“I hope not. That’s cutting it a little close.” Levi looked at the cluttered closet floor. “Now maybe you can help me make room for this ladder?”
Ten minutes later there was finally enough room to set up the ladder. Levi climbed a few rungs, almost dreading the moment he lifted the hatch. What if the space was empty? He wasn’t so much dreading it for himself—although the windfall from such a find would be more than welcome. He was thinking of Mia. She was so hopeful, and he didn’t want to let her down.
She stood under the ladder, perched on her crutches, anticipation shining in her green eyes.
“Ready or not,” Levi said as he pushed up the drywall cover. Warm, stuffy air assaulted him. The attic was pitch black. He reached for the flashlight in his pocket, clicked it on, and shined it into the darkness.
The space was about ten by twelve, covering the area over his sisters’ room. And it wasn’t empty. There were boxes, stacked high and lining the walls, and a few pieces of furniture. If nothing else, those might be worth something. They must be antiques by now.
“Well?” Mia asked. “Anything up there?”
“Actually, there is. Some boxes and stuff.”
Mia squealed. “I’m coming up.”
He scowled down at her. “No, you are not. I don’t even know how safe the floor is up here.”
“By all means,” Grace called, “go ahead and walk right over top of me then.”
Levi went up the remaining rungs and stepped into the attic space. The air was thick with old dust and stifling heat. His beam of light caught on a hanging string, and he pulled it. Miraculously the lightbulb still worked. He turned his attention to the boxes. They were pretty heavy and looked full. He couldn’t imagine handing them down safely to Mia or Grace.
He spotted a tiny double-hung window on the opposite wall and carefully made his way toward it, hunching over as he went.
“The ceiling’s pretty low,” he called down to Mia. “Even if you could make it up here you wouldn’t be able to use your crutches.”
He unlocked the window and struggled to lift the sash. It was probably on the old weight and pulley system and hadn’t been opened in years.
“Is there a lot of stuff up there?”
“Tons.” He finally managed to lift the sash. He already had a film of sweat on his back. “Too much to tackle tonight.”
“But you’ll get a start on it, right?”
How could he turn down all the hope in that tone? He shook his head, a wry grin tugging his lips. He was becoming a regular dope.
“Would you tell Grace to bring me a fan?”
She didn’t need to pass it on because next thing he knew Grace called out, “Yes, master!”
An hour and a half later Levi was coated in a thick layer of dust plus assorted cobwebs. He’d gone through quite a few boxes, finding all kinds of fascinating old stuff. It was hard to keep from inspecting things. He’d set aside the more interesting items to bring downstairs.
Molly was going to eat this up. She’d returned home earlier on Adam’s boat, sneaking in without trouble, and came upstairs to tell them she’d identified the person who’d given away Mia’s location. It was a tourist, a young woman who’d snapped a photo of Mia getting out of the car out front. The Twitter thread, #MiaEmersonSpotting, had already grown long.
When Molly found out what was going on in her room, her eyes lit up. Another lost-and-found mystery—she’d discovered a lost love letter last year during the renovation.
But before she could get too wrapped up in the adventure, Levi shooed her away. This was going to remain Mia’s and his mystery to solve, thank you very much. Molly only pouted a little as she went downstairs to make a pot of decaf.
Mia had also left. At his encouragement she’d taken breaks from her vigil and was presently in her room, propping her foot.
Levi focused on his task. The good news was, he knew some of the stuff went back to the Livingston era because the newspapers wrapping some of the fragile items were dated. He brushed a cobweb from his hair and let loose a sneeze. If that necklace would turn up sometime soon that would be just dandy.
Grace called from down below sometime later. “Um... hello? I’d really like to go to bed without hearing your big feet tromping overhead.”
Levi checked his watch. It was after eleven. His eyes drifted around the attic. He was only about a fifth of the way through the boxes. The rest would have to wait until tomorrow.
twenty-two
It was suppertime when Levi descended the ladder from the attic.
