If anything, Victor’s face paled even more, and his eyes widened with desperation. “Look. It’s not what you think. I had no idea taking over the drug business would cause any problems. But I’m positive that Vinny didn’t use your name. He’s not that stupid. You have to believe me.”
“But you’re still selling drugs through the same channels?”
“You have to understand. When you got out of the business, it was an opportunity that Vinny and I couldn’t resist, and you can hardly blame us for taking advantage of the situation. If our roles were reversed, you would have done the same thing. But I swear to you that everyone in the business knows you’re out of it. Vinny’s running things now, not you, everyone knows that.”
“Then why did Slasher tell Ramos that I was behind it? Slasher made it quite clear to Ramos that Vinny was selling drugs for me, and that’s why Vinny was using my resources.”
Victor shook his head. “Slasher was lying. That’s the only thing that makes sense. Look, let me take care of this. I can straighten things out. I’ll make it right. Just give me a chance. I’ll kill Tommy myself. It’s obvious he’s been doing this on his own.”
“Wait a minute.” Alarm skittered down my back. “Tommy? Who’s Tommy?”
“Uh… I meant Slasher. That’s Tommy’s street name.”
“Uh-oh.”
“What is it?” Uncle Joey asked.
“Well… I was over at the precinct a little earlier today. A drug dealer was murdered last night, and his name was Tommy Demarco.”
“Shit,” Victor said. “That’s him… that’s Slasher.”
“What happened to him?” Ramos asked me.
“He was shot in some building on the south side. The police think it was drug-related, like a drug deal gone wrong. There are no witnesses, and no murder weapon was found.” I turned my gaze to Victor. “Was Tommy in a gang?”
“I don’t know. You’d have to ask Vinny.”
“I think talking to Vinny is a foregone conclusion.” Uncle Joey sucked in a breath and glanced my way. “What else do you know about this?”
“The police think it’s gang-related, but there’s more…” I swallowed, hating to break the news to them like this. “The detective on the case is pretty sure the murder is tied to organized crime.” I shrugged. “At least he’s hoping to find a link. If Tommy… I mean… Slasher was telling everyone he was selling drugs for Uncle Joey, that might be bad.”
“Yes it would,” Uncle Joey agreed. “But you said there were no witnesses.”
“Yeah, but they’re still going to talk to the gang members in the area. And… uh… they might want me there during the interviews… you know… to see if I can pick up anything with my premonitions.”
I half expected Uncle Joey to blow up over this, but, after thinking it through, he nodded instead. “That could be helpful for us. If they try to pin this on me, you can point them in Vinny’s direction and he can take the fall.” His hard gaze landed on Victor. “It’s the least he can do for selling drugs under my name. And if he doesn’t like it… then he’s a dead man… and you can take his place.”
Victor swallowed his protest. If he didn’t agree, his life was over, along with Vinny’s. He’d just have to convince Vinny that taking the fall was better than death, because he wasn’t about to get blamed for this. He still couldn’t believe Vinny could have been so stupid. “Look. I’ll make sure Vinny knows what’s at stake here, but first, you have to give Vinny a chance to explain. I mean… if it wasn’t him—”
“It won’t matter,” Uncle Joey said. “If this even remotely looks like I had something to do with it, believe me, one of you will take the fall. For your sake, I hope it’s Vinny, but either way, this is not coming back to me.”
He waited for Victor’s nod before continuing, “Good. I’m glad you understand. And… look at it this way, you might get lucky and it won’t come to that, especially with Shelby on the case. She helps the police a lot, and they trust her. She might be able to solve the murder without involving any of us, especially if it’s gang-related, or if he was killed for some other stupid reason.”
“That’s true,” Ramos agreed, thinking I was getting off lightly for helping the police this time. But, since it would help Manetto too, it was a win-win.
Crap. Was I in the middle of this mess, or what? I guess it shouldn’t surprise me, but what the hell? Now it looked like I had to point the police to Vinny to save Uncle Joey, even if Vinny was innocent. It also meant that, if I wanted a clear conscience, I had to find Tommy’s real killer. Still, on the bright side, maybe Vinny had killed Tommy, and solving it would be a cinch? Ha… who was I kidding? Nothing was ever that easy.
