HE DOCUMENT LOOKED ancient.

A glass barrier covered the cabinet drawer, making it hard to read details. But what I could see piqued my imagination. And then some.

The map was sketched on a square foot of crinkly brown paper, now pinned at the corners to a cloth backboard. Squiggly lines formed a central image that appeared to be an island.

Script ran across the top of the page, but in the dim light I couldn’t read the words. The bottom left-hand corner had an odd illustration of some kind. A skull and crossbones adorned the bottom right.

No problem interpreting that one. Danger. Stay away.

“This is made of hemp.” Shelton was reading the brass placard affixed to the case. “The whole map is pure dope.”

“You guys are storing illegal drugs in here?” Hi shook his head. “It’s my civic duty to turn you in.”

“Too true,” Chris said. “But you may want to call Washington. The Declaration of Independence is written on the same stuff.”

I ignored the banter. Though tantalizingly close, the map was still obscured and unreadable.

“Is there any way to … you know … remove it?” I asked.

“Sorry.” Sallie pointed to bulbs set inside the casing. “Usually the drawer light comes on, and we have overheads. But without power, this is the best we can do.”

“It’ll still be here in the spring,” Chris said lightly. “Gives you a reason to come back.”

“But I need to see it now.” Sharp. I immediately regretted my tone.

“Why now?” Chris’s eyebrows rose. “You plan on tracking down the treasure this weekend?”

“Who says we couldn’t?” Ben snapped.

Chris raised a hand in a placating gesture. “I’m sure you could. But it’s been almost three hundred years. What’s the rush?”

Patronizing? Ben’s face said that was his take.

“No rush.” I chuckled for effect. “I’m just the impatient type.”

“We’re big history buffs.” Shelton stepped in front of Ben. “Solving mysteries is our hobby. We’re good at it.” Big toothy grin.

“Let me know when you find it,” Sallie said dryly.

“If you guys like history, Sallie and I run a ghost tour downtown.” Chris pulled a flyer from his back pocket. “Lots of mysteries along our route. Pirate stuff, too.”

“Cool.” I accepted the handout. “We’ll have to check it out sometime.”

“Weeknights at seven sharp,” Sallie said, “Saturdays at eight and ten. All tours subject to having enough people to make the trip worth going.”

Chris’s phone beeped sharply. Repeated.

“That’s my cue,” Chris said. “Cole and I are reorganizing the colonial ceramics. He must think I skipped town. Nice to meet you guys.”

“Thank you!” I called to his retreating back.

Sallie closed the drawer, then the bureau doors.

“And I’ve left the front desk unmanned for too long.” Sallie clasped her palms together. “Anything else I can direct you fine folks to today?”

Bye-bye treasure map. I hardly knew ye.

“No, you’ve been great.” I was reluctant to leave, but couldn’t think of an excuse to linger. “We’ll get out of your hair.”

“No, no!” Sallie waved both hands. “Stay. No one else is here. Just please unplug that extension cord when you leave.”

“Oh my gosh, thanks! We won’t be long.”

“No problem. I know what it’s like when you want to scope something with your friends, and the lame employee won’t leave you alone.”

The boys made protest noises.

“Sure, sure.” Sallie pulled at the curtains until a gap appeared. “Just don’t steal any artifacts. Or burn the place down.”

“Thanks again!” I repeated.

Sallie’s heels clicked down the hallway.

“And like that,” Hi snapped his fingers, “she left me. My life is so tragic.”

“My heart bleeds for you,” Shelton said. “But she was way more into me.”

“That guy was an ass,” Ben grumbled.

“She didn’t lock up,” I whispered.

They all looked at me. So?

“The bureau door.” I pointed. “The drawer. She didn’t lock them. Chris left first, and he has the keys.”

No change. So?

“We can examine the treasure map.” I gestured with annoyance. “The glass case is unlocked!”

“Yes.” Hi didn’t move.

“We can examine it,” Shelton said carefully. “In the case.”

Ben looked beyond dubious.

“What?” I may have sounded a wee bit petulant.

“I know what you’re thinking,” Hi said.

“Oh? Do you?”

“No.” Ben shook his head. “Not a chance.”

“No what? I just want to study the map.”

“We are not stealing that thing!” Shelton hissed.

“No way!” Hi echoed. “Nyet. Nein. Non.”

“Oh come on. I just want to look at it! Quit being so dramatic.”

Ignoring their disapproval, I opened the bureau, pulled out the drawer, and leaned close.

No good. Too dark. I needed better light and more time.

I glanced over my shoulder. Ben, Shelton, and Hi stood behind me, shoulder to shoulder. Scowling. A solid wall of opposition.

Deep breath.

“Guys …”

“Absolutely not!”

“Crazy woman!”

“I just got out of trouble!”

Okay. Bad start.

Hi ran a hand through his hair. “Look, I’m as excited about some girl-on-girl pirate action as anyone could be—”

“Oh, real nice!” I cut in, but Hi rolled right over me.

“—and would love to go treasure hunting all day, but you’ve officially lost it. This is not a realistic idea!”

“You’re talking about stealing an artifact from the Charleston Museum!” Shelton’s eyes darted to the curtains. “There must be alarms, cameras, motion sensors. We won’t get ten feet!”

“Look around.” I dropped all pretense of not plotting a robbery. “There’s no power in here! Just extension cords. No electricity, no security.”

