Murder In the Past Tense (A Giorgio Salvatori Mystery Book 2) Read Free Page B

earlier because they saw something metallic at the bottom.” The chief shook his head. “These guys are idiots. Someone could have been killed. But they’ve already had to stop the project once because it’s considered an archaeological site, so they thought they’d better check it out.”
    “And they found a body?” Giorgio said.
    “Just a skeleton,” the chief replied. “I guess it scared the hell out of the kid that went down. At first, they thought maybe it was left over from the Spanish rancho days. But the guy who found it said he found a metal chain and a heart pendant with it, plus a heavy zipper buried in the dirt. Maybe from a duffle bag. That’s why you guys were called. A heart pendant and a duffle bag sounds way too modern. And I don’t think the rancheros had zippers,” he said with a sardonic smile. He raised his eyebrows and then turned and spit onto the ground as if to make a point.
    One of the rescue team members appeared at Giorgio’s elbow. He was already fitted into a harness and a helmet.
    “Wanna be the one to drop down there, Joe? I’d be happy to give up my spot. I know how much you like finding dead bodies.”
    The guy in the harness was Pete Colbert. He was in his late thirties and sported a goatee. He’d also been Giorgio’s instructor when Giorgio participated in a search and rescue training class the year before.
    Giorgio smiled. “Didn't you tell me once that I ought to stick to detecting?”
    The man’s lips separated into a grin, exposing a chipped front tooth. “Damn straight. That way you can stand around while we do all the tough stuff.”
    He winked and started to walk away. Giorgio stopped him.
    “Hey, Pete, wait a minute. You got a camera? You’ll need to record the area before you pull the body.”
    Colbert tapped a pocket in his cargo pants. “Right here. But you realize that if she’s all bones, she isn’t going to come up in one piece.”
    Giorgio shrugged. “Do the best you can. And get shots from all angles, including the position of the bones, if you can.”
    Colbert nodded. “I know the drill. I’ll bag and tag everything.”
    Giorgio smiled. “You’d make a decent detective.”
    Colbert grinned this time. “Never!”
    “Okay, but be careful down there. I’d hate to have to come save your sorry ass if you get into trouble,” Giorgio quipped.
    The man chuckled. “Right. I’ll tell the guys to send you down in case there’s an S.O.S.”
    He walked away, laughing.
    Giorgio folded his arms across his chest, feeling his muscles flex. The slow pace of a small town had left him a little flabby, something he’d noticed when the Mallery Olsen case broke. So after that case closed, he’d started working out again. He could already feel the difference, making him wish he was the one strapping on the harness and dropping into the well instead.
    A rescue team member approached the well and dropped a ventilation hose down. It was attached to a small orange fan that began to blow fresh air into the shaft.
    “They worried about the air quality?” Giorgio asked the chief.
    “We’re worried about everything,” he replied. “The well is about thirty-five feet deep. Pete will carry an air monitor with him, just in case. If the air changes, he’ll let us know and we’ll pull him up. We’re not taking any chances.”
    A fireman had climbed into the big rig parked at the curb and fired up the engine. He backed it up about fifteen feet. A second fireman was at the rear of the ladder on a turntable, moving a lever. The ladder began to extend until the tip of it hovered just above the opening to the well.
    When it stopped, he climbed out to the end of the ladder and attached a huge hook and pulley system for two ropes. Both ropes were then stretched back and looped through a second pulley anchored at the base of the ladder. One was equipped with a lifting bridle designed for small spaces.
    Pete Colbert moved to the back of the truck and was securely attached