Checkered Crime: A Laurel London Mystery

by Kappes, Tonya

  I gulped. My chest heaved up and down.

  “This is not real. I fell down. The dog next door attacked me and I’m dead. This is not real.” I repeated with my eyes closed tight. Super tight. “I’m going to open my eyes,” I warned.

  “Still here. Still working for your dead grandfather.” The man stuck his hands out to his side like he was showcasing himself. “Your dead mob grandfather, The Gorilla.”

  “That is not true!” My eyes filled with water. “I have been in an orphanage all my life. My family couldn’t raise me. They were poor!”

  “And I suppose Trixie told you that?” he asked.

  “No, but that is why I was there. I know it!” Many times I would make up reasons my family gave me up for adoption. It had to be money. Had to be.

  “Not true Laurel.” He shook his head. He put his cigar in his mouth and let it rest in his lips. He walked forward. His long black coat swished. His hands were covered in black leather gloves. “That ring will prove to you where you came from.” He pointed to the shattered box and all the contents lying on the floor.

  With my eyes still on him, I picked up the ring.

  “Go on. Get a good look,” he encouraged me. “Plain and simple, I’m here to help you. Protect you because Trixie isn’t doing such a good job.” He shuffled his feet. “And I pay her handsomely for it too. Well, The Gorilla pays her handsomely.”

  Letting his words roll around in my head, I looked at the ring.

  “This looks like the same ring as the one Trigger Finger Tony Cardozza has.” My mind felt cloudy. A headache was in my future. “Wait!” His words started to register in my brain. “You pay Trixie to what?”

  “First things first.” He pointed outside. “We need to get out of here before someone calls the cops, though Trixie does pay the utilities to keep up the place in case you need it someday.”

  “Are you telling me that you aren’t going to let me leave by myself?” I pinched my arm to make sure this was real.

  “You’ve got the ring.” He pointed to my hand. He held out his arms like he was going to hug me. “Welcome to the family.”

  Chapter Eighteen

  Ben Bassman suggested we meet at a little neighborhood diner around the corner so no one would notice us. I did only because he did seem to have the key to my past.

  “Mob? Me? Ring?” Tears stung my eyes as I asked the one word questions over the little café table.

  “Your parents,” he did the sign of the cross, “were good people.”

  “Were?” I asked even though he didn’t really need to tell me what that meant.

  “Unfortunately they were caught in the middle of your grandfather’s dispute with the Cardozza family.” He picked up the steaming cup of hot coffee the waitress had brought over.

  I didn’t want anything to drink unless it had pure alcohol in it and nothing on the menu alluded to it so I stuck with a glass of water.

  And the more he talked, the more I felt like throwing up.

  “The Cardozzas were trying to take over the family business.” His silence told me that the family business probably wasn’t on the up and up, which was exactly where I was trying to be. “And The Gorilla set up a meetin’ at Sal’s Pizza, only the meetin’ didn’t take place.”

  “Sal’s Pizza?” I asked. I had never heard of it.

  “Yeah, New Jersey.” He snapped his finger. “That’s another thing, you are from New Jersey.”

  “Really?” I was starting to buy into this whole thing before I had even talked to Trixie—who I was going to kill when I got my hands on her.

  “While they capped your father, they were over at your house doin’ the same thing to Veronica, your mother.” He punched his fist in his hand. “The Gorilla was never the same after that. Neither were you. You were a baby. You needed a mother’s arms to cuddle you. So The Gorilla did what he thought was best.”

  “He thought giving me away was protecting me?” I asked. “Here we are today in the throws of danger.”

  “Trigger has no idea who you are. He only knows that the ring holds the family fortune.” He grinned.

  “What family fortune?” I asked, vaguely remembering he said something back at the house.

  “Blood money.” He took a deep breath. “When The Gorilla and the Cardozza put the families together, they had rings made up to signify the union. Only two rings.” He pointed to the ring I had snugged on my thumb. “That one and the one Trigger got from his grandfather.”

