“I’ll kill them.”

“Luka, calm down,” I tell him, because having him go off right now is not good.

“Don’t fucking tell me to calm down. Do you see this shit?”

I rub the back of my neck, anger and frustration running through me because I do see. The place is a complete mess. The windows have been busted out, the cords on the blow dryers have been cut in two, there are combs and brushes, picks and probably twenty other things scattered all over the floor that I don’t know what they are. All of the shampoo, conditioner and hair supplies have been turned upside down and spilled out onto the floor. The dryer tops have had a hammer taken to them and are broken into pieces. I know it’s a hammer because it’s stuck in the wall right beside some of the holes it made before getting stuck. Nail polish bottles have been crushed and are littered on the floor in an enormous array of colors. All of that is bad enough, but it’s the huge red spray painted words that bother me the most.

Addie wanted to come with me and Luka, but Petal and Mom convinced her to stay at the farm. After seeing this mess… I’m glad. I don’t want her exposed to this.

WHORE.

The word is everywhere, plastered on the wall with glaring red paint.

“I. Will. Kill. Them.”

“We have to find out who it is first, man.”

“I’ll find out and then… I’ll kill him.”

“I don’t think it’s a him,” I tell Luka, looking over the damage.

“You don’t?”

“Nah. Look at this? This much rage and the objects they took the time to destroy. I think it was a woman. A man wouldn’t be this… frenzied.”

“I’ve seen men do some pretty intense shit,” he argues and he’s right… but…

“Maybe, but their attacks are usually more personal,” I tell him and I walk over to the hammer and after putting on a plastic glove I pull it out of the wall. It takes a little effort, but not that much.

“I’ve seen that look on you before, Black. What are you thinking?”

“That I got this hammer out pretty easily, but it took a bit of effort… effort the average woman might not have managed.”

“Fucking hell.”

“Pretty much.”

“Who could hate Petal so much to do this kind of thing? You know as well as I do that she’s loved in this town.”

“That I can’t answer, but we’ll get some answers, buddy. That I know.”

“We better, because until we do I’m not letting my wife out of my sight and you know how happy that will make her.”

I sigh, because I do. Petal is about as independent as they come.

“It might be a good idea if you keep an eye on Addie too,” Luka says and I frown. I had already mentioned to him my thoughts on Lynn and the fact that Addie’s tires were pretty much slashed according to Hank.

“You think Addie’s tires and Petal’s shop are related?” I ask.

“I don’t think we can rule it out.”

I nod in reply because he’s right, we can’t.

“Addie was just here last night, Luka. This could be directed at her and Petal just got caught in the crossfire.”

“It’s possible, but it doesn’t matter,” he says and I nod agreement.

“Family is family.” I answer along with him.

“We can get Addie to give a description of this Lynn’s car. She doesn’t know her last name, but maybe we can track her through the vehicle,” I suggest.

“It’s worth a shot. In the meantime, do you still have any connections with the Dallas P.D.? I’d like to have their forensics team go through this place. Fingerprints or DNA sure would be nice.”

“I’ve got a few who will still help me out. I’ll put a call through to them.”

“Thanks, Black. I truly appreciate your help with this.”

“Man, it affects me too,” I tell him, still not believing the damage I’m seeing.

Luka grunts, and when I glance at him the look on his face probably mirrors mine.

There’s trouble here… a lot of trouble…

I just wish I knew the source.