Page 24 of Family Ties and Alibis

“Hey.”

Elvira jerked back, clutching her chest.

“Sorry.”

“You scared the crap out of me.”

Dernice clambered down the steps. “What are you doing?”

“Trying to fix the crack in my wall.”

Her sister appeared skeptical. “How are you going to do that?”

“The first step is to remove the loose cement. It seems like the more I try to clear it out, the bigger it grows. Watch.” Elvira slid the brush into the crack. A chunk fell out.

“You’re definitely making it worse.”

“Maybe I should mix up the mortar and try to seal it the best I can.”

“I’ll help.”

Working together, the sisters mixed the mortar and filled the special caulking gun that came with the kit. After filling it, Elvira attempted to stick the nozzle into the crack. As luck would have it, the end was too wide. “Great. The nozzle is too wide.”

“I think you should stop trying to fix it yourself and hire a professional.”

Elvira ignored the comment. “Maybe I’m not using enough force.” Wiggling the metal tip back and forth, she shoved it in as far as she could.

Snap. A sharp snapping noise ricocheted around the room.

Elvira froze. “Did you hear that?”

“It sounds like the wall is coming down.”

A second snap, this one muffled and farther away, followed the first.

“I should’ve taken your advice.” Elvira scrambled to her feet and rushed Rambo up the steps. They reached the landing and stopped, bracing for a third snap.

“Maybe we should go out into the alley and check for exterior damage,” Dernice suggested. “If the building buckles, at least we’ll be outside.”

The women hurried into the alley and began making their way toward the parking lot.

Elvira finished a thorough exterior inspection and dusted her hands. “False alarm.”

“But you’ve given up on the idea of fixing the wall yourself,” her sister insisted.

“I’m on the fence. I mean, clearly the crack hasn’t gotten any worse.”

“That you know of.”

Tinkle. Pop.

Elvira spun around, facing Carlita’s building—her pawn shop on the left-hand side, Ravello’s Italian Eatery at the far right, with her apartment building sandwiched in between.

Dernice was the first to discover where the breaking sound was coming from. She darted across the alley. “Carlita’s basement window is busted out.”

A sick feeling settled in the pit of Elvira’s stomach. Careful to steer clear of the broken glass, she knelt next to the window, noticing a hairline crack running from the corner of the window all the way to the ground. “I’m finding a concrete specialist right now. Hopefully, he makes emergency house calls.”

Chapter 10