Golden Secrets

“Don’t be so certain of yourself. Papa has his ways.” Alicia hoped she was right.

“And I have mine. I know that the blood relative clearing the debt will own the grant. That will be Clara, and me, as her husband.” Harris jumped off the dock onto the sand, looking extremely proud of himself.

“Not if I can stop you. Not if someone pays the debt first.” Alicia needed to keep her own plan secret. “Your lies and false records will not save you, Captain Harris.”

“Calm down, Alicia, I’ve already lost one family, fighting over land.” He turned to look at her and tried another approach. “Let’s work together.” Tío Salvador’s arrival could be any day. Harris and Clara were ready to present their elaborate ledger books, every page a lie.

“Enough talk. Clara is waiting for you now.” As soon as Harris moved out of sight, Alicia inspected all he accomplished. He had actually made the dock presentable with the faded flag whipping in the ocean breeze. If only she could pay the taxes, they could host official ships. Maybe the family would gain respect, and the dock would not be a black market for pirates and thieves.

Those minutes walking along the dock alone gave Alicia a new idea. Maybe Tío Salvador’s visit could help them catch up with their taxes and save Rancho Refugio for the Ortega family.

Alicia paced out to the edge of the dock and back toward the beach. Beneath the dock boards a unique sound, a crunch, echoed with each step. She had never noticed it before. Looking under the pilings, she could see that her family had built the dock on a pile of shells. Was this one of the shell mounds Nina told her about? Nina’s ancestors’ burial place? A holy place? A chilling spirit fell over Alicia.