The Split

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Remus asked, looking at his brother. "Why can't it just say 'treasure here. Go find.'"

Roman rolled his eyes, taking the paper from Re and looking at the words printed on it. "Logan, didn't Matlack write the Declaration of Independence?"

"Hold up," Patton interrupted, "Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence. I learned that in school."

"Well, yes and no," Logan said, pushing his glasses up his nose, "Jefferson composed the Declaration, but Matlack was the calligrapher. He wrote down Jefferson's words."

Ro read over the page again and again. "So it's definitely connected to the Declaration... 'the legend writ, the stain affected....' Any ideas as to what that means?"

His twin ran a hand through his hair. "I don't think it's just the Declaration. 'The stain affected' probably means something hidden on it."

"Like... a map?"

"Yeah, maybe."

Logan shook his head. "It's one of the most important documents of our nation's history. If there was a hidden map someone would have found it already."

"Unless it's not something they were looking for," Patton added quietly.

Roman looked over at him. "What do you mean, Pat?"

"Like... invisible ink? It was a letter, right? Who'd look for invisible ink on a letter?"

Snapping his fingers, Remus landed a hand on Patton's shoulder, making the shorter man flinch; Pat wasn't very comfortable around Remus, but he was polite because of his friendship with Roman. "That's gotta be it."

"So how are we supposed to get it," Logan said, not as a question but as a statement. "No one would let us have the Declaration of Independence because we think there's a treasure map on the back."

The group was silent for a minute.

"We could steal it."

Patton moves away quickly. "No, no, no. Nope. Absolutely not. We are not stealing the Declaration of Independence."

"It's the chance of a lifetime. This treasure is way too important to just forget about." He looked at his brother for support. "Roman, our family has been looking for this treasure for centuries and you just want to give up? Like Dad? You knew it wouldn't be easy but it's going to be worth it. Don't you believe me?"

Roman pinched the bridge of his nose. "Re, we can't just steal historical documents for this. Maybe it is time to give up."

"After everything we've been through?"

"Maybe, yeah. We have to grow up eventually, Remus. Treasure hunting is fun and all but that can't be our whole lives."

"When did you turn into Dad? When did you lose your sense of adventure?"

Logan sighed. "As entertaining as this little scene is, we should go home. Some of us have actual jobs to get back to."

"So you really aren't going to help me?" Remus asked, setting the page on one of the crates and hoisting his bag of tools.

Roman shook his head.

Moving towards the ladder, Remus grabbed one of the torches out of the bag. "Your loss."

Before the other three could comprehend what was happening, Remus had tied the string from the pipe around the torch's trigger, and thrown it into one of the open crates. The he was gone.

"Ro... aren't these crate filled with gunpowder?" Patton asked.

Roman nods before grabbing his friend by the arm and running to the ladder. "Hurry up!"

Patton stumbled backwards onto the ice, looking towards the vehicle the four had taken. Instead of taking it, Remus had taken the smaller snowmobile stored in the back, so at least he'd left them a way to get home.

Logan climbed off the boat, moments before it exploded. Chunks of wood and ice rained across the area.

"You guys okay?" Roman asked, brushing off his jacket.

Patton nodded in stunned silence.

Being closest to the blast, Logan had a few scratches on his face, but otherwise there were no injuries. He looked at the other two, adjusting his glasses. "Now what?"

"Well we cant just let him steal the Declaration of Independence," Ro said, gesturing wildly with his hands, something he did when thinking. You could practically see the gears in his brain turning.

Patton was not a confrontational person. If possible, he avoided conflict at all costs. But he also had a strong moral code. If Roman knew anything about Patton White, it was that he didn't back down when he thought something was wrong.

"Then we have to stop him."