“You’re welcome.”
Carlita stepped onto the porch and unwound Rambo’s leash from the railing while Shelby waited for her on the sidewalk. “Do you have any idea who might have been asking about Robert?”
“No. None whatsoever.” Shelby clenched her fists. “This is so frustrating. It feels like we’re running in circles.”
During the walk home, the women discussed the Harner Street properties and the Journey’s End. Carlita wondered if the hostel and the properties Robert mentioned were somehow linked.
“We need to do a little digging around to find out who owns those properties.” Carlita snapped her fingers. “Wait a minute. I know someone who might be able to help us.”
She picked up the pace and Shelby hurried to keep up. “Who?”
“Remember Annie Dowton? She owns Riverfront Real Estate, right around the corner from the apartment. She might be able to help us track down the owners. Let me send her a text to see if she’s around.”
“I…I’m not sure that’s necessary,” Shelby said. “Maybe it’s just an odd coincidence.”
“We have so little to go on right now; I think it’s worth a shot.” Carlita sent Annie a text and received a quick reply that Annie was in and would be waiting for them.
When they reached Walton Square, they stopped to drop Rambo off inside the apartment and Mercedes popped out of her room. “I was beginning to wonder what happened to you. I thought you were taking Rambo to Morrell Park.”
“I was and I did. I ran into Shelby along the way, so we decided to take a walk to the park where Shelby found Robert’s body to have a look around.”
“Did you find anything?”
“Sort of. While we were down there, Shelby remembered Robert mentioning Harner Street and the big deal he was working on. We also stopped by the Journey’s End, the hostel where Robert was staying prior to his death. He was staying there under an assumed name and checked out several days ago.”
Carlita explained Shelby was downstairs waiting for her and they were going to run over to Annie’s real estate office to see if she could track down the owners of the Harner Street properties. “There are only a couple. I have a hunch it’s not a coincidence Robert was murdered near Harner Street.”
“So where did Robert go after he left the hostel?” Mercedes asked.
“I have no idea, but if we can figure that out, we might be one step closer to tracking down Robert’s killer. Annie is waiting for us.”
“I’ll go with you.” Mercedes dashed into her room and returned with her cell phone in hand. “Vinnie and Brittney left a few minutes ago to do some sightseeing.”
“I’m sorry I missed them.” Carlita waited for her daughter to step into the hall.
“No, you’re not.”
“Not what?”
“Not sorry.”
Carlita paused at the top of the stairs. “Why?”
“Have you had an actual conversation with Brittney?”
“No, I mean not really.”
“Let me give you a little advice. Don’t,” Mercedes said bluntly. “Either she’s as naïve as they come or she’s a talented actress.”
“Mercedes,” Carlita admonished. “You need to give her a fair shake. One conversation isn’t enough to form an opinion.”
“I suppose.” Mercedes reached for the handrail. “I guess I shouldn’t be so hard on her. Looking back, I was a little starry-eyed myself, before Pops died.”
“And look how we’ve both grown.” Carlita opened the alley door and joined Shelby, who was standing on the stoop. “I picked up a straggler along the way.”
“Hi, Mercedes.”
“Hey, Shelby. I guess that knucklehead brother of mine hasn’t come to his senses yet.”
“I…it’s not all his fault. I’m partially to blame for not putting all of my cards on the table and letting him know what was going on with my ex.” Shelby’s shoulders slumped. “I’m a terrible judge of the opposite sex, dating the bad boys who always seemed to be in trouble. Tony was the first man with a clean history and past.”
Mercedes snorted.
Carlita poked her in the back of the arm.
“Ouch. What was that for?” Mercedes rubbed her arm and glared at her mother.
“Try not to be so hard on yourself,” Carlita said. “The street runs both ways.”
Shelby’s cheeks turned a tinge of pink. “Thanks for trying to help me. I still don’t know if finding out who owns the Harner Street property will help.”
The trio walked across the street with Carlita leading the way. She tilted her head and gazed inside the real estate office where she spotted Annie sitting at her desk.
