The Secret of Buccaneer Bay (Kristi Cameron Book 5)

  THE SECRET OF BUCCANEER BAY

  CYNTHIA S. GRIFFITH

  COVER ART BY SARAH LOWE

  Copyright © 2000 by Cynthia S. Griffith

  All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, scanning, or other—except for brief quotations in critical reviews or articles, without prior written permission of the author.

  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  Chapter One: Cookies, Christmas, and the Caribbean

  Chapter Two: Emerald Paradise

  Chapter Three: Pigeon Point, Pirates, Ponies and Paul

  Chapter Four: Hitting the Hot Spots

  Chapter Five: The Thing

  Chapter Six: Hike, Bike and Glide

  Chapter Seven: Fishing for Trouble

  Chapter Eight: Pirates of the Caribbean

  Chapter Nine: In the Midst of the Storm

  Chapter Ten: Buccaneer Bay

  Chapter Eleven: X Marks the Spot

  Chapter Twelve: Bullets on Buccaneer Bay

  Chapter Thirteen: Treasures of the Heart

  _________

  CHAPTER ONE

  _________

  Cookies, Christmas, and the Caribbean

  Kristi Cameron walked into the kitchen on Christmas day and found her mother standing at the island surrounded by canisters and plastic containers of cookies—dozens and dozens of cookies. “I can’t believe we did it again, Mom,” she said as she reached for a peanut blossom.

  “Did what?” her mother asked without looking up. She was making yet another list.

  “I can’t believe we made all these cookies again this year! I thought you said we were going to cut back this time. We must have made double batches of twelve or thirteen kinds!”

  “Well, actually it was fifteen kinds of cookies, and we made triple batches of most of them.”

  “Mom!”

  “Well, we gave most of them away, you know, and with two teenage boys—and you—and your friends—in the house, I didn’t want to run short!”

  Kristi giggled. “Well, I think you and Daddy ate your fair share, too, Mom!”

  “Tell me about it! It’s back on a diet again—right after the holidays are over! For now I plan to enjoy!”

  Kristi looked at her mother and smiled. “I don’t think you have to worry about it, Mom. You look great.” It was true. Her mother was small—almost as petite as Kristi herself. They both had the same dark, rich auburn hair and green eyes, too. Kristi was proud to take after her mother.

  “What can I do to help you, Mom?” she asked.

  “Would you mind putting these cookies on platters for me, Kristi? I’ve got several pretty Christmas trays and plates here to choose from. Now, see? Aren’t you glad we made so many cookies? We still have plenty for tonight!” Rachel Cameron handed a stack of fancy dishes to her daughter. “Actually, Skeeter was in here a few minutes ago offering to do this job for me, but I sent him outside to bring in some firewood for the fireplaces instead. I knew if I let him near the cookies we’d have nothing left for the party!”

  Kristi giggled and said, “Sure, Mom!” She set to work at the dark granite counter trying to arrange the cookies as artistically as she could on the platters. She popped a cherry-coconut drop into her mouth and then glanced guiltily at her mother. Rachel wasn’t paying any attention. She swallowed quickly and then casually asked, “What time is everyone coming?”

  “Seven o’clock. Mrs. Bennett called earlier and said they may be a few minutes late. They’re on their way home from a ski trip. She said they wouldn’t miss it for the world, though. That’s nice. I’m sure Pete will be excited to have his mom and dad here, for once. They’re always so busy.”

  Kristi tried to choke down a jumbo raisin nut cookie and answer her mother. “Umm-hum,” she mumbled. “But you won’t see Pete all excited! He’s the most laid-back guy I know!”

  “Well, that’s true,” Rachel said. “I’m so glad we’re finally having them and the DeLongs and the Velasquez family all over at once. You kids are all such great friends, I can’t believe we haven’t done this before.”

  Kristi took a quick bite of a magic cookie bar and tried not to spit cookie crumbs all over as she said, “Well, it’s hard to get four busy families all together at the same time. Hey, where’s Dan, Mom? I haven’t seen him for a while.”

