Love's Paradise (16 page)

Jordan just shook his head. “Man, that's unreal.”

Tony looked at the Sheba. “It's history.”

“So wait, how in the world did this ring and box get to a monastery in North Africa?”

Tony chuckled. “Yeah, I forgot to tell you that one—it's a long story. The caretaker told me that after Sheba left Israel to go home, King Solomon put the ring in this box and gave it to her. It was then passed down through countless generations, lost and stolen many, many times. Then he said one day an old, sick woman went to the monastery for help. She died. But before she died she gave the monks the box that had been in her family for centuries. She was the last in her family's line.”

“That story is serious.”

“It's still amazing to me. So, what's in the box?”

“That's what I need you to tell me,” Jordan said.

“Come up to the office and I'll have a look.”

Then two men went upstairs to Tony's office. Jordan stopped in the doorway as Tony continued to his work desk. “Wow,” Jordan said as he looked around. “This room is incredible. Is that what I
think it is?” Jordan asked as he spied what looked like a small sarcophagus on a worktable.

Tony chuckled. “Yep. It's headed to auction at my gallery in Alexandria. Have a seat.”

Jordan sat down, opened the box and pulled out the bell found at the site. Tony draped a cloth over his worktable and adjusted the overhead light. He grabbed a pair of plastic gloves and picked it up. Using a brush, he dusted some of the loose dirt away. “Where'd you find this?”

“My company is doing construction at Crescent Point.”

“That's a great plot of land out there. How's the project going?”

“The main structure is complete, just cosmetics at this point. We're about to start on the secondary site hopefully this coming week. That's where this was discovered.”

Tony asked a few more questions as he continued working on the bell. Jordan told him about his other projects and his brothers and how they took over their father's company to fulfill his dream. After a while Jordan stopped talking as Tony continued working. Jordan went back downstairs and looked around. About an hour later Jerry walked over to Jordan.

“Tony wants you to come to the office.”

Jordan nodded and headed back upstairs. Tony was in his office on the phone. He motioned for
Jordan to come in. A few minutes later he hung up. “Okay, it looks like you have a piece of history here. I just called and confirmed a few tests. Of course there will be a lot more if you choose to pursue this, but in my opinion, this is the original bell from the
Crescent.
”

“I know the general history of the island. But can you tell me more about the actual ship?” said Jordan.

“That would be Sheri's department. She's the foremost expert on the
Crescent
and the
Mabella Louisa
and just about everything about the history of the island,” said Tony.

“That might be a problem.”

“May I ask why? It seemed to me that the two of you had some pretty serious chemistry going on last night at the party.”

Jordan smiled and shook his head. “She's amazing. I hate to say this and I swear I'd deny ever uttering the words, but Mamma Lou got it right. She is incredible.”

Tony nodded. “Yes. So why can't you talk to Sheri about what you found?”

“She wants to close the site down. I have a deadline and a lot of money, not to mention all the men and women working out there who are depending on me for their jobs for the next month or so.”

“I see your point.”

“I can't tell her, not yet. I dropped a box off to
her last night with some less important artifacts. If she knew about this bell…”

“I understand. I won't say anything. It's not my place. But my advice is to tell her before this gets out of hand. Sheri takes the preservation of Crescent Island history very seriously. She shouldn't find out another way,” Tony advised.

Jordan nodded as Tony put the bell in a more secure enclosure with his label on it. “Thanks for everything.” They shook hands. Jordan left with his box and some things he'd purchased downstairs while he had been waiting. He got into his truck and headed for the condo. He had some serious thinking to do. Back in his condo, he sat at his drawing table and began sketching. The next two hours flew by in a flash.

S
heri left the job early. It was almost two o'clock in the afternoon, and busy or not she was on a more important mission. Jordan needed to learn to appreciate history, her history. She made a few phone calls then went back home, changed and headed over to her mother's inn.

“Wow, look at you. You look sensational. Who's the lucky—” Lois stopped midsentence and smiled. “Well, it's about time you listened to your mother. What are you going to do this afternoon?”

“I thought I'd take Jordan Hamilton for a tour of the island and then have a late dinner at Colonel Wheeler's place.”

“Perfect, that sounds perfect. What do you need?”

Sheri told her mother her plans in detail and Lois, the consummate host and gourmet, came up with some wonderful ideas. Fifteen minutes later, Sheri grabbed her motorcycle and headed to the Regency condos. She leaned back, removed her helmet, pulled out her cell phone and called the phone number from the night before. Jordan answered.

“Hey, let's go.”

“Go where?” he asked.

“To see Crescent Island.”

“Where are you?”

“Out front. Come on, let's go.”

A few minutes later she saw Jordan in her rearview mirror. He looked up and down the street then stopped and stared at her from behind. He smiled and walked over.

“I'd know that body anywhere. A motorcycle?”

“Grab the helmet and get on.” She put her helmet back on, felt the snugness of his body pressed behind her and took off. They started at one end of the island and worked their way to the other. They stopped at the highest peak on the island and looked down on the landscape below. The view was sensational.

“It's beautiful,” Jordan said.

