Christmas Family Style in Savannah: A Garlucci Family Saga Novel (Made in Savannah Mystery Series Bo by Hope Callaghan (summer reading list txt) 📕

Chapter 17

The officers huddled together as they studied Mercedes’ computer screen and began talking in low voices.

“What did they find?” Carlita whispered.

Mercedes shrugged. “I dunno. Nothing. I was doin’ some research for my new story.”

The tips of Carlita’s ears started to burn. “A crime story?”

“I…” Mercedes cleared her throat as she strode across the room. “I’m a novelist. I write crime fiction. I research a lot of criminal stuff. Drownings, shootings, stabbings, car bombings, you name it.”

“She does,” Autumn chimed in. “She writes mafia and other crime fiction. You can look her up. Murder, Mayhem and the Mafia, a Mob Daughter’s Confessions.”

“Or Savannah’s Secret Society,” Mercedes added. “Seriously, look me up.”

“I’ll do it.” The third officer, the one that had so far been a silent observer, pulled his cell phone from his pocket.

The room grew quiet as the female officer and Thryce continued searching Mercedes’ laptop, while the third officer conducted a separate search. “She’s tellin’ the truth, Thryce. There’s even a picture on the back of her book. Check it out.” The cop handed his phone to the officer in charge, who glanced at the picture and then up at Mercedes. “Crime fiction and mafia stuff, huh?”

“I told her she should switch over to romance, but she won’t listen to me,” Carlita said.

Despite the evidence, Mercedes was legitimately researching criminal activity, they continued poring over her phone and laptop. Finally, Thryce and the female officer stood. “I think we’ve seen enough.”

“I would like you to search her person.” Thryce motioned to the female officer.

“Search me?” Mercedes gasped. “Like a body search?”

“Just a visual, for signs of injury.”

A lightbulb went on in Carlita’s head. Thryce had asked for a visual of Carlita and Vinnie, and now Mercedes because Roxy’s attacker had been injured. “The blood you found on the deck of the ship was not only Roxy’s blood, but someone else’s as well.”

“I can’t discuss the case with you.”

Carlita pressed on. “It makes sense. Someone let Roxy out of the bathroom. They argued. Roxy pulled her knife on the person, they fought and both were injured before she went over the side of the ship.”

“I never mentioned a knife,” Thryce pinned Carlita with a stare. “Who told you Roxy had a knife…her knife?”

“I…uh. Someone told me. I can’t remember who,” she fibbed. The last thing she needed to do was mention that Sam had shared the information about Roxy’s knife.

“So, Ms. Garlucci, if you know about the stabbing and you weren’t involved, you won’t mind Jonkers taking a quick look to make sure you haven’t sustained an injury consistent with a knife wound,” Thryce said.

“Not at all.” Mercedes squared her shoulders and motioned for the female officer to follow her to the bedroom in the back.

They returned moments later. “She’s clean, not even a hangnail.”

“Thank you for your time, Mrs. Garlucci, Mercedes and Autumn.” Thryce made his way to the door. He removed a card from his shirt pocket and handed it to Carlita. “If you think of anything new regarding Ms. Ciccone’s death, please give me a call.”

Carlita followed the trio into the hallway and escorted them down the stairs and out of the building. “Are you going to speak with my other two tenants, Charles Benson and Sam Ivey?”

Thryce consulted his pad. “I have their contact information. I have some other leads to follow up on first.”

The trio strode to the other side of the alley and stopped. Carlita dashed up the stairs and into her apartment. She ran to the window where Mercedes and Autumn joined her.

“Now what?” Mercedes asked.

“I dunno.” Carlita watched as the officers approached Elvira’s back door.

The door opened, and Dernice appeared. Thryce motioned toward Carlita’s place. She glanced in their direction before stepping back, and the officers made their way inside.

“I bet that will make Elvira’s day,” Carlita murmured.

“I give her less than an hour, and she’ll be banging on your door, wanting to know what you told them,” Mercedes predicted.

“It will have to wait until later,” Carlita lowered the blind. “I promised Pete I would help him clean up the restaurant courtyard.”

She stayed long enough to see Vinnie, Brittney and the baby out while Mercedes and Autumn returned to her apartment.

Carlita swung by the pawn shop and found Tony inventorying the weapons inside the gun case. “Hey, Ma.”

“Hey, Son. How’s it going?”

“Good. I’m just waitin’ for the part-timer to show up so I can go get Shelby and Violet, and we can head over to the zoo.” Tony jotted some notes on a clipboard and then closed the case. “Jersey Joe was in here first thing this morning snoopin’ around.”

“I’m not surprised.” Carlita briefly filled him in on everything that had transpired.

He let out a low whistle when she got to the part where Thryce red-flagged Mercedes’ internet searches. “I’m surprised they didn’t throw the cuffs on and haul her down to the precinct for an interrogation.”

“We were able to prove Mercedes was working on legitimate research. There’s one more thing.” Carlita shared her suspicions that the authorities had not only found Roxy’s blood, but someone else’s on the top deck as well.

“I hope someone figures out what happened soon. You don’t want Vito’s men sniffin’ around down here for too long,” Tony said. “There are days I still wonder why big bro got himself involved with a mafia chick.”

“Not only involved but married,” Carlita sighed heavily and once again, hoped someday down the road, her son didn’t cross Vito Castellini and end up on a street corner, his body full of bullets.

Tony’s employee showed up, and Carlita excused herself, but not before telling him that she hoped they had fun.

With the