Chapter 18

Chapter Eighteen

After lunch, Lyra cooperated with her Daddy's decree that she needed to take a nap. Stretched out in the comfy bed, she pretended to take a nap, planning to get up as soon as her Daddy left their apartment. Unfortunately, she fell asleep within seconds of closing her eyes.

When she woke up, the late afternoon sun slanted into the big windows. Hurrying out of bed, she ran to the bathroom and then returned to her waiting cello.

"Sorry, I got distracted," she apologized to the instrument as she sat in her chair. The blue fuzz on the music stand caught her eye, and she decided to check out the lining before getting started.

Sitting next to the open case on the floor close to her chair, she ran her fingers over the upper sections and found a few places that felt worn. At the bottom, she discovered a small tear in the velvet where the end pin fit. The carbon fiber had a rubber tip covering it, but over time, the support would work its way through, or the rubber would become brittle and crack.

Spinning around to face the instrument, she checked that spot, expecting to discover she needed to replace the tip. To her surprise, Lyra looked at a totally unblemished, working piece. What would have caused the tear? Maybe just the repetitive usage of the case or being banged around in travel?

She turned back to the case and shifted it to focus the sunlight on the damaged spot. Something glittered. Dipping her fingers back into the narrow slot, she felt around, checking for something metallic. Lyra located the tear and discovered a small cylindrical object.

It took some time to maneuver it through the tear and pull it out. As she lifted it from the case, small beads fell from what she now recognized as a vial. She picked up one and held it up to the light to look at it. A rainbow of reflections danced on the wall of her playroom. These weren't beads.

"What is going on?" As soon as that question drifted from her lips into the empty room, Lyra knew she needed someone else to help her think. Dropping the object into the case, she rose to her feet and ran out of the apartment. "Is anyone here?" she called, looking toward all the doors.

No one answered.

Running back into Phoenix's apartment, she searched for her phone and found it on the charger. There were a bunch of messages from Boyd. She ignored those and found her Daddy's number.

"Lyra? Are you okay?" Phoenix asked.

"Could you come back to the apartment? I found something. Well, some things. I don't know what they are, but I think it may be why Boyd is so determined to see me."

"I'll be there in a few minutes. I'm on the other side of the resort, fixing a broken step. I'll have to wait until I can get someone to finish this to avoid a guest injuring him or herself. Magnus is on his way up to help."

"Okay. Hurry, okay?"

"I'll be there as fast as possible."

Lyra disconnected the call as she walked to the apartment door and left it open for Magnus. She returned to her playroom and stood looking at the case. Those had to be gems. They sparkled in the light.

"Lyra?" Magnus called.

"I'm in the playroom."

"What did you find?" the computer guy asked.

"Those," she said, pointing toward the crystals. "They were in some kind of vial hidden under the lining of my cello case. I found some blue fluff when I pulled my cello out today and investigated to see if the case was breaking down. It was there at the bottom where the support fits in."

Magnus lowered himself to the floor and picked up one of the items she had discovered. "I think these are diamonds, Lyra. They're not yours?"

"No. I don't wear jewelry. It gets in my way."

"This was the vial?" he asked, holding it up. "It looks like the top is missing. Your fingers are smaller than mine. Can you check back where you found this and see if there are more?"

"I can see what I feel."

Joining him on the floor, Lyra glided her fingers along the lining. "There's something hard in here."

Carefully, she pulled out the plastic stopper for the vial. "I think there are more of those stones in there, too."

"See what you can pull out. If we need to, we can use a small vacuum to pull out anything that's left."

She worked hard to pull out two more and then said, "I think that's it."

Magnus counted the items resting on the blue felt. There were eight in various shapes and sizes. "I think we need to check the rest of the case. Is it okay for me to run my fingers over the lining?"

"Of course. I felt a few places that were thinning or rough scattered along the body of the case."

"Show me," he requested.

"There was one here," she said, running her fingers where the scroll at the top of the cello was carved into the wood. Freezing, she looked up at Magnus.

"Can you feel another vial?" he asked.

"I think so. But the fabric is together. I don't feel a rip."

Magnus grabbed his phone from his back pocket and shone the flashlight into that small area. "Does that look like it was repaired?"

"It doesn't look like the untouched velvet." She frowned. "We're going to have to cut it, aren't we?"

"I'm afraid so." Magnus reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, folding knife. "Do you want to do it, or shall I?"

