Eddy found the chest quick enough, it was in her closet, a big heavy thing that looked ancient, and had a faded Confederate flag emblazoned on the top, a large padlock held it shut. He signaled to Tom who grinned from ear to ear upon seeing the relic. Eddy managed to slide the chest from its resting spot in the closet, but motioned for Tom to come and help him carry it. They both grabbed a handle on the side and began to heft it up. It was Tom who grunted, which in turn woke the old lady. They both stared at her in terror as she rose from the bed reaching for her glasses.

Not only were they unable to restrain her, they were not even able to move. Mrs. Henderson seemed to not even realize what had awakened her at first, she rose putting on her glasses and headed out of the room, and the boys looked at each other, at a loss as to what they should do. They both started to carry the chest out the bedroom, hoping to avoid any conflict whatsoever. They made it into the hallway before realizing the old lady was in the kitchen, blocking their escape through the back door.

They were both starting to sweat from the exertion of carrying the huge chest. Tom indicated with his head that they should go through the front door. As they started to make their way through the front room they heard the sound of shattering glass. They both turned around slowly to look. Mrs. Henderson stood in the hallway staring at them, her empty hand held as though it was still holding onto the glass that was now shattered on the floor. The boys froze again, unsure of which action to take.

Mrs. Henderson never even screamed, she just slumped over, sliding down the hallway walls until she was a crumpled ball on the floor, one foot sticking out at an odd angle. The boys knew she hadn’t feinted, but they dropped the chest with a loud crash and ran over to her still form to check anyways. Tom checked for a pulse while Eddy held his hand in front of her mouth feeling for her breath. Both came up empty handed.

Eddy stood and was about to run when Tom caught him and stared him in the eye. He then pointed to the chest. Eddy nodded and they each grabbed a handle, neither noticing the weight now. They carried it outside neither speaking until they reached their hideout. They didn’t bother to pull it up into the tree, as it was far too heavy. Both sat for a long time staring at the chest and then each other in silence. Finally Eddy climbed up and got some tools to open the chest. Tom just stared at the stars.

Tom took an interest when Eddy snapped the lock off, coming over to see what was inside. Eddy peered inside the chest.

“What is it Eddy?” Tom asked.

“Coupons.” Was all Eddy replied.