Swiped in Savannah: A Made in Savannah Cozy Mystery (Made in Savannah Mystery Series Book 12) by Hope Callaghan (pocket ebook reader .txt) 📕

“True.”

“At least we can rest easy knowing we aren’t responsible for helping put an innocent woman or innocent women behind bars.”

Mercedes and Carlita made their way past the Waving Girl Monument, through Morrell Park and to Walton Square.

“I better get ready for work.” Mercedes headed upstairs while Carlita stopped to check on Tony and the pawnshop. She found her son sorting through inventory in the back.

“Hey, Son.”

He swung around before doing a double take. “Hi, Ma.”

“How is Shelby?”

“She’s okay. Thanks for sharing your pasta and chicken dish last night. Dinner was delicious.”

“You’re welcome.” Carlita shifted her feet. “I’ve been thinking about Shelby and her job at the post office.”

“She gave them her two weeks’ notice.”

“I have an idea I would like to throw out there.” Carlita asked her son what he thought about having Shelby help part-time in the restaurant and the pawnshop. “It would only be when she’s feeling up to it. That way, she can make a little extra money to help pay the bills, and she doesn’t have to worry about working a nine-to-five job.”

“That’s a great idea, Ma. I’ll run it by her.”

“Perfect. Speaking of health, I need to give your brother a call to check on him and Brittney.”

Tony thanked his mother again for the food and the offer of a job for Shelby, and she headed out the back door. She passed Mercedes on her way up. “Good luck at work.”

“Thanks, Ma.”

Carlita returned to the apartment. She dropped her purse on the counter and wandered to the living room window, overlooking the alley.

Had Elvira and/or her sister stolen the valuable artwork? Something wasn’t sitting right. As if hearing Carlita’s thoughts, Elvira emerged from the back of her building.

She hurried onto her balcony. “Hey.”

Elvira trudged across the alley. “Hello, neighbor.”

“I thought you were in jail.”

“I was.”

“Wait there.” Carlita hustled out of the apartment and down the steps where Elvira stood waiting. “I talked to Pete Taylor a short time ago. He said both you and Dernice confessed to stealing the painting.”

Elvira pinched the end of her nose. “The cops tricked us. I rescinded my confession.”

“Did you steal the painting?”

“No. I thought Dernice did. I was covering for her. She can’t go back to prison.”

Carlita glanced over Elvira’s shoulder. “Where is Dernice?”

“She’s inside trying to find us a decent lawyer.” Elvira explained the investigators picked the sisters up at the same time and took them down to the police department for questioning. “They interviewed us in separate rooms. The guy made it sound like they had evidence on Dernice. I didn’t want her to go back to jail, so I kind of hinted maybe I was the one who took the painting.”

“But you didn’t.”

“Nope.” Elvira shook her head. “And neither did Dernice. They used the same sly trick on her, telling her I was on the verge of confessing. She was trying to save me from prison time, so she told them she may have had information about the theft.”

“And they arrested both of you.”

“Yep. When I found out what they were up to, I accused them of coercing a confession. I threatened to contact the local newspaper unless they released us.”

“So they let you go,” Carlita said.

“They had to. They have no evidence, and I was threatening to blow their cover. So now we’re looking for an attorney.” Elvira let out an exaggerated sigh. “You deal with the criminal element on a regular basis. I’m sure you’ve had to extricate yourself from a sticky situation or two. You got any suggestions on a good attorney?”

“I am not involved with the criminal element. I’ve never been to jail or prison.”

“You’re not missing anything. The food is disgusting, I was afraid to go to sleep and the cots are hard as a rock.”

Dernice stepped into the alley, and Carlita waved her over.

“Hey, Carlita.” Dernice nodded and turned her attention to her sister. “I found a couple of attorneys who might work. I told them I wanted to discuss it with you first.”

“You get them on the cheap?” Elvira asked.

“Yep. One of them is fresh out of law school and looking to make a name for himself. When I told him who we were, he jumped at the chance to represent us. He mentioned something about holding a press conference.”

“I wouldn’t do that,” Carlita advised. “You might say something you regret which could be used against you in a court of law.”

“No kidding,” Elvira grunted. “We need help, and we need it fast. The clock is ticking. It’s only a matter of time before the investigators dig up something they can pin on me and Dernice.”

“You’re an investigator,” Carlita pointed out. “Why don’t you try to figure out who set you up?”

“I am. Don’t think I haven’t been working on it. I know one thing for sure. It was an inside job. During questioning, the detective slipped. I found out the museum’s security system went down. It’s as if the painting just vanished into thin air.” Elvira snapped her fingers.

“Was the artwork still there when you locked up?” Carlita asked.

“Yep. Like I mentioned before, I had to run back inside. I forgot my keys when I was chowing down on some leftovers. Gaston Spelling, the museum’s curator, waited in the hall while I ran back in to grab the keys. We walked out together. He locked up. We parted ways in the parking lot out back. The next morning, they discovered there had been a power outage during the night, and the painting was gone. End of story.”

“You didn’t notice any strange cars in the parking lot?” Carlita asked.

“There were lots of cars parked out back. The alley is used as overflow parking for some of the bars.”

“I see.”