“I’m fine. Moving the bed to get to the wall. There’s something...odd. It looks like a false brick was pushed in when Valeriya collided with the wall.”
“Easily fixed and easily hidden until it’s fixed,” Kelsey said. “Just move the bed a little to the side.”
“Yeah, but...”
She started pulling on the bed again, and Kelsey helped her until she could reach the broken spot in the wall. Immediately she knew what had captured her attention. Something inside the wall had caught the sunlight and given off the tiniest gleam.
She poked at the plaster, and more of it chipped away.
And then she knew what she had seen. Something metal had been hidden in the false brick and revealed when Valeriya had slammed against the wall.
“What is it?” Kelsey asked.
“I don’t know...almost got it,” Hannah said. She poked around in the little hole with her finger until she touched the metal. The rest of the “brick” fell apart as she dug it out and dusted the plaster from it.
She looked up at her cousin. “It’s a key.”
“A key,” Kelsey said. She shrugged. “Well, we’ve found things—including bodies—in walls before. In the past, I guess this was something like a safe-deposit box, except more permanent.”
“And at least it’s not a body,” Hannah said.
“Yes, that’s always a good thing,” Kelsey assured her wryly, then mused, “but a key. A key to what?”
Hannah held the key flat on the palm of her hand. It was long and straight, with some kind of metal insignia on the top and a simple protrusion on the bottom with which to open...whatever it opened.
“It’s old, that’s for sure,” Kelsey said.
Hannah looked at her and smiled, and she couldn’t help responding as she sometimes had when they were younger. “Duh!”
Kelsey laughed and started to speak, but then they heard movement on the stairway and spun to face the door.
Kelsey started to reach for her gun—ever ready, Hannah thought—but it was only Valeriya.
“Is everything all right?” she asked anxiously. “Did I break something?”
“No, Valeriya, everything is fine,” Hannah said, quickly slipping the key into her pocket. “How are you feeling? Did you have some tea?”
“I’m fine. I just feel so stupid for making such a fuss. And look what I did to your wall!”
“It’s no big deal,” Hannah assured her. “Bentley can fix it. Come on. Let’s all go back downstairs.”
“Let’s finish in here first,” Kelsey suggested.
“I will help,” Valeriya said, moving to collect the clean sheets from their place on a chair.
“No!” Hannah and Kelsey said in unison.
“You can supervise,” Hannah told her.
She and Kelsey had both worked for their uncle when they’d been kids. In a matter of minutes they had the bed made up with clean sheets and everything back to rights—except for the hole in the plaster. Hannah vowed to herself to come up later, when Valeriya wasn’t there to feel guilty, and move the bed to hide it.
“Is someone staying in here?” Valeriya asked.
“An FBI agent,” Hannah said. “He’s investigating the murder in the alley the other night.”
“My partner and I are staying here, too—down at the end of the hall,” Kelsey told her.
“I’m glad, Hannah. This way you are not alone,” Valeriya said.
“No, I’m not alone,” Hannah said. “Let’s go back down now.”
“There are more rooms to clean,” Valeriya said.
“Not today, Valeriya. Please don’t worry. I’ll keep paying your salary until I need you to come back to work.”
“I can’t take your charity,” Valeriya protested.
“It’s not charity. I’m being selfish. I want you around when I need you, okay?”
Valeriya looked at her searchingly, then nodded at last. “Okay. Then I’ll go home now and let you and your cousin catch up.”
“No!” Kelsey and Hannah spoke at the same time again, then looked at one another and smiled.
“The men will be back soon, and someone will see you home,” Kelsey said.
“Why?” Valeriya asked, suddenly nervous. “What’s wrong?”
“I’m just nervous,” Hannah said. “I know it’s silly, but after that man was killed so close to the house, I worry, that’s all.”
“Oh, no, that’s silly. It’s broad daylight, and I live a few blocks away.”
“Do it as a favor for me,” Hannah told her. “Let’s go downstairs again. You can teach us Russian.”
As they left the room, Hannah was acutely aware of the key in her pocket.
*
When the three men left the station, Logan headed up to Miami to find out what he could about Alicia Rodriguez, while Liam went to talk to his team about finding Blade, Hammer, and Pistol, aka William “Billie” Garcia, Reggie Arnold and Carter Addison, names Martin Garcia admitted he’d known despite the Wolf’s prohibition.