Chapter 17
“Sonny said something to you at the party,” Carlita repeated.
“Not at the party, but the other day. We got to talking about his riding club. He told me he almost wrecked his motorcycle a week ago. He mentioned an issue with the brake cable not working properly,” Reese said.
“Did he say why it wasn’t working properly? I mean, did he find the reason, like maybe it came loose or was corroded?”
“No, and I didn’t think to ask,” Reese said. “He mentioned Creed’s accident, which is how we got on the subject.”
Carlita made a mental note to ask Luigi and Dernice about Sonny’s brakes.
The final passengers boarded, and Reese left to continue her route. Meanwhile, Carlita backtracked to Ravello’s and found Mercedes waiting for her. “How’s Reese?”
“Gearing up for Christmas.” Carlita told her what her friend had said. “Sonny mentioned having issues with his motorcycle’s brakes.”
“Meaning they might have been tampered with?”
“It’s possible.”
A car pulled up to the curb. A group of women, dressed in business attire, climbed out and entered the restaurant.
“At least we still have customers,” Mercedes said. “I gotta get to work.”
“I’m gonna check on Bubba to see how he’s settling in.” Carlita ran inside the restaurant long enough to collect her purse and keys, along with the welcome to the neighborhood greeting card she’d picked up for her new tenant, and exited through the back.
Stepping into the alley, she noticed an EC Security Services van parked at the corner. As she drew closer, Carlita spotted a familiar figure standing on the hood, fiddling with the gutter. “Now what is she up to?”
Circling around to the front of the van, she stopped a few feet away. “What are you doing?”
Elvira jerked back, nearly losing her balance. “What the…”
“Sorry.”
“You scared the daylights out of me.”
“I thought you saw me.”
“While I’m staring up?” Elvira wiped her hands on her jeans. “Since you’re here, I could use some help.”
“Doing what?”
“I need the red pliers in the toolbox next to the front tire.”
Carlita plucked the pliers from the toolbox and handed them to her. “What are you doing?” she repeated.
“Replacing my old security camera.”
“I thought you upgraded the cameras earlier this year.”
“Technology advances every day. These are much better. Better quality, better optics, more energy efficient.”
“You must spend a small fortune on surveillance stuff.”
“These are prototypes. I hammered out a sweet deal with a manufacturer in Oregon. He sends me sample products. I test them in exchange for great deals. I have some extras if you’re interested.”
“Thanks, but my surveillance cameras work fine.”
“You sure? Your only expense would be installation.”
Carlita wrinkled her nose. “And I’m sure hiring you to install them would cost me a pretty penny.”
“You should never cut corners when looking for quality labor and experience.”
“I’ll keep it in mind.” She rocked back on her heels, watching as Elvira anchored the camera to the post.
“Can you do me another favor?”
“Sure.”
“Stand over there.” Elvira pointed in the general direction of Carlita’s rear apartment entrance.
“You want me to stand by my apartment door?”
“Correct.”
“Elvira Cobb,” Carlita scolded. “You cannot spy on my tenants.”
“It’s not spying. I’m merely monitoring activity.” Elvira began humming under her breath, tightening the screw and moving the lens. “Fine. If you won’t help, I’ll figure out the exact angle myself.”
“This is ridiculous. If you don’t move the lens away from the back door, I’ll do it myself.”
Elvira stopped what she was doing. “Are you serious?”
“I won’t allow you to spy on my tenants, including my own daughter.”
She mumbled under her breath and turned the lens. “Happy now?”
“A little more to the right.”
“Sheesh.” Elvira twisted it slightly and hopped down before Carlita made her move it even more. “I have other ways to monitor the neighborhood.”
“I’m sure you do. Why the sudden interest in my tenants?” And then it dawned on her. “Bubba. You want to keep an eye on Bubba.”
“Something about him isn’t sitting right with me.”
“Because you don’t like southern gentlemen.”
“Not true,” Elvira said. “I wouldn’t live in the South if I didn’t get along with Southerners. As a PI, I have a good feel for people, and he’s giving me a suspicious vibe.”
“I think…I know you are way off on this one. Bubba is a nice guy. As I mentioned before, he had a glowing recommendation from his former landlord.”
“What does he do?”
“For a living?”
“Yeah. His job. What line of work is he in?”
“I don’t remember,” Carlita said. “You already interrogated him. What did he say?”
“He was vague. To be honest, I think he was making stuff up.”
“I do recall he makes decent money, enough to afford the apartment.”
Elvira stared at her in disbelief. “You didn’t check his work references?”
“No. He paid his first and last month’s rent plus his deposit. His credit and background checks were both clean.”
“What if he runs an illegal business from his home?”
Carlita placed her hand on Elvira’s forehead. “Are you suffering from paranoia?”
She swatted her hand away. “Go ahead and make fun of me, but when the bodies start piling up or the cops are kicking down your door, I’ll be the first to say I told you so.”
“If it makes you feel better, I’ll find out what line of work Bubba is in and let you know.”
“Don’t bother. I’m gonna run my own check on him. You can never be too careful,” Elvira said.
“Not to change the subject, but how is Yvonne?”
“She showed up for work today, whining about how she’s still afraid to eat, but at least she’s not talking about hiring an attorney. To be honest, she probably already did, and they told her she didn’t have a case.”
“I hope so.”
“Any fallout from the Channel 2 story?” Elvira asked.
“We’ve gotten several holiday party cancellations this morning. The health department sent a woman to the restaurant for a surprise inspection.”
“Did you give her food samples? Because unless it’s a cop and they have a search warrant, you don’t have to provide anyone with samples.”
“Paisley emptied the pans and gave the leftovers to the animal feed place last night.” Carlita told her she was still waiting to hear from the lab. “How well do you know the riders in Dernice and Luigi’s riding club?”
“I see them around. She mentions them in passing. Based on what we’re finding out, it’s probably a good thing.”
Carlita told her about chatting with Reese and Reese’s conversation with Sonny. “What if someone tampered with Sonny’s brake cable?”
“If he had an enemy, someone who wanted to take him out, then I guess it should be looked into,” Elvira said.
“You saw Dernice’s photos. She and Luigi are convinced Creed wasn’t the rider who was supposed to crash.
Maybe someone messed with Sonny’s brake cable.
That didn’t work, so they tried causing a wreck.
Causing him to wreck backfired, so they decided to poison him at the party. ”
“Poisoning didn’t kill him, so they took him out in the hospital,” Carlita said. “All leading back to figuring out who visited Sonny the night of his death.”
Elvira’s cell phone chimed. “I’m late for a meeting with a potential client. Let me know when you get the lab results.”
“Hopefully, with good news.” Carlita stood off to the side, watching as Elvira hopped into her work van. Loose gravel flew from the back tires as she hit the gas a little too hard and sped off.
Stepping into the alley, Carlita studied the camera, still angled in a way that allowed her a partial view of anyone who entered or exited the apartment.
“Not enough, Elvira,” Carlita muttered. “If you wanna spy on my tenants and family, you’re gonna have to try a little harder.”