“Yes, it is. I love it here. Crescent Island's local
economy is based on tourism. It's the main attraction. While other islands in the Chesapeake Bay suffered during the downturn in the economy, we thrived.” She pointed out some of the more popular tourist attractions and told him a bit of local history, along with some of the native legends and folklore.

“A lighthouse?” Jordan said, seeing the stark white, tall, conical-shaped, two-story structure on the edge of the coastline. “That's near the point.”

“Yes, it is.”

“Does anyone live there?”

“Yes, Mamma Lou's fiancé, Colonel Wheeler. The lighthouse is separate from his living quarters and is completely renovated in a sort of rustic decor. There's a bay window that overlooks the cliffs and out onto the bay. It's beautiful and the lighthouse still works. It's about two hundred years old and was declared a landmark a few years back. It was used to protect the Eastern Shore against the British during the Revolutionary War.

“But one of the most popular tourist sites is the old slaves' cemetery and the freed slaves' shantytown. It's right over there. The shantytown was a small, insular community on the northernmost far side of the island near the harbor inlet.”

“Can we go?”

“Sure.” She drove about twenty minutes then pulled up to a small outcropping of buildings in a secluded area on the side of the road. She stopped.
Jordan got off the motorcycle, and Sheri followed. He walked toward the large sign and read it.

By 1863, when the Emancipation Proclamation became law, several hundred newly freed slaves boarded shipping vessels supplied by abolitionists and sailed east hoping to get back to Africa. Instead they landed on these shores and settled here. Brought by the
Mabella Louisa
and the
Crescent,
this was their home.

“What a wonderful history. It's so beautiful here. I can see why you love it so much.”

He continued walking toward the small shantytown. Sheri followed quietly behind him. Jordan walked in and out of the old wooden structures that the freed slaves called home more than a hundred years ago. He walked up the few steps to enter a small building once home to a family of freed slaves. “Wow, this is amazing.”

“The museum and historical society take great pride in this site, and have gone to great lengths to care for it and to keep the past as true as possible,” Sheri said in a soft, reverential tone.

“You mentioned that your great-grandfather came later. Are there any direct descendants of the freed slaves still on the island?”

“Yes, you met some last night. The Gates family members are original descendants. Mamma Lou married Jonathan Gates. His ancestor was Jonah, a freed slave and one of the original settlers.”

“Amazing,” he whispered.

Sheri smiled. Maybe she was getting through to him. “Come, I want to show you one other place.”

They got back on the bike and rode along narrow roads through the outer banks of the island. The view was spectacular. The sky was clear and the air smelled of seawater and fresh flowers. After fifteen minutes they turned into a small parking area.

“This is the first established church on the island. It was designated a national historic site and completely restored years ago.” Jordan headed toward the building, but there were already a lot of people there. “Wait, this way,” Sheri said.

They walked around the side of the church and passed through an old wooden gate that led to a century-old cemetery. “There are a lot of anonymous heroes buried here. We know about Frederick Douglass and Harriet Tubman, but there were others, dozens who fought for freedom. Their names will never be known.”

They walked among the old headstones, lost in their own thoughts. The moment was still and peaceful.

Jordan stopped and read one of the headstones. “‘Here lies Anne Louise Black, 1860-1880, Beloved daughter, wife and mother.'”

“I love this stone. It reminds me of the preciousness of life. Anne Louise was only twenty when she died in childbirth. She was a slave for a good part
of her life. Her mother taught her to read and write and her father was killed during the Civil War. She had three sisters, who she never saw again. She was on board the
Crescent
when it sank, losing everything she had. Everyone survived. She swam and found a new life.”

“How do you know all that?” he asked.

“I have her diary. I just wish I had more. I wish I knew more. She's like an unfinished story, but at least she died free,” she said, in barely a whisper.

Jordan took her hand and suddenly felt the joy of seeing Sheri's world and experiencing her history. They walked back to the church. The tourists were all gone. They climbed the four wooden steps and entered the small wooden shack. It was like they'd stepped back in time. They walked the short distance to the front of the church. The windowless area inside was narrow. There was a small altar atop a one-step rising. Twenty or thirty backless benches ran along either side of the center aisle. The floor was bare wooden planks with large rusty nails hammered solidly in place. There was the slightest coat of dust on the floor that seemed to belong there.

Jordan looked into Sheri's hopeful eyes.

“I understand,” he said, barely above a whisper.

She nodded realizing that the tour had conveyed her love of the island and given Jordan a new in
sight into the value of the few artifacts unearthed at Crescent Point. She had succeeded.

“Let's go. We have dinner reservations.”

They went back outside just as a small van pulled up and unloaded dozens of excited tourists. “Hey,” he said. “Give me the keys.” She tossed them to him. He climbed on the bike and started the engine. She nodded, impressed, grabbed her helmet and put it on. Moments later they were headed back into town.

 

The splendor of Saturday's late-afternoon adventure turned into Saturday evening's midnight love. Jordan changed and picked Sheri up in his truck. They ordered takeout from Colonel Wheeler's seafood restaurant and ate dinner on the balcony of Jordan's condo. The view from his terrace took in the northern shore of the island toward the heart of the bay. The lights in the distance twinkled and shimmered, matching the stars that shone down from above. The sight was breathtaking. They sat outside after dinner and talked about their childhoods, and dreams of the future. Neither dared mention anything beyond that moment.

