Tax Cut

by Michele Lynn Seigfried

  I needed to call Bonnie in the morning. I had to get a hold of that picture she took of the foursome. She was right; that picture would come in handy. Next, I needed to find Babs Todaro and confirm with her that the tooth fairy was indeed Drake Taylor. I also needed to find out what she knew about Marc.

  Chapter 18

  I awoke to the sound of raindrops hitting my bedroom windows. I looked at the clock. It was seven in the morning. I crept over to Mandy’s room. She was still asleep. I tiptoed into the kitchen to find my cell phone. I sent a text to Bonnie, asking her to text the photo to me when she had time.

  I took out my laptop and searched for Babs Todaro’s daughter. Her name was Lisa. I wasn’t sure if Lisa was married or not, but I typed “Lisa Todaro” into the search engine. A stroke of luck. There was a Lisa Todaro living only ten miles away. I wrote down the phone number and thought I’d try it at a more reasonable hour in the morning. Seven was a tad early for most people.

  I made a cup of hazelnut coffee and added a splash of French vanilla creamer. I grabbed the morning paper, then made myself comfortable on my recliner to enjoy the few moments I had to myself. As I flipped through the pages, I came across an article about economic development around the county. There was mention of Coral Beach’s downtown district, the area where Babs had lived. It spoke about how the project was nearing completion and how the ratables had a huge impact on keeping taxes under control in the village. After I finished the article, I noticed the photo—the photo of new townhouses being completed…right next door to Lutz Loans. I did a mental head slap. I had never noticed the sign before.

  Mandy started her morning chants of “Mommy, Mommy.” I put down the paper and went to her room. After changing her diaper, I got a call from Nero.

  “How did you get my cell number?” I asked him.

  “I’m more talented than you know.”

  I rolled my eyes. “Why are you calling so early in the morning?”

  “I’ve got something for you.”

  “Really?” I perked up. “What do you have?”

  “Not over the phone. Can I meet you?”

  “I suppose.”

  “Okay, meet me at Take Ten Coffee Shop in an hour.”

  I reluctantly agreed. I didn’t want Nero to mistake my curiosity for interest. He seemed to back off a little since he had the endeavor of finding dirt on the Coral Beach elected officials. I called my parents and asked them if they would be willing to watch Mandy for an hour or so. They agreed, as they always did. I didn’t know what I would ever do without them. They were an immense help to me with Mandy.

  I arrived at Take Ten to find Nero anxiously waiting for me.

  “I ordered you a chai latte,” he said.

  I narrowed my eyes at him, and said, “How did you know I like chai?”

  “Um…I took a guess. I can buy you something else if you don’t want it.”

  “No, this will do. So, what have you got for me?”

  “How’s blackmail?”

  “Blackmail?”

  “Yes. Marc is being blackmailed.”

  “What? I thought Marc was the bad guy.”

  “Not really. Well, I mean…it’s not so black and white,” Nero explained.

  “What do you mean?”

  “I mean, what he’s doing is not on the up and up, but he’s got good reason.”

  “What good reason could someone have to be doing something that’s not on the up and up?”

  “They’re holding his daughter over his head.”

  “What? Who?”

  “Marc has a daughter, away at college. Someone’s threatening to kill her if Marc doesn’t do what they want.”

  I was shocked. Here I had been, thinking Marc was a bad guy. I finally knew why he was so miserable and so mean. If he hadn’t pushed to get those things on the agenda quicker, his daughter may have been at risk. I would have been devastated if that had happened to me. I completely understood. Nero was right; it wasn’t so black and white.

  “How do you know this?” I asked.

  “If I tell you, it would make you an accomplice.”

  “Do you know who is threatening him? And what they are asking him to do?”

  “Someone named Gino. And it has something to do with his being involved in the government. He said he wants to quit, but they won’t let him. He said he feels guilty. He said they went too far with the fire. He said he doesn’t know how to protect his daughter.”

  “He said this all to you?”

  “Um…not exactly.”

  “Who did he say it to?”

  “His wife.”

  “If your ‘evidence’ is similar to your video of Winifred and John, do you think it’s admissible in court?”

