The persistent ringing of the telephone woke me up. I stumbled in the dark toward the nearest light switch. The answering machine went on and, after a few minutes, Carlo’s frantic voice filled the room. “Gilda…Gilda are you there? Please be there. Gilda pick up. You need to hear—”
I picked up the phone. “Carlo, it’s me. What’s wrong?” My heart pounded as I waited for the dreaded words.
“Is Sofia there? Has Sofia or someone…anyone been with you today?”
“Sofia and I were together this afternoon.” Disturbing thoughts invaded my mind, making my mouth go dry.
“What time did she leave?”
“Oh, I don’t know. I got back here around two. She went to help with tomorrow’s tea at the church. I imagine she’s still taking care of some last-minute details.” I swallowed hard. “Has something terrible happened?”
“We discovered two dead bodies behind the Lodge.”
I gasped. “Don’t tell me they killed both Anna May and Jenny Marie?”
“You got one right. Anna May.” An awkward silence followed.
My throat constricted, and I could only croak. “Who else?”
“Natalia Gorsky.”
My mind went into overdrive. I had so many questions to ask but knew that Carlo would be unable to answer them.
“I’ll give the superintendent of your building a call in the morning.” He sighed loudly into the phone. “I’ll have to go through all of today’s video surveillance tapes.”
“There aren’t any. The system is down.”
His voice became muffled as he said something indistinguishable, probably to someone in the room with him. Another sigh. “I should have you come down now, but it is late, and I will give you a break. First thing tomorrow morning, I want you and Sofia to come downtown.”
“Carlo, you don’t think I—”
“It’s not what I think that matters,” he said. “There are just too many coincidences, and you seem to be involved in some way with each murder. Three of the women are related, and the other is not. I don’t know what to think anymore.”
“Blondes, they’re all blondes,” I mumbled to myself. “This is a season for killing blondes.”
“You’re starting to worry me. Where’s Sofia? I thought she was staying with you.”
“I told you already. She’s helping out with tomorrow’s tea. I don’t know if she’ll have any time to—”
“She will have to make the time. I want both of you here tomorrow morning at nine o’clock with or without your lawyers.” Carlo slammed down the receiver.
Where would I find a lawyer at this hour on a Saturday night? The only lawyer I knew was Henry Keenan, and he wouldn’t want anything to do with me. I had to find Sofia. She would know what to do. I picked up the phone and dialed a familiar number. “Aunt Amelia, it’s me, Gilda. Is Sofia there?”
“She left right before supper. Why are you calling here so late? Is something wrong? Are you sick?” She dropped the phone, and I could hear her calling. “Paolo…Paolo wake up. There’s trouble. We need to get Assunta and go over to Gilda’s.” She spoke to me. “Don’t worry, Gilda. We’ll be there soon.”
I shut my eyes and banged my head against the wall. What was I thinking? The last thing I wanted to do was alarm my mother or my aunt, and I had succeeded in doing both. And to top it all, I still couldn’t locate Sofia. They would be here in less than half an hour. As I started to tidy the living room area, the key turned in the lock and Sofia entered the condo.
“What a long day! I’m exhausted and ready for bed.” Sofia took off her jacket and started to unbutton her blouse as she headed for the guest bedroom.
“I don’t think you’ll be going to bed for a while. My mother and your parents will be arriving soon.”
“At this hour?” Sofia laughed and shook her head. “They’re in bed, and even if they are up, my father never drives anywhere after dark. It would have to be some kind of emergency.”
“They think there is an emergency here.”
“Why would they think that?”
I managed a rueful smile. “I called and asked your mother if she knew where you were.”
Her eyes narrowed to furious slits. “We had an agreement when I moved in, and I didn’t think you would be reporting to my mother.” She glanced at her watch. “It’s barely past nine o’clock, for chrissakes! What kind of curfew do you expect me to keep?”
“Carlo called and told me about the new murders, and he wanted to know where you were. I tried to reassure him—”
“Back up. What murders and why is Carlo so concerned about me?”