  “But—” I started. He interrupted.

  “Let me finish.” He sighed deeply. “When The Gorilla and the Cardozza made the union, they made one big cartel. One big pot of money. If in the event things went south and one family killed the other, the rings were made.”

  “So.” I shrugged.

  “Let me finish.” His patience seemed to be wearing thin. He put his hands on the table. “In the event one family would turn on the other for the fortune they had created both rings had to be presented to me, Ben Bassman, in order to get the money.”

  “You?” I asked.

  “I’m the lawyer for both families. New York City no good lawyer.” He tilted his head and lifted his hands like what ya gonna do?

  “Does Trigger know I’m The Gorilla’s granddaughter?” A lump of holy shit sat in my throat. “Is that why he is having me cart him around? Making a plan to kill me?”

  “I don’t know. It depends on what you have said to him. He knows that The Gorilla’s blood grandchild was put in an orphanage somewhere around the Louisville area.” He held his arms out in front of him and tugged on the white shirt underneath the sleeves of his coat to readjust. “He fired me months ago because I told him I didn’t know where you were and I wouldn’t tell him if you were a boy or a girl. Only he wants to kill off the last remaining heir of The Gorilla so he can have all the family fortune.”

  Everything was becoming crystal clear. “What about the Underworld Music Festival?”

  “The Underwhat?”

  “He’s not here to smuggle his illegal firearms?” I asked.

  Slowly he shook his head. “I don’t think so. He does all his illegal business through the family poultry farm. At least that was when I was their family lawyer.”

  “Why do I have to be involved with this?” Suddenly knowing my family history wasn’t too appealing.

  “Laurel, for the family, you have to kill Trigger Finger Tony and get that ring.” The look in his eyes was as serious as a heart attack. “Bring me his ring and get what is owed to you. What your grandfather wanted you to have.”

  “I don’t want any blood money.” My stomach started to hurt. “I can’t kill anyone.”

  “Let me tell you something.” His words bit like a chilly air whipping through the Kentucky woods in the middle of winter. “When he finds out who you are, and he will find out who you are, don’t think he won’t think twice about offin’ you.”

  I gulped.

  “Got it?” he asked with a chill in his voice. “Luckily he hasn’t figured out where Trixie is because he will torture her to find out who and where you are. Each day he is getting closer to the truth.”

  “But the FBI thinks he is in town to smuggle arms.” I glanced out the window at the beautiful day wondering if it was going to be the last beautiful day I was ever going to see if Trigger was getting closer to figuring out that I’m the one with the ties to the fortune.

  “Don’t worry about the FBI.” He leaned back in his chair and stared at me. His voice low, he warned, “You worry about Laurel London. And get that ring.”

  Ben Bassman left me the address where he was staying while he was in town and told me I needed to call him on a daily basis to let him know what was going on with Trigger and if I was any closer to getting the ring or making the hit.

  I had no intention of making a hit on anyone, but the ring wasn’t out of the picture. In my head I had planned to get the ring from his suite while I was undercover for the FBI. How long was it going to take th
e FBI to realize Trigger wasn’t in Walnut Grove to smuggle arms? He was there to find and kill me. I was going to have to play my cards right. I wanted his ring.

  The only place I knew where to look was his room in the Airport Hotel. But what if he still had it on? There was only one way to find out…go back.

  Some of what Ben Bassman had told me over his lunch made a lot of sense. The past started to add up. There was always enough money for the orphans and me and I figured it was from the state, never my family. I bet Trixie had us dumpster dive for the fun of it. That would totally be something she’d do.

  “Good afternoon,” the concierge gave me what I refer to as The Baptist Nod.

  I had seen Pastor Wilson give it several times. It was the nod where both parties knew what the other meant. So without saying a word, I knew the concierge was telling me that Jennifer was back.

  “I think your table in the cocktail lounge is ready for you.” She gestured around the six-foot tall potted tree. “If you would like to follow me, Ms. London.”

