Turmoil in Savannah: A Made in Savannah Cozy Mystery (Made in Savannah Mystery Series Book 13) by Hope Callaghan (read book txt) 📕

Carlita handed it to her.

Tori made a grunting noise and then crawled out. She slowly pulled herself up and brushed off her knees. “I’m not as young as I used to be.”

“You get around better than I do,” Carlita said. “So, how’s this tracking device gonna work?”

“I’ll show you. Let’s see if Wentworth has finished.”

The women returned to the small office.

“How’s it going?”

“I’m almost done.” His eyebrows furrowed as he tapped the screen. “There we go.” He handed Carlita’s phone to her. “The app is on your main screen under grocery list.”

“Grocery list?” Carlita studied the screen, searching for the app.

“In the left-hand corner.”

“Ah. There it is.” Carlita pressed the app, and a screen popped up. It looked like a sea of blue water with a landmass in the center. In the center of the landmass was a red dot.

Tori peered over her shoulder. “The tracking device is the red dot. As you can see, the map is of Montgomery Hall, surrounded by the ocean. There’s the Savannah River.”

“Fascinating. Let me guess...the vehicle moves, the dot moves.”

“Correct,” Tori nodded. “You should have no problem tracking the device.”

“I set it up so that as soon as there’s motion, you’ll be notified with a chime,” Wentworth said.

“This is awesome. If Luigi and Ricco take the car somewhere, this app notifies me, and I can track them.”

“Precisely. Isn’t technology wonderful?” Tori asked.

“And frightening.” She slipped the cell phone into her purse. “Thank you for letting me borrow the device and for taking Brittney, Luigi and Ricco in.”

“You’re welcome.”

“Thank you, Wentworth,” Carlita said.

“My pleasure.”

The women exited the garage, and Carlita consulted her watch. “I should be going, but first let me say good-bye.”

It took a few minutes to track the trio down. Brittney was first, and she found her already settling into her room. “I’ll check on you later.”

Ricco and Luigi were next, and she found them hanging out in Tori’s game room, a paneled room with intricate oriental rugs covering the floor. A pool table was in the center of the room, flat-screen televisions lined the walls and a cluster of arcade-style video games filled one corner. There was even a snack bar.

A thick cloud of smoke lingered in the air. Carlita gasped in horror when she realized Ricco was smoking. “Ricco. What are you doing?”

“Havin’ a smoke.” Ricco leaned forward, balancing the pool stick on the edge of the pool table. “I already cleared it with the big man.”

“Byron?”

“This is the smoking room,” Tori explained. “It was the only room in the house where my husband, William, was allowed to smoke.”

“As long as you don’t mind.”

“Not at all.”

“I’m leaving now.” Carlita jangled her keys. “I’ll keep my cell phone handy in case you need anything.”

“We may never leave,” Luigi joked. “They serve fancy dinners, snacks, drinks. This place is freakin’ awesome.”

“I’m glad you’re pleased with the accommodations,” Tori said. “Did Byron give you a tour?”

“He sure did. We’ll be on our best behavior, keep our weapons holstered and clean up after ourselves,” Ricco promised.

“Thank you.” Carlita reminded them she was only a phone call away and she would let them know as soon as an arrest had been made.

“I hope the cops take their sweet old time,” Ricco said.

Tori walked her to the front door, once again reassuring her she was perfectly comfortable with the houseguests.

Carlita prayed a brief prayer as she climbed into her car and pulled onto the drive. Despite Tori’s graciousness in extending an invitation to the trio, she vowed to do everything in her power to try to figure out who took Rutger out…and the sooner, the better.

Chapter 18

Carlita’s plan was to call Reese when she got home to see if there was a possibility of accessing the trolley rider’s records to find out who was on board the morning of the incident between the Savannah Six              and Phil Duce, but she didn’t have to.

Reese, who worked weekdays and the Saturday afternoon shift, was waiting for her on her doorstep. She followed Carlita’s car to the end of the alley.

“Were your ears burning?” Carlita slammed the door and clicked the key fob before joining her friend. “I was going to call you.”

“You didn’t get my message? I sent you a text.”

“No.” Carlita reached for her cell phone. “I see it now.”

Reese glanced nervously over her shoulder. “Do you mind if we go inside? I think I’m being followed.”

“You’re not the only one,” Carlita motioned to her friend, and she fell into step.

“Buzz told me Polivich and Jackson were in his office yesterday, asking a bunch of questions and wanting to see my personnel file. I’m telling you, it’s only a matter of time before they pin me with some bogus charge. I’ll lose my job and my freedom, all over a man who made it his mission to stir up trouble.”

“I’m sure it’s standard procedure, and they didn’t find anything,” Carlita patted Reese’s shoulder. “You’re a model employee.”

“Not quite,” Reese grimaced. “Remember the time Elvira and I got into it, and I kicked her off the trolley?”

“Yes, but that was Elvira.”

“I’m not getting a good feeling. My days are numbered.”

Carlita followed her friend inside. “I’ve been mulling over the whole situation, going back to the moment it escalated on board the trolley. Is there any way to access the records to find out who was on the trolley the morning of the incident, other than the Savannah Six and Phil Duce?”

“The only records we keep are the BOPs - those with business owners’ passes. We also keep records of the regulars, but I can already tell you none of the Savannah Six used cards. Criminals don’t want you tracking them.”

“So,