Page 666 of Cold Case, Warm Hearts

She took a deep breath. “Like I told you, I found this in the sawmill. It was lying on the ground, right next to where Clyde and Jerrold had that big blow up.”

He nodded. “Uh-huh. That was last week. Why are you just now bringing this in?”

“I didn’t know what it was at first. I shoved it in my pocket. I left it lying on my bookshelf at home.”

His eyebrow lifted, and she became flustered. “When Ginger came for a visit. Remember my friend Ginger? The one I introduced you to?”

“I remember.”

“Well, Ginger saw it and asked me where I got it. She told me that it was a device used for taking meth.”

“And how did Ginger know what it was?”

“Ginger’s husband is a police officer.”

“Oh, I see.”

“Do you?” Her voice became louder. “Do you really understand what this means? I’ve been busting my tail, trying to get all the safety issues cleared up, and all the while those lugheads in the mill have been high on drugs. It all makes sense now.”

“Just a minute. Don’t you think you’re jumping the gun here?”

Her brazen eyes met his. “Am I?”

He picked up the drug apparatus. “First of all, you should’ve never taken this home.”

“I already told you why I?—”

“That’s not good enough, Syd.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, if you’d brought this to my attention last week, then I could’ve confronted the men. Now, there’s not much I can do except keep my eye on them.”

“You could test them for drug use.”

“On what grounds?”

“I just gave you a good reason.”

“It’s a little late in the game for that, don’t you think? If I pull Clyde and Jerrold in here and demand that they go through testing, they’d start yelling discrimination so fast my head would spin.” He shook his head. “I’ve got enough to worry about without adding that to the list.”

She stood. “I’ve always known you were a stubborn mule, Sean O’Conner, but I never pegged you for stupid. I just can’t believe you’re not even going to check into this.”

“Whoa, hold your horses. I never said that. If there’s drug use going on in my mill, I guarantee that I’ll get to the bottom of it.”

She stood and he had a strong urge to sweep her up in his arms and get her as far away from Stoney Creek as possible.

“Let’s hope for both our sakes that you do.” She went to the door. Her hand reached for the knob.

“Sydney.”

She turned back to face him. His eyes met hers. “Can you just trust me? That’s all I’m asking for.”

“What are you talking about?”

He shook his head. “Never mind.”

“One more question.”

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