by Marja McGraw
Judith smiled at me. “Pamela, don’t roll your eyes anymore. They might get stuck that way.”
“You sound like my mother.”
“I know.”
“Where’s dad?” Chris looked around the room. “I could have sworn I saw him in the car with you.”
Judith turned her smile on Chris. “Your father is waiting in the car. He hoped we’d be done here soon and we could go home.”
Chris’s left eye twitched like it had earlier. “You babes can talk. I’m going to see if my father wants to scram for a while. Maybe we’ll go have a beer.”
I knew my husband wasn’t a beer drinker, so I ignored him and watched him walk out to his parents’ car. He and his father would probably drive by the restaurant to see how things were going, and have a cup of coffee in the lounge.
I was amazed that Chris could meet with a cop who posed as a mobster and never flinch, and yet these woman gave him a nervous tic.
“Judith, I wondered if you’d mind taking on the dogs along with Mikey for a few days. I’d feel better if I knew they were watching over him.”
“You know I adore those dogs,” she replied. “When Chris, Sr. gets back we’ll load them up and head home.”
May had been sitting quietly. “So it looks like Meredith’s life might be in danger. Maybe we should start hanging out with her.”
“I – “
Jasmine interrupted me. “Not a bad idea. What’re they gonna do? Drive by and shoot up the house like they do in the movies?”
She thought about what she’d said for a moment.
“Oh. Maybe Meredith should come stay at my house. No one would know who I am or where I live. I don’t have any mob connections.”
Fight the urge, I thought. Don’t roll your eyes or sigh. “I’ll ask her, but she values her privacy, so don’t count on it. I know she’ll appreciate the offer though.”
Jasmine wrinkled her nose. “We could start watching her house – you know, surveilling. It’s not my favorite thing to do, but we’ve done it before. And now that Judith is with us,” she patted my mother-in-law’s knee, “there are more of us. Remember what I said, there’s safety in numbers.”
I was starting to feel overwhelmed, and I thought Meredith would feel the same way. “Please, wait until Chris and I have more information. Maybe Gabe is full of baloney or making this up as an excuse to get close to Meredith again. Please wait.”
Judith gave me an indulgent look, as though she was humoring me. “We’ll wait, but you invited us into this mess, so don’t expect us to wait for long.” My mother-in-law can be a handful, and apparently the Church Ladies were really rubbing off on her because she was getting worse instead of better.
“Not to be rude, but I have a few things to do before I get ready to go to work tonight,” I said. “Can we talk more later? Oh, and Judith, don’t forget to pick up your grandson after school.”
“I wouldn’t forget him,” she replied. “We have plans.”
I didn’t want to know what those plans might be. You never knew what Judith had in mind. “And maybe it would be a good idea not to fill him in on everything that happened today. I’ll bring the dogs over later.”
The women left, Judith riding with the Church Ladies, and I got the feeling they were feeling a little huffy about me asking them to go home. Oh well… I really had things to get done. One of them was to call Meredith and… No, I’d better walk down to her house and talk to her in person. Maybe I should wait and have Chris go with me. Hmm. Better for a woman to woman talk.
Having made up my mind, I called Chris on his cell phone and told him where I’d be. He sounded relieved that he didn’t have to go with me.
I walked slowly, trying to put my thoughts in some kind order before talking to my neighbor. It didn’t seem right to just blurt it out that I’d seen Gabe.
Meredith opened the door before I could finish knocking. “I saw that Mercedes at your house. I saw the old man, too. It was Gabriel, wasn’t it?” Her face was etched with stress and worry lines.
“Uh, yes. We need to talk.”
“Come with me.” She grabbed her cigarettes and led me out to the backyard.
I thought about mentioning the dangers of smoking, but it was her business, and at her age, how much good would quitting really do?
She sat down in the shade on her patio and lit up, taking a long drag off the frog. Would anyone know what I meant if I mentioned she’d been smoking a frog? It was an old term for smoking, and one I’d heard Chris use before. I half smiled to myself. Kids might think she was a mean old woman who’d picked up a froggie and lit its nose on fire.
I shook my head to clear it. I was having silly thoughts to try to divert my own attention.
“You want one?” she asked, holding out the pack.
“No, thanks. I never took up the habit.”
“Smart girl.” She coughed, rather delicately.
I decided to let her start the conversation and it only took two more puffs before she began asking questions.
“Why did Gabriel come to you instead of me?” she asked.
“He wasn’t sure you’d want to see him. He wants to meet with you.”
“What did he want besides wanting to see me? There has to be more to it.” She blinked and rubbed her eye when the smoke drifted up to her face.
“He’s worried that you might be in danger.”
“Why?”
“Did you read the article in the newspaper, about a year ago, when Tony Messina’s body was found?”
“I don’t read the paper. So they finally found ol’ Tony, huh?” She had a look on her face that I couldn’t read. Relief or joy that he was dead? Fear of being blamed?
I told her what I’d read and added the story Gabe had told us.
Her hand shook as she lifted the cigarette and took another puff. “So they fingered me for that one, too. A hair brush, of all things. And his family believed it?”
“Apparently so. Gabe is afraid they’ll come after you.”