  I smiled. I made sure to keep my head down in case Trigger was there. I walked past the bartender who gave the Baptist Nod to the concierge and then gave me a theatrical wink in return.

  Obviously it had gotten around the Airport Hotel that I, Laurel London, had been spying on Jennifer for the FBI.

  There was a cocktail waiting for me at a table that was positioned with a perfect view of Jennifer. She was on her phone, fussing to someone and enjoying her cosmopolitan.

  “Is there anything else I can get for you?” the concierge asked.

  “All good. Thank you. You have done enough.” I found it a little funny how the fake badge could get so much attention.

  Maybe I should tell guys I’m with the FBI. Maybe then I’d get a date.

  “Please let me know.” She gave one last long wink before she turned around and back around. “Oh, our little friend is going to a little bar in Walnut Grove tonight called Benny’s.”

  I tucked that little bit of information in my head. I watched Jennifer talk on the phone while I got on the Internet with my new phone. I had to get in touch with Bob and set up our cocktail date for tonight. It would be a perfect cover up.

  Chapter Nineteen

  There wasn’t much going on with Jennifer other than her talking on the phone and her appointment at the Airport Hotel Spa. She was having the two-hour moss body wrap, mud bath, facial, pedicure and manicure. She was going to be there a while.

  It was already six p.m. and there was no sense in waiting around. Jennifer was going to be going to Benny’s, I wanted to make sure I got there early to get the best bar table. I wasn’t sure if Trigger was going to meet her there. Which didn’t make much sense if he was trying to keep a low profile since he was smuggling guns and stuff.

  Either way. I was going to be there.

  I had enough time to go home and feed Henrietta before I got ready for the “date with Bob.” It was a good cover up for staying undercover. I decided not to call Jax because I was going on my date and see what Jennifer and Trigger were going to do at Benny’s Bar.

  Besides, if Trigger knew who Jax was, Jax wouldn’t want to show his face anyway. And my new fancy phone had a camera and if anything went down, I’d use it.

  I used my phone to email Bob and let him know that tonight was good and to meet me at Benny’s Bar at eight o’clock. He was totally down with it and told me he would be carrying a rose so I would know who he was. Little did he know, I had already used the camera on my phone to snap a screen shot of his profile picture on Lunch Date Dot Com so I would knew who he was.

  Eight o’clock was a perfect time to grab a table, get a beer and watch the door. Plus it was dollar draft night. The usual going out time was around the nine-thirty, ten o’clock time for a week night. Generally everyone grabbed a quick beer, caught up on the day’s gossip, and got home just in time to go to bed so we could do the same thing the next day.

  I didn’t frequent Benny’s a whole lot during the week for the fact that the money I would have spent there had to be spent on other things. Tonight I could spy on Jennifer, get free beer off of Bob, and maybe have a potential boyfriend.

  Meow. Henrietta jumped off the futon, stretched her striped grey legs out in front of her and arched her back into a big stretch.

  “Hey girl.” I bent down and let her run over to me. “Let’s eat.”

  I picked her up and walked over to the kitchenette to get one of the cans Derek had gotten for me from the Dollar Store.

  Henrietta sniffed the mashed up stuff and stuck her nose up in the air.

  Meow.

  Her disapproval was not only in her meow, but the fact she ran back under the futon without eating it told me she was mad. Maybe I could score something from the bar to bring home. Until then she was going to have to suffer and eat it.

  The black flirty skirt that hit just above my knees was clean. I paired it with a white tee under my jean jacket and hot pink heels. I threw on a silver ball necklace and earrings to complete the look along with a swipe of lipstick and I was on my way.

  Benny’s Bar was on the far side of town near Derek’s Garage and right before the curve to the old orphanage. It sat right off the road with a gravel parking lot in front.