  “I sent him out for ice and more sodas earlier. I think he and your dad are out in front right now putting new candles in the luminaries. What a great idea those luminaries were, Kristi! Thanks! I think we’ve started a new Christmas tradition for our family.”

  The rest of the magic cookie bar was sticking to the roof of Kristi’s mouth. “Anna happened to mention them, and then I saw a picture in a magazine,” she sputtered. “They seemed so simple to make, so I thought we should try them. I mean, candles in a paper bag—how easy is that?”

  Skeeter walked into the kitchen just then with his arms full of firewood. “Umm—cookies!” he said. He tried to stick out one hand to snare a cookie off the plate Kristi was arranging without dropping the wood.

  “Skeeter! No cookies until the party!” his mother scolded.

  “Ha! Caught ya!” Kristi chuckled softly.

  “Nope! Caught you, Kristi! You’ve got chocolate on your lips and cookie crumbs down the front of your sweater!” Skeeter shot back with a big grin on his freckled face. “Oh, Mom—” he said a little louder.

  “Oops! Shh! Here, Skeeter!” Kristi swiped at her mouth and brushed a hand over her sweater while she thrust several cookies into her brother’s outstretched hand. Skeeter winked and sauntered out of the kitchen, firewood, cookies and all.

  Kristi quickly replaced the cookies she had given Skeeter and shoved a chocolate chip cookie into her mouth. “Anyshing—whoops! I mean, anything else you want me to do, Mom? Would you like me to fill the candy and nut dishes?”

  “No, I don’t think so, Kristi. Thanks!” Kristi turned to leave when suddenly her mom said, “Oh, but I did think of another job you could do, dear—polish up the bathrooms, please, before our guests arrive.”

  Yuck! That was the chore Kristi hated most! Her mother continued with a smile, “Oh, and by the way, Kristi—you missed a spot of chocolate on your mouth, and there are more crumbs on your sleeve!”

  Kristi rubbed at her lips and plucked the telltale crumbs off her sweater sleeve. “Sorry, Mom,” she said sheepishly.

  Rachel burst out laughing. “You’re just sorry you got caught, you mean! If you could only see your face, Kristi! You look like a little kid caught with her hand in the cookie jar—literally! You can’t fool your dear old mom, you know, my dear! I’ve got eyes in the back of my head!”

  Kristi laughed and gave her mom a hug. That was an old joke between them. When she was a little girl she had often run her hands through her mother’s shiny, thick hair, looking for that extra pair of eyes. She had never found them, of course, and she had been a little suspicious that they weren’t really there—but then on the other hand, you just never really knew for sure about moms!

  Kristi had just enough time to give the bathrooms a quick once-over and change her clothes before it was almost seven o’clock. She was coming down the stairs just as the doorbell rang.

  “Robyn! Kristi!” the girls squealed together, hugging as if they hadn’t seen each other in years. It had actually only been two days.

  “Come in, come in!” Kristi said. “Hi, Mrs. DeLong! Merry Christmas! Hello, Mr. DeLong! Come in!” By the time Kristi had taken all their coats the rest of her family had joined them
in the large foyer. There were hugs and handshakes all around. Robyn and her mother were both carrying covered dishes and trays and Mr. DeLong had his arms loaded with brightly colored gifts.

  Headlights turned into the driveway just then, and soon the entire Velasquez family had joined the merry group. “Feliz Navidad! Merry Christmas!” they all greeted one another. The three teenage girls were exclaiming over the pretty new sweaters each other wore, and the women were chattering about the different goodies they had brought. There was a lot of back-slapping and joking going on among the men, and the four younger Velasquez children were jumping up and down in excitement, thrilled to see Kristi and Robyn again. They almost didn’t hear the doorbell ring in all the noise and confusion, but then there were Pete Bennett and his parents, as well. The greetings began all over again.

  Suddenly Steve Cameron laughed. “Hey, why don’t we move this party out of the foyer? Come on, guys! Anyone up for a game of pool?” Kristi’s father hustled the men and boys downstairs to the game room. There was pool, ping-pong, air hockey and plenty of toys and games down there to keep the little ones happy.

