Pirates in Peril: A Made in Savannah Cozy Mystery (Made in Savannah Cozy Mysteries Series Book 10)

by Hope Callaghan

  “Of course.”

  Pridgen turned to Carlita and Mercedes. “I’ll get back with you in the next week or so.” He gave them a curt nod.

  The receptionist handed Mercedes a sheet of paper and began explaining the form while Carlita watched Pridgen walk away.

  Had Pridgen just threatened them that if they kept opening businesses in Savannah, certain area business owners and longtime residents would start snooping around in the Garlucci family past?

  The thought made her dizzy. There were powerful people in Savannah…powerful people who might very well have connections to organized crime.

  If the mafia up north caught wind of or even suspected Carlita had cash on hand, Castellini and maybe others would be on her doorstep demanding to have a look around, whether she wanted them to or not.

  Carlita followed her daughter out of the office and they began making the trek home. “What do you make of Pridgen’s comments?”

  “I think he’s a bully and he’s trying to intimidate us,” Mercedes said. “I ought to open up a graffiti art studio just to spite him.”

  “And graffiti what?” Carlita chuckled. “I know...you could start a business and call it Courtyard Art.”

  “The only problem is that I’m not artistically inclined.”

  “Practice makes perfect.” Carlita linked arms with her daughter. “Maybe I’ll join you. It could be very therapeutic.”

  “Have you decided what you’re going to make for Cool Bones’ courtyard get-together?”

  “I was thinking of trying Tierney’s marinara sauce recipe. Could you send me a copy?”

  “You know what?’ Mercedes abruptly stopped. “I don’t think she’s sent it to me yet. Let me check.” She stepped off to the side and whipped out her cell phone. “Nope. The Ghost Roast is right around the corner.”

  “I’m running out of time. I would like to give it a kitchen test run first and tweak it to make it our own. Maybe we could swing by there to get a copy.” The women turned left when they reached the corner.

  The Ghost Roast was busy. Mercedes patted her stomach. “I’m kind of hungry. We should grab a bite to eat while we’re here.”

  “Sounds good.”

  The hostess led them to a table near the front and handed each of them a menu.

  Carlita perused the offerings. “I want to order Tierney’s marinara sauce, so I can take it home to compare it with mine. Other than that, I think I’ll go with the grilled fish after last night’s pizza.”

  “Fried fish sounds good.” Mercedes closed the menu and glanced around. “I see Tierney in the back. Here she comes.”

  The young restauranteur stopped by several tables before making her way to Mercedes and Carlita’s table. “You again? Let me guess…you can’t stay away from my secret marinara sauce.” Tierney’s eyes widened and she clamped a hand over her mouth. “I forgot, didn’t I?”

  “You did.” Mercedes nodded. “It’s okay.”

  “I had it ready to send and then forgot. I’ll send you the recipe right now.” She pulled her cell phone from her apron pocket and tapped the screen. “There. You should have it.” She slipped the phone back into her pocket. “How is your investigation going?”

  “It’s not. We have too many suspects and not enough clues,” Mercedes joked. “Even our friends are beginning to look suspicious.”

  “Kyle’s information wasn’t helpful?” Tierney asked.

  “He gave us a big break when he told us about sneaking back on board the Mystic Dream and overhearing Lawson having a conversation with a man in Spanish. He said it sounded like a heated argument, but he didn’t know what they were talking about.”

  “Because he couldn’t hear what they were saying?”

  “No.” Mercedes shook her head. “Because he doesn’t know Spanish.”

  Tierney snorted. “Kyle told you that? He speaks fluent Spanish. In fact, he lived in Mazatlán, Mexico for a couple of years before moving to Savannah.”

  Chapter 21

  “Are…you sure?” Carlita asked.

  “Of course. I’m positive.” Tierney glanced across the restaurant and began motioning to someone. “There he is.”

  Kyle made his way over. “Hello, Mrs. Garlucci, Mercedes.”

  “Hello, Kyle.” Carlita smiled back.