Carlita gave her a quick wave and then opened the door. “Hey, Annie.”
Annie looked up, a smile lighting her face. “Hello, ladies. What’s up?”
“We need help. Actually, Shelby needs help.”
“I haven’t seen you in a while, Shelby. They must keep you busy working down at the post office.”
“Not right now,” Shelby whispered under her breath.
“I’ll grab another chair.” Annie popped out of her chair and hurried to her assistant, Cindy’s, desk. “I see they’ve started on your restaurant renovations.”
“Yeah. I can’t wait until it’s finished, not that I have time to work on it. My son, Vinnie, and his new wife are in town visiting.”
Annie lifted a brow. “Oh? I didn’t know Vinnie was married.”
“Neither did we until yesterday. It’s a long story.” Carlita changed the subject. “Did you hear about the man who was murdered not far from the river?”
“Of course.” Annie’s head bobbed up and down. “It’s all over the news.”
Shelby perched on the edge of the chair Annie retrieved. “The dead man is my ex-husband, Robert, and I’m the one who found his body.”
“Oh no!”
“Oh yes, and the investigators are trying to pin it on Shelby,” Carlita said.
“Not only was I the one who found Robert’s body, the police found a text on Robert’s phone where I told him he better leave Violet and me alone or else.”
“Oh dear,” Annie shook her head.
“And I had some cash on me I planned to give Robert after he promised to give me the papers terminating his parental rights. I figured if I gave him what I could, he would leave Violet and me alone.” Shelby’s lower lip began to tremble. “The authorities found papers on Robert. They were papers he planned to file, seeking custody of Violet. He was going to trick me.”
Annie pressed on the bridge of her glasses. “I don’t see how the authorities can pin your ex-husband’s murder on you without solid evidence.”
“The reason we’re here is that Shelby remembers Robert mentioning a big deal he was working on and he mentioned Harner Street. Shelby showed me the spot where she found Robert’s body, and it was only steps from Harner Street,” Carlita said. “We think there may be a link. That’s where you come in.”
“You want me to research the properties,” Annie guessed.
“Yes. We hoped you might be able to search your real estate database and tell us who owns the properties. There are only a couple of buildings. One is for sale and the rest are vacant, at least as far as we can tell.”
“Of course I can.” Annie’s fingers hovered over the keyboard. “You can also find the owner’s name on the Board of Assessor’s website.” She tapped the keys. “One of the properties is owned by the City of Savannah, seized for non-payment of taxes.”
Annie’s brow furrowed as she studied the screen. “Actually, there are two properties owned by the city. Judging by the information here, it appears they’re empty.”
“That makes sense. They looked empty,” Carlita said.
“There’s one more property.” Annie grew quiet. “Four twelve Harner Street. A deed was recently recorded. It lists East Coast Ventures, LLC as the owner.”
“Does it give the owners’ names?” Carlita asked.
<
br /> “No. Unfortunately, it does not. If they formed the company a short time ago, the information might not be available online yet. We can still check,” Annie said.
“If it’s not too much trouble,” Carlita said.
“Of course not.” Annie turned her attention back to her keyboard and the women sat quietly listening to her fingernails tapping the keys. “There is a record of an East Coast Ventures, but no other information is currently available.”
Carlita stood. “So we’re back to square one.”
Annie walked the women to the door. “I’m sorry I couldn’t get you the information. If you think of anything else, give me a call.”
Carlita thanked Annie, and then followed her daughter and Shelby out of the office and back to their apartment building.
When they reached the back door, they discovered the door ajar. “Mercedes, you were the last one out. Did you forget to pull the door shut?”
Mercedes shook her head. “I don’t think so. Although you know how it sometimes sticks. Maybe Vinnie and Brittney came back and didn’t shut the door all of the way.”
“Huh.” Carlita pulled the door shut and gave it a hard push. “I need to remind them to check the door to make sure it’s shut.” She turned to Shelby. “Is now a good time for Tony and you to have a chat?”
