it open, to see what Dusty had brought them to
assigned Jason and Matt to carry the treasure
now.
chest (which was how they had all begun to They cleared the whole top of the box
think of the box already). On the second half of
and the first couple inches of the sides. “Let’s
the walk to Dusty’s house, Steve took over for
pull it up,” Dusty said.
Matt. Dusty was excused, according to Steve,
Steve, Jason, and Matt all took
because she had done the hard work of finding
positions at each side of the box and braced
the site of the chest. Matt probably assumed
their fingers around it. Dusty counted to three
Steve gave her this break because she was a
and they all pulled. The box didn’t come all the
girl, but Jason knew the truth. Steve was not
way out the first time, but when they tried
just affectionate toward Dusty, but reverent of
again, they pulled it free.
her. He meant to honor her by letting her lead
It looked—and they could all agree—
them all home, aware of the fact that they were
like a treasure chest. The top was rounded like
richer by one treasure chest full of unknown
they had seen in a thousand illustrations, the
contents thanks to her.
edges carved into simple patterns.
They got the chest into Dusty’s house
They stood in a circle, staring down at
before her parents got home from work,
it. It was plain and brown, and it was locked,
dragged it up the stairs to the attic where she,
not with the kind of shiny, combination locks
Jason, and Steve had already started spending
that they had on lockers at school, but with a
extra time together. They hid it in a corner,
large, old-fashioned padlock.
draped some sheets over it, and left it there.
“We should get it home,” Steve said. This
brought
everyone
around,
which were over the moment they returned
because they had to argue over whose home it
home and were quickly forgotten in the wake
would go to. Matt wanted it at his place, and
of new quests and conquests, the chest didn’t
Dusty wanted it at hers because her parents
go unremembered. They spent the rest of the
never went into her bedroom.
summer trying to get it open. Matt’s first
Steve only let this go on for a couple
suggestion was that they bring it to his house
minutes before he interrupted. “Dusty’s,” he
because he had a window that let out onto the
said. “It will go to Dusty’s house.” Before Matt
roof. “We’ll push it off and it’ll smash open,” he
could offer an argument, he said, “We found it
said, which was no doubt true, but the idea
because of her.”
was immediately voted down by Dusty.
This did seem a more legitimate claim than Matt had, and he didn’t argue. Steve
51
But unlike many of their adventures,