CHAPTER 18
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.”
