Page 77 of Disarming Caine

“Exactly. Irene said they recently renovated it, which explained the drywall dust I saw near roughly where that dormer should be, but—”

“They just covered it up and there are probably stolen paintings in there?”

“Possibile. Do we call Special Agent Skinner now? Or wait for the showing and take a closer look?”

The excitement bouncing around in me fell to the background. Elliot had told me more than once that Antonio and I made a good team. The auction painting, the fake Chagall, the stolen relics in Naples, and now today… wewerea good team.

“Bella? What next?”

“Right.” A smile started in my chest and spread outward. A good team. But teamwork meant business. I had to get back to business. “It’s Sunday. I’ll call him tomorrow and get his thoughts. I’ll go through Lucy’s photos again to compare against the paintings from the LA theft and—” My phone rang. Lucy. “—see if the third painting’s in there somewhere.”

He answered the phone through the stereo system. “Ciao, Lucy!”

“Antonio! Is Sam there?”

“I’m here Luce, what’s up?”

She let out a high-pitched squeal that had Antonio turning down the volume. “I did it!”

“Did what?”

“The five-point-six top rope!”

“No way! That’s amazing! You went to the climbing gym without me?”

“You told me if I didn’t practice every week, I’d never be ready to go out for real with you. Paul was worried when you weren’t there. First Sunday you’ve missed in eleven weeks.”

Antonio cocked an eyebrow. “Paul?”

I nodded. “Owner of the rock-climbing gym. Good guy, but a bit of a stickler for the rules.”

Lucy laughed. “Sam started climbing the top-rope wall last week without her harness, and he—”

“That’s enough, Luce.”

“I’m on my way out from the gym. But I’ve got other news!”

“On the Constable house?”

“Yeah! I did some canvassing yesterday. Non-digital snooping!” The sound of a door, a whoosh of air, and she cursed the cold. “The owner, Felicia, has two kids, a toddler and a teen, and she’s rushing it to market. Two neighbors were saying they’re pissed the price was set so low, because it’ll drag down values. It’s roughly fourteen percent below where it should be.”

“Any theories on why?” I asked.

“You know, coming in your truck is way better than driving myself. Your truck’s always warm by the time we get to it!”

Antonio said, “Mi dispiace, Lucy. I promise to leave soon enough for her to join you next Sunday.”

One week? How would he be gone again in one week?

He smiled and ran a hand along my cheek, probably thinking the same thing I had. I held the hand there and nestled against it.

There was a hum on the other end of the phone call and the hairs on the back of my neck stood up. “Lucy? You’re strangely quiet.”

“There’s a car circling the lot, but… I’ve been spending too much time with you. Seeing bad guys everywhere.”

Lucy saw the best in everyone. An eternal optimist. If she was worried, something was wrong.

Goosebumps crawled up my arms. Theydidhave the wrong guy locked up.

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