  “I don’t know, but I certainly do not want anyone to know that I’m the person who gathered the evidence.”

  “What if you sent it to law enforcement anonymously?”

  “I guess surveillance cameras and nanny cams are used in court. Maybe it would work.”

  “Can you send it somehow without anyone knowing it was you?”

  “I guess I can find a way to make sure it can’t be tracked to me. Where should I send it?”

  “I don’t know. The county prosecutor? The F.B.I.?”

  “The newspapers?”

  I told Nero that going to the newspapers wasn’t a good idea. This could put Marc’s daughter at further risk. Gino wouldn’t realize who recorded the video and could blame Marc himself for its release. Blackmail, arson, and threatened murder sounded like pretty serious crimes to me. We decided the F.B.I. was the place to go.

  “I’m going to make multiple copies. I’ll give you a list of where they will be. If anything happens to me…” His voice trailed off. Nero seemed genuinely worried. I kind of felt bad for dragging him into this mess.

  “I have one more favor to ask,” I said. “Would you be able to find out more information about a mortgage company?”

  “Possibly. Why?”

  “I think they are somehow involved in this. There’s a business called Lutz Loans on Main Street and I’ve also seen it called Lutz Online Loans. I think they are one and the same, but I’m not sure.”

  “I’ll see what I can find,” Nero said.

  We got up from our table, and I thanked him. He said he’d be in touch. I was a little confused about why he made no attempt to hit on me. Maybe this had Nero more rattled than I originally assumed. I glanced down at my phone and saw that Bonnie had sent me the photo of Winifred, John, Gino, and Drake Taylor.

  I got into my car, shut the door, then pulled the phone number out of my pocket for Lisa Todaro.

  “Hi, Lisa, I’m so sorry to bother you. I’m not sure if you remember me. I’m Chelsey Alton, the municipal clerk for Coral Beach. I had gotten to know your mother since I started working for Coral Beach, and I was hoping you didn’t mind my calling you to see how she’s doing.”

  “Oh dear, Chelsey. I am so sorry. I know my mother always called you. She has dementia, you know. I realize she said some crazy things.”

  “Oh, please; don’t apologize. I was worried about her. I hadn’t heard from her in a while, and when I had tried to return her last call to me, I found her phone number was disconnected.”

  “Oh, yes, she’s doing okay, actually. We moved her into Saint Maribella’s. They specialize in dementia patients. They can handle her better than I could. They are able to keep an eye on her to make sure she is taking her medications. I work full-time, so it’s hard for me. I couldn’t be there all the time for her. I couldn’t leave her alone in that house. I never knew what I’d find when I was able to get there.”

  “I understand. Do you think it would be okay if I visited her?”

  “Wow; that would be so kind of you. She loves visitors.”

  I thanked Lisa and disconnected. I looked up the address to Saint Maribella’s on my cell phone, then typed it into the GPS in my car. It was twenty minutes away. I drove there, wondering what I would ask Ba
bs. I had so many questions, but I wasn’t sure if she was capable of answering me.

  Saint Maribella’s was nestled back in the woods in a park-like setting. Fragrant Easter lilies adorned the planting beds at the main entrance. I parked my car, then walked into building through the sliding glass doors. I signed in with the guard at the desk, who pointed me in the direction of Babs’ room.

  I walked down the long corridor, painted in shades of pink with cherry blossom borders. The carpeting consisted of shades of mauve, brown, and puce in a Persian pattern. The door to Bab’s room was embellished with a crafty wreath of seashells and peach ribbon. I knocked gently. I heard a voice from within the room saying, “Come in.”

  I turned the knob and found Babs sitting in a chair with a cup of tea beside her.

  “Hi, Babs. I don’t know if you’re going to remember me. I only met you in person once, but I talked to you on the phone quite a bit. I’m Chelsey Alton from Coral Beach.”

  “Oh yes, dearie! Come in! Come in!” Babs said, motioning for me to enter.

