06 Uncovering Hidden Treasure
Hidden Treasure
KAREN WARD
Smashwords Edition
Copyright © 2011 Glenda Hays
Writing as Karen Ward
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This book is a work of fiction. All names,
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author's imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to
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Contents
CHAPTER 1
Samantha Wells is so excited she has
butterflies flitting around in her stomach and her heart is
pounding with anticipation. Today is the first day of her new
assignment as a park ranger at Yellowstone National Park. She just
received her transfer papers from her old assignment at the Smoky
Mountain National Park in Tennessee and she has finally been
released by her doctor to return to work after her accident.
Samantha has been on medical leave for the
last eight months but finally, she is ready to return to work. The
last eight months have been extremely trying for Samantha but very
interesting, to say the least. In fact, they probably have changed
her life forever. It all started when a six year old boy, Timmy
Thompson, was reported missing in the Smoky Mountain National Park.
She was following him through the woods, trying to get him to stop
running from her so she could help him when he, and then she, both
fell off of a cliff that was hidden by the dense foliage.
Amazingly, they both survived the fall with relatively minor
injuries. Samantha broke an arm and a leg and Timmy lost his spleen
and suffered a severe concussion leaving him unconscious for
weeks.
They were rescued by the former Marines that
make up Drake Security. Pinky, one of the team members repelled
down the cliff and placed both of them into a basket that was
raised into a helicopter and they were flown to safety. She will be
eternally grateful to Pinky and the other guys that make up the
Drake Security team that assisted in their rescue and for their
help in the ensuing months. The team is composed of Scoot, Dylan
Drake, the leader, Pinky, Keith Williams, the sniper, Goose,
Reginald Willingham, the medic, Stump, Clarence Kincaid, Jr., the
muscle, and Bear, Clarence Kincaid Sr., Stump's father and hero to
all of the others.
Then, while the boy was recuperating in the
hospital in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, he told Samantha that he was
running from the couple that was claiming to be his parents because
he was afraid. The child told Sam that he witnessed the couple
killing his real parents and then kidnapping him. So, Samantha took
him and left the hospital hiding in a small cabin on top of a
mountain in the park. She called Pinky and asked him to help her by
finding the boy's dead parents' bodies. The boy told her the couple
sunk his parent's bodies in their car in Norris Lake.
After the bodies were found in a car at the
bottom of Norris Lake, Pinky and two of the other Drake Security
team members again used the helicopter to rescue Samantha and Timmy
from on top of the mountain because an ice storm the previous night
made descending the mountain treacherous. After the FBI interviewed
the boy, the charges against Samantha for kidnapping were dropped.
In the meantime, Pinky and his fiancé, Jasmine, were awarded
temporary custody of Timmy because he was alone in the world. They
soon found out that Timmy was the sole heir to a huge fortune and
that was the reason he was kidnapped.
A short time later Samantha was kidnapped by
the same couple who kidnapped Timmy and was trying to locate the
boy. They were out of jail on bail and were determined to find the
boy and disappear. Once again the Drake Security team came to the
rescue and then offered to let Sam live with them on the Rock
Springs Ranch under their protection until after the trial. The FBI
was concerned others were involved in the attempted kidnapping and
eventually four others tried to kidnap Timmy from his school. The
Drake Security team quickly found them and rescued the boy and the
four men were arrested and tried as well.
The Drake Security team has their
headquarters and makes their home on the Rock Springs Ranch near
Cody Wyoming. The ranch is owned by Academy Award winning movie
star, Barry Farrady. Barry is a close friend of the group. He
served with them in the Marine Corp and once was a valued member of
their team. His worldwide fame prevents him from openly working
with them now.
Then while at the ranch, Samantha was grazed
by a bullet fired by one of the FBI's ten most wanted men causing
her to fall off a horse and break the same leg again. Now, she is
finally completely healed and is no longer in need of protection
since the people trying to kidnap the boy were tried, convicted,
and sentenced to prison.
Samantha loves Wyoming and adores all of the
members of the Drake Security team. Well, all of them except for
one ... Stump. She thinks he is an opinionated, bull headed, male
chauvinist pig and they literally hate each other. They can't be in
the same room together for over two minutes without arguing. She
will never forget the time he picked her up out of a chair in the
kitchen, threw her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes, then
dumped her on a couch in the great room where he yelled at her all
because she had been trying to tell Pinky's wife, Jasmine, she was
sorry about a tragedy in her life. In hindsight, Samantha admits
that her well-intentioned comments to Pinky's wife were very
inappropriate and inconsiderate at the time and she later
apologized profusely to Jasmine.
Anyway, in spite of Stump, during her time at
the Rock Springs Ranch, Samantha decided to transfer to Wyoming to
Yellowstone National Park so she can be near her new friends as
well as study the fascinating history of the area in and around the
park.
