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Broken limits by Nora Kane Copyright © 2022 by Nora Kane.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher. It is illegal to copy this book, post it to a website, or distribute it by any other means without permission. This book is a work of fiction. Any reference to real people or real locales are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the authors imagination and any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Table of Content
Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Review This Book
Books by Nora Kane
Prologue
It was a warm spring night, the kind that invited strangers to hang out with each other and share a drink. Jackson Salinas wasn’t exactly a stranger to these people. In fact, he’d call them friends if it weren’t for secret reasons that he’d never tell. Tonight he shared a beer with them and then called it quits for the day.
Locking up his equipment, he realized that the place had cleared out fast. The plastic chairs had been left in a circle for someone else to clean up in the morning. And all the work lights had slowly been turned out, leaving only the light from outside to guide him.
Jackson wasn’t a man to be paranoid, but tonight felt oddly different. He always thought himself to have a good intuition. He trusted his gut more than any man. He carried his toolbox out with him to his truck, ready to leave work behind.
The parking lot was dark. There was only one working light. He caught himself taking in sharp breaths. He then internally chastised himself for being so spooked. He’d just set his toolbox down when he heard footsteps coming toward him. His first instinct was to run, but he reminded himself that tonight he was among friends, sort of. He had to keep his cool. Being rational and thinking that one of his crew had come back, Jackson spoke to them.
“Did you forget something?”
“Just one thing.”
“What’s that?”
“Your head.”
Jackson never saw the ax coming. He could feel the first blow, biting pain that shot deep down into his core. He dropped to the ground immediately, blood pouring out of his open wound. He tried to speak. Nothing but gargled nonsense came out, but the panic in his tone was obvious. He lifted his hands to his neck, trying desperately to keep the blood from pouring out. He could feel the dent in his skin, feel the muscles and veins tearing apart from the inside, snapping in two as his head became more and more off balanced. His eyes grew wider as the ax came down again and finished the job. Jackson Salinas was dead.
Chapter One
Jade woke up bright and early to the summer’s heat bleeding in through her window. She really disliked summer, but the sunshine was good for her. She didn’t have much to do today. She’d just finished working on a very big case and was looking forward to a few days of rest and relaxation. Her first intention was to visit the new coffee shop in town. She’d heard good things about it and was in a good mood to go.
She threw on a tank top jumpsuit and some sandals. Skipping her usual coffee routine, she headed out to the car, put on her shades, and drove up to the new coffee shop, Cool Beans Coffee. The name was tacky, but Jade immediately liked the interior. It was modern and smooth. Bubble lights hung from the ceiling in groups like awkward chandeliers. And the music in the place was cool, funky, and upbeat. Jade was impressed, to say the least, but she still had to try their coffee.
She’d just stepped up in line when a stench hit her square in the face. She backed away toward the wall, but it just grew. Jade’s face twisted at the smell, and she turned to look at the wall. A worker must’ve noticed Jade’s look of disgust because they came over right away with a can of air freshener.
“I’m so sorry about the smell. We’ve been trying to get rid of it all day.” They sprayed the air freshener, and a heavy scent of lemon filled the air clearing out the stench if only for a moment.
But Jade wasn’t worried so much about the smell, but rather what that smell meant. She’d been around enough
crime scenes to know what one smelled like.
“I think you should close the shop,” Jade said.
“But why?”
“Because I know that smell. It’s blood, rotten blood. You need to get everyone out of here, and we need to get behind that wall.”
“Are you serious?”
“Dead serious.”
The woman walked back over to her coworkers and quickly explained what they needed to do. She flipped the “Open’” sign to “Closed”. They finished serving the people in line and then closed up the shop. They drew the shades down and the room was empty, but for the workers and Jade.
“Do you have a hammer?” Jade asked.
“I think so. I can check,” one of the boys said. He hurried to the back of the coffee shop and came back a minute later with a toolbox. Inside was a hammer, a wrench, and a screwdriver.
“Is this it?” Jade asked.
“Unfortunately. We’re a coffee shop. Not a hardware store.”
“I see. I need you all to stand back.” Jade readjusted her shades to cover her eyes as best they could. Then she swung the hammer into the wall.
A young girl let out a small shriek at the sound.
“What are you doing?” the woman with the air freshener asked.
“There’s something rotten behind this wall,” Jade said, taking another swing. A small hole opened up. Drywall and plaster fell to the floor.