  “We were discussing your conversation the other night. I hadn’t heard the story about you sneaking back on board the Mystic Dream and overhearing Lawson speaking to someone in Spanish. Mercedes said you told them you couldn’t understand what they were saying.”

  “No.” Kyle shook his head. “I was on the other side of the door and they were speaking in low voices. I know they were speaking Spanish, though.”

  “But…but.” Mercedes voice trailed off. Kyle had told them he couldn’t understand what they were saying. In fact, he told them he heard two words and even looked one of them up…recoger.

  Carlita tapped Mercedes under the table. “We must have misunderstood you, Kyle. It was such a long day and by the time we got here, I’m sure we were just confused.”

  “That’s okay.” Kyle swept his bangs off to the side. “How is your investigation going?”

  “We have plenty of suspects, motives and opportunities, but haven’t been able to figure out who attacked Lawson and damaged the Mystic Dream.”

  “Well, good luck.” Kyle excused himself and made his way to the kitchen.

  “I better get back to work, too,” Tierney said. “The special today is the turkey club with chips for nine forty-nine.”

  “I think we’re going to try the fish,” Carlita said. “I also want an order of your marinara sauce to go.”

  “Good choice. The fish is delish. Sorry again about the recipe mix-up.” She stepped over to another table and began talking to the diners.

  “What do you think?” Carlita whispered.

  “I think Kyle is lying.” Mercedes covered her mouth. “We’ll talk about it later.”

  The server made his way over to take their lunch order, which arrived hot and fast a short time later. While they ate, they discussed Emmett Pridgen.

  “I think we should steer clear of him,” Carlita said. “He could cause us some serious trouble.”

  “How? He doesn’t know anything about us.”

  “But he has his suspicions,” Carlita argued. “All it would take would be for a few nosy business owners to start snooping around. We don’t need anyone from back home coming down here. We already have to deal with Vito.”

  “Vinnie sure dropped that bomb on our doorstep,” Mercedes said.

  “You know Pirate Pete speaks Spanish. Mark Fox speaks Spanish.”

  “Or maybe Kyle is lying and they weren’t speaking Spanish. I’m beginning to suspect someone else is behind the attack,” Mercedes said. “In fact, the more I think about it, the more I’m convinced the perpetrator is in plain sight.”

  “I hope we figure it out soon.” Carlita polished off the last of her fish sandwich, left a small pile of fries behind and then slid her plate to the side. “Did you see John Alder put his place up for sale?”

  “I did.” Mercedes reached for a potato chip. “Have you heard why he’s selling?”

  “He’s moving to California. He said he got a job offer he couldn’t refuse.” Carlita twisted her napkin around her finger. “I’ll be sad to see him leave.”

  “I kinda thought in the beginning there was a spark between you two.”

  “Me, too, but we’re just friends. I miss your father.” Carlita swallowed hard. “He’s been gone almost a year now.”

  “Yeah. I remember the day Pop died.” Mercedes’ lower lip started to tremble. “It was awful.”

  Carlita looked away as sudden tears burned the back of her eyes. There were moments it seemed like yesterday she made her vow to Vinnie on his deathbed to get their children out of the family.

  Yet other times, it seemed so long ago…like a lifetime ago. Some days were easier than others. The hard ones brought her right back t
o the wrenching grief.

  Her promise to Vinnie was one of the things that kept Carlita going, kept her pushing on. Admittedly, there were moments she wanted nothing more than to wallow in her own sorrow, but she made a promise and she intended to keep it…or die trying.

  “You done good on keeping your promise to Pop.”

  “All except for Vinnie.” Carlita dabbed at the corner of her eye. “I failed miserably.”

  “Did you, Ma?” Mercedes reached for her mother’s hand. “You got a sweet new daughter-in-law and a new grandbaby on the way.”

  “Who also happens to be Vito Castellini’s daughter.”

  “There’s nothing we can do about Vinnie’s new in-laws,” Mercedes said. “Pop would be proud of you running your own businesses, making your own decisions.”

  “Learning how to drive his car?” Carlita smiled.

  “He might have a thing or two to say about us not washing and waxing it every weekend,” Mercedes joked.