“Yes. I’d like to run upstairs and freshen up first.”
“Of course.” Carlita waited until Mercedes and Shelby reached the top of the stairs before opening the pawnshop’s back door. She was halfway inside when a woman’s bloodcurdling scream stopped her dead in her tracks.
Chapter 11
Tony heard the scream too, bolted out the back door, past Carlita and ran up the stairs.
Carlita was hot on his heels as she raced up the steps where Mercedes and Shelby stood in Shelby’s doorway.
“What’s going on?” Tony grasped both of Shelby’s arms. “Are you okay?”
“Yes,” she whispered. “My apartment…”
Carlita barreled past her daughter and tenant, and followed her son into Shelby’s apartment. She stopped short, taking a quick gasp of air at the sight of Shelby’s home.
The couch cushions were torn off, the living room curtains lay in a heap on the floor, the table lamp was broken, the lampshade punctured. The kitchen was in a similar sad state of disrepair. All of the cabinets were wide open, the contents strewn along the counter and on the floor.
The bathroom medicine cabinet was open, but not nearly as messy as the bedrooms, which were in the same condition as the main part of the apartment.
Tony’s eyes sparked with anger. “What I wanna know is how someone got in here.”
“I don’t know, son. Violet left with Shelby’s aunt and uncle. Shelby, Mercedes and I were over at Annie’s office. When we returned, we found the back door ajar. Mercedes thinks she closed it, but isn’t certain. Did you hear anything?”
“Nope. The store has been busy, with people in and out all day. Did you notice if someone busted down the door?”
“I didn’t.” Carlita followed Tony to the living room and the front door.
Tony leaned in for a closer inspection of the door and lock. “There’s no sign of forced entry.”
He nodded at Shelby, who was still standing in the hall. “Did you lock this on your way out?”
“I…I think so. I mean, I’m usually careful about locking the door.” She pressed a hand to her forehead. “With the way the last couple of days have gone, my head isn’t on straight. There’s a chance I left the door unlocked.”
“Either way, someone tore your place apart. Do you have any idea what they were looking for?”
Shelby’s eyes grew round as saucers and she shook her head. “I have no idea, but I’ve been getting the feeling that someone is following me. This has something to do with Robert’s death, or whoever was after him.”
“And now they’re after something.” Tony stared at the door thoughtfully. “It’s not safe for you to stay here Shelby. We need to call the authorities and report the break-in.”
“I…don’t want anyone in the apartment right now, plus I need to leave soon to head to my aunt and uncle’s house.” Shelby gave Carlita a helpless look.
“C’mon Mercedes.” Carlita motioned to her daughter. “Let’s you and I go inside and see if we can straighten the place up.”
Carlita patted her son on the shoulder. “I think it’s time for you and Shelby to talk.” She reached into her front pocket and handed her son the keys to her apartment. “You can talk in my place. What about the store?”
“I got one of my part-timers covering. Could you let them know I’ll be back down in a minute?”
“I will.” Carlita waited for Tony and Shelby to step inside her apartment before she hurried down the stairs.
She pulled the store employee off to the side and explained to her that Tony was taking care of an urgent matter and would be down shortly.
The employee assured Carlita she could handle the store until he returned, so Carlita made her way back to Shelby’s apartment where Mercedes was in the process of cleaning the kitchen. “Someone did a real number on this place.”
“They sure did.” Carlita shook her head in disgust. “As if Shelby doesn’t already have enough on her plate, now she’s gotta worry about this.”
“Are Tony and Shelby still talking?”
“Yeah. I hope they can patch things up.” Carlita picked up a sofa cushion and tucked it back in place. “The poor thing needs all of us on her side.”
“What if…” Mercedes’ voice trailed off.
Carlita reached for another cushion. “What if what?”
“I dunno.” Mercedes shrugged. “Never mind.”
“No.” Carlita made her way into the kitchen. “What were you going to say?”