“Brace yourself. Both Anna May and Natalia were found dead near the spa. He wants both of us there first thing tomorrow morning with our lawyers. I panicked and dialed the first number I could think of.”
Sofia buttoned up her blouse and headed toward the kitchen. She opened one of the cupboards and pulled out a package of cake mix. She then proceeded to assemble the required bowls and mixer.
“Sofia, what on earth are you doing? They’ll be here any minute now, and you’re baking!”
Sofia faced me squarely. “Listen and listen carefully. I’ve had a very long day, and I don’t have the time or energy to put up with any of their drama. So, this is our story. You fell asleep after supper. I will say I didn’t want to wake you, so I decided to run to the grocery store and pick up a box of cake mix. I wanted something sweet, and we all know you don’t keep any desserts around. I got delayed by…by that woman with dementia. What’s her name? The one with the tabby cat.”
“Mrs. Harrison?” I shook my head. “It sounds far-fetched, Sofia. I don’t know if we should involve someone else. What if they start asking her questions?”
“Not if I actually bake the cake. As for involving Mrs. Harrison, how much do you think she remembers from day to day?” Sofia started to beat the cake batter vigorously. “If you want to be helpful, why don’t you set the table and make some herbal tea for our mothers. When I finish here, I’ll make an espresso for my father.”
I was amazed at how calm and collected Sofia could be, especially when dealing with our parents. “I don’t know how you do this. You’re a natural at compartmentalizing.”
Sofia nodded impatiently. “Yeah, yeah I know. When they get here, let me do all the talking.”
Within a short time, the fragrant aroma of bananas and coconut mingled with the strong espresso coffee brewing on the stove. I continued to watch Sofia. She was acting normally, almost abnormally normal. She hadn’t said one word about the murders, and I wondered where she had gone after leaving her parents’ house. There was no point interrogating her now. I would find out the answers to all these questions soon enough. “Sofia, we need lawyers.”
“I will take care of all that later. We need to focus on calming our parents. It will—”
The loud knocking at the door interrupted our conversation.
“Gilda! Sofia! Are you in there?” Uncle Paolo shouted. I could hear my mother’s and aunt’s voices in the background. I imagine everyone else on the floor heard them, as well.
I had forgotten about the system being down. I wondered how they got in.
Sofia rushed to the door and let them in. My mother headed toward me and hugged me close. Aunt Amelia hugged Sofia as Uncle Paolo stood awkwardly to one side. He smiled as he breathed in the strong espresso flavour. “It can’t be all bad. After a good cup of coffee and a big piece of whatever dessert Sofia made, everything will be fine.”
Sofia smiled and nodded in agreement. “You’re absolutely right, Papa. That’s what started all of this confusion.” She shook her finger playfully at me. “This one has been sleeping all afternoon. After I left your place, I came back here and waited patiently for her to wake up. I played some music and moved a few pieces of furniture. Nothing would wake her.”
My mother piped in. “Gilda is the heaviest sleeper around. Remember that tornado that touched down in the city years ago. She slept right t
hrough it.”
“I got bored and decided to bake,” Sofia said. “I couldn’t find enough ingredients to make any of my favorite desserts, so I decided to run to the store and pick up a cake mix. On the way back, I ended up talking to that poor, confused woman with the cat.”
Aunt Amelia nodded. “She never finishes her stories and she keeps repeating everything.”
“I ended up accompanying her back to her condo and helping her with her keys.” Sofia shook her head. “She shouldn’t be living on her own. I have a good mind to phone one of her children, and let them know about her wanderings. I’m sure I spent at least thirty minutes dealing with all of that.” She pointed in my direction. “Meanwhile, this one wakes up and finds herself in the dark, totally alone. So, she panics and starts phoning everyone we know.”
My mother gasped. “Gilda, who else did you call?”
I had to think quickly. I didn’t want to bring anyone else into this mess. “Well, well, I…I called Sofia’s place and the church, but no one answered.”
“And you didn’t leave any messages,” Sofia added. She got up and went toward the guest bedroom.