“Does that mean you have to break into it?”
“The only way to see what’s there is to open it up, and I’ve got a bad feeling that whatever it is behind here is not going to be pleasant.” The stench grew overpowering, but Jade continued on. The hole grew bigger and bigger, but it wasn’t good enough.
Turning the hammer around, she used the sharp end to pull at the wall, ripping it out in fair-sized chunks. Eventually, a space big enough to fit her head was opened up. She pulled out her phone and turned on the flashlight. Peering into the wall, she looked up and saw nothing. Then she looked down. It was dark and shadowy, even with her flashlight. Angling it better, she cast the light onto something horrific and let out a gasp. Backing away from the wall, she gathered herself.
“You need to call the police,” she said, “There’s a body here.”
The workers looked like they were going to be sick. One girl sat herself down in shock. Jade talked with one of them as they called the police. When they were finished, she advised everyone to go outside and stay there. They
wouldn’t want to be here when the rest of the wall was opened up. Jade was sure of that.
Chapter Two
It was about ten minutes before the police arrived. Two of Jade’s best friends came with them, Head Detective Edna Mann and Coroner Mark Foley. Mark also happened to be Jade’s boyfriend. The three of them had worked several times together. As a consultant to the police for several high-profile cases, Jade got to see them an awful lot.
“What do we have here?” Edna asked.
“I think you may want to see it for yourself,” Jade said.
“And where’s the body?” Mark asked.
“Still behind the wall. I thought you’d want to take over the excavating.”
“Good. I’ll get started right away.” Mark left and began chipping away at the wall.
“So you found the body?” Edna asked.
“Yeah. Didn’t think coffee would ever bring me a murder.”
“How do you know it’s murder?”
“Bodies don’t just end up in the wall.”
“Fair, but maybe it was an accident.”
“Not likely,” Mark called out to them, having apparently listened to every word. “Come and take a look.”
The women walked up to the wall. Jade already knew what Mark had found but was ready to see it in a different light.
Edna looked over Mark’s shoulder and shuddered. “You’re right. This isn’t an accident.”
“Yeah, people don’t just lose their heads for nothing.”
Jade stepped away from the body so the photographer could get in and take some pictures. Her mind was reeling with questions. How did the body get here? Whose body was it? And most importantly, where was the head?
Once the photographer was done, Jade was ready to see the body again. She had questions that needed answers. She bent down next to Mark and looked over the dead body.
“Deceased is a male in his thirties. There are no signs for a cause of death,” Mark said.
“Besides the missing head.”
“Obviously. The body is old. At least six weeks of deterioration.”
“So he’s been in here a while. The shop opened up a week ago. This must’ve been done while it was still under construction. I’ll start looking into it.”
“Have you even been hired on?”
“No, but I found the body. Of course, I’m gonna help with this case.”
“Better check with Edna.”
“Fine. Is there anything else you can tell me about the body?”
“Whoever he was he didn’t put up a struggle. Either he was caught way off guard or more likely he knew his killer.”
“Thanks. I’ll check in with Edna and get started with my investigation.”
Jade left Mark to bag up the body and looked around the cafe. There were cameras in the corners. She wondered how long they had been there. Since the café had only just opened, maybe not long enough to have caught footage of the killer, but it was worth a shot.
“I’m heading back to the station. I’ve got all the statements I need,” Edna said, coming up to Jade.
“I still need to talk to the workers, then I’ll look into the construction company. That is, if I’m hired?”
“Of course you’re hired. You found the body! I doubt the chief would say no. I’ll get it all figured out back at the station. Start your investigations, and I’ll get started on all the paperwork I’ll have to do,” Edna said.
Jade nodded and watched as Edna walked off. She knew Edna would get Chief Knight to hire her. He’d gained respect for her last winter when she’d cracked a huge case.
He wasn’t so hesitant to hire her anymore and even considered her a good asset to his teams.
Jade found the four workers outside: one older woman, and three teens, two boys, and a girl. Jade approached the older woman first, correctly assuming that she was the manager on duty.
“Jade Pearson, Private Detective, I need to ask you some questions.”
“Sure. I’m Lyra King. Is that really a body?” the woman asked.
“Yes, ma’am. How long exactly has the cafe been open?”
“Eight days ago. But we’ve been inside for fourteen, prepping for opening and learning how to run the machines.”
“And who owns the cafe?”
