Page 48 of Mission: Possible

"Sure, that's one option and I did see pieces of jewelry on the floor, but there were other things too. Not to mention things that could have been stored in the same box and were ignored or launched like shrapnel after the explosion."

"We keep circling back to that. We have all kinds of ideas but without Charlie's confirmation, we can't be sure. He says once we find the thieves, he'll be able to identify the item he seeks."

"So he knows what it is?"

"Yes, I think so."

"And have you ascertained the reason he doesn't want you to know?"

"We can't be sure about it."

Maddox gave me a long look. "That sounds suspicious," he said finally.

"Solomon agrees with you. It doesn't make sense to not simply tell us." I paused for a sip, savoring the full body of the wine. On the other side of the bar, I was fairly sure Ruby was savoring Maddox's full body. "Can you identify the owners of the boxes?"

Maddox shook his head. "I don't have access to that kind of information. I would have to subpoena the bank records and since I'm not even on the case, there's no legitimate cause for me to do that."

"I bet Jord can," I said, making a mental note to ask my brother if he'd already done so. Jord was a diligent detective so I figured he'd already considered that option. Why wouldn't he tell me? I shot him a text message asking if he had a list.

"I wish I could be more help to you. I feel like I'm throwing fuel on a fire without bringing an extinguisher."

"It's not even my case. I'm just curious," I told him. "Actually, I have another case I’m working on. A comatose wife who suffered an accident in their home that most probably wasn't an accident, and the husband thinks she's lying to him."

"Have you ever considered the advantages of taking an easy case? Maybe catching a shoplifter? Finding a missing poodle?"

"You don't think this will be easy?" I asked, even though it was already far from it. I wouldn’t dare announce that to Maddox though.

"None of your cases are. Hey, I'm getting hungry. Do you want to share a burger?"

"I should probably go home. Today felt like it went on forever and I suspect tomorrow will be worse or the same."

"Another time then," said Maddox, checking his watch. "I have a hot date with the drive-through."

I drained my glass and stood before wobbling a bit when my heel caught the edge of the barstool.

Lily stopped as she walked past me with a tray of empty glasses. "Did you drive here?" she asked.

"I did."

"Keys?"

I fished them from my pocket and handed them over. "Take her home, please," she instructed Maddox. "She definitely wobbled."

"I would never drive drunk!" I protested. "I'm not even drunk. I have heels on!"

"I can't breathalyze you so I need to be sure you don't drive. Your car can stay in the lot overnight or you can send someone over to pick it up. Sorry, the police visited all the bars on this street last week and laid down the law. They warned me I could get prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law so now I have to be extra careful."

I was too tired to argue. That, combined with the two glasses of wine, meant Lily was probably right. Plus, it was nice to have a friend watching out for me. "I can get an Uber," I told them both.

"I'll take you home," said Maddox.

"You drank the same amount as me."

"I'm bigger than you. I metabolize alcohol faster."

"Fine, but we have to get two burgers on the way because I’m hungry," I announced as my stomach gave a small but ominous rumble.

"You're buying, and I want a large order of fries," said Maddox.