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Sam said, “Selma, the word in the last line—coins”
“It’s spelled Q-U-O-I-N-S”
“You’re sure that’s it?”
“We’re sure I triple-checked it myself, then had Pete and Wendy do the same Why?”
“ ‘Quoin’ is an architectural ters: It’s a keystone of an arch or exterior cornerstone”
“But to what?” Remi said
“That’s the million-dollar question We have to assume it’s answered in the rest of the riddle”
“Unless it refers to any of its otherand naval warfare The first is a device used to hold handset type in place The second is a type of block used to raise and lower the barrel of a cannon”
“A block?” Ree?”
“Yes, I think so”
“So it has soes”
“If we take the s literally,” Sam replied “But if they’re e can either support or separate objects Same with a cornerstone”
“We need the rest of the context,” Reet to work, Selma, thanks”
“TwoLaurent’s diary as we go along, and I think we’ve got the answer to a couple of our mini mysteries First, I’ve found out why he and Napoleon bothered with a code and riddle instead of just aX on it
“According to Laurent, Napoleon fell into a depression soon after he reached Saint Helena He’d escaped exile on Elba only to get defeated four ht his fate was sealed He was sure he’d die in exile on Saint Helena”