Aunt Amelia nodded in approval. “It’s okay to bother us, but I’m glad you didn’t call anyone else. We don’t need outsiders knowing our business.” She changed the subject. “That coffee smells so good, and I’d love a piece of that cake, even if it is from a mix.”
“I’ll have some coffee as well,” my mother said.
I pointed to the teapot. “I made some herbal tea. Wouldn’t that help you sleep better?”
My mother smiled. “Who can sleep now? We may as well treat ourselves.” The three of them headed for the table and sat down. Aunt Amelia served the coffee and my mother cut five generous pieces of cake.
Sofia came back and signaled to me with her eyes. I followed her into the kitchen and had to strain to hear her. “I just called Roberto Ongaro. He agreed to represent us tomorrow morning.”
“How did you manage that?”
She shot me a sly, sideways glance. “I called him from the other room. I had already spoken to him earlier this week about you.”
“You went to see a lawyer, and you didn’t even tell me.”
“Sssh. They’ll hear you. If you must know, he’s handling my situation with Andrew. When all of this is over, I’ll fill you in on those details.”
Chapter 16
Sunday, October 30, 2011
“Gilda, wake up. We’re meeting with Carlo in an hour, and we can’t be late.”
I opened my eyes and stared up at a fully-clothed Sofia. “Wow! You look stunning.” The combination of a light pink wool suit and black blouse complemented Sofia’s pale skin and dark hair. The sheer, dark hose and black patent stilettos completed the picture. And something else was different. Sofia wore a pair of stylish, dark-rimmed glasses. “I didn’t know you wore glasses.”
“I only wear my glasses after a long, tiring day. And I can truthfully say that I was totally depleted last evening.”
“Well, you don’t look it now.” I glanced over at the clock and sprang out of bed. “I can’t believe I slept this long. Why didn’t you wake me up earlier?”
“I tried, but you kept going back to sleep. Now, hurry up. Roberto wants to touch base with us before we talk to Carlo.”
I showered and grabbed a black pant suit from the closet. I decided on a cream-colored turtleneck and medium-heeled black shoes. I applied the minimum of makeup and then inspected myself critically in the mirror. Definitely a schoolmarm-ish look, but at this point I didn’t really care.
Sofia raised her eyebrows when I went into the kitchen. “Good morning, Sister Gilda.”
I made a face at her and quickly drank a cup of coffee. I knew I should eat something, but I didn’t think I could keep anything down. I grabbed my purse and followed Sofia to her car. In less than ten minutes, we arrived at a parking lot near the police station and found Roberto waiting for us in a large black Mercedes. Sofia pulled up next to him, and he motioned for us to get into his car. Sofia got in the front seat and gave Roberto a quick peck on the cheek. I realized why Sofia had dressed up this morning. She was putting the moves on Roberto. Or maybe they were already an item. Of all the men in Sudbury, Sofia had to pick the one who most resembled her husband in looks and temperament.
Roberto flashed me a quick smile. “It’s been a long time, Gilda. It’s too bad we had to meet under these circumstances.” He paused and adjusted his tie. “When we go in, do not volunteer any information. Answer Carlo’s questions directly, and be as brief as possible. I will sit in on each session, and I won’t hesitate to interrupt or make any suggestions. Are you okay with that?”
Sofia jumped in. “You’re the lawyer. Why shouldn’t we be okay with that?”
I wasn’t thrilled with Roberto, but it was too late to protest.
Roberto turned his attention back to Sofia and lowered his voice. “Let’s go over those times again. When did you drop Gilda off at her condo?”
“Around two o’clock yesterday afternoon.”
“Where did you go afterward?”
“I went over to St. Anthony’s Church to help set up for the Autumn Tea.”
“How long did you stay there?”
“I left around four-thirty and went over to my parents’ house.”
“When did you leave your parents’ house?”
“About ten after six.”
“When did you arrive at Gilda’s?”
“About ten minutes later.”
“Was Gilda home?”