  Rachel chuckled as they disappeared down the stairs. “Wow! Peace and quiet, huh? Well, why don’t we ladies all go out to the kitchen and finish getting the food ready, okay? Umm! Daniella, are those your famous tamales I’m smelling? I haven’t tasted them since we were at your father’s ranch in Texas! And, Linda, that cheese and sausage platter looks beautiful!” she said to Robyn’s mother. “Here, let me take the shrimp cocktail from you, Jennifer, and get it into the refrigerator until we’re ready.” She relieved Pete’s mother of one of the trays she was trying to balance and started to lead the women out to the kitchen. “Kristi,” she called over her shoulder, “why don’t you and the girls take all those gifts and put them under the Christmas tree, okay?”

  The girls headed off to the family room, loaded down with gifts and chattering excitedly about the Christmas celebrations they had had the night before and that morning with their families and relatives. A fire was blazing in the fireplace and the huge Christmas tree filled one corner of the great room. “Ooh, how pretty!” Anna and Robyn exclaimed as they entered the room.

  “Your house is always so beautiful, Kristi, but when it’s decorated for Christmas—wow!” Robyn gushed. Candles glowed from every corner, and twinkling lights lent their sparkle to the festive atmosphere.

  “Mom thinks we should make our home and, well, everything in our lives special and beautiful for Christmas, as a praise to the Lord for coming to earth as a baby and then giving His life for our sins on the cross,” Kristi explained. “It’s become important to our whole family, really, and we all enjoy the Christmas traditions and celebrations. Mom was just saying today how much she loves the luminaries, Anna, and that we will have to keep it up as a new family tradition. I think it’s a beautiful remembrance of the Light that came into this dark world to show us the way.”

  “That’s what I like about your family, Kristi. Everything centers around the Lord,” Anna said. “You all find something to praise Him for in everything.”

  “Well, everything we have and are is from the Lord,” Kristi said. “Ooh, look at this cute present!” The girls were placing the gifts under the Cameron’s tree. They were going to do a grab bag exchange between the teens and adults later in the evening. The little Velasquez kids had hit the jackpot, though! The other families had all agreed they wanted the fun of giving to little ones again, so there were several gifts for each of the niños under the tree.

  “This was a great idea,” Robyn said as she put several gift bags beneath a heavily decorated branch. “My mom’s been acting kind of weird, though, all afternoon—like she knows something I don’t know. I haven’t seen her so excited about a party since—since I don’t know when!”

  “My mami, too!” Anna said. “I thought it was just because of the party itself, at first, but then she caught herself several times when she was about to say something, and she kept looking at me kind of—funny.”

  “So, do you think they’re all up to something?” Kristi asked. “I can’t say that I’ve really noticed anything strange about my mom—but then my mom acts goofy all the time, so that would just be normal for her!”

  The girls all giggled. Rachel was fun to be around, and they all knew just how goofy she could be. She was a well-known mystery writer, so she was always up for new experiences, and enjoyed looking at life through the eyes of others.

  Just then Rachel herself called from the kitchen, “Girls, if you’re done in there could you please help carry some of these dishes out to the dining room?”

  “Sure, Mom!” Kristi called back. They went out to the kitchen and looked at the amazing array of appetizers and desserts.

  “Wow!” all three girls said at once. “Ooh, yummy! That looks so delicious!” It didn’t take long with all of them helping to set up a beautiful buffet in the Cameron dining room.

  They didn’t need to call twice for the men and kids to come upstairs. Skeeter was the first to reach the dining room, of course. He yelled, “Whoa! Merry Christmas and Feliz Navidad! Look at all that food! Let’s eat! I’m starved!”

