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“I have some good news and some bad news,” Autumn said.

Carlita braced herself. “I’ll take the good news first.”

“We met with Russell Sterling. I can almost guarantee he didn’t suspect a thing.”

“Wonderful. Were you able to get a set of fingerprints from his daughters?”

“That’s where the bad news comes in. We were only able to get them from one. Actually.” Autumn motioned to Brittney. “Brittney was clever in tricking Lindsay into giving us a set.”

“By loaning her my compact.”

“Good girl.” Carlita beamed proudly. “I’m sure Sterling thought he was in heaven. Two beautiful women in the same room.”

“He definitely has a roving eye.” Brittney reached into her purse and removed the compact Lindsay had borrowed. “I’ve been careful not to touch this. Hopefully, you’ll be able to get a good set of prints.”

“I’ll call Officer Jonkers and tell her we think we might have the fingerprints of a potential suspect,” Carlita said.

“The only downside is if it’s not a match and we have to get Tracy’s prints, investigators might not be interested, thinking we’re wasting their time.”

“It does present a dilemma. I wonder if Dernice can help.” Carlita made a quick call to the woman, telling her they had a set of Lindsay’s prints and explaining the situation.

“You’re right. The cops aren’t gonna want to feel like they’re chasing their tails. Elvira has a friend who works down at the precinct.”

The call ended after Dernice promised to see what she could do.

“I hate to sleuth and run, but I gotta head back to work. I’ll catch up with you later for the f-.” Autumn caught herself and abruptly stopped. “For the fun times after I get out of work.”

“Thank you for your help,” Carlita said. “With any luck, we’ll soon find out if Lindsay’s prints match.”

“If not, I told Autumn I wouldn’t mind helping again,” Brittney said.

Tink. Carlita’s cell phone chimed. It was Dernice, asking her to bring the compact over ASAP. “It looks like we might find out if we have a match sooner rather than later.”

Carlita parted ways with the women in the alley outside of Ravello’s. Dernice must’ve been waiting for her because she hadn’t even made it to her back door when it flew open and she appeared. “I finagled a time slot in the forensic department’s lab. A woman who works there is a friend of Elvira’s. She promised to get right on examining the prints if I could bring them to her in the next few minutes. Where are they?”

Carlita held up a clear plastic bag. “Lindsay Sterling’s prints are on this compact. If they can match them to the ones taken from the ductwork, we have our burglar, or at least one of them.”

“And if not?”

“Autumn and Brittney offered to try again, to track down Tracy.”

“If you ask me, we have less of a chance in getting a match,” Dernice said. “Tracy was the more athletic of the two.”

“Based on how many roadblocks we’ve encountered, I would have to agree.” Carlita handed her the bag and thanked her.

“See you at three.” Dernice scurried down the alley. She hopped into her work van and hit the gas, throwing gravel as the vehicle careened around the corner.

Carlita watched her speed off. “Something tells me she’s gonna make it there at warp speed, no problem.”

*****

With time left before Pete’s surprise outing, Carlita stopped by the pawn shop to cover for Tony so he could run home. She went over the books, thrilled to discover business was picking back up.

Although fall was still considered the pawn shop’s “off season,” the holidays were within sight, which meant the fourth quarter would help their bottom line immensely.

Not only was Ravello’s already getting holiday bookings but her food truck was also scheduled for a wide range of holiday events throughout December.

All in all, the Garlucci family businesses were doing well. According to Pete, his pirate ship and restaurant were also humming right along.

Tony returned from his break and Carlita headed back to the apartment. Brittney, Vinnie, and her grandson were gone. She found a handwritten note letting them know they had taken little Vinnie to the nearby wildlife center, but promised they would be back in time for Pete’s surprise.

Carlita tidied the kitchen and took Rambo for a walk. She and the pup meandered along the river, turning around when they reached the end of River Street.

Halfway back, Pete phoned, asking where she was. “How did Autumn and Brittney’s fact-finding mission go?”

“It was semi-successful.” Carlita told him what had happened. “Dernice knows someone who works at the police station. She’s going to see if there’s a match between Lindsay Sterling’s fingerprints and those found on Elvira’s ductwork. I have a feeling they aren’t going to.”

“Because you think it was Sterling’s other daughter?”

“Yep. However, we won’t know unless we try. Maybe we’ll be pleasantly surprised.”

