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We maneuvered the painting to lean against one wall, agreeing to put it back up a bit later as long as it wasn’t a danger to anyone. And then we moved into the bar, which was quiet and empty that morning. The guests made to follow, but Sasquatch distracted them by suggesting that snowshoeing would be a great activity for the day and leading them back to the adventure shop.
“Okay,” Aubrey said, taking the envelope from Emily and laying it on the bar. “Want to take a picture or anything?” she directed this at Emily, who nodded excitedly and took a few photos of the envelope and the gathered group.
“You get in there too, Archie,” she said, and I stepped next to Aubrey behind the bar, each of us holding one side of the envelope.
“Open it already,” Lucy said. “We’ve been waiting literally years for this.”
It was true, and as my sister carefully opened the envelope, I felt like one door was swinging shut behind us all as another one eked open.
“It’s a letter,” Aubrey said, pulling out a folded piece of paper. “And of course, a movie.” She deposited a reel of film on top of the padded and taped envelope.
“Of course,” Monroe laughed. “Your uncle loved his movies.”
“He did,” I agreed.
“Read the letter,” Wiley suggested. “Or, uh, do you guys want to do it alone?” He looked between his wife and me.
Aubrey and I exchanged a look, and then she looked around at the gathered group. “You guys are family,” she said. “Andyou’ve been as much a part of this as we ever were. This letter is for us all.”
She unfolded the letter and handed it to me to read. I caught Emily’s excited gaze and cleared my throat, and then looked down at Uncle Marvin’s letter.
The paper was time-worn, yellow, and I wondered again how long ago Uncle Marvin had put the entirety of the hunt together for us to find. I pictured him, bent over the map as he drew it, cackling as he hid away various notes and keys, scrawled out his poem on the wall upstairs. There were times during the hunt when I’d become convinced there was no real point to it, that he was just a doddering old man keeping himself busy. But now? I was more convinced than ever that he’d planned every detail carefully, trusting us to follow the path he set down.
I cleared my voice and read aloud, pausing here and there over Uncle Marvin’s shaky scrawl.
Dear Aubrey and Archie:
I’m impressed. But I shouldn’t be. I didn’t set this whole thing up with a mind that you’d never figure it out. And you kids were always too smart for your own good.
Well, in case you’re concerned this might be just one more clue to lead you off traipsing through the woods outside, be assured: This is the end. This is the treasure.
Not this letter so much as what it represents.
It is my hope that the two of you carried out the hunt together as a team, and my even greater desire that you gathered teammates along the way, as a snowball builds on the way down the slope.
I hope that along the way you may have already discerned what the real treasure in life will always prove tobe, but there is a chance you’re still in the dark about that particular truth.
You’ve learned about me, about my life and my love—won at great cost from a man who I’d once believed to be a friend. But the money he stole from me didn’t matter once Lola was in my arms.
My wish for you both—for all of you—is that you’ll know that kind of love in your lives. Because that is the only real treasure I have to offer.
I’ve loved you both as best I could, and through the pages and trails of this hunt, I’ve given you what I know about finding love. The last thing I have for you is this movie—not one of the ones I made back in the day with Rudy you-know-who. This one is new. Never seen before. And probably not very good.
But I know it will be meaningful to you. And I hope you’ll watch it with those you love most as you all unearth the greatest treasure the world provides us: one another.
I love you kids with all my heart,
Your Uncle Marvin
There was something in those words that hit me hard—maybe it was the recent realization that love was something I might actually attain. Something I might have already discovered.
I swallowed hard and looked up at my sister, whose shining eyes met mine. And then I glanced at Emily, who also looked affected, her cheeks rosy and her eyes teary.
“Well, fuck,” Sasquatch said, sniffing and rubbing his eyes. He’d come back in just as I’d begun to read.
The tension broke then, and everyone laughed, exchanging looks and pats on the back along with hugs. Relief was a palpable thing—the hunt was over, or almost so, and that meant we’dachieved an objective. It felt like victory and I let the glee of the win sink into my skin.
“Should we go watch the movie?” Aubrey asked, holding up the reel of film.
