’ll be careful.”

Liam kissed her cheek. “We’ll be careful.” Crouching down, he followed Richard into the narrow opening.

Chloe kneeled beside Oscar, watching what they were doing. The beam of Richard’s flashlight pierced the darkness, revealing a set of stone steps leading downward.

“It’s definitely a tunnel,” Richard said.

Chloe used the flashlight on her phone to give them more light. Before going down the steps, Richard checked the walls and floor. When he was happy, they crept forward.

Once they were gone, all she could hear were their voices echoing against the walls as they moved farther away.

Oscar wiggled forward until his head was inside the hidden door. “What’s in the tunnel?”

“We don’t know yet, sweetheart,” she told him. “Richard and Liam will be back soon to tell us.”

Minutes passed, and then Liam’s voice floated up from below. “You won’t believe this!”

“What is it?” Chloe called back.

“I’ll take a video to show you.”

It seemed to take forever for Liam and Richard to join her, but it was probably only a few minutes. They crawled out of the passageway with huge smiles on their faces.

“Look at this,” Liam said, holding up an old glass jug full of clear liquid . “I’d bet anything this is moonshine.”

Chloe held the heavy one gallon jug and carefully turned it around. “It’s in perfect condition.” The one finger loop handle and size were like other moonshine jugs that were displayed at the Smithsonian.

Liam took his phone out of his pocket. “Would your friends at the Smithsonian be able to identify the liquid? It’s too important to open it now.”

Chloe nodded. “They’d be happy to look at it.”

Liam showed her his phone. “This is what’s at the end of the tunnel. It doesn’t go far underground, but it’s enough to give whoever used it a decent storage area for more alcohol.”

As Liam’s video panned around the small underground room, it showed a collection of dusty crates, wooden shelves, and old barrels. Against one wall were a few more bottles, a stack of newspapers, and some old metal tools.

Chloe’s eyes widened as she took in the scene. “I can’t believe this has been hidden all this time. Do you know how rare it is to find something that hasn’t been touched in a hundred years?”

“Keep watching,” Liam said quietly from beside her.

As the video moved across the room, Richard’s hand appeared and he carefully opened one of the crates. Inside were more bottles and some faded documents. “They’re shipping logs,” he said. “They mention the railway.”

Chloe’s heart raced. “This could be the connection between Samuel and the bootlegging operation.”

“We thought the same thing,” Liam said. “And Eleanor might have known about this place.”

Richard looked thoughtful. “If she was trying to expose what they were doing, it could explain why she disappeared.”

Chloe’s brain was moving at a million miles an hour, trying to sort through everything she knew about the Prohibition, Eleanor, and Samuel Hartman. “We should document all of this. It could be significant for the town’s history.”

Oscar stood between Liam and Chloe. “Did you find treasure?”

“In a way, we did.” Liam smiled at Oscar’s upturned face. “We found some very old things that tell us more about our mystery.”

“Can I see?” Oscar asked.

Chloe kneeled beside him and showed him the video. As she explained what was in the hidden room, she thought about the years she’d spent at the Smithsonian. She hadn’t realized how much she’d missed piecing together stories that were long forgotten.

After she’d finished, she handed Liam back his phone. “You did a great job of filming everything.”

He looked into her eyes. “The light from Richard’s flashlight helped. Are you okay?”

She took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. “I was just thinking about how grateful I am. For this town, for friends like you. For opportunities to rediscover what I love. If we can figure out what happened to Eleanor, her story would make an amazing book.”

Liam laughed. “While we were in the tunnel, Richard said it’d make a great TV series.”

“I hadn’t thought about that, but he’s right.” Chloe watched Oscar as he peered through the hidden door with Richard. “We’ll need to let Pastor John know what we’ve found. He might want to call Percy, too.”

Richard looked over his shoulder. “Could you give them some ideas about what to do next?”

Chloe nodded. “I’d love to. They both have my phone number if they’d like to call me. Thanks for showing us around, Richard. We wouldn’t have found the tunnel without you and Oscar.”

“It was my pleasure. It’s not every day you get to find a hidden door and a secret room.”

Oscar looked up at Chloe. “Are we going home now?”

“Just for a little while,” Chloe told him. “We have to meet Mrs. Terry at The Welcome Center soon.”

“Can we get ice cream on the way there?” Oscar asked.

Chloe checked the time. They didn’t have to be at The Welcome Center for another hour, so they had plenty of time for ice cream. “That’s a great idea.” She turned to Liam and Richard. “Would you both like to join us?”

Richard held up the jug they’d found. “I’d better get this to Pastor John and tell him what we found. If you could send me a link to the video, Liam, I’d appreciate it.”

“Already done,” Liam told him. “And I’d love to join you and Oscar for ice cream, Chloe. It’d be the perfect ending to an exciting day.”

Oscar held Liam’s hand. “Can we take Trixie for a walk, too?”

“I think we can arrange that. I’ll give Steve a call to see if they’re at home.”

As they made their way back through the workshop, Chloe felt a sense of accomplishment. Despite the uncertainties with Paul, today had reminded her that there were a lot of things to be grateful for.