  I glanced around her room. It was small, but cozy. She had a very small living room, a separate bedroom, and one bathroom. There was no kitchen. The room was decorated with a few items. A television, loveseat, a couple of end tables, a vase with flowers, a few books, a container of Metamucil, and some family pictures.

  “This is a lovely place you have, Babs.”

  “It’s not the same as home. I miss my home.”

  “I understand. I wanted to see how you are doing.”

  “Oh, you know. I’m old. I ache all over. I haven’t moved my bowels yet today. I may need to ask the nurse for some of that prune juice.”

  I tried not to laugh. I’d have to remember to tell my daughter to shoot me if I became one of those senior citizens that only talks about how often my bowels worked.

  “I think I saw your nephew at a restaurant recently,” I told Babs.

  “You did? Which one?”

  “I have a picture here of him,” I said as I pulled out my cell phone. I showed Babs the picture.

  “Is this your nephew?”

  “Oh yes, that’s Gino. He’s my brother Rocco’s oldest boy. He has three sons. Rocco passed away, you know.”

  “Do you know who this other man is in the picture?” I asked, pointing to Drake.

  Babs squinted for a better look.

  “Oh, that’s my nephew’s friend; I never remember his name. I call him the tooth fairy.”

  Confirmation received. I was excited.

  “He’s a gravedigger, you know,” Babs informed me.

  “A gravedigger? I thought he was a mortgage guy,” I said.

  “I saw him with the Iceman. They were out digging graves. I saw the bodies,” she said emphatically.

  “Was this near your house?” I asked.

  “Yes, and the Iceman wasn’t happy that I saw them digging. He told me he would kill me. My nephew Gino tried to convince me that the Iceman wasn’t going to kill me, but I didn’t believe him. See, it’s good that I moved. Now the Iceman can’t find me.”

  “That’s terrible. I’m so sorry, Babs.”

  “I have fourteen nieces and nephews,” Babs said, changing the subject, and drifting off into another world. I stayed another twenty minutes, to see if I could learn anything about Marc, but I think she was starting to be less lucid than when I arrived. I finally gave up for the day and I told Babs I’d stop back to see her soon. I hustled back out to my car and called Bonnie. “You’re not going to believe what I think I just found out…”

  * * *

  Bonnie called her Uncle Freddy and filled him in about the potential dead bodies underneath the new townhouses in the village. Freddy called in a favor to one of his colleagues, who agreed to give an anonymous tip to the Coral Beach police force. Cadaver dogs were brought to the basement area of the townhouses and sure enough, they hit on something. Crews were summoned to drill through the concrete. Dental records confirmed that bodies were that of the couple who were reported missing from their home in Coral Beach. Autopsies revealed gunshot wounds were the likely cause of death. I wasn’t sure if the police had leads on the murderers yet, but I wondered if they’d be knocking on Babs’ door to get some information. I hoped Gino would be arrested, but I wasn’t sure if the anonymous tip included information about Babs, who would be the only person that could lead police to the killers, as far as I knew.

  Meanwhile, Nero got back to me about the mortgage company with a phone call after I had put Mandy to bed for the night.

  “The mortgage company looks like a front,” he said.

  “A front? How do you know that?” I asked.

  “Well, I don’t want to tell you how I know...I told you before, you’d be an accomplice to my methods. Let me just say that I don’t know any mortgage company that only has seven clients, all of which live in Coral Beach. Three of which are your bosses. And little money in their bank account.”

  “And the other four?”

  “Last names are Black, Herra, Chino, and Gallo.”

  Those names belonged to the planning board members that had appeared on the tax refund resolution.

  “I know them,” I said to Nero.

  “Are you going to fill me in?”

  “I had you look into the mortgage company because I noticed that all those people overpaid their taxes twice in a row. I had suspected it wasn’t a mistake, after the second time. I thought it was strange that all of them worked for the village. I also thought it was strange that all of them had the same mortgage company,” I explained.

  “I’m not sure I follow,” Nero said.

  “Bonnie and I saw Marc in Atlantic City. We saw Gino Righetti, who is a known mobster, by the way, handing him an envelope full of cash. Then we saw Marc trade it in for chips, then trade the chips in right away. Bonnie said Marc was probably laundering the money. I guess I thought there was a possibility that Gino found other creative ways to pay off people—like paying their taxes. Some of those houses have large quarterly taxes. That’s a lot of money adding up.”

