Page 12 of Buried Secrets

The sheriff could watch her all he wanted. She hadn’t come this far to be deterred by one irritatingly observant man with trust issues.

Chapter 4

Matt blinked against the sudden brightness as they emerged from the basement stairwell into the afternoon light filtering through the mansion’s tall windows. Dust motes swirled in the slanting sunbeams, disturbed by their passage. Behind him, Kaitlin’s footsteps echoed on the worn marble floor.

They found Amy in the front parlor, standing amid scattered renovation plans and material samples. She was clutching a business card in one hand and a hunk of granite in the other, staring at it with the look of someone who’d just been handed unwelcome news. The contractor was gesturing toward a set of blueprints spread across a folding table.

“—at least sixteen thousand for the foundation work alone,” Sullivan was saying. “We need to shore up the east corner before we can even think about the interior renovations.”

Amy’s face had gone tight with tension. “Sixteen thousand? That’s nearly double what we discussed during the initial walk-through.”

“That was before we found the water damage in the support beams. You don’t want the basement to crumble in to a pile of those,” Sullivan explained, gesturing to the rock Amy held in her hand. He shifted from foot to foot.

He trailed off as he noticed Matt and Kaitlin entering the room. Amy looked up at her, momentarily relieved at the interruption, until she registered their serious faces.

“Please tell me you haven’t found more problems,” she said, a brittle edge to her voice.

“Mr. Harrington left?” Matt asked, nodding toward the business card in her hand.

“Yes, thank God.” Amy handed the card to Kaitlin. “His email is there for you to forward your credentials. He’s going to send over protocols for document preservation and cataloging. He made it very clear that the society would be monitoring the process closely.”

Kaitlin stepped forward to take the card. “I’ll ensure everything is handled properly. Once we establish a process, the actual work should proceed fairly quickly.”

Matt handed her his own business card with his email. In doing so, he noticed the way the afternoon light caught in her dark hair, illuminating subtle auburn undertones he hadn’t noticed before. The observation was followed by an immediate internal rebuke. He didn’t trust this stranger.

“Sully, could we have the room for a few minutes?” Matt asked professionally. “I need to discuss some police business.”

The contractor nodded, clearly relieved to escape the tension. “I’ll check on the crew outside. They’re securing that section of foundation we’re concerned about.” He gathered his tablet and headed for the door, hard hat tucked under one arm.

Kaitlin straightened, preparing to follow him. “I’ll step out as well.”

The offer caught Matt by surprise. He’d expected her to stay and gather whatever information she could. Her voluntary withdrawal was unexpected enough that he found himself momentarily watching her with interest rather than suspicion.

“Actually,” Amy interjected, “would you mind waiting for me on the veranda? I’d like to discuss the logistics of your work when the sheriff has finished ruining my mood.”

“Of course,” Kaitlin replied with a nod. “Take your time.” She moved toward the door with that same measured grace Matt had noticed before, closing it quietly behind her.

As soon as she was gone, Amy sank onto a dust-covered chair, seemingly unconcerned about her clothes. She dropped the granite stone onto her makeshift desk with a thunk. “Whatever you’re about to say, take it easy on me all right? I’ve hit my crisis capacity for one day.”

“Sorry for the trouble.” Matt chose his words carefully. “It’s about the investigation and next steps.”

Amy pressed her fingertips to her temples. “What now?”

“We haven’t received the full medical examiner’s report yet,” he began, focusing on Amy. “But we need to conduct a more thorough search of the property. I’ve arranged for a team to bring in a ground-penetrating radar and a cadaver dog tomorrow morning.”

Amy’s head snapped up. “Ground-penetrating radar? You really think there are more bodies?”

“We need to be sure. You don’t want any more surprises right?”

“You think there are more,” Amy said, her voice dropping to a horrified whisper. “God, Matt, what have I gotten myself into? When Truman left me this place, I thought it was a blessing. Yes, it needed work, but the endowment was supposed to cover the renovations. Now every day brings some new nightmare.”

“We don’t know anything for certain yet,” Matt cautioned, though his instincts indeed told him there would be more bodies. In a place like this, that housed hundreds of down-on-their-luck, vulnerable people? If there was only one body, he’d eat his own hat.

“The search won’t damage the grounds,” Matt continued, leaning against the ornate mantelpiece. “The radar is non-invasive, and the dog handler knows to keep the animal away from the construction areas.”

“And if they find more remains?” Amy asked, her fingers worrying the hem of her sweater.

“Then we’ll handle it properly,” Matt assured her. “One step at a time.”