“If he was a cop, how does he know about the family? They must have figured out he was a lawman at some point.”
“According to him,” I said, “he never blew his cover. In fact, he says he’s still in touch with a few of the old gang, or those that are still living. He regrets that it’s his fault that they know you’re still alive.”
Meredith’s face hardened and she put out her cigarette with anger, stubbing it long after it was out. “Are you sure he was really a copper? Could he be lying?”
“It’s possible, but Chris will check it out to be sure.”
“I hope you two are as good as I think you are,” she said.
“You have to understand. We’re not the police, and we’re not real private investigators.”
“But your reputation precedes you. You’ve saved some lives over the past few years. Word gets around.” She sounded hopeful.
I looked her in the eyes. “Uh huh. In fact, we’ve saved our own lives and that of our son a few times. We’re not professionals. Maybe you need to talk to a friend of mine who’s a homicide detective. She could probably help you better than we can.”
“No, absolutely not. I want to keep this under wraps. If you won’t help me, I’ll take care of myself.”
“The Church Ladies suggested you stay with one of them, for safety’s sake.”
Meredith looked surprised. “Those old biddies think I can’t take care of myself? I’ve done so for more years than you’ve been alive.”
“Those old biddies are very smart women. Thanks to their interference, a woman’s life was saved. Between them, they tend to look at things from every angle.” My dander was up and I was sure Meredith recognized that fact.
“I’m sorry, Pamela. I’m not myself right now. How would you feel if you heard the mob might be after you?”
“Let’s start over,” I said. “I think the ladies can help, if you’ll give them half a chance. However, I want to keep them clear of what’s going o
n. I told them I only want their take on things. Unfortunately, sometimes they don’t listen; especially my mother-in-law.”
Meredith sat quietly for a minute. I left her to her thoughts.
“I’m sorry,” she said. “They seem like nice women. I’ve just been off the grid for so long that I don’t know how to socialize anymore. I’m used to doing things for myself.” She laughed. “Remember that old song? Hear me roar!”
I vaguely remembered a song about being a woman and roaring, but it wasn’t something I’d ever thought about before.
“So what do you think?” I asked. “Do you want to meet with Gabe?”
She was quiet again and lit another cigarette. I had a feeling she was stalling, trying to figure things out.
“Will you be here when I talk to him?”
“Sure. Chris will be here, too, I’m sure.”
“When?”
“Not today. We’ve got to get to the restaurant this afternoon.” I glanced at my watch and knew I’d better get moving. “Chris will call Sammy and we’ll set something up.”
“Sammy?”
“That’s Gabe’s nephew, the one who’s been cruising the neighborhood. He seemed like a nice guy. So did Gabe, for that matter, although I don’t really know him.”
“I don’t know him anymore either.”
She stubbed out her cigarette.
“I guess it’s about time I re-met him, so to speak.”
Chapter Nineteen
When I walked into the house, our phone was ringing. I rushed into the kitchen and picked up the receiver.
Judith’s voice rang out, and she was trying a little too hard to sound nonchalant. “Pamela, what time are you and Chris leaving for the restaurant?”
“Why?” My suspicious nature stepped forward.
“Oh, I don’t know. Your father-in-law and I are thinking about stopping in at the restaurant.”
“He’s home now? Did he drop Chris off here?”
“Of course. Isn’t Chris there?”
My husband walked in through the back door. He’d been out playing with Sherlock and Watson.
“He just walked in,” I said. “It’s okay if you come in early, but Mikey has school tomorrow. I’d rather he gets his homework done. We’ll be going to work around two o’clock, and I see it’s almost that now. So you’ll make sure Mikey gets his homework done?”
“Oh, yes, of course. Not to worry. We’ll stay home tonight.”
She hung up, but it surprised me that she didn’t sound disappointed.
I gave Chris my suspicious look, my eyes appearing as mere slits in my face. “Your mother’s up to something.”
“So what’s new? Isn’t she always up to something?”
“We’d better hurry,” I said. “It’s getting late.”
We dressed quickly and I wore white slacks with a black blouse. It reminded me of something I’d seen an old-time actress wearing in a photo. I pulled my hair into a ponytail. I’d have to call this Casual Monday.
Chris wore his usual pinstriped suit with a vest and his favorite fedora.
He loaded the dogs into the vintage Chevy and we started to pull out of the driveway, ready to drop them off at his parents’ house.
We were running about fifteen minutes late, but we knew our staff would take care of the restaurant until we got there.
When Chris backed out of the driveway, I immediately felt my blood pressure rising.
“Do you believe this?” I asked.
“What?”
“Take a look. Jasmine’s car is parked in front of our next door neighbor’s house and your mother’s car is parked just past Meredith’s place.”
I took a closer look at a third car.
“And there’s Lila’s car, across the street.”
I took an even closer look. There were two women in Jasmine’s car and two in Judith’s. I noticed there were two heads visible in Lila’s car and realized she’d brought Nate along.
Out on the street, Chris pulled ahead slowly.
“Stop at your mother’s car.”
He did, and I motioned for Judith to roll down her window.
“Where’s my son?” I asked. “You’re supposed to be home with him while he does his homework.”