“And then what? You contact Jonkers and Thryce to let them know?” Pete asked.

“That’s the plan.”

“The reason I’m calling is Arvid Poindexter and Janet Gigowski want to meet with me. They have their final report about the excavation downstairs.”

“And they want to let you know what they found?”

“Correct.”

“Elvira is going to be bummed.”

“Maybe they did it on purpose,” Pete joked.

“Waited until they knew she was out of town to turn over the results?” Carlita laughed out loud. “It’s possible.”

“Anyway, they should be here any minute.”

“I’m about a block away.” Carlita told Pete she would drop Rambo off at home and catch up with him.

Picking up the pace, she fast-tracked it to the apartment before making a beeline for the stairway leading to the tunnel system. Pete stood near the top watching for her.

“Are they here?”

“I see them now.” Pete flagged them down and waited for the pair to catch up.

“Good to see you again, Pete and Carlita.” Arvid shook hands. “Thank you for agreeing to meet with us on such short notice.”

“You’re welcome. It sounded important.”

“I know there has been some concern over how long this project has been taking. Janet…Ms. Gigowski and I received the final results from the archaeological team this morning and thought we would wrap this up expeditiously, considering how patient you’ve been.”

“Is Elvira Cobb joining us?” Gigowski asked.

“It’s your lucky day,” Carlita said. “She’s in Alaska.”

“Alaska?” Arvid pressed on the bridge of his glasses. “I believe she mentioned she was traveling there. Would you rather we wait to go over the findings when she returns?”

“No,” Carlita and Pete said in unison.

“To be honest, I think it might be better if she isn’t here, depending on the results.”

“Because you’re not sure how she’ll react,” Gigowski said.

“Oh, we know how she’ll react,” Pete said. “If you found something, she’s going to want to tear the place apart. If you haven’t found anything, she’ll have a full-blown meltdown.”

“And then she’ll want to tear the excavation site apart,” Carlita joked.

“We can go over the results in your office, but it would probably be best if we discuss a few specific findings at the site.”

“Shall we?” Pete descended the steps. Arvid and Janet followed behind, with Carlita bringing up the rear.

It had been a couple of weeks since the last time she’d visited the dig site, mainly because she didn’t want to bother the workers. The other reason was because there were so many people it was a tight fit, and being down there made her feel slightly claustrophobic.

Elvira, on the other hand, had swung by every day to check on the progress. Carlita secretly suspected it was because she wanted to keep their feet to the fire and the project moving forward.

After unlocking each of the doors and another series of locks securing the property, Pete and the others finally reached the large opening, the entrance to the excavation site. He flipped a switch and turned the floodlights on.

The tools and equipment the team had brought in were gone. The ground, only days earlier littered with piles of dirt, was smooth and flat. It reminded Carlita of what it had looked like the day they had blown a hole in the wall and gotten their first glimpse of the inside.

Pete let out a low whistle. “The equipment has been cleaned up and shipped out.”

“Part of our agreement was to leave the site in the same condition we found it,” Arvid said. “I hope it meets your approval.”

“More than meets it.”

He held up a set of keys. “Thank you for giving our team a set of keys. Feel free to change the locks. I can assure you the group assigned to this dig were professionals. I doubt they made copies, but then again…”

“I may change them if only for the fact I suspect Elvira made a set for herself,” Pete said. “I’m dying to know—what’s the verdict?”

Taking turns, Arvid and Janet went into a long, detailed explanation about the techniques used to test the soil and artifacts they found during the excavation.

From what Pete had told Carlita, the team had found period pieces…pottery, some tools and even a few small gems, similar to the ones the couple had found the first day.

“The testing confirms our theory. The pieces, coins and gems date back to around 1730.”

“Which is when the Parrot House Restaurant was built.” Pete scratched the stubble on his chin. “I’m not surprised, considering my family history and what I know about my ancestors.”

“Who were a rowdy bunch of plundering marauders,” Janet said. “And I don’t mean to speak ill of your ancestors.”

“You described them perfectly. They were a colorful bunch, known to have some…shall we say…questionable behavior?”

“Including kidnapping drunk men, smuggling them on board pirate ships and using them for free labor after they set sail? Thank goodness Pete hasn’t carried on his ancestors’ traditions.” Carlita sucked in a breath. “So, what’s the final result? Is what you found going to put Pete’s place on the map?”