  Jeff Sheffield, owner of Benny’s, had bought the land and turned the old barn into the only honky tonk bar in town. He kept the rustic look by repairing the old barn wood by using reclaimed wood from a similar barn. He tore out all the stalls and had the dusty dirt floor replaced with concrete. The bar ran the length of one of the outside walls and different colored vinyl stools butted up to it. A small stage and dance floor was in the back of the barn, which was where local talent could showcase their music or an occasional karaoke contest was held. On any given three-beer night, I might be the up on the stage giving my best rendition of any Carrie Underwood song.

  Tonight. Tonight I was going to be on my best behavior.

  “Well, well, well.” Johnny Delgato swiveled his stool to face me when I walked into Benny’s. A grin tipped the corners of his lips. “Are you here to take me up on my offer?”

  “You wish.” I didn’t bother making eye contact with him.

  If I did pay him any attention, all of my senses would probably revert back to the sixteen-year-old girl who secretly wanted to do all the naughty things he was always suggesting, that was until I knocked him out with that walnut.

  I scanned the café tables to find the best view of the entire bar. The two top in the far right corner was probably the best shot since it was not directly under a light, a little dim, and I could almost hide myself behind one of the stage speakers, only it sat off the stage on a tri-pod.

  “Laurel,” Derek rotated the stool that was next to Johnny. “Did you get your job back at Porty Morty’s?”

  “Why would you think that?” I briefly stopped, but still kept my eye on the table.

  “Since you are driving around two people with the festival, I figured you conned your way back into your job.” Derek dragged his chilled mug closer to him.

  He used his fingernail to make marks in the frost on the glass before he picked it up to take a drink.

  “Oh no. Not yet.” The less I said, the better it was for all involved. “I’m working on it.” I added to make sure he stayed off the mob and FBI trail.

  There was no need to for him to go all postal cop on me.

  “Have a seat.” Derek patted the open stool next to him.

  Derek put his finger up and motioned for Jeff, who was behind the bar, to grab me a frosty mug.

  “Mug or can?” Jeff yelled over Tim McGraw professing his love through the speakers of the jukebox.

  “Mug,” I said and then turned to Derek. Johnny was hunched over his beer with a big smile on his face. He winked. My stomach curled. “I’m going to grab a table tonight.”

  “Why?” Derek’s brows dipped.

  “Because I don’t want to sit by him when you leave.” I tilted my head Johnny’s
way.

  I was relying on Derek’s track record of having one beer and leaving so he wouldn’t even be there when Bob got there. The date would be on the down low, which was where I wanted it to be.

  “Even though you don’t have to be at Porty Morty’s in the morning, you should still get up and put out applications.” Derek was playing the big brother role. “You still have to have money.”

  Jeff put the beer in front of me. Before I could dig out a dollar for the beer, Johnny slapped down a five dollar bill.

  “I’ll pay since you haven’t said yes to my text. Yet.” He winked.

  I reached over Derek’s hands and mug and pushed the money back toward Johnny.

  “I don’t need your charity.”

  He started to protest, but Derek stood up.

  “Buddy,” he smacked Johnny on the back, “you can forget it. Once Laurel makes up her mind, it’s made up.”

  “And don’t you forget it.” I slapped my dollar down and grabbed the thick glass handle.

  Derek pulled a dollar out of the front pocket of his jeans.

  “You will.” Johnny chirped to my back as I made my way over to the table. “I will be feeding you grapes in bed.”

  Inwardly I groaned. He was just trying to get my goat and I wasn’t going to fall for it like every other girl in Walnut Grove had.

  “Just ignore him. He knows he’s getting on your nerve.” Derek gave that smile that melted every girl’s heart, but I knew it as the big brother smile. “I’m going to go to the bathroom and then heading out.”

  “Okay. I’m going to have one and head home too.” I lied trying to throw off his inert cop sense. “I’ll let you know how the applications go.”

  “Alright.” He smiled. “How is the car?”

  I glanced over his shoulder when I saw a guy holding a rose walk in. A balding, scrawny guy with a rose.

  My eyes grew big and I jerked my head in line with Derek’s, praying against all hope that the balding guy with the rose was not Bob and just a happy coincidence someone else was getting a rose besides me.