“Victor, why don’t you take Ramos and Shelby to pay Vinny a visit,” Uncle Joey said. “Then we can take it from there. You know where he is?”
“He should be at home. Let me text him and make sure, then we can head over there now.”
“Fine. Just be sure not to mention that Ramos is coming with you.”
As Victor nodded and sent the text, Uncle Joey glanced my way, thinking this was working out better than he thought. Naturally, he didn’t like that I helped the police. But this time, I could actually help him without feeling guilty about it, since he was totally innocent.
I guess he had a point. I just hoped no one at the police department would find out that I was passing along sensitive information, otherwise, it wouldn’t matter that Uncle Joey was innocent. They’d kick me to the curb, and I’d never be able to help them again.
“Okay, he’s home.” Victor stood, resigned. “Let’s get this over with.”
Uncle Joey nodded at Ramos, giving him the okay to do what he had to do, even if it meant death, and we filed out of the office. With a heavy heart, I quickly retrieved my purse from my desk and followed Ramos and Victor to the elevator.
A few seconds after pushing the button, the elevator doors swished open, and Ricky, one of Uncle Joey’s loyal employees, along with a couple of other men, exited. After a quick greeting, I picked up that they were there to see Uncle Joey about some important business, but the elevator doors shut before I could pick up what it was.
I suddenly realized how little I knew about Thrasher Development, or any of Uncle Joey’s business dealings. And he wanted me to be his successor? This was just plain nuts. A heavy weight filled my chest, and the sudden urge to run came over me. I didn’t want this. But how was I going to get out of it now?
Ramos told Victor to text him Vinny’s address, thinking that he and I would get there on his bike. He thought it was the least he could do, since I looked a little sick, and he wanted to put a smile back on my face. I caught his gaze and grinned. Even in such dire circumstances, a motorcycle ride with him would always make me smile.
Without a word between us, we stepped to the bike, snapped on our helmets, and took off. Slipping my arms around Ramos’s waist did wonders for my mood. I knew it wasn’t the best thing for a married woman to do, but since this… and maybe Diet Coke… were my only weaknesses, it wasn’t too bad. Besides, I needed some perks for doing this job, or I might go crazy.
We followed Victor to a small subdivision just off the freeway, and I realized it wasn’t too far from the area where Tommy was shot. Maybe Vinny had more to do with Tommy’s demise than Victor thought.
Still, I didn’t look forward to confronting him. Good thing Ramos was here. I just hoped this visit didn’t end up with Ramos killing Vinny. I was pretty sure Ramos wouldn’t kill him in front of me, but, with my new status as Uncle Joey’s successor, I’d know all about it, and it kind of made me sick.
Victor pulled up in front of a small, brick house, and we parked behind him. As Victor knocked on the door, Ramos and I held back, waiting for Vinny to open it. He wore a graphic t-shirt over a pair of jeans, and his arms were covered in tattoos. His swarthy features pegged him as a younger version of Victor, but without the class.
As Victor stepped through the door, he held it open for
us to follow, and I picked up Vinny’s surprise to see Ramos. Not knowing who I was, he dismissed me and focused his attention on the biggest threat to his continued health. Just looking at Ramos sent tremors of fear down his spine.
“What’s going on Vic? Why are they here?” Vinny shifted on his feet with nervous anxiety. He knew something was wrong, and tension curdled his stomach.
“We need to talk,” Victor said, his voice ringing with authority. “Did you hear about Tommy?”
“No… why, what’s up?”
“He’s dead… they found him this morning.”
“Shit.”
“But that’s not the worst of it.” Victor glanced at Ramos, nodding for him to finish the story.
“I spoke with Tommy last night,” Ramos said. “He told me he sold drugs for you, and you sold drugs for Manetto. Since Manetto’s out of the business, why do you suppose he thought that?”
