“Wait a minute.” Carlita crossed her arms. “Don’t even think about pinning this on my son. We had nothing to do with Davis Rutger’s death.”
“But he was the one who found