“Oh, my stars and garters. Wonders never cease. Someone finally appreciates my skills. When this is all said and done, we really need to open our own detective agency.”

“One thing at a time,” I said with a grin. “Let’s get Mason and me out of this predicament first.”

“Fair enough. I’ll let you know when I find something.”

“Thanks, Neely Kate. For everything … including Carter Hale.” Carter may have ultimately decided to take my case because of Skeeter, but I was pretty doggone sure Neely Kate’s intervention hadn’t hurt.

“What are best friends for? He has his shortcomings, but he came highly recommended.”

She hung up before I had the chance to ask where she’d gotten her references. I stuffed my phone into my pocket as Mason and I climbed out of the car.

An eerie sense of déjà vu washed over me as we walked toward the warehouse.

Mason sensed a shift in my mood and reached for my hand. “Is it hard coming back here after what happened?”

I nodded. “Sorry. I’m trying not to be a baby.”

“Rose.” He held on tighter to my hand. “People died in front of you in this place, and a crazy woman tried to strangle you. It’s perfectly normal to be anxious. I sure as hell would be.”

I led him past the front door covered with police tape and around the back. “I went through the front door last time, but it’s dark and cluttered with metal junk. Since we’re goin’ to the back, we can walk around and climb through a busted out window close to the office area.”

I couldn’t tell him that Jed, who had been at the warehouse with me as my bodyguard, had climbed out that same window before the sheriff’s deputies arrived. But thankfully, Mason didn’t question how I knew to use that as an entrance.

He climbed through first and offered me his hand as I straddled the three-foot-high window frame. Once I was inside, I took a moment to look around. The office Hattie had taken me to was about thirty feet away, on the other side of a mess of metal desks, but directly in front of me was the open space where Beverly had shot Hattie, Dirk, and Jed. A wave of anxiety washed through my head, but I pushed it down.

I could do this. I had to do this.

“Are you all right?”

I gave Mason a tight smile. “I’m okay. Let’s go find that safe.”

He pulled a flashlight out of his bag and handed it to me. “Lead the way.”

I avoided the open space, feeling sick to my stomach when I saw the blood staining the floor. Mason moved next to me, blocking my view. We exchanged a grim look.

“Let’s find this thing and get the hell out of here,” he said.

He didn’t have to tell me twice.

I entered the small office Hattie had gone into, paying more attention this time. A desk and a couple of chairs were shoved against the wall. But Hattie had gone straight for the closet. Since she’d said the safe was still in the office, it seemed like the logical place to look.

Mason stopped behind me as I stood at the entrance to the walk-in closet and shined the flashlight around the space. The walls were lined with shelves, but any office supplies that might have filled them were long gone. A small square wood panel was on the left wall, about five feet off the ground, and a shelf was built in directly underneath it. It would have been an excellent hiding spot for a secret safe, perfectly hidden by stacked office supplies.

I pulled the panel open and found a gray metal safe with a numbered wheel. I tugged on it, not surprised to find it locked.

“Do you remember anything in the journal that looked like it could be a combination?” Mason asked.

“Honestly, I hardly looked at it at all. Besides, it was filled with numbers and shorthand. Even if we had it, it would probably take us days to find the code.” I shook my head. “It took me long enough to find the secret message in the original journal.”

Mason pressed his chest to my back, his breath gently blowing my hair over my ear. “I’m so sorry I didn’t make time to listen to you.”

“It didn’t seem pressing. It was a twenty-five-year-old case.” I heaved a sigh. “Coming out here to see the safe was a total waste. I have no idea what I hoped to find.”

Mason pulled his phone out of his coat pocket. “I wouldn’t say that. Knowing the combination isn’t the only way to get a safe open.” He took several photos. “You just need the right tools.”

“You mean a locksmith? Hattie said she couldn’t get one out here because it’s private property.”

“She’s right. But that doesn’t mean we can’t get someone else to do it.”

I gasped in utter shock. “Are you proposing that we do something illegal?”

He grimaced. “One could argue that if the owners wanted the contents, they would have gotten them by now.”

My eyes widened. “Mason Deveraux, I never expected to hear such a thing come out of your mouth.” I leaned closer and whispered in a sultry voice, “Who knew you could be such a bad boy?”

“I can be very, very bad,” he teased. “As bad as you want.”

Before this was done, I had a feeling I was going to need to ask him to be a whole lot badder than he planned.

Chapter 6

“Let’s get out of here.” He turned around and headed toward the door.

“I want to look through the desk first.” Its drawers were facing the wall it was shoved up against. I started to scoot it out, but Mason was there in seconds, pulling it out with me.