“Cathy Waller, technically. She owns the whole complex. All the way down to that fitness place at the end of the street.”
“Alright, and who owns the cafe?”
“Lemon Inc. They own a whole chain of Cool Beans Coffees. This is the third one to open on the East Coast. It’s really just a test branch to see how well sales would do out here. It’s been made very clear that if we don’t do well that this location will close.”
“So if there are any problems this store would close down?”
“Yes. And I have a feeling that finding a dead body in the store is definitely reason enough for us to close. I can’t imagine coming to work again. I’ve called my boss and told them I’m quitting. I think the kids have done the same thing. I don’t think Stacy will ever recover. I mean, just look at her.”
Jade turned around and looked at the young girl. She was trembling slightly and swaying back and forth.
“Is she like that often?” Jade asked.
“She’s got pretty bad anxiety. We keep her away from the busy shifts. She’s good at cleaning and making drinks but has problems talking to people.”
“How’d she get the job then?”
“The company has an inclusion policy for disabled people. Her level of anxiety is described as a mental disability. She’s a good worker. We just don’t have her interact with customers that often.”
“I see. And the other two?”
“Jake and Sean. They were hired right away too. They’re both seniors in high school, while Stacy is a freshman in the local college.”
“And you? Is this your only job?”
“No. I also work at the bank in the afternoon.”
“Do you know who did the construction for this complex?”
“No. Cathy Waller would know though.”
“One more question before I go,” Jade said. “How long have the cameras been there?”
“They were installed the day before we all came into work. I doubt they’ll have anything on them, but you’re welcome to look. An officer took the footage already.”
“Thank you, you’ve been a lot of help.”
Jade took a look at the other three employees. She thought about asking them questions, but they all seemed pretty shaken up. After all, they were only kids. If she really needed something from them, she’d come back once they’d had time to settle down. Jade figured her best bet was to talk to the complex owner, Cathy Weller next.
Jade looked up and down the complex, looking for an office. There was one next to the fitness place at the end. Jade walked down there and looked at the door. The office was closed, but it did belong to Cathy Weller. Jade suspected that if she were to call the number on the door that she would get the answering machine inside the office. It would be better to go to the station and look up Cathy’s personal information there. Maybe Mark would know more about the body too or maybe Edna would have some answers.
She wasn’t exactly dressed for work, but in this heat, she didn’t care. It was nice once she was inside the station. It was air-conditioned and heading down to the morgue, it
was even colder. Mark was hovering over the headless body from earlier that morning.
“Anything new?” Jade asked.
“I’ve sent the guy’s prints off to the lab. Hopefully, they can identify him.”
“He didn’t have a wallet or anything?”
“No. Just a tattoo of a turtle. I searched the database for a match, but there wasn’t any. Whoever this guy was, he wasn’t a former criminal.”
“At least not in our system.”
“Right. Do you have any idea where his head might be?”
“I’m going to talk to Cathy Weller. She owns the complex. I need her information.”
“You’re welcome to use my computer.”
Jade sat down at Mark’s computer and logged in. She didn’t officially have access to the police database, but she’d been around long enough to know how to get in and when she could use it.
She typed Cathy Weller’s name into the database and pulled up a file on her. She’d been fingerprinted once for substitute teaching and had since become a businesswoman. Jade also searched the internet and found her name in the papers, discussing what new businesses would be coming to her complex. There were six stores total, not including her office space. Jade suspected that
whatever company she had used for the cafe would’ve been used for the other five. She only hoped that she could get a lead.
Cathy’s cell number and address came up in her file. Jade wrote it down on a sticky note from Mark’s desk and also wrote down the names of the other businesses in the complex. Most likely she’d have to interview all of them to see if they had cameras that could’ve picked up any suspicious activity. This case was going to require a lot of legwork and a lot of socializing. Jade didn’t mind it too much, but she’d much rather be out in the action.
Jade left the morgue and headed back upstairs. She found Edna on the way out.
“How’s the paperwork going?” Jade asked.
“It’s going.”
“Rough time?”
“I must admit I’ve never had a case report to fill out where the victim’s head was completely missing. It’s gruesome, even for me.”
“Did you find out anything useful while you were filling out the papers?”
“I looked into the finances of Cathy Weller, the woman who owns the complex. It turns out that she raised the price of rent three times in the last two months while businesses were moving in. I’m guessing she’s having financial problems and needs these businesses to thrive so she can get a heavy payday,” Edna said.