Afterward they headed to the inn for dessert. A sampling of the house specialty desserts was the perfect ending to a spectacular day. Lois welcomed them with a basket already packed and ready for takeout. They ate outside on the balcony of the inn.
The view from the hill where the inn was perched was of the town below. The stars shining down were just as breathtaking. Beyond the town was the bay. They ate, laughed and watched the boats sail the midnight waters. A slightly chilly breeze teased around them. Sheri wrapped her arms around her body.

Jordan encircled her body with his arms, pulling and holding her close. “Thank you for today,” he whispered in her ear. “You're welcome.”

They stared out into the still, peaceful night. The moment was perfect. She had to know. He kissed her neck then turned her around, tipped her chin up and looked into her soft brown eyes.

“When I came here months ago I saw Crescent Island as just another location, a place to build then just move on. It's been the story of my life even with relationships. I rest for a moment then move on. I never saw myself ever staying long enough to fall in love. To be loved.”

“And now?”

He smiled. “And then there's you. There's you and I can't stop thinking about you. Mamma Lou was right. You are the one for me. And I knew it as soon as I saw you months ago. But I refused to accept it, to open my heart. I love you, Sheri. I have since the moment I saw you. You don't have to say anything. I just want you to know how I feel.”

She smiled, her eyes nearly brimming with tears. “Jordan, I love you, too.” They kissed gently and tenderly, sealing their love with an embrace that would last forever.

I love you,
he mouthed silently.

“I love you, too.”

“Feel like getting married?”

She stopped just as her heart jumped. “What?”

“Will you marry me?” His cell phone rang. He frowned. “Talk about horrible timing, I need to get this. It's only for emergencies.”

Sheri waited as Jordan answered his cell phone in the other room. She heard him talking.

“This had better be good,” he warned. Moments later he came out, obviously distressed. “I have to go. We'll talk when I get back.”

“Everything okay?” Sheri asked.

“I'm not sure.” He kissed her, smiled and hurried out. From the balcony she watched him run to his truck and drive away. His rear lights disappeared down the street toward town. She went back inside, closed the door and went to bed. Knowing he'd call and join her there. Then she'd answer his question. “Yes.”

 

Jordan called Cleveland back as soon as he got into his truck. It wasn't that he didn't want to talk in front of Sheri, he just didn't want to waste time
getting there. “Okay, I'm on my way. What's going on exactly?”

“One of the employees decided it would be a good idea to post information online about what we've found out here. I saw the post. It says we have a treasure chest filled with money and gold coins. They directed everyone to the main building on the opposite side of the site. We've had fools climbing the fences trespassing all evening. We've got some damage. I already called the authorities. They've been here the past half hour.”

“Good, anybody hurt?”

“Nah, not really, although we put a hell of a scare into a few of them, before they lit out of here. But I don't think it's the end of it. Damn movies! Everybody thinks they're a pirate looking for lost treasure now. We did catch one of the main culprits or rather he got caught himself. He didn't know I put the cameras up like we discussed. He did all this as a distraction. While we were chasing trespassers all night, he apparently intended to have the secondary site all to himself. We caught him red-handed, so to speak.” He chuckled.

“It's Jamie, the new kid. He climbed the back fence with someone else and they started digging. Then he hopped up on the backhoe thinking he knew what he was doing. He didn't. He cracked the arm again. It toppled over. He fell in the hole trapped by the machine.” Cleveland chuck
led again. “It's not funny, I know, but man, there was mud everywhere. It took three of us to get his slippery, slimy butt out of there. Another sheriff's deputy just pulled up. Oh, and get this, he wants his daddy.”

“I'm turning in now. I'll be there in a few seconds.”

“Jordan, one more thing, in the process of trying to climb out this half-wit dug up what looks like an anchor and a chest.”

“I'm here.” Jordan parked and ran to the secondary site. Cleveland stood talking to the local sheriff and two other security guards, who were holding a very pissed off Jamie at arm's length. One was chuckling, the other was near hysterics. Between them, Jamie was covered head to toe in mud. Jordan approached, shaking his head. The sight would have been funny if it weren't so serious.

Cleveland saw Jordan and walked over with the sheriff. They explained the next step. Apparently, Jamie was the one causing all the trouble on-site. He was angry that his father's company didn't get the job, and instead his father made him work. Jordan realized it was going to be a long night. He called his brothers and told them what had happened and what had been found. Then he left a message another. “Kenneth, it's Jordan, call me ASAP.”

Cleveland handed Jordan a sealed envelope. “What's this?”

“The kid had it on him. He said it was his, but I doubt his name is Anne Louise Black.”

“Anne,” Jordan said softly. He opened the envelope and pulled out the book. He smiled. It was another diary. “Maybe Anne's story will have a happy ending after all.”

“They're taking him in now,” Cleveland said. “What do you want to do with this other stuff?”