“Ace and your father-in-law went to an afternoon movie.”
She didn’t look the least bit concerned about whether I was upset or not.
May waved at me from the passenger seat.
Chris began to inch forward, knowing it was time to separate me and his mother.
“We’ll talk, Judith.”
She nodded, taking notice of the dogs in the backseat. “You can drop the dogs off and leave them in the house. They’ll be fine.”
Chris stopped inching and stepped on the gas.
“That woman!” I said. “Don’t those people ever give up? We told them to leave Meredith alone.”
A sound escaped my lips that sounded somewhat like a growl. I leaned back and took a deep breath. It was time to calm down.
“Look at it this way, baby cakes, they’ll either get bored and blow the place, or they’ll be a deterrent to anyone casing the joint.”
“I love you, Chris. Somehow you usually manage to look at the bright side of things and put them in perspective. I hope you’re right.”
My husband smiled and pushed his fedora farther back on his head, a sign that he was happy.
We arrived at the restaurant after dropping off the dogs and found Chef Luis busily preparing for the dinner crowd, while also taking over the late lunch people. Nate had asked to leave an hour early when Luis arrived ahead of time.
I knew the influence Lila had on him, but he really should have checked with us before leaving. Oh, well, Luis and Phillip, the sous chef, were merrily going about their business and didn’t seem to mind starting early.
Gloria, our Myrna Loy look-alike, was waiting for us. “Hey, bosses, I watched for that guy you called about last night. He came in for a few minutes, but he left before I could call you. I didn’t think you’d want to drive all the way here if he’d left. He’s kinda cute.”
Chris winked at her. “Don’t get excited until I find out more about him. He’s got connections with, uh… Nevermind. Give it half a shake before you start eyeballin’ him.”
Gloria was used to the Bogey Man’s slang. She nodded and walked away. “He is cute though,” she said over her shoulder.
“What a mess,” I said.
“You got it, sister. Who knew we’d ever be mixed up in something like this? It might be kind of fun to live off the grid like Meredith though.”
“In your dreams. The tax man would find us no matter where we go.” I made a tour of the restaurant while Chris took off his jacket and hung it and the fedora up.
Things were quiet, so I suggested Chris call Sammy and set up a meeting for Gabe and Meredith. Without a word, he pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and fished for Sammy’s business card, which he’d stashed in his pocket.
Since the dogs weren’t with us, I made my way back to my office, stopping to chat with customers, to be sure the door was locked. It was, so I returned to Chris’s side to find out if he’d spoken to Gabe’s nephew.
“We’re set for tomorrow morning. Now you need to call Meredith. That kid isn’t so bad. He seemed glad to finally be getting it over with, and he knew his uncle would be glad, too.”
That kid? He was at least our age, maybe a bit older.
“Keep this close to the vest for now, babe, but he asked about Gloria. It seems he thinks she’s a hottie. Maybe they’ll hook up?”
I touched his cheek. “You’re just a romantic at heart, aren’t you?” It wasn’t really a question.
“He said he’s coming in tonight.” He smiled. “And he asked if we could seat him in her section.”
“I thought you were going to try to learn more about him,” I said. “Shouldn’t you have put him off?”
“Nah. My gut says he’s a good guy, regardless of wha
tever his uncle is. That remains to be seen. I mean the uncle angle.”
Chris turned to face me, looking deeply into my eyes.
“Hey, duchess, isn’t there something about Gabe that seems slightly off? I mean, if he was a cop, why would he keep in touch with the gangsters from his past?”
“Yeah, that does seem a little off. You know, he could still be lying to us. I wonder if Janet might be able to find some information for us.”
Janet Riley is a friend and homicide detective. I don’t ask her for favors very often, but it seemed appropriate this time. If Gabe had been a cop who worked deep undercover, we might not be able to turn anything up on him. She had more resources than we did.
“Give it a try,” Chris said.
I left him at the Reservation Desk and headed for my office.
I called Meredith first, and she agreed to the meeting in the morning. She sounded nervous and yet excited. It seemed to calm her, knowing that Chris and I would be there, too.
Next I called L.A.P.D. and asked for Janet’s extension. She answered on the second ring.
“Riley, here.”
“Janet, it’s Pamela.”
“You almost missed me. I was just leaving.”
“Have you got a minute?” I asked.
“Sure. What’s up?”
“I need a favor, and I sure hope you can help.”
“Hold on a sec.” She placed her hand over the receiver and I heard her talking to someone, telling them she’d be along soon. Maybe she had a new case.
“Okay, I’m back. What do you need?” She sounded more abrupt than normal. I hoped I hadn’t called at a bad time. I could be right about her having a new case.
I explained Gabe’s situation as briefly as possible and asked if she could confirm whether or not he’d been an undercover cop in Las Vegas.
“Let me get this straight,” she said. “You’re asking about Gabriel Rizzo? Really? The Gabriel Rizzo?”
This didn’t sound good.
“Uh, yes. Obviously you’re familiar with him.”
“Well, yeah, he’s a walking legend to those of us who know about him, and there aren’t many who know about him.”
“Is this a good thing or a bad thing?” I asked.
