Chapter 34 – Lily #3
“I guess it would be a pretty good way to get bodies no one is looking for. People deliver them for cremation, they send some random bag of ashes, and they have an unlimited supply of skeletons. I’m sure there are plenty of rich sickos who would pay top dollar for a real jeweled skeleton.”
“Gross.” I shudder. “Could be why the animals go for so much. To cover the price of the real pieces people are buying.”
“And if they want access to specific bodies…” Aster says, pointing to our deceased Brit on the board. “They can get them with no red tape.”
“You know…” I walk over to a bookshelf and grab the bejeweled skull I stole from Vetrel.
“I think your theory regarding this being someone’s actual head might be dead on.
” Rolling it over in my hands, avoiding the knife sticking out, I try to find any hint of if it’s real or fake, but it’s completely encased in gems. “How would we be able to tell?”
Aster extends a hand and takes the object from me. He glances into the eye and nose sockets. “We’re going to have to bust it to do a burn test on the exposed bone inside.”
“A burn test?”
“Yeah, if it’s real, it’ll just char a little and have a smell like burning meat or hair.”
My nose scrunches. “And if it’s fake?”
“It’ll likely melt and have a burnt rubber or plastic smell.”
“Well, I guess good thing Vetrel is dead so it doesn’t matter that I’m busting his million-dollar art piece.” Although I am a bit concerned the creep might haunt me, but it wouldn’t be the first time I dealt with ghosts from my past. “Do you think the stones are real?”
“Maybe, but I’d bet the value is in the body, not the bling.”
Aster walks out of the research room into the open basement, and I trail after him. He rummages around in a corner, and my eyes catch on the freezer. “Can I ask you something?”
He pauses, looking my way. “Yes?”
I gesture to the metal box. “You ever keep bodies in there?”
“Do you really want the answer to that?”
“Haven’t you ever heard the saying about wanting to know if someone has skeletons in their closet?”
“Pretty sure that’s a metaphor,” he says with a laugh.
“Well, I want to know if you’ve had bodies in your basement.”
“I try to avoid bringing victims here as often as possible. Evidence trails and all that.”
“That’s not a no.”
He cocks a brow. “Don’t you want to have plausible deniability?”
“You can tell me the truth,” I assure him. “I’d lie on a witness stand for you.” And for some insane reason, I mean it.
A smile spreads across his face, and he straightens to stand with a hammer in one hand and the skull in the other. “That’s the most romantic thing anyone’s ever said to me.”
I choke a laugh. “Maybe I should swap my dagger for cupid’s bow.”
His eyes trail my body, and he drinks me in. “I’m still waiting for the part of the night where I get to rip this dress off.”
“And you’re going to be waiting a while longer.” I pluck the “art” out of his hands, and he groans. “Now, where should we do the honors?” He gestures to the ground, and I set it on the concrete of the unfinished basement.
“Step back,” he instructs, and I retreat. With a single swing, the skull busts into pieces. He retrieves one of the fragments, presenting it my way. The inner side is a yellowish off-white color and free of gems.
“Do you think the residue from the glue or stones will affect the test?”
“For the smell, maybe, but it wouldn’t change if the skull melts or not.” He grabs a few items off a working bench. Gripping the edge of the piece with a cloth, he holds it gem-free side down, then ignites the lighter in his hand. “Here goes nothing.”
The flame waves near the skull, using the bone as a ceiling. After about thirty seconds and a faint putrid scent, he stops the flame so we can check our hypothesis.
Flipping the skull over, we both peer closely at the burn mark. He retrieves a switch blade from his pocket, and it clicks open. With the tip, he presses against the spot, then sniffs it.
“Well, it definitely didn’t melt,” Aster says, showing me the knife tip, which only contains a bit of ash.
“Could it be porcelain or another material?”
“Unlikely.” He hands me the fragment. “The inner skull would look much different.”
“So we now have shattered bedazzled human remains on your floor?”
We glance down, then both take a step back. “It appears so.”
“What should we do with it? Do you think we should bring Liam in?”
“Hell no,” Aster scoffs as if I’ve offended him. “Absolutely not.”
“Well, don’t we want to find out who this head belongs to?”
“I’m less concerned with who this is and more concerned with why the Westerfords have Vetrel’s body.” Aster retrieves a dustpan and broom.
“We can be curious about two things at once,” I argue as he deposits the broken pieces into a black trash bag.
“We’re not bringing Liam into this.” His tone is firm.
“Why not?” I ask, folding my arms across my chest.
“Because I don’t trust him.”
“I didn’t trust you a few weeks ago, and look at us now.”
“Maybe I’ve been blinded by lust.” He winks, and my jaw drops open. Does he really not trust me?
“Wow! Rude.” I stomp off to the research room and stew in silence until he appears a minute later.
“I’m kidding,” he assures me, grabbing my hand, and I yank away. “Lily.” He places a finger under my chin and tips it towards him. His green eyes bore into mine, and damn it, he makes it so hard to stay mad. “I promise, I’m kidding.”
I don’t know why I’m acting so offended. There’s still a part of me that doesn’t trust him either… I suppose it’s a bit hypocritical considering I have a whole ass anonymous caller I haven’t told him about.
“I should make you grovel.”
He grins. “Don’t tempt me with a good time.”