  “I’m sure he would.”

  “I’m no expert on love or romance,” Mercedes said. “But I figure when your heart is ready to love someone again, you’ll know it.”

  “You’re right.” Carlita reached for her purse. “We better get outta here. If not, we’re gonna start bawlin’ our eyes out. I’ll go settle up at the cash register. On the way home, you can tell me who you think attacked Lawson Bates.”

  Mercedes waited outside while Carlita paid. “Can we make one more stop, Ma?”

  “Sure. The exercise will do me good. I can burn off some of the food I ate.”

  The women changed direction and headed toward the river and the Mystic Dream, which was still moored in the same spot. Pete’s pirate ship wasn’t far away.

  “I want to take a quick look at the Mystic Dream.” Mercedes led the way, slowly walking along the sidewalk as she studied the riverboat.

  “What are you looking for?” Carlita asked.

  “Kyle Flinch mentioned that he snuck off the Mystic Dream by crawling through a broken galley window. I’m trying to figure out where it’s at.”

  “There are some porthole windows near the front.” Carlita pointed to the front of the riverboat.

  “Those could be it,” Mercedes said. “Kyle lied to us.”

  “I agree, but why?” Carlita paused in front of the wrought iron gate and stared at the Mystic Dream. “I just thought of something. When Pete and I were interviewing one of the Mystic Dream employees, she told us there was a high employee turnover and they were constantly training new employees and none of them spoke English.”

  “Which would fit in perfectly with the human trafficking angle,” Mercedes said.

  “But she said something else.” Carlita shifted her feet. “Kyle mentioned he was working on a petition to demand better wages and he threatened Lawson with contacting the labor board. The employee we spoke with knew nothing about it.”

  “Maybe Lawson wasn’t angry with Kyle because he complained about the wages,” Mercedes theorized. “Maybe he was upset because Kyle found out about the trafficking ring.”

  “Because he overheard Lawson talking to a man in Spanish on board the boat,” Carlita said.

  “Motive and opportunity,” Mercedes shoved her hands in her pockets. “Kyle was complaining about the wages. What if he became suspicious of the high turnover of Spanish speaking employees? He admitted he snuck back on the riverboat because he thought Lawson was up to something.”

  Carlita picked up. “He overheard Lawson working out another smuggling run to bring in more immigrants and then confronted Lawson. What if Kyle threatened to turn him in unless he started paying him hush money?”

  “Kyle got ticked off, but with no way to prove Lawson was trafficking people up the coast, he was blowing hot air.”

  “He could’ve contacted the authorities to open an investigation,” Carlita said. “Why wouldn’t he do that?”

  Mercedes rubbed her finger and thumb together. “Then he wouldn’t make any more money.”

  “We could go back to The Ghost Roast and confront Kyle with our suspicions.”

  “And he would laugh right in our faces.” Mercedes tilted her head and gazed out at the river. “I think I have an idea on how we can trick Kyle into telling us whether he was involved in Lawson’s attack or the damage to the Mystic Dream.”

  “What if it’s not Kyle? What if it’s Mark Fox or Pirate Pete?” Carlita asked.

  “That’s a possibility,” Mercedes said. “If so, we’re back to square one.”

  “I hope it’s not Pete,” Carlita muttered. “Not only would I be a terrible judge of character, we might be out twenty-five thousand dollars.”

  Chapter 22

  “Before we do anything, we have to come up with an excuse to stop back by The Ghost Roast,” Mercedes said.

  “We got all the ingredients to make the marinara sauce. I say we whip up a batch, and then take it over to the restaurant for Tierney to sample our version.”

  “That’s a great idea, Ma.”

  When they reached the apartment, they headed to the kitchen where mother and daughter whipped up a large batch of the marinara sauce in record time. Carlita made a few adjustments, tweaking the recipe so they weren’t copying Tierney’s exactly.

  After several samples and taste tests, Mercedes proclaimed the sauce as tasty as Tierney’s sauce.

  Carlita placed a portion of the sauce in a small to-go container and then they headed back out. “Do you think we should stop by the police station first?”