“I was gonna say, what if Shelby was involved in her ex’s death.” Mercedes hurried on. “We don’t know her that well. I mean, think about it. We didn’t even know she had family in the area and poof! Next thing you know, they’re here. Then there’s the fact that she didn’t want to report the break-in. I don’t understand.”
“She was avoiding her family because of Robert.”
“What if Shelby did this to make it look like someone was after her?”
“You write too many crime stories,” Carlita joked. “Seriously, I’ve got a gut for bad apples and Shelby is not a bad person. I would almost bet money she isn’t capable of murdering her ex-husband.”
“Even if the ex-husband threatened to take Violet away and she felt she had no other choice? Shelby found his body. She also admitted she sent him a threatening text. Perhaps this was her opportunity to get rid of Robert once and for all, and make it look like someone else did the deed.”
“That’s a stretch,” Carlita argued. “Remember, Shelby is already the prime suspect.”
“I think it was convenient we just so happened to all be gone when this took place. Tony never heard a thing, the back door was ajar and there was no sign of forced entry.”
Before Carlita could answer, the apartment door opened and a pale Shelby crept inside.
Carlita hurried to her side. “How did it go?”
“Okay.” Shelby’s hand trembled as she handed Carlita her house keys. “We called a truce and agreed we had more important things to worry about than whose feelings got hurt.”
“That’s a start,” Carlita patted her arm. “Why don’t you go to the bedroom and pack some things to take to your uncle’s house and we’ll keep working on getting this place back in order?”
“Okay.”
Mother and daughter worked fast to clean up the mess. By the time Shelby emerged from the bedroom, the apartment showed little signs of the previous state of disarray.
“Thanks for cleaning up. I’ll never be able to repay you for all that you’ve done for Violet and me. I do have one more favor to ask.” Shelby rolled her suitcase off to the side. “I was wondering if I could hitch a ride to my uncle’s place
.”
“Ma and I can drop you off,” Mercedes said. “I’ll go grab the car keys.”
Carlita waited in the hall while Shelby locked her apartment door and Mercedes dashed in the apartment to grab the keys.
When they reached the alley, Carlita got the distinct feeling they were being watched. She waited until Mercedes and Shelby were in the car and the doors were locked. “Remind me to stop by Elvira’s place later to see if she noticed anything suspicious.”
Mercedes reached for her seatbelt. “That’s a great idea, Ma. Maybe Elvira caught someone on camera, sneaking in the back door. What’s your uncle’s address Shelby? I’ll put it in the GPS.”
Shelby rattled off the address.
“Thanks.” Mercedes began humming and abruptly stopped. “Oh!”
Carlita jumped, tightening her grip on the steering wheel. “You scared me half to death.”
“Sorry, Ma. I was gonna say, Vinnie said he had something to take care of first thing tomorrow morning and asked me if I would take Brittney to the mall. She wants to go shoe shopping.”
“Have fun,” Carlita said.
“I was hoping you would go with us.”
“Shoe shopping? You know I’m not big on shopping.”
“C’mon,” Mercedes pleaded. “You gotta go. It will be a bonding experience. Remember, you’re the one who said I had to give Brittney a chance. This way, we’ll both get to know her better.”
“You’re using my own words against me.” Carlita cast her daughter a quick glance. “All right. How about maybe?”
Shelby was unusually quiet in the back seat of the car. Carlita glanced in the rearview mirror. “Are you okay Shelby? You seem awfully quiet.”
“I was thinking about the Harner Street property, how close it was to the Journey’s End, not to mention the spot where Robert was shot. It seems like the three are somehow connected. Then I remembered how he wanted me to meet him at the Black Stallion Club.”
“We can gauge the distance using the GPS.” Mercedes leaned forward in her seat. “I’ll pull up a map of the riverfront area. Harner Street is our first destination and the Black Stallion Club is our next destination.” She grew silent as she worked on the GPS. “Shelby, you might be onto something.”
The Family Affair: A Made in Savannah Cozy Mystery (Made in Savannah Cozy Mysteries Series Book 9) Page 7