“What? No way. He knows we don’t sell for Manetto anymore. He was lying.” Vinny’s shock wasn’t hard to pick up. This was news to him, and he paled to realize just how much trouble he was in with Ramos and the big boss. “I swear it’s the truth.”
“Did you know Tommy had an arrangement with Aaron at the health-and-nutrition store?”
Vinny’s brows drew together, and he shook his head. “I don’t know anything about it.”
Starting with our visit to the store, Ramos explained the whole story, watching Vinny grow more and more agitated. “Are you sure you don’t know anything about this?”
“No, I swear I don’t. This is all Tommy’s doing. It has nothing to do with me.”
“That’s where you’re wrong,” Ramos said, and explained the consequences to Vinny. “If the police trace this back to Manetto, you’re taking the fall.”
“No way. It’s not my fault. I didn’t do anything wrong.”
“Vinny,” Victor said, shoving Vinny against the wall. “This is serious. You either agree to this or you die. Tommy was one of your guys… and he crossed Manetto. No one crosses the boss and lives to tell about it. No one. Don’t you get it?”
Victor kind of skipped the part where his life was on the line too, but I couldn’t really blame him for that.
“But… but…” Vinny searched his cousin’s eyes and found the truth.
“It doesn’t matter,” Victor continued. “It’s the price you pay. Tommy was out of line, and now he’s dead. The police are looking into it, and they want to tie it to Manetto. If they do, you’re taking the fall.”
It finally sank in, and Vinny swore a blue streak in his mind, muttering under his breath. The fight went out of him, and he slumped against the wall. “Whatever man. But it won’t come back to me. Whatever Tommy was doing, he did it on his own. I had no idea.”
Since Vinny was telling the truth, I threw him a bone. “Maybe we can work with that. We met some of the kids Tommy sold to at the Health Store. If they come back looking to buy some drugs, maybe you can find out what Tommy had going on.”
“That’s true,” Ramos said. “Even if they know Tommy’s dead, you can take his place selling drugs to them. Once word gets out, and they come to you for their drugs, we’ll make sure someone talks and get to the bottom of it. Are you willing to do that?”
“Hell yeah,” Vinny said.
“Good. That will help your case with Manetto, because I’ve got to tell you, he’s ready to kill you right now. Your cooperation will go a long way in appeasing him. But you’re not out of the woods yet. Not until this is solved. Got it?”
“Yeah, sure man. I got this.” He was thinking that he used to do business with Aaron back in the day, so it wasn’t a problem to get back in. That must have been what Tommy thought too, and now the guy was dead. What the hell was going on? “I’ll get the word out and head over there tonight. You want me to call you if one of the buyers shows up?”
“Yes,” Ramos agreed. He glanced my way, thinking that I might need to come with him. I nodded. In for a penny, in for a pound, right? That was my life now.
As Ramos and I left, Ramos told both of them not to screw this up, and I nodded to show my solidarity, although I don’t think either of them noticed. Soon, we were back on the bike and headed to Thrasher. The ride was way too short for my taste, but it was better than nothing.
“You coming up?” Ramos asked.
“Uh… you know, it’s getting late, I think I’ll call it a day.”
He nodded. “Sure. I’ll text you if I need you tonight, but I wouldn’t count on it. With Tommy’s death, I don’t imagine the word will get out for another day or two.”
“That makes sense.” We spoke for another minute before I hurried to my car, eager to get home and put my feet up. Talk about stress. It just didn’t let up, with one thing happening right after another; I was kidding myself to think I’d ever shed my trouble-magnet status.
Would things ever settle down? I had so much on my plate that I didn’t know what I should do first. Mack Haywood’s murder seemed the most important, so I put that at the top of my list. Next, I’d promised Dimples I’d show up his new psychic partner by solving their case.
And now I had Tommy’s murder to solve. At least Vinny was taking the lead, but I still needed to work with the police on the case for Uncle Joey’s sake. We certainly couldn’t have it tied to him when he was innocent. Then there was the big question of being Uncle Joey’s successor.
