Page 70 of Lost Cause
Abby pulled the thick metal door open, revealing expensive equipment on stainless steel shelves ringing the room. Tall, stainless steel tables stood in a row in the middle. Wearing a white lab coat, Sam sat on a barstool at the nearest one while she looked into a microscope.
When the door closed behind Abby, Sam jerked her head up. “Abby. Thank goodness. You scared me.”
“Sorry, I should’ve told you I was coming or knocked on the door.” She joined Sam. “Burke is coming too.”
“Good,” Sam said. “Because I can’t share anything without his presence.”
“So youdidfind something.”
Sam nodded.
Abby’s interest piqued, she shoved her hands into her pants pocket to try to control her building excitement. “Two interesting things I should mention before we get started.”
She retrieved the key to the gun cabinet from her pocket and handed it to Sam, asking her to process it. “Also, the ferry captain told Gabe a local botanist has regularly visited Victor for over twenty-five years. The captain thought her first visit was for business reasons, but then they became friends.”
“Thatisinteresting.” Sam’s eyes narrowed as she pocketed the key. “Maybe she was discussing the lichen with him.”
“If it’s the one found by graves, do you think she has something to do with Estelle’s disappearance?”
Sam shrugged and opened her mouth to speak, but a knock sounded on the door.
“Must be Burke.” Abby crossed the room to answer.
Burke, his jaw tight, stood darkly handsome in the shadows. “I wish you would’ve waited for me for the results.”
“Don’t worry,” Abby said. “Sam’s a professional all the way, and she wouldn’t tell me what she found without you being here.”
“Doesn’t mean you wouldn’t have let her give you the information if she was willing, right?”
Really? He was going there? “Well sure, but it’s not like I’m trying to hide anything from you. I did text you and ask you to come over here, so you would’ve heard it a few minutes later.”
He cocked his head and studied her with an intensity he’d never trained on her. “True, but what happens in the future if I’m not by your side?”
The same distrust he’d previously expressed came back to his eyes. Man, she thought she’d made progress with him on the trust issue, but clearly she hadn’t.
Did it really matter? She wasn’t sure she trusted him either.
Two people falling for each other, and yet not trusting each other. Made them quite the pair. It also made this investigation harder.
But if she tried to alleviate his distress, things could go better for them. “Would it help if I promised never to ask Sam for information without you present?”
His shoulders visibly relaxed. “Yes, and if you forget, I’ll try my best to give you the benefit of the doubt.”
Good. He was willing to try to change, and that’s all she could ask at this point. “Then you have my word. Now let’s get to Sam’s findings.”
Burke moved past her and crossed the small room to Sam. “Thank you for honoring our contract.”
“Of course,” she said. “I wouldn’t violate it no matter who asked for information.” She bit her lip. “Well, I might consider it if someone’s life was in immediate danger and I had information that could save them.”
“I would understand sharing it then and wouldn’t have a problem.”
“So what did you find?” Abby asked, anxious to hear the information.
Sam crossed her long legs. “I’ve confirmed the lichen is Cladonia arbuscula.”
“The one found near graves,” Burke stated, his tone low and somber.
Sam folded her gloved hands in her lap. “I know discovering the locket made you question if Estelle is buried on the property. This lichen could mean there’s a clandestine grave there. Maybe Estelle’s. Seems like the next step is to find someone skilled in finding such graves.”