Sam carefully checks her appearance in the
mirror and a broad smile curves her lips. She is proud to be a park
ranger and wearing her ranger uniform always makes her smile. She
has her long blonde hair in its usual neat bun atop her head so her
ranger hat fits properly. She dons her black framed glasses and
heads out the door for her meeting with the head park ranger,
Jeffrey Whitmore. She doesn't really need the glasses anymore but
she feels naked and vulnerable without them because she has worn
them her whole life.
Her heart is pounding with excitement when
she walks into the ranger station to report for duty. While in the
outer office waiting until time for her appointment, Sam studies
the map of the park. Yellowstone has so much history, so much for
her to learn about, she can't wait.
She hears her name, "Samantha?"
Turning toward the voice, she has to look
way, way up to see the dark brown eyes and a toothy smile set in a
friendly, chocolate brown face. She says, "Yes, I'm Samantha."
Samantha has never thought of herself as short, but this man is
very tall.
"Come in Samantha, I'm Jeffrey Whitmore, head
ranger and your new boss. Welcome to Yellowstone." He looks her
over from head to toe, nods his head, smiles the toothy smile, and
says, "All right, have a seat. I have a very special assignment for
you, young lady. In fact, the timing of your arrival is
perfect!"
Curious now, Sam asks, "Really? What kind of
assignment?" Her excitement bubbles to the surface and she can
barely sit still in the chair.
Still looking at her in an appraising manner
he says, "Hmmmm, you'll have to wear your hair down, and lose the
glasses. Can you see without them?"
Shocked by his comments and very curious now,
Samantha says, "Yes, as a matter of fact I can. What kind of
assignment?"
"Undercover. You're going to be a cocktail
waitress at a local bar." At her distressed look he says, "Oh don't
worry. You'll be attending classes to learn about the park in the
mornings. Then at night you are going to work at Mel's Bar and
Grill on Main Street. It's right across from the apartment complex
where we have secured your accommodations. You see, we are having
some construction done in the park and an excessive amount of
construction materials are turning up missing. That wouldn't be
such an unusual thing except that we believe someone is using those
materials to build a mine in one of the off limit areas of the
park. We haven't been able to locate the mine yet, it is very well
hidden. We want you to try to pick up any type of information you
can from the patrons of the bar as to the location of this mine. Of
course, you'll need to look as different as you can while at the
bar from your normal everyday look so if someone sees you during
your off hours from the bar they won't recognize you. Do you think
you can handle this without a problem?"
Stunned by what she's hearing, Samantha says,
"Well, yes, of course I can handle it. It sounds like quite an
opportunity!"
"Well, yes, it is quite an opportunity. I
should tell you too that we are also hiring an undercover
construction worker. He is from the area and has extensive
experience doing undercover work. His name is Rance Kincaid. He'll
be here in a few days and will be staying in the same apartment
complex. Now, here is your schedule. It shows you where you will
need to be and at what time. I want you to go home now and change
into jeans and go meet with Jim Bradley at Mel's. He's expecting
you and will be your contact for any information you might pick up.
Good luck Samantha and don't hesitate to call me if you need me.
Here is my card with all of my contact information."
Samantha walks out of Jeffrey Whitmore's
office in a daze. She is going to work undercover. Wow! How
exciting is that! She drives to the apartment complex, changes into
jeans and a low cut t-shirt that she bought off a sale rack just
for fun. She'll definitely have to do some shopping if she's going
to be successful at this assignment. Samantha usually dresses quite
conservatively and is quite nervous about exposing so much of her
skin. She looks at her clothes in the mirror, takes a deep breath,
and says to herself, Samantha, suck it up. If you are going to be
successful at this assignment, you have to wear these clothes!
She takes the pins out of her pale blonde
hair and brushes the long tresses till they shine and fall in curls
around her shoulders. She applies a thin layer of makeup paying
particular attention to her eyes just the way Skye taught her.
Skye Drake is married to Dylan Drake, Scoot,
as the guys call him, the head of Drake Security. Skye's father was
a movie director and she grew up around movie stars. As a result
she is a genius with makeup and showed Samantha how to make the
most of her looks during the time she spent at the Rock Springs
Ranch. Because she was embarrassed at the time, Samantha has never
worn the makeup in front of others. It has never been necessary
until now. Now it is the perfect disguise! She looks at herself in
the mirror. She is shocked at the difference. With the revealing
clothes and the makeup, her own Grandpa wouldn't even recognize
her!
Then discarding her glasses she heads across
the street to Mel's Bar and Grill to meet her contact, Jim Bradley.
She is very excited and her heart is pounding with
anticipation.
When she walks into the dimly lit bar just
before noon she is surprised to see a number of people already
there, enjoying their favorite libation and one of the many grill
items offered on the menu. This is Samantha's first time in a real
bar and she is very curious about the patrons who would drink
alcohol so early in the day. She nervously walks up to the bar and
is approached by a nice looking, tall, older man with broad
shoulders, friendly brown eyes and tattoos on both muscular arms.
He smiles and asks, "What's your pleasure ma'am?"