  “So, the mortgage company, that’s not really a company, is possibly this guy Gino that’s threatening Marc?”

  “The mortgage company is owned by a guy who is friends with Gino.” I gave Nero an explanation of all the players.

  “So, if I’m following you…Gino gave money to Drake to deposit at the so-called mortgage company. Then Drake cut a check to the government for the taxes. Meanwhile those ‘clients’ I found had already paid their taxes. So, they got a refund,” Nero said.

  “Exactly.”

  “So, they are getting paid off by getting free taxes. Clever way to clean the cash. But what are they being paid off for?”

  “Votes and to push Gino’s own agenda forward. Gino is a developer and he is planning a big project.”

  “Where’s the project?”

  “All along the area that burnt down.”

  “Oy vey!”

  “I know.”

  “So, how are you going to get this information to the police?” Nero asked.

  “I’m not sure. Bonnie has a contact I might be able to use.”

  “There’s one more piece of business we have to discuss.”

  “Oh?”

  “Dinner.”

  “I thought we agreed to coffee.”

  “You owe me more than coffee.”

  “Fine, Nero. Dinner. Call me and we’ll work out a day and time.”

  I truly did not want to have dinner with Nero, but finding a way out of that wasn’t top on my list of priorities at the moment. I headed over to my parents’ house to pick up my daughter. I had been out gallivanting for too long already.

  Chapter 19

  The sun rose over the lagoon. The decorative pebbles, which replaced the grass in my backyard, shimmered yellow in its rays. I awoke to Mandy’s voice calling, “Mommy, Mommy.” I went to her crib. I knew I’d have to convert it to a toddler bed soon—she was starting to try to climb out. As I look
ed at her precious face, I thought, What am I doing? What am I thinking? Why am I trying to chase down criminals?

  Everything I needed in the whole world was staring back at me. I didn’t need the job. I didn’t need the hassles. I didn’t need to get involved with these criminals. I decided I was done. Finished. Finito. I was putting my life at risk. I was putting my baby’s life at risk. I was realizing how stupid I was. I should have run far away when I suspected something was awry. I should have minded my own business. I did not like what I had learned over the past month. I decided I was going to put in my notice at work. Heck, I didn’t even have to give notice. I could leave the job completely off my résumé. I didn’t care if I didn’t leave in good standing. I had nothing to lose. I think I understood why that poor girl, Joni, quit working for Coral Beach unexpectedly. She must have found out what I found out. Maybe they were onto her. The way she ran away from us, frightened for her life. She knew it wasn’t really my bosses causing the trouble. She told me it was the mob. I knew I had to quit while I was ahead, before I was running scared, like Joni.

  I dropped off Mandy, and drove to work early. I called Bonnie on my way in to work and told her what I was up to. I suggested she do the same. Instead of questioning me about my decision to leave the job, Bonnie questioned me about Nero.

  “You’re not really going to go out on a date with Nero, are you?” she asked.

  “I have an idea. What if I brought someone with me?”

  “No, thank you.”

  “Not you. Someone that he might be interested in, someone who might actually like him back. Like a blind date. Can you think of any candidates?”

  “Sure, I have an idea.”

  “Really?” I said, excited that my idea might actually work.

  “How about a blow-up doll?”

  “C’mon, be serious.”

  “I don’t know; my nanny has some young, single friends. Let me ask her.”

  I thanked Bonnie, then hung up with her as I was pulling into the parking lot. I walked up the staircase to the main doors for the last time. In my office, I boxed up my personal items, then typed up a resignation letter. In the letter, I blamed upcoming family obligations as the reason I could no longer work for the village. I apologized for the inconvenience and for not having the ability to give them notice. I thought about thanking them for having the opportunity to work at Coral Beach, but I decided there wasn’t much to be thankful for. I kept the letter short and sweet. I forwarded to final version to the five members of the board via email, then I picked up my box of belongings and headed back out to my car.