Chapter 18 Luke
Luke
Within a half an hour of Mina retreating to the coffeeshop, the steady thud of hammers and the scrape of crowbars echoed off the rapidly disappearing plaster walls.
Dust filled the air, and I knew I already had a coat of it in my hair, but I didn’t care.
After the hard stop to this project last week, it was nice to see progress made.
Currently, I worked in the back room with two of my guys. It was time for the long row of built-in cabinets with their Formica counter to go.
Jamming my demo fork between the cabinet base and the wall, I pushed. Boards creaked and the screws holding it in place screeched, protesting as I forced them from the studs.
The cabinet popped free, and we pulled it away from the wall.
“Should we break this up?” my crewman, Chris, asked.
I eyed the cabinet, gauging whether it would fit in the dumpster whole. Regardless, it would take up a lot of space if we left it like it was. “We should probably smash it.”
A devilish grin dashed across Chris’s face. He raised a sledgehammer over his head. “On it, boss.”
Laughing, I stepped back as the wood splintered.
The three of us made quick work of breaking it down. I leaned my demo fork against the wall and bent to scoop up several long boards.
A glint of gold caught my attention. “What the hell is that?” Brushing pieces of splintered wood away from the object, I plucked it from the dust.
It was an earring. Rather plain in its design, the teardrop curve held a single red stone in the center. I turned it over. The small “M” engraved there made my heart stutter.
Ozzie was going to love this.
I glanced at Chris. “Go get Mina.”
Without question, Chris dropped the sledge and took off through the building.
“What did you find?” My crew foreman, Kado, walked over, a curious frown on his dusty face.
I showed him the earring. “I think it might be from the dead woman we found in the wall last week.” Flipping it over, I showed him the “M.” “Her name was Moira.”
Kado muttered a soft curse. “You think we’ll have to stop work again?”
My mouth pressed into a tight, firm line. “Not sure. Hopefully not.” I looked down at the debris on the floor. “Let’s see if there’s a match somewhere.”
That’s how Mina found us a few minutes later.
“Luke?”
Lifting my head, I met her concerned gaze from my crouched position. “Hey. I hate to be the bearer of bad news again, but we need to call Ozzie.”
She groaned. “What did you find?”
I rose and opened my hand, showing her the earring clutched in my palm. “It was on the floor after we pulled the cabinet away from the wall. I think it was wedged behind it.”
A bit of a frown marred her face. “An earring? Why does that warrant a call to Ozzie?”
I turned it over and pointed at the marking. “Because of this.”
Squinting, she leaned in. I knew the moment she realized the significance. Her eyebrows slammed together and she straightened. “Dammit.” With a harsh sigh, she pulled her phone from her pocket. Stabbing at the screen, she lifted it to her ear.
She didn’t have to put it on speaker for me to hear Ozzie’s gruff voice.
“Hey, can you come back?” Mina said. “We found something you need to see.”
I heard Ozzie’s short response but couldn’t make out the words. A moment later, she hung up. “He’ll be here in a few minutes.”
Turning, I looked at my crew. “Take a break. Tell the others.”
The two men nodded and headed for the doorway to the front of the building.
“This better be a coincidence,” Mina muttered as they left.
Closing my hand around the earring, I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her close. “Even if it’s not, I think it’ll be fine. I looked through the debris and only saw the one. It’s probably just a one-off.”
She tucked her face into my shoulder and nodded. “I hope so.”
“Come on.” I leaned away. “Let’s go wait out front for our angry detective friend.”
Chuckling, she took my hand. “Okay.”
A few minutes after we emerged out front, Ozzie pulled up again, parking the same haphazard way as before, storm clouds in his eyes.
“We didn’t even make it an hour.” He slammed the truck door and strode toward the sidewalk.
“I know, but I’m hopeful this is it. There aren’t too many other places for things to hide.” I held out my hand and opened my fist, revealing the earring.
Ozzie’s sharp gaze took it in. “Why are you calling me about an earring? This was an antique store.”
“Look at the back.”
Giving me a skeptical look, he took a disposable black glove from his pocket and put it on, then plucked the piece of jewelry from my leather-clad hand, turning it over.
“Oh, hell.” The storm clouds multiplied when he saw the engraving. Reaching into another pocket of his cargo pants, he produced a small evidence bag.
“Do you think it was Moira’s?” Mina asked.
“Possibly. I’ll have to ask her family. It could be nothing.” He dropped it into the clear bag, then pierced me with a direct look. “Did you look for a match?”
“Yes. I didn’t see one. Do you want to look?” I hooked a thumb toward the store.
He nodded. “Show me where you found it.”
The three of us filed inside, past my crew, who were sitting on the floor, sipping coffee while they waited. Their conversation ceased, and they eyed Ozzie as we walked past.
In the back room, I pointed to the rubble on the floor. “It was in all that after we smashed up the cabinet.”
Ozzie dropped to his haunches and poked at the splintered wood and dust. “Did you carry anything out to the dumpster?”
“No. We didn’t get the chance.”
Nodding absently, he turned back to the debris. Finally, after a minute, he rose.
“Was this the last thing to come off the walls before you knock down the wall?” Ozzie pointed to the remnants of the cabinet on the floor.
“Yes,” I said.
“Okay. Let me get my evidence kit, and I’ll photograph all this, then you can get back to work.”
Mina’s shoulders visibly slumped. “Seriously? You’re not going to shut us down?”
“No.” He spread his arms out and looked around the space.
“Where else are things going to hide? All that’s left are the floors and walls.
From what we could tell when we processed the building, she wasn’t killed here.
There was no evidence of a bloodstain anywhere except in the wall and right in front of it.
There’s no reason for me to continue to hold you up.
Unless”—he raised a finger—“you find another body or the murder weapon. Then, I’ll shut you down in a heartbeat. ”
“Noted.” Mina’s head bobbed an affirmative. “Go get your stuff.” She shooed him toward the door with one hand.
A smile flirted with his face. “I’m going, I’m going.”
She grinned. “I don’t want to give you a chance to change your mind.”
“Trust me,” he tossed over his shoulder. “I don’t want to be back here any more than you want me here. I’ve got plenty of other work—on this case and on others—to keep me busy.”
We crossed the threshold into the front of the store.
“You guys can work out here until I give you the all-clear,” Ozzie tossed over his shoulder.
“Got it, thanks.” I gave him a quick thumbs-up.
He walked away, and I shared a look with Mina. “Well, that went better than expected.”
She chuckled, the sound relieved. “One hundred percent.”
“Are you gonna hang around until he’s done?” I tipped my head toward the door where Ozzie disappeared.
“Probably, yeah. Just to make sure he doesn’t need anything from me.”
A wicked smile spread over my face. I took two steps toward the wall and picked up a spare demo fork. “I’m gonna put you to work.”
An answering, sassy smile bloomed, reaching her eyes. “Yeah?” She took the tool. “Just make sure you point me away from where any more bodies could be hiding.”
With a laugh, I pecked a kiss on her cheek. “Sure thing.”