At least his wet blanket hadn’t dimmed her spirit. He couldn’t stand it if that happened. “All right then.”
Hours later he was ready to give up. They’d moved every damn piece of wall board and debris in the place. Of course the basement was huge and ran the whole length of the building but only parts of it were filled. They’d checked out the otherrooms as well.
“Maybe we should give up,” he said as he leaned against the railing for the stairs on the west end of the mill. These would need fixing as well. The stairs themselves had fallen apart and the wood lay scattered allaround nearby.
Wiping a strand of hair from her face, Heather sighed. She didn’t want to stop, he could tell. And he’d keep going if she asked. He was beginning to think he’d do most anything for her. The last week had been the best time he’d ever spent with anyone. He hadn’t even cared that her makeup littered his counter in the bathroom or that she had the habit of leaving half-empty water bottles all over the place. She was great company in all ways. And not only in bed, though that part had been fuckin’ amazing. Conversation flowed easily between them, serious and humorous. Making fun of herself was something she did as muchas teasing him.
“I hate to leave,” she said as she shone the flashlight at him. “There’s got to be something here. It doesn’t make sense otherwise.” The beam cut through the darkness in this part of the basement. Most of the lights here didn’t work. It flickered behind him and she stepped closer, her head tilting.
“What is that behind you?”
Scott turned around surveying the broken lumber. “All this debris?”
“No, there’s something shiny under the wood.”
Taking his own flashlight, he shined it on the trash and then pushed aside a few pieces to see what she was talking about. Under the stairs was a small trap door. He pulled on it, but it stuck. Then he saw the large lock holding the door in place. And the door wasn’t made of the old timber much of the other doors were. It was steel and attached withsturdy hinges.
“Looks like we may have discovered what is so interesting about this place.”
As she approached, Heather rested against his back, almost like she was using him as a shield. No problems there. He’d risk his life for hers. Of that he had no doubt.
“Can we open it?”
“Not with these tools. I’ll need something stronger. Possibly even a power saw. Although a .45 might do it quickly enough.”
“Do you have a .45?”
He nodded. “I think we can try bolt cutters first. The gun will be a last resort. There’s always the chance of the bullet ricocheting around the room and hurting one of us.”
“Can we go get the tools right now?” Her eyes almost glowed in the darkness.
Glancing at his watch, he said, “It’s already seven. It’ll take us a while to get them and return. I don’t want to start messing around down there this late. Who knows what we’ll find. We can come back during the day.”
“Not tomorrow. We’ve got the party to go to.”
“But that’s not until night, correct?”
“Yeah, but I don’t have a formal gown to wear so I need to go shopping. And there’s no way you’re going down there exploring without me.”
Whatever was down there had been there for a while. It certainly wasn’t going anywhere.It could wait.
“If you’re not too hung over from this big soiree, we can come back Sunday.”
“Oh, I won’t be. I’ll make sure to keep my eye on howmuch I drink.”
Slipping his hand into her hair, he leaned in, whispering in her ear, “I don’t know, I kind of like you drunk. That night at Chris and Meg’s wedding is one I don’t think I’ll ever forget.”
“Except I don’t remember it, you ass.”
“Get drunk again and I’ll make sure you don’t forget this one. I can go all night long until you remember every touch.”