  “Hang on there for a moment, young man!” his father said. “We’re going to ask the Lord’s blessing first.” Steve waited until everyone had gathered around and then he prayed, “Father, we thank you for the Reason we are gathered together to celebrate tonight—your son Jesus Christ. Thank You for sending Your own dear Son to this earth to be our substitute on the cross. When we think of Your precious gift to us, we are amazed and in awe. May our lives be gifts that we give back to You as we love You and serve You until you take us home to be with You in Heaven someday. We thank you, also, for this wonderful group of friends and for the fellowship and food we are enjoying tonight. May we each be a blessing to You and to one another. In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.”

  Skeeter actually helped the little Velasquez children fix their plates before getting his own food. Kristi watched in amusement as her redhead, freckle-faced younger brother offered little Katrina and Miguel one thing after another from the buffet table. The tots held their plates in their chubby little mitts and solemnly looked up at Skeeter with their big brown eyes, nodding their heads or shaking them at each goodie he offered. Finally when their plates were loaded, they flashed huge grins at the older boy and ran off.

  “Skeeter! Those kids are going to be flying with so much sugar on their plates!” Kristi scolded. “There was not one healthy thing there—just cookies and brownies, cake and candy!”

  “Uh-huh! The good stuff!” Skeeter said as he began piling his own plate high. “Aww, Kristi—it’s Christmas! Let the little kids have some fun!”

  “Well, I hope Anna’s folks take you home with them to try to put those kids to bed tonight!” Kristi laughed.

  They set the children at the kitchen table, and the rest of the group gathered in the adjoining family room to enjoy the festive food and fellowship. It had been several days since the Cameron kids had seen their friends, so they had a lot of catching up to do. Robyn was always excited and chatty, but tonight even quiet Anna and Dan’s friend Pete joined in noisily, talking about what their families had done the night before on Christmas Eve, and the celebrating they had done throughout the day before arriving at the Cameron’s house.

  “The skiing was great!” Pete said enthusiastically. “It’s become kind of a Christmas tradition at our house to go up to the mountains over the Christmas holiday. This was the first time we’ve actually been up there for Christmas Eve, though.” Pete was a good athlete, and he and Dan played together on several of their school’s teams, but Pete also excelled academically. His friends called him a walking encyclopedia. He seemed to know a little bit about everything.

  Pete and Dan were opposites in looks—Dan taking after his dad with his blond hair, blue eyes and athletic build, and Pete with his dark-haired good looks. The two teens had been best friends since kindergarten, and were involved
in many activities together, including leading the youth group at church and a Bible study at their high school.

  Anna smiled now at Pete’s enthusiasm. Kristi suspected Anna had a crush on Pete—and Pete felt the same way—but the six teens hung around together as a group. Pete and Anna were both so shy and quiet, it would be years before they would ever admit their feelings!

  Anna was telling about her family’s traditional South American Christmas celebration. Her grandparents had come to the United States from Argentina and Venezuela many years before, but they still honored many of their Latin traditions and customs. Anna had the beautiful dark hair and eyes of her Spanish heritage, and the inner beauty of a girl who really loved the Lord.

  Kristi looked over at Robyn. The perky blonde was bouncing up and down in her seat, anxious to tell about her family’s get-together with relatives the night before at her grandma’s house. She had known Robyn all her life, it seemed. There was never a dull moment when Robyn was around. She loved to laugh, and she loved to talk! Now as Kristi listened to her chat on and on about the Christmas Eve service at church the night before, her Aunt Betty’s cherry cheesecake that had fallen upside down on the sidewalk, and all the gifts she got for Christmas, Kristi chuckled to herself. Robyn was Robyn! Good thing she had gone last, or none of them would have ever gotten a word in edgewise!

  Kristi glanced over at her mother. The four women had their heads together and were looking at the teenagers. Linda DeLong whispered something and Rachel nodded. Then she stood up. She clapped her hands and said loudly, “Did you all get enough to eat? If everyone’s finished, at least for now, why don’t we gather up the plates and things and then open gifts?”

  There was clapping and cheering from the teens, and the four younger Velasquez children jumped up from the table and rushed over to the Christmas tree. They plopped down right in front of it, eagerly awaiting their presents.