"You'll probably need both."
"Good idea. Oh, and what about a saw? I think Dot keeps a saw in the closet. One of those little ones, for cutting metal and stuff?"
"A hacksaw."
"That's it. Should I get that, too?"
"If you can find it."
Jolynn found the hacksaw right where she remembered seeing it, in the closet with some other tools. With the hacksaw and boning knife in one hand, and the cleaver in the other, she headed for the bathroom, where Dot was waiting in the tub.
This was going to be such fun.
Two trunks. That was all that remained of the luggage from that morning's train from San Francisco. Two black trunks with silver handles. They looked brand-new, not the sort of thing you'd expect someone to abandon at the train station...unless they had a good reason.
The moment Samuel saw those big trunks, he knew someone was up to no good. Damn things were big enough to fit two, maybe three, crates of bootleg hooch. The owner probably saw a few uniforms milling about, got cold feet, and ran. The Southern Pacific railway didn't hold with bootleggers. As a baggage-checker it was Samuel's job to, well, check the baggage. And if there were as many bottles in these trunks as he suspected, no one would miss one.
He marched over to the trunks. The minute he got within a foot of them, he reeled back, hand shooting up to cover his nose. Goddamn! If that was hooch, he didn't want even a sip of it. Smelled like something curled up and died in there. He was surprised the baggage-handlers in San Francisco hadn't noticed. Maybe it hadn't smelled that bad before spending a half-day in a baggage car, baking in the August heat.
As Samuel reached for the latch, a pickup truck backed up to the receiving dock. A young man stepped out from the driver's side, but Samuel barely got a look at him before his attention was snagged by the passenger. A brunette. A real doll. Swanky, like some kind of mov
ie star.
The young couple walked toward him, the woman holding out a baggage-claim slip.
"These your trunks, ma'am?" Samuel asked.
She smiled. "They are. Sorry we're late. I got off the train, then realized I had to get my brother to bring the truck around for the trunks. They're quite heavy."
"May I ask what's in them?"
"Oh just...personal items." She smiled. "You know how women pack."
Her brother snorted. "Got that right. Two trunks for a weekend visit. You'd think she was moving back home."
The young man moved toward the trunks, but Samuel lifted a hand.
"There's a...funny smell coming from them, ma'am."
The woman's blue eyes widened. "There is?"
"There sure is," her brother said, nose wrinkling. "And there's something oozing out the bottom. Jeepers, Jo, what you got in here?"
Before she could answer, Samuel stepped up to the first trunk. He reached for the latch, but saw that it was locked.
"Ma'am? I'm going to need to ask you to open these."
Jolynn stared at the baggage-handler, as if not understanding his request.
Victoria? What do I do now?
She waited, but her friend didn't answer. She must have been thinking up a plan. As the baggage-handler and Ricky waited, Jolynn rummaged through her purse, pretending to look for the keys.
Victoria?
"Ma'am, I need those--"
"Wait," she snapped. "I'm looking for them."