"Please. You do it. My hands are shaking too much," Lyra said, holding out one hand to show him.

She held her breath as he cut a small opening. Lyra watched him stop and return the knife to his pocket.

"Lyra, I need a small, thin cloth. Like a handkerchief."

"How about a thin sock?" she asked, standing and racing to the dresser to pull out a black dress sock.

"That's perfect. Go grab me a plastic bag from the kitchen as well."

"Fingerprints," she said on an exhale.

"If we're lucky."

When she returned, Magnus had encased his hand in the sock. He carefully maneuvered another vial out from under the crushed velvet. Lyra held the bag out for him to drop it inside. He took it and sealed the zip top before dropping it inside next to the loose gems.

"Where else did you feel anything rough on the lining?" he asked.

"Let's both check everywhere. Look, here's one." Her fingers traced that spot. "I would never have noticed this, but I don't think there's anything here. I can feel a notch where something was. But it's an empty space there now."

"Let's count those suspicious spots."

They were just finishing when Phoenix burst into the room. "Lyra? You're okay?"

"I'm fine. Shattered but fine," she said, sitting back on her heels as she exchanged looks with Magnus.

"It looks like someone was using Lyra's cello case to smuggle gems," Magnus said, indicating the plastic bag. "I would guess those are diamonds."

"What? How?"

"I found blue fuzz on my tail spike. When I investigated, I found that vial open. Several gems were still in it, but some had spilled out. We found another vial at the top," Lyra shared with Phoenix and roughly brushed her hair out of her face in exasperation.

"There were fourteen other spots in the lining where it appears other vials were hidden," Magnus added. "I'd guess whoever is doing this hides two a trip."

"That's eight times he's used me to smuggle diamonds. When I get my hands on Boyd, he's a dead man," Lyra hissed.

"Do you have proof that it was Boyd?" Phoenix asked.

"Not yet. The vial we found up here, we pulled out with a sock and put that vial in that bag. I'll take it downstairs to use Celeste's microscopes to see if there are any prints. Then, we'll try to match him to the vial," Magnus proposed.

"Is that why he's so adamant about me going to Japan? The diamonds were supposed to go there?" Lyra asked.

"No one knows but Boyd," Magnus said.

"Don't I remember reading somewhere that diamonds are etched with a registration number?" Phoenix asked.

Magnus nodded. "That was in my mind, too. I think after a certain date, that is the current practice. That's on my list to look at in Celeste's lab. She's going to love helping us solve a crime as well as medical mysteries," Magnus said with a chuckle.

"Are you okay, Little girl?" Phoenix asked as he lowered himself to sit on the floor next to Lyra.

"I'm sick to my stomach. If those are smuggled diamonds, and they'd been found when I went through customs, what would have happened?" she asked.

Phoenix lifted her onto his lap and wrapped his arms around her. He rocked her gently. "It would not have been good."

"I would be in some jail somewhere, wouldn't I?"

"Probably," Magnus confirmed.

"This is why Kingsley got us involved. Are we dealing with an international diamond smuggling operation or just one greedy man who agreed to take a few here and there?" Phoenix said, shaking his head in disbelief.

"That conniving bastard! I want him in jail," Lyra said with iron in her voice.

"We're going to do everything we can to make sure he's put there as we protect you, Lyra," Magnus said gently. "I'll go get another bag to hold the rest of the gems, then head downstairs to see what I can find."

When he disappeared to go into the kitchen, Lyra looked up at Phoenix. "I thought he loved me. At least at some point. How long do you think he's been using me to do this?"

"How old is that case?" Phoenix asked.

"It's about eighteen months old. With all the travel, it gets banged up."

"Do you still have the other cases?" he asked.

"No. I donate them to schools to use. I don't remember where the last one went," she explained, shaking her head in disbelief.

As Magnus returned, she asked, "You think he's been doing this for a long time?"

The two men exchanged a look, and Lyra demanded, "Tell me the truth."

"The spikes in his bank balances go back a couple of years," Magnus muttered before gathering the evidence together. He departed quietly, leaving the two of them alone.

Lyra clapped her hand over her mouth, trying not to be sick. "I've been an idiot," she whispered.

"There was no way you could have ever imagined this would happen," Phoenix assured her.

"I should've known something was wrong. I should've gotten rid of him a long time ago." It was hard for Lyra to avoid feeling foolish for all the time she stayed with Boyd.