“If she knew the victim, maybe he knew about her money struggles. Or maybe he was the cause of her struggles. It’s worth looking into and I’m heading over to Cathy’s home address now. If you find out anything else shady, let me know,” Jade said, walking out the door.
Jade got into her car and typed Weller’s address into her GPS. Her home was on the outskirts of town in a somewhat bad neighborhood. If Weller really was having money problems, then it made sense that she’d live there.
Jade kept thinking as she drove out to Weller’s place. Her thoughts were racing through her head. She always enjoyed being on a case, but so soon after the last one, it was a little exhausting.
Pulling up to Weller’s place she could hear yelling from inside. Jade hopped out of her car and knocked on the door of the small house. The grass outside was dead either from the heat or lack of hydration. A cracked lawn gnome stood by the door. Jade knocked again, this time louder, and waited.
A woman opened the door. She had bags under her eyes and her hair was pulled back tightly; too tightly.
“I’m not interested,” she said after looking Jade up and down.
“I’m not selling anything,” Jade said.
“I’m still not interested.”
“Jade Pearson. I’m working with the police.” The woman stopped closing the door and stared at Jade skeptically. After a moment, she stepped outside and shut the door behind her.
“What do you want?” the woman asked.
“I need to ask you some questions. It’s about the body we found in your complex this morning.”
“Oh, please don’t remind me. The other five renters are freaking out. They think they’re going to find bodies in their walls too! Some have threatened to leave. I can’t have that. Not now.”
“I understand you’re having some financial troubles?”
“Yes, well. I don’t really like to talk about it.”
“I’m afraid we have to. Just what do your troubles look like?”
“My husband and I are separated. He cheated on me. We’re going through a pretty messy divorce. In the meantime, he’s withholding most of my money from me. I had to move out here. The renters are doing well. I mean, were doing well until this morning. If any of them pull out now, I’m going to end up living in my office at the complex.”
“Is that what you were yelling about when I pulled up?”
“Sorry about that. I was on the phone with my lawyer. He keeps telling me not to worry, but the case is going badly. Somehow, we’re losing. It’s going to ruin me.”
“I see. Aside from all of that, what do you know about the other businesses in the complex?”
“Besides Cool Beans, there’s Jim’s Fitness, True Knit Craft Supplies, Walker’s Bakery, Camden’s Driving School, and Renewed the antique store. All of them are locally owned and run except for Cool Beans. They’re the only ones run by a corporation.”
“How did the other owners feel about that?”
“I don’t really know. The only person I talked to about it was Jim Malone. He runs the fitness place. He and I went to school together. He’s not very happy about it. He thinks that once people get a taste of the new, modern looks that Cool Beans can give they won’t want to come to a place like his anymore. I’d guess that the others are sharing that fear. Take Walker’s Bakery, for example. Locally owned for fiftysomething years and now a bright and shiny new coffee place opens up that sells baked goods too. They now have to face a lot of competition.”
“That’s very interesting. One more thing. Who did the construction for your complex? The remodeling?”
“Knox County Construction. They’re from out of town. Cool Beans’ owner Lemon Inc. insisted on them. They were willing to pay for most of the remodeling anyway. The other renters in the complex got some minor repair work done, but nothing as major as the coffee place.”
“All of that is very helpful. Thank you so much for your time. I’ll be in touch if I come up with more questions.”
“I’ll be here, hopefully.”
Jade left Cathy Weller and returned to the station. She stopped at a gas station to fill up and grab some midmorning snacks and coffee. It was only ten-thirty, but it
felt like it was the middle of the afternoon. But Jade was still holding her head high. While she hadn’t really gotten any good clues from Cathy, she did get a lot of answers. It was time she looked into the construction company.
Chapter Three
Walking into the station, she stopped by Edna’s desk and dropped off a donut. Then she headed downstairs to the morgue. Mark was filling out paperwork at his desk. Jade dropped another donut off at his desk and sat down at his assistant, Pamela’s, desk. Munching on her own donut, she asked Mark the question that had been pressing on her mind.
“Any news from the lab?”
“Not yet. But I found out more about the body.”
“Do tell.”
“I believe the weapon that was used to cut off the head was a dirty ax. There’s dirt and dust in the open neck. While the cut itself is a clean stroke, the ax had to have been used before, most likely in a construction site where there would be a lot of fine dirt and dust flying around.”
