“But we don’t mind helping,” Carlita said gently. “We all need a hand up once in a while.”
“Well,” Astrid shrugged. “If you got food you’re gonna toss out anyway, I’ll take it off your hands.”
“Then it’s settled. I’ll talk to my kitchen staff about saving you some leftovers starting tomorrow.”
“That’d be great.” Astrid yawned loudly, not bothering to cover her mouth. “Whoee. It’s been a long day. Elvira has a gig for me down at the boat docks first thing tomorrow morning.”
“We’ll let you get to bed, then. Have a good night, Astrid.”
“Thank you, Mrs. Garlucci and you,” Astrid motioned to Tony, “for not shooting me.”
“This is my son, Tony. He runs the pawnshop.” She told Astrid good-bye, and they made their way back to the alley.
“I’ll walk you home.” Tony offered his mother his arm as they walked to Carlita’s apartment. She unlocked the door, and they stepped inside.
“What do you think, Ma?”
“I feel sorry for Astrid, but we must be wary.” Carlita briefly explained what Elvira had told her, how she found the woman digging through a dumpster and offered her a job.
“Elvira was nice to someone?”
“Yes. There’s something else. Astrid Herve does not exist. According to Elvira, the woman is lying about her identity.”
“Maybe she’s on the lam.”
“It’s possible. I had no idea Elvira was going to let her camp out here. She may be harmless, but you never can be too careful.”
“You said it. I’ll make sure Shelby knows what’s going on.”
“And I’ll do the same with Sam, Mercedes and Cool Bones.” Carlita thanked her son for walking her home. After he left, she locked up behind him and returned to her apartment.
The lights were on. She could hear Mercedes humming in the kitchen. “Mercedes?”
Her daughter popped into view. “Hey, Ma.”
“How was Rambo and Sadie’s date?” Carlita placed the pizza and her keys on the counter.
“It was all right.”
“Just all right?”
“Yeah. Rambo and Sadie hit it off.”
“What about Sam and Mercedes?”
“Don’t look at me like that.” Mercedes crossed her arms. “Fine. We had a good time. Are you happy?”
“Very,” Carlita grinned. “So…are you going out again?”
“Maybe. I told Sam we should check out the Pirates in Peril pirate show.” Mercedes returned her mother’s sly grin. “Maybe we could double-date…you and Pete, me and Sam.”
“There’s nothing going on between me and Pete,” Carlita shrugged her shoulders. “Don’t be makin’ something out of nothing.”
“Whatever you say, Ma.” Mercedes changed the subject. “Where were you?”
“Shelby and Tony invited me for dinner. Shelby quit her job at the post office and is going to work part-time at the pawnshop and Ravello’s.”
“That’s a great idea.” Mercedes plunked down on the sofa. “Sam knows someone who might be interested in a short-term rental of the efficiency downstairs. I told him to have the guy submit an application.”
“I thought you had your heart set on the author.”
“Angelica Reynolds. A man left a message earlier, asking if he could schedule a time to come by to look at the unit for her. I’m calling him back in the morning.”
“Speaking of living arrangements.” Carlita briefly told her daughter about her misunderstanding with Astrid in the parking lot.
“She’s living in a tent?”
“Yes, temporarily. You must be careful. Her real name isn’t Astrid Herve. She’s homeless, and she has a stun gun…well, she had a stun gun. I’m not sure if Dernice gave it back to her.”
“I will.” Mercedes popped off the sofa. “You know what? Your run in with Astrid is awesome fiction fodder. I have the perfect place to add this scene to my book.”
Mercedes returned to her room while Carlita put the leftovers in the fridge. Tomorrow was shaping up to be a busy day, and she decided to turn in early.
As she drifted off to sleep, Carlita thought about Astrid. What secret was she hiding? What was the real reason the woman was determined to move to another country?
She mulled it over before drifting off to sleep. Her last thought was the truth might be as unsettling as the incident earlier in the parking lot.
Chapter 13
Carlita’s bed started to shake. Seconds later, the bedroom windows rattled. She bolted upright, clutching her chest. “What on earth?”
She flung her covers off and raced to the window while Rambo, who was curled up in his doggie bed, let out a low warning growl.
“You felt it, too?” She lifted the blind and peered into the courtyard. It was empty, but beyond that, she could make out the silhouette of a large tractor-trailer. Workers began unloading a massive bulldozer next to the vacant lot on the other side of the street.
The bulldozer rolled off the back of the trailer with another window-rattling thud. Rambo growled again.
“Great. Looks like they’re gonna start building across the street.” She lowered the blind and eyed her bed with thoughts of crawling back in until the earth shook again. “Third time’s the charm. Guess that’s our wakeup call, Rambo.”
Carlita threw on some old clothes and headed to the kitchen to search for food she could give to Astrid.
The leftover pizza would work. She also whipped up a quick sandwich and placed that, along with some bottled waters and an ice pack inside a small cooler she found in the hall closet.
Rambo and she headed downstairs. Instead of letting her pup lead the way, she thought about Astrid and her tent and decided that until the two became acquainted, she had better keep him in check.
When they reached the patch of green grass, Rambo promptly investigated the tent and then patrolled the perimeter. She was surprised when he didn’t growl or bark, and