  “And tell them what? That we unlawfully boarded the Mystic Dream, broke into Lawson’s office and found some paperwork we think points to his involvement in human trafficking?” Mercedes shook her head. “They’ll laugh us right out of the building or arrest us.”

  “I suppose you’re right. It doesn’t help that Lawson is related to the mayor.” Carlita picked up the pace to keep up with Mercedes’ quick steps. “Do you think Tierney will be annoyed we keep dropping in?”

  “She might. If you think about it, technically Ravello and The Ghost Roast will be competitors.”

  “I guess I wouldn’t blame her,” Carlita said. “I hope Kyle wasn’t responsible for Lawson’s attack.”

  “Me, too. Maybe it was Emmett Pridgen,” Mercedes said. “He’s a jerk.”

  “Better him than Mark Fox or Pirate Pete.”

  They reached the restaurant a short time later. It wasn’t busy with the dinner crowd yet, and there were only a few patrons inside. Tierney was nowhere in sight, but Carlita caught a glimpse of Kyle in the back.

  He gave a quick wave and then joined them near the front. “Tierney is off for a few hours. She won’t be back until seven or so.”

  Mercedes held up the container of marinara sauce. “Ma and I made a batch of Tierney’s marinara sauce, but with our own twist. We thought she might like to give it a taste.”

  “I’ll leave it in the fridge for her.” Kyle took the container.

  “Thank you,” Carlita said. “We were also going to give both of you some good news.” She turned to Mercedes.

  “Yes. We heard Lawson Bates is not only coming out of his coma, but he’s also starting to remember what happened the other night and was able to give the authorities a vague description of his attacker.”

  The color drained from Kyle’s face. “He did?” he squeaked.

  “Yes. It’s only a matter of time before the authorities find out who attacked him,” Carlita said.

  “And damaged the Mystic Dream.”

  Kyle’s eyes grew wide and he took a step back. “That’s…great news. I better get back to work.” He lifted the container of sauce. “I’ll be sure Tierney gets this.” Without saying another word, Kyle darted to the back.

  “Crud,” Mercedes muttered. “I wanted to see the expression on his face when I described him as Lawson’s attacker.”

  “Now what?”

  “Maybe it’s time to call Glenda and tell her the same story.”

  “I thin
k we’re chasing our tails,” Carlita said. “Mark is as likely to confess as Kyle, if either of them is even guilty of attacking the man.”

  “Oh ye of little faith. We’re just applying a little pressure to see if anyone cracks,” Mercedes said. “Besides…nothing ventured, nothing gained.”

  “I suppose.” Carlita stepped onto the sidewalk before dialing Glenda’s number.

  “Hello, Carlita. How are you?”

  “I’m okay. I was talking to Mercedes. We heard Lawson has not only come out of his coma, but he’s starting to remember details of his attack.”

  “Yes,” Glenda said. “He is. Mark and I heard it’s only a matter of time before Lawson is able to name his attacker. Mark’s business partner visited Lawson a short time ago. He told us Lawson is very agitated, insisting the doctors release him from the hospital.”

  “I’m glad he’s going to recover for everyone’s sake and I’m sure the doctors are as anxious to have him leave as he is to go.”

  The women chatted for a few more moments before Glenda said she needed to take another call.

  Mercedes watched her mother drop her phone into her purse. “What did she say?”

  “I guess we weren’t far off. Glenda actually heard Lawson is starting to recall details of his attack and is demanding he be released from the hospital.”

  “Perfect,” Mercedes squealed. “Then this case will be solved soon and Pete can move forward with his pirate ship.”

  “Unless it’s Pete,” Carlita pointed out.

  “Nah.” Mercedes waved her hand. “It wasn’t Pete. I’m still not convinced the person who damaged the Mystic Dream was the same person who attacked Lawson.”

  “I think it’s the same person,” Carlita said. “Who else could it be?”

  “I keep thinking about the other night when Autumn and I snuck on board the Mystic Dream, how we were sure we heard something and then I was sure I saw someone on the top deck as we were getting off.” Mercedes grabbed her mother’s arm.