“I was on my way over there to check it out,” Tony said.
Carlita stepped off the stoop. “I’ll go with you.”
Walton Square was merely a pass-through in the early morning hours, used mainly by area residents on their way to the Riverfront District.
Mulberry Street dead-ended at the edge of the district and in front of a newer upscale chain hotel that Carlita had been inside once. The hotel sported a rooftop pool and deck that overlooked the Savannah River.
The hotel butted up to Morrell Park, the location of the shuttle boat offering free rides to those wanting to reach Hutchinson Island and the convention center.
Carlita cautiously followed the men onto the excavated lot. “How on earth did you see anything over here in the dark?”
“With this.” Luigi reached into his pants pocket and pulled out a small, silver flashlight. “Follow me.”
The others followed single file, staying close to the edge of the property until they reached the dilapidated fence.
“He’s back here.” They continued following the fence line until they reached a small metal shed. Face down and not far from the entrance was a man’s body, his arms outstretched as if he tried to break his fall. Unlike his arms, his legs were close together.
“Somebody did a number on him,” Luigi shined the flashlight on his legs, and Carlita could see a thick rope circling his ankles.
“He got clipped.” Ricco knelt next to the man’s still form. “See the rope burns around his neck? It was a bad way to go. Not very clean, either.”
“Someone wanted him to feel the burn,” Luigi said.
“Literally,” Tony said. “What time did you say you noticed the body?”
“A coupla hours ago, before daylight. Luigi and I decided to do another patrol since it was startin’ to get light and we’d seen someone messin’ around over here earlier. I don’t think it was someone from the family, although I wouldn’t put it past them to hang out in this shed, using it as a cover to catch us off guard.”
“You sure you didn’t do this…maybe by accident?” Carlita asked.
“No way. This wasn’t us,” Luigi said. “I swear it on my mother’s grave.”
Carlita studied the men’s faces, unsure of whether to believe them.
“Seriously,” Ricco added.
“And you don’t think someone from the family was responsible?” Carlita stared at the man’s body, a sick feeling settling in the pit of her stomach.
“No. This ain’t the family’s style. We straight up fill ‘em with lead until they’re dead.”
“Or tie ‘em up and toss ‘em in the river.” Ricco gave the man’s body a light nudge with the tip of his shoe. “This guy…someone wanted him to suffer. It was an amateur hit.”
Carlita’s mind reeled. She had to report the body to the authorities but needed to make sure there was no mention of Luigi and Ricco.
“The guy didn’t die here. He’s already a little stiff. Someone swung by here, dumped his body and took off.” Luigi pointed to a set of ruts in the dirt, several feet away from the entrance to the shed. “They probably came from back there, pulled up next to the shed and dumped him. Easy in and out.”
“But why here of all places?” Carlita asked.
Ricco shrugged. “It’s as good a place as any. It’s dark, there’s not a lot of traffic and no close neighbors.”
“Give me a minute.” Carlita motioned for her son to join her off to the side. “We need to call the police but somehow leave these two out of it.”
“I’m gonna go with my gut and say I believe there was no reason for either of them to kill this guy. I was thinkin’ the same thing about reporting the body. You wanna feel some heat on us? All you gotta do is tell them two of our guests who have rap sheets as long as a double roll of toilet paper found a body and they’ll be crawling all over the place.” Tony rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “I could tell them I was walkin’ Rambo, he got loose, I chased after him and that’s when I found the guy in the shed.”
“That’ll work.” Relieved they’d come up with a plausible explanation for finding the man’s body, they joined Ricco and Luigi, who were still discussing the man’s death.
“We’ll contact the police and leave you out of it.” Carlita pointed to an object Ricco was holding. “What’s that?”
“It’s the hit’s identification,” Ricco said.
“You touched the body?” Carlita gasped.
“With gloves,” Ricco shook his head. “You ain’t dealin’ with rookies here.”
“We had to make sure he wasn’t someone we know. We’ll put it back in a minute.” Ricco flipped the wallet open as Luigi shined the light on it. “He’s a local. His name is…Davis Rutger, born in ’96. This shows an address over on Jefferson Street.”
“You’re kidding.” Carlita’s eyes squinted as she studied the driver’s license. “Tony, Davis Rutger is the ringleader of the Savannah Six, the guy who started the trouble on board Reese’s trolley yesterday.”
Ricco blinked rapidly as he processed the information. “She’s the broad who got into it with the guy yesterday? Maybe she whacked him.”
“There’s no way Reese could’ve killed Rutger, especially by strangulation.” Carlita quickly dismissed the idea.
“Unless she tased him and then strangled him,” Tony suggested.
A car pulled onto the street, slowing as it passed the vacant lot.
Carlita waited for the car to drive off. “We better get outta here before someone sees us.”
“The place is clean. Whoever took him out did a decent job of covering their tracks.” Ricco slid the wallet back inside the man’s pocket and stood.
The four of them silently retraced their steps and returned to the alley. They slowed when they reached the parking lot.
“Ricco and I are gonna make ourselves scarce for