“So this guy could’ve been on the construction crew working at the complex.”
“That’s very likely.”
“Anything else?”
“He was very low on blood. There was likely a lot of blood loss at the time, so the person who did this would’ve left quite the mess to clean up. There’s no way the blood would’ve come out of those clothes or off of the ax easily.”
“So they may still be at the scene just in a different part of the wall,” Jade said, growing silent and chomping down hard on the rest of her donut. She logged onto Pamela’s computer and looked up the Knox County Construction website. It was professional-looking and had all of their contact information. Jade thought it best to call first. Their offices were located way out of town.
“This is Knox County Construction. If you’d like to make a consultation appointment, press one. If you’d like to get information through the mail, press two. If you’d like to talk to our customer service, press three.”
Jade’s face twisted into a look of great annoyance as she pressed three. It was always better to start off talking to a human being than a robot. She waited on the line, while awful elevator music played. The saxophone blared into her ear so loudly that Jade held the phone away from her head. Mark even looked up because he could hear it. She gave him a look that said, "You’ve gotta be kidding me." He gave her a kind look back that said, "I’m so sorry."
“Hello? Knox County Construction. How may I help you?” a voice finally rang out on the other end. She sounded tired and annoyed that Jade had even called.
“Hi, I’m Jade Pearson, working with the Camden Police Department. I’ve got some questions related to one of your more recent construction projects at the Weller Complex in Camden.”
“What kind of questions?”
“We’ve found a body inside the newest business there, and we need some details on the type of construction
crew you had working there including names and numbers, and any building plans you may have.”
“Ma’am, I am not allowed to give that information out.”
“I’m working with the Camden Police Department. I need that information.”
“I can’t give it to you.”
“Then transfer me to someone who can. I’ll wait,” Jade said, getting frustrated.
The awful jazz music came back on the line. Jade once more looked at Mark with a face that said, "Can you believe this?" He simply smiled at her and pointed at her coffee. He was right. She needed to simmer down. She took a big swig of her coffee and waited some more.
“Joan Hawkins, Knox County Construction. What can I do for you?” a woman answered.
“Jade Pearson. I’m working with the Camden Police Department on a murder that occurred in one of your recently remodeled buildings. I need some information.”
“Of course, anything you need.” Jade smiled and nodded to herself.
That's what she was talking about. After a good half hour of asking and answering questions, Jade got all the information she needed to be sent to her in an email. She hung up the phone and smirked at Mark.
“That’s how you do it,” she said.
“Get everything you need?” he asked.
“Everything except lunch. I’m hungry again.”
“I’ll order a pizza and you can tell me everything you just learned.”
“Sounds like a plan.”
Jade opened her email and began printing several pages of paperwork. She liked having things physically in her hands to read rather than clicking through tabs online. She scanned through them while Mark finished ordering lunch.
Edna came walking through the doors, holding some papers of her own.
“Looks like you just got some clues,” Edna said.
“Maybe. We’re about to find out,” Jade said. “Why don’t you stay and have lunch with us?”
“Sounds good. That’ll give me a chance to tell you what I found.”
The three of them huddled around each other and began to dig into their own stories. Mark went first, catching Edna up on the details of the dead body. He was hoping the lab would get back to him with a positive I.D. sometime after lunch.
“So we still don’t know who he is, but we know we need to go back to the cafe,” Edna said.
“I’ll head there this afternoon. It says here that among the repairs done amongst the shops there, Jim’s Fitness had new cameras installed. There’s a good chance they might have picked up something. If not the murder, then maybe we can see who was in the area,” Jade said.
“But you don’t know what night the murder happened. Do you know how much footage you’re going to have to go through?”
“Too much, I suspect. What did you find?”
“I looked into the other businesses in the complex. All of them are having money troubles except for Jim’s Fitness. He’s just made a plan with the bank to open another location. Also, the Chief is worried that this may not be a one-time thing. I’ve gotten permission to use RF-Capture on the businesses in the complex.”
“How does that work?”
“Well, it’ll send low-frequency radio signals through the walls. Given what it hits, it’ll return the signal, kind of like echolocation. The Chief wants to see if there are any other bodies in there. Any dead body will take up enough space to have a different signal than normal insulation and wiring behind the wall.”
“Do you think it could be used to find a weapon? Like an ax?”
