Total pages in book: 112
Estimated words: 112567 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 563(@200wpm)___ 450(@250wpm)___ 375(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 112567 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 563(@200wpm)___ 450(@250wpm)___ 375(@300wpm)
“And the Crownsville Bandit beat the bad guys up and stole whatever he thought was valuable and priceless.” She raised her little fist in the air. “He did it to some of the richest, most racist families in the South—people that had been suspected of being Nazis that fled Europe and came to Paradise to hide.”
God, please let there be enough coffee. I can’t remember if I bought any Friday.
TT continued, “Somewhere at the bottom of Dream Lake is a chest made of bones and impenetrable metals, and full of diamonds and gold, tons of money and—”
“All at the bottom of a lake.” I rubbed the heel of my foot. “Don’t forget that part.”
Every black kid in Paradise and miles away knew the story of the Crownsville Bandit. We had cousins in the South of Paradise—Banks and Sid. When we were kids, the Bandit and his lost treasure was all they would talk about. It got Jo obsessed, and now she’d passed down her infatuation to TT.
Meanwhile, I never got excited. The whole story made me sad. When I heard of the Bandit or even Crownsville, all I thought about was The Week of Blood.
Crownsville had been a successful black town, but the Bandit’s antics brought enemies to the place. I always believed those racist families were mad their Nazi items were stolen. They got together and planned to get rid of the Bandit and Crownsville for good.
The Paradise history books claimed that Black men raped a white lady and triggered a massacre to descend on Crownsville. Knowing the evil of those Nazis, they probably attacked that white girl from behind, blindfolded, beat, and raped her, and pretended to be Black.
And then they incited the mob to go to Crownsville. They burned the town’s churches, schools, and businesses. They broke into homes, shot the husbands, raped the wives, and hung the kids.
And I bet the whole time, a team of them searched for those treasures and never found them. That was probably why they flooded the area and created Dream Lake. They didn’t want anyone else to find the items.
TT spoke, “Moni, the Bandit’s Lost Treasure isn’t truly the stuff in the bone casket.”
Sighing, I switched to massaging the other foot.
“When he came back a year later with the other surviving Crownsville residents—”
“That’s assuming the bandit survived.”
“He did.” TT widened her eyes. “He saw that Dream Lake was there, but he didn’t lose hope. He knew that one day there would be a chance to get his treasure. If not him, then one of his descendants . So he built his home around the lake.”
“None of this has been proven, by the way. It’s theory upon theory.” I let go of my feet, stretched them again, and rose from the bed. “Meanwhile, your schoolbooks are real. Your education will be the true treasure to get you out of—”
“The Bandit left four items around Dream Lake—his journal about his adventures with hidden clues to lead to his other items. He called it the Bandit’s Gospel.”
I walked away. “Leave it alone, TT.”
“But they found the Bandit’s Gospel. It’s in West Paradise’s Museum of African American History. So, he’s real.”
“Or it’s fake and—”
“It’s not fake.”
I’d made the mistake of taking her to that museum and even had bought her a replica of the Bandit’s dagger that had been discovered near the lake by a treasure hunter. It was wooden with odd drawings and a swirling, zig zagged handle. TT loved that fake replica so much, she kept it under any pillow she slept on.
“The Lost Treasure is real.” She jumped in front of me, raised her hands, and held up three fingers. “The other three items weren’t found—the bone compass, the key for the treasure chest, and the map. If I find those, it could get us so much money. I won’t need to go to the bottom of the lake.”
“We’re far from Paradise and Dream Lake.” I walked around her.
“That’s why I’m going to gather as many clues as possible, so when you take me—”
“In what car?” I turned around and held my hands out. “My engine backfired last night.”
She frowned. “When you get Kermit fixed, we can go.”
“TT, I have too much on my mind.”
“But the items still haven’t been found. This money could change our lives.”
“Thanks for trying to help, but what will really change our lives is you focusing on those top grades that you’re always getting. That’s how you truly help. Keep studying.” I bent down, hugged her, and left a kiss on her cheek. “Wash your face, brush your teeth, make your bed, and make mine, too.”
I left my bedroom and headed to the bathroom.
“I have to make your bed, too?” TT called back. “That’s not fair.”
“That’s your punishment for watching scary stuff and ending up in my bed.” I got to the end of the hallway and waited for Jo to finish in the bathroom.