With Independence Hall in sight, I sat up in between the front seats
"all right whats the plan how do we go in and not look super suspicious?" I asked
"well there are tours going through every 30 minutes, so all we need to do is follow the tour and slip away to the steeple tower before 2 pm"
I looked at my watch it was 1:22
"well if we want to get the next tour we better get moving it's almost 1:30"
"there" Riley pointed to a parking spot we pulled in and we all climbed out
"Wait, Ben, what if Ian shows up what will we do then?" I asked
"well let's just hope he doesn't"
we walked up the front of Independence Hall it looming over us we stayed near the end of the tour group once as it got going getting to see all of the history and the architecture it almost took my breath away. While the guide was talking away and I was actually interested in what he was saying Ben grabbed my arm pulling me back towards our main goal. We found our way to the steeple tower all the way to the top beyond the trap door we made it to the top after grabbing Abby's hand he grabbed mine and helped me out revealing the big bell above my head.
"what bell is this?" Riley asked climbing up I offered my hand and he took it pulling him up
"It's the Centennial Bell it replaced the Liberty Bell in 1876," Ben said answering his question
we made it the edge of the tower I looked at my watch it showed exactly 2 pm I looked up and down below in between two arched in the roof below was the end of the steeple's shadow
"there" I pointed
"all right I'm gonna go down there and you meet men in the singing room, Alex stay with them"
"ok and Ben" he turned to me
"be safe"
"I will"
"Alright let's go" I followed Abby
from the ladder, I headed Riley claiming the idea his
"It was our idea, Riley!" I went down the ladder with Riley now following me we made it back into the main hall and slipped into another room blending in with another tour group I zoned out looking at all the architecture when the people were leaving I saw Ben walk in past them.
"Hey what did you score?" Riley anxiously asked
"I found this, some kind of ocular device." he passed the glasses to Riley
"The vision to see the treasured past" Both me and Ben happened to say in synch
Ben took the Declaration from Abby and went towards the window the tree of us looked at the glasses while Riley made a nerdy comment about them
"Benjamin Franklin Invented something like these."
Riley passed them to me I opened them up and lifted them up to my eyes seeing the faint blue and red lenses awwing at the amazement of the glasses
"Uh... I think he invented these" Ben replied
"no way" I whispered,
"so, what do we do with them?" Riley asked
"Riley are you serious?" I asked
"you look through it"
I rolled my eyes as they started to unroll the paper once Ben got to the end of it I saw the names all written years ago and their back where they first touched the paper
Riley saw his pause "what" he asked
"It's just that the last time this was here, it was being signed."
"Ben there's another tour coming."
"turn it over"
'running all the fun Riley" I chuckled
"spectacles"
"oh yeah" I passed the spectacles over he put them on looking at the back side of the paper all of us were anxious to hear what was on the back of The Declaration of Independence
"what do you see?" Abby asked
Ben looked lost for words
"what is it? is it the treasure map?!"
"Riley it wouldn't be that obvious," I remarked
"It says 'heere at the wall' spelled with two E's...take a look"
he passed the glasses over Abby taking them with Riley shy of taking a look for himself
"why can't they say go to this place, and here's the treasure, spend it wisely?" Riley sighed
" then that ruins the whole purpose of the hunt" I smiled
I looked over to the window and smacked Bens arm
"we have to go"
Riley ran over to the window "how did they find us?"
Abby passed the glasses to me while she helped ben roll up the Declaration
"Well, Ian has nearly unlimited resources and he's smart"
"I don't think we can get out of here without being spotted"
"Well, we don't want them to have the Declaration or the glasses but we especially don't want them to have both together"
"so what do we do know?" Riley asked
"we separate the lock from the key ....we're splitting up"
YOU ARE READING
National Treasure: unraveling secrets
FanfictionAlexandra Hamilton Gates or "Alex" is an 18-year-old girl who thought she had a normal life a normal mother who works two jobs to provide for them both but she doesn't know is that her biological father is Ben Gates. Alex sneaks out and ends up fin...