“Probably not, but I’d guess we could use a metal detector for that.”
“With all the metal in the building, I doubt we’d get anything accurate. The only way to really see what’s behind
that wall is to get behind the wall.”
“We can dig more into the cafe but without a warrant or probable cause we can’t mess up the other businesses. However, we can use the RF-Capture on them. That might give us some clues.”
The room went quiet as Mark’s phone rang. He picked it up and immediately stood up, pulling his lab jacket on tighter.
“What was that about?” Jade asked once he hung up the phone.
“There’s a body coming in,” Mark said. “Sort of.”
“What do you mean 'sort of'?”
“It’s just a head.”
“Could it be the head of the guy from this morning?”
“I don’t know yet, and I probably won’t for a while. Why don’t you two go and do your work at the complex, and I’ll get back to you.”
“Sounds like a plan. Can’t do anything more here.”
Edna nodded along with Jade.
They headed upstairs. Edna left to get the equipment she needed. Jade took the time to grab herself a coffee. Station coffee wasn’t great, but it did the job. Jade was tired. She’d been working nonstop for weeks now. She really deserved a vacation, but there was something about
summer that just brought out crime. And if there was a murder to solve, she was going to be the one to solve it.
Edna returned with some bulky bags, and they went out to the parking lot. They decided to take separate cars for now. Jade wasn’t sure where she was going after this stop. It all depended on what they might find.
Jade thought about the situation as she drove. It seemed that everyone was having financial problems. Could the murder be tied to that or was there something bigger at play? The sun glared into her eyes as she drove. Keeping a steady hand on the wheel, she squinted to see better. It didn’t help. Jade stooped lower in her car, just as the window came crashing down around her. The ringing sound of a gunshot echoed through her ears. She slammed on the brakes and the airbag came out and hit her square in the face.
The world was spinning. Jade pulled her head away from the airbag. There was something running down her face. She lifted her fingers to her nose. Bright red blood seeped onto her fingers. A hazy voice called out to her. Jade looked up and to the side. It hurt to turn her head.
“Jade! Can you hear me?” It was Edna. She’d been following behind Jade and had seen everything go down.
“Jade!”
“What?” she answered, sounding more annoyed than she meant to.
Edna opened the door and helped pull Jade out of the car. Jade took in her surroundings, still squinting in the sunlight. They were across the corner from the complex.
Jade looked at her car. It wasn’t beat up too badly. The driver’s side window was completely shattered, and the airbag was deployed, but other than that, there wasn’t much damage.
“I guess that means we’re taking your car,” Jade quipped.
“The only place my car is going is to the hospital,” Edna said.
“I’m fine, really. It’s just a nosebleed. That’s all. Please, I really just want to get on with the work.”
“Look at me,” Edna said, grabbing her friend's face. She tilted Jade’s head from side to side coming to conclusions only she would know.
“Fine. We’ll finish the work at the complex, but you let me do all the heavy lifting and if you start feeling sick or upset at any time, you let me know, okay?”
“Sure.”
“Sure isn’t good enough.”
“I promise. Let’s go.”
Edna pulled her car into the complex parking lot while Jade called a tow truck to take her car away for repairs. They wouldn’t be able to get there for an hour at least. Jade groaned, but with no other option agreed to wait. Edna came back and helped her push the car to the side of the road. Then the women headed into the cafe.
The wall was still destroyed from earlier that morning. Insulation was scattered on the floor next to the drywall.
“They certainly made a mess in here,” Edna said.
“Yeah. That’d be my fault. I started the mess.”
“And I’m glad you did.”
“Let’s just start with the RF-Capture equipment already.”
While Edna set up the equipment, Jade looked at herself in the bathroom mirror. The top of her jumpsuit was covered in blood from her nosebleed. She wiped away the dried blood from her face. She’d need a change of clothes before going back to Mark for sure. But who would have the audacity to shoot at her? She really didn’t have any clues. At least nothing that would solve the murder right now. So what was she getting too close to that warranted a chance at taking her life?
Jade walked back out to the mess in the cafe and found Edna holding up a metal box to a wall. On it was a screen. The box was emitting a low hum as it sent radio signals through the wall. Edna was very focused on the screen.
“How will we know if it finds something?” Jade asked.
“We’ll see a spike on the monitor,” Edna answered, still intently focused.
“And how will we tell if it’s a body?”