I drove home in a daze, mostly on automatic. Out of all the things I faced, being Uncle Joey’s successor scared me the most. Of course, I had to remember that Uncle Joey’s plans were for the future. None of it was happening right now. I wasn’t in charge of a darn thing. I hadn’t said I’d do it either, so I still had plenty of wiggle-room, right?
For now, I’d put the rest of my troubles off until morning… unless Ramos called me later. Sheesh! Maybe it was a good thing I had my appointment with Bob Spicer tomorrow. Hopefully, he had some coping mechanisms he could share that would help me with the stress. Not that I could tell him about the mob stuff, but the police stuff was probably more than enough.
Making it home, I walked into the house, and Coco rushed to greet me. I’d forgotten all about him, but the minute he appeared, a big smile crossed my face, and my worries lightened. I knelt on one knee and threw my arms around him. He licked my face, and I didn’t even mind.
“What are you up to, big guy? Keeping an eye on the place?”
He let out a woof. Yup.
“Good boy. Where is everyone?”
Another woof. Gone.
“Oh, that’s right. Josh had to work, and Savannah’s at Ash’s house. Do you need to go out?”
Yup. Yup. Yup. Coco ran to the back patio door, anxious and prancing a little. I opened it and he took off. Whoa, we should probably get a doggy-door installed.
Heading upstairs to my room, I kicked off my shoes and changed into a pair of shorts. Coming back down, I stepped out on the patio and sat back on the swing. Sitting in the shade with a cool breeze blowing across my face, I closed my eyes and let the cares of the day flow away. Coco joined me, and, with a little coaxing, he jumped onto the swing and laid his head on my lap.
Sitting together, with his undivided attention, I began to tell him about my day, which soon morphed into a conversation about how much my life had changed the day I’d gone to the grocery store for carrots. I told him all about the close calls I’d had with death recently, including that I’d killed a man and didn’t even feel bad about it.
Coco listened attentively and didn’t interrupt me once. By the time I was done talking, he was sprawled over my lap and snuggled against me. We sat like that until the kids came home, and it was time to get dinner started. Heading into the house, I realized that was the best therapy session I’d ever had.
Chris got home in time to eat, and the kids filled him in on Coco’s former owner. “So you’re going to look into it?” he asked me.
“Yes.” I explained what I’d discovered at the precinct, and that I wa
s planning to question the neighbors and the people from the search-and-rescue team. “The detectives have already done that, but maybe I’ll pick up something they missed.” I shrugged. “It’s the least I can do.”
“You should take Coco with you,” Josh said. “He probably knows who the killer is, and he can tell you.”
“Don’t be stupid,” Savannah said. “Coco can’t talk.”
“I know that, dummy, but if he starts barking at them, don’t you think that’s a good clue?”
“I guess… but that doesn’t mean that person is the killer, maybe there are some people Coco doesn’t like. You never know.”
“I think I’ll take him with me.” I broke in, hoping to diffuse the situation. “I’m sure the neighbors and the rescue people could tell me more about Coco, and they might be more open to talk if he’s there.”
“That makes sense,” Chris agreed. “Could you pass the salad?”
Later that night, I asked Chris how the estate planning for Uncle Joey was going. He shrugged. “There’s a lot to go over. Let’s just say that Manetto’s got a ton of assets, and it’s going to take me a while to make sure everything is included.”
“So it’s a big job?”
“Yeah. Once I have everything put together, I’ll go over it with him so he can tell me who gets what after his death. Legally, I’m not supposed to tell you what his assets are, but I’m a little blown away by all of his holdings. He’s loaded.”
I nodded. “Yeah, I figured.”
“And I was shocked that he wants you to be his successor. Did you know?”
“No… it blew me away, too.”
“What are you thinking? You don’t want to do it, do you?” Chris didn’t want me tied up in Uncle Joey’s business. My involvement was bad enough already, and I had no idea how to run such a large enterprise. “I mean… being the executor of his estate is fine. You can’t get a lot wrong because it’s all spelled out. But running his business, even in name only, is asking for trouble.”
Dying Wishes: A Paranormal Women's Fiction Novel (Shelby Nichols Adventure Book 14) Page 11