It was true. The wall cameras were clearly down. Inside the glass case, the sensor lights were inactive.

“No one’s been in this room in months.” I ran a finger through the layer of dust coating a nearby case. “You heard Chris. This exhibit won’t reopen until spring. We’ll return the map before anyone notices it’s missing.”

“Chris will notice when he comes back to lock the bureau,” Hi said.

“Shelton can use one of his pick thingies and secure the drawer behind us,” I countered. “We only need the map long enough to copy it, or make some sense of it. Plus, Chris might not even remember.”

“No.” Ben stepped forward. “Too much risk, and for what? This isn’t a freaking Disney movie. We aren’t really going to find buried treasure. Grow up.”

“Then let’s all say our good-byes now, because I am out of ideas!”

Tears threatened, but I fought them back.

Right now, I needed to bully.

“This is it, guys.” One by one, I met their eyes. “Our parents can’t fix it. Money won’t fall from the sky. We either give this a shot, or call it a life. We’ll each have to deal with the flares on our own.”

Dead silence. Seconds. Minutes. Hours?

“Crap.” Shelton rubbed his forehead with one hand.

“Victoria Brennan, you are the worst influence in the history of high school friends.” Hi covered his face with both hands. “How many felonies are we up to now? Three? Six? Ten?”

Ben locked his eyes on mine for a long moment. Then, “How?”

“How do you think?”

I smiled, then slapped him full across the face.

“Ow!” Ben’s eyes blazed in the gloom. “Warn me next time!” he said with an inhaled breath.

“Then it wouldn’t work.” Hi’s irises flashed to yellow. “You’re not skilled like me.” But a sheen of sweat betrayed Hi’s bravado. He knew how unstable the powers could be. How easily one could lose control.

“Stupid, stupid, stupid!” Shelton trembled as the flare fired through him. “Fear still gets it done. Got plenty of that right now.”

I blocked the others out. Reaching deep, I tried to tap into my canine DNA.

Nothing.

Then …

SNAP.

Heat coursed through my body. My skin roiled with the torture of a thousand bee stings. Sweat burst from my pores. Teeth clenched, I grimaced as the wolf came out.

“You okay?” Hi asked.

“Fine,” I panted. “It was worse this time.”

“We shouldn’t be doing this!” Shelton whined. “It’s playing with fire!”

“More like Russian roulette.” Hi shuddered. “I’ll watch the door.”

“I’ll join you,” Ben said.

I quickly scanned the room, my gaze lasering through the shadows. The exhibit now seemed lit up like a Broadway show.

“Help me with the drawer case,” I said to Shelton.

“It’s a very simple lock,” Shelton tapped the side. “The key would go here. They must rely on high-tech sensors.”

“Let’s hope I’m right about the electricity. Open.”

Shelton popped the case with preternatural speed.

We froze. No screaming alarm.

I lifted the glass and removed the pins. Still nothing. Rolling the map as tightly as I dared, I reached to slide it under the back of my shirt.

Ben strode over and held out a hand. “Give it to me.”

“Why?”

He snatched the map from my grip. “No point in you getting busted if this fiasco falls apart.” Ben jabbed a finger at Shelton. “Bolt this thing up and we’re out of here.”

“All clear,” Hi whispered from beside the curtains. His voice boomed in my supersonic ears. “But hurry, my head is spinning!”

“Done.” Shelton pocketed his lock-pick set and rushed next to Hi. We waited as he cocked his head toward the hallway. Best ears.

“Okay,” he said. “Let’s bounce.”

We hurried down the hall, trying to look natural.

My flare raged like a caged animal, barely in check. Was it adrenaline? Or was the virus wreaking havoc inside me? My steps quickened.

“Sunglasses,” I whisper-barked.

Four sets of shades went on. Screw how we’d look to anyone inside.

Luck was with us. We encountered no one. No guards. No gawking tourists. No Sallie manning the desk by the doors.

“Almost there,” I hissed.

Like theatergoers leaving a movie, we strolled into the fading afternoon light. Rounded a corner. Cool as cucumbers. Casual as Friday.

I’m not sure who broke first, but my money’s on Shelton.

We ran. It started slow, then spread like wildfire. A light trot became a full-on sprint. Pent-up energy surged through my muscles as I tore down the sidewalk.

SNUP.

We didn’t slow until we reached the dock, breathless, our flares extinguished. Together we flopped to the wooden planks.

“I had a future once.” Hi’s color was an alarming scarlet. “College. Ph.D. Nobel Prize. World’s Sexiest Man.” He waved one hand aimlessly. “Now I’m just a thief. A good one, at least. Thank God.”

“And a dog-boy.” Shelton used his shirt to wipe sweat from his glasses. “Don’t forget that.”

“Right. Genetic freak. Can’t leave that off the list.”

Ben popped both their heads. “Dorks.”

I ignored them. One thought ricocheted through my mind.

We have the map. We have the map. We have the map.

I didn’t know what tomorrow would bring, but today was progress.

Right?

Toward the west, the sun was sliding into the murky orange depths of the inland marshes. Lights were flickering on. Around us, insects were beginning their evening symphony.

Peaceful. Quiet. Calm made whole.

Baby steps. Keep moving forward.

Tomorrow we’d take my reckless scheme to the next level.

Somehow, make it work.

We had to.

We had no other choice.