“Yes, she slept soundly in her recliner. I decided not to wake her. I went into my room and read for a while.”
“When did you step out again?”
“A few minutes after eight o’clock?”
“Why did you leave the condo?”
“I craved something sweet. Gilda doesn’t keep any desserts or even chocolate in the condo, so I decided to go out and buy something sweet.”
“Where did you go?”
“Food Basics.”
“When did you get back?”
“Sometime after nine. Gilda was awake.”
“It took a whole hour to go to Food Basics and back? What took you so long?”
“I was in and out of Food Basics quickly. But I was delayed when I got back to the condo building. One of the other residents, Mrs. Harrison, wandered around on the first floor. I decided to help her.”
“Does Mrs. Harrison have a problem?”
“Yes, she has dementia. She shouldn’t be living on her own. The next time I see her daughter, I will mention this incident to her.”
“How long were you with Mrs. Harrison?”
“At least thirty minutes. She couldn’t remember her floor, so I had to check on the board in the foyer. When we got to her condo, she couldn’t find her keys. She wouldn’t let me touch her purse, so I waited until she found her keys. When we got inside, she started crying. I sat with her until she stopped crying. I felt guilty leaving, but I didn’t know what else I could do for her.”
“What’s her apartment number?”
“Seven-oh-eight.”
“Well done, Sofia.” Roberto patted her knee affectionately. “You’re ready for Fantin.”
I couldn’t believe what I had just heard. Sofia had concocted all these lies, and she was ready to tell them to Carlo. I wanted to protest, but I couldn’t. Sofia and I both knew, and now Roberto Ongaro knew, that if she didn’t lie, there could be problems. Both of us needed that alibi. I also knew that I couldn’t face Carlo after all of this. “I guess it’s my turn now.”
Roberto flashed a confident smile. “That won’t be necessary, Gilda. You were in your condo reading and fell asleep. Just stick to that story.”
He got out of the car and opened the door for Sofia and me. I followed Sofia and Roberto into the station. Sofia kept touching Roberto’s arm and giggling—yes, she actually giggled at his comments. I hadn’t seen that side of Sofia since high school. My stoma
ch grumbled, and I regretted not having any solid food for breakfast.
Carlo stood near the front desk, chatting with one of the other officers. He frowned when he saw us. “Hello, everyone. Thank you for being so prompt.” He spoke directly to Roberto. “I’ll start with Sofia, and then I’ll question Gilda. Her lawyer will have arrived by then.”
Roberto interjected, “I’m representing both of these lovely ladies.” He took Sofia’s arm and headed toward Carlo’s office.
Carlo approached and whispered in my ear. “I can’t believe you’ve agreed to this. Gilda…Gilda, for a smart woman, you…” He threw up his hands and walked away, not giving me a chance to respond.
My eyes welled up with tears. I donned my sunglasses, went over to the main desk, and spoke to the officer on duty, “I’m just stepping out for half an hour or so. If Carlo needs me before then—” I took out my cell phone.
The officer nodded. “Take your time. I have a feeling that Carlo will be a while, and if he does finish earlier, he can wait. Go and have a good strong cup of coffee.”
I walked out of the station and headed for the Gonga Grill just down the street. I knew I would be able to eat and get out of there quickly. There were a handful of patrons in the restaurant. I went all out and had poached eggs, bacon, and home fries along with two strong cups of coffee. I arrived at the station just in time to see Carlo disappear into his office. Sofia and Roberto approached, all smiles. I forced myself to smile. “I guess it’s my turn now. Is Carlo ready to see me?”
Roberto patted my shoulder. “He doesn’t need to see you at all. Sofia and I took care of everything, and you are free to enjoy the rest of this lovely day.”
“How is that possible? Two women are dead—”
“Carlo accepted my alibi.” Sofia finished my sentence while focusing on Roberto. “I promised my parents I would go to the eleven o’clock mass with them, and I’m tied up with the Autumn Tea all afternoon and into the evening.”
A Season for Killing Blondes Page 11
