would quickly dissolve into a mess of shoes, shoes and more shoes.
In fact, behind a pair of shoes, I discovered the exact box that I needed. I quickly opened it. A velvet sack lay in the center, looking exactly as it had when I placed it in the box ages ago. I caressed the bag. For so long I’d kept this hidden away because I feared using the power that it held.
I pulled the drawstring open and dipped my fingers in. They brushed the cool metal that practically sang when I touched it.
My fingers curled around the handle, and I pulled the golden hammer from its resting place. “I don’t like to use you, but it seems that my choices are limited.”
The hammer of course said nothing. It only gleamed in my palm. Gold from one end to the other, it looked more suited for a fanciful display case than being used in the real world.
I hadn’t called on its power in years, not since we’d hired Liam to do our contracting. Before then I would use it, but not often, and Sadie never knew a thing about it.
I grabbed my tool belt from the closet and tucked the hammer down into it. Then I headed outside.
Lady waited impatiently, her tail wagging as if to say, Hurry up, Mama, let’s go.
I tucked her under one arm and strode back to the truck and Rufus, ready to face off against Dooley Hutto.
Chapter 13
We rumbled to a stop beside Dooley’s truck. As soon as I got out, Dooley raged right on over.
“It’s about time you got here,” he said, huffing. “Now I’m sorry about Sadie, I really am, but I’ve got to be out of my house on schedule so that my son and his family can move in. Dottie and I have been planning this.”
I nodded, irritated. I swear, that man would do whatever he could to get out of paying or to sneak away from a situation that caused him even a modest amount of discomfort.
I pulled my hair into a ponytail and tied it back with a band that rested on my wrist. “Dooley, I understand, and believe it or not, I need to work. I’ve got bills to pay.”
And if Sadie wasn’t already dead, I might have murdered her myself since she was draining my bank account dry.
Dooley’s expression softened. “Look, I’m sorry, Clem. I really am. But I’ve got to get out of my house.”
“And I’ve got to finish this barn.”
Rufus left the truck, and Dooley gave him a once-over of historic proportions. The farmer’s gaze swept Rufus from head to toe and back up again. Oh no, I could just hear the fireworks exploding in Dooley’s brain.
“And who’re you?” he said to Rufus.
Rufus, for what it was worth, didn’t miss a beat. He smoothly extended his hand. “Name’s John. I’m here to help Clementine. It looks like we have a lot of work to do, sir, and we’d hate to keep you.”
Dooley eyed Rufus’s leather pants skeptically. “Son, you sure you worked on a house before?”
Rufus smiled. “Let me tell you, construction is my life. I’ve raised barns and torn them down, put in Sheetrock and demolished it. Anything you’ve got, I can handle.”
Dooley’s expression remained neutral. I wasn’t sure if he was convinced that Rufus could do the job, and to be honest, it didn’t matter.
I cleared my throat. “Dooley, we’ve got a lot of work ahead of us, so if you don’t mind, we need to get to it.”
Dooley nodded. “I’ll see you soon, Clem.” He stared at the building. “This needs to get done soon or else I’ll find another company to finish it.”
As he drove away, I murmured, “The sooner we finish, the sooner I get paid.”
Rufus strode up to me. “I see you brought your magic hammer.”
My face flushed. “We may need it. After all, you don’t have any tools, and you don’t remember how to use magic in order to get them.”
Rufus glanced around. “I’m sure there are tools around here somewhere.”
I pointed to the barn. “Liam has a box inside that should help us, but the first thing we have to do is fix the foundation, and for that, we’ll need this.” I lifted the hammer from my belt.
Lady scampered by, chasing a butterfly. Oh, how I wished to be chasing butterflies instead of living in the nightmare I’d woken up to.
As I strode toward the barn, Rufus followed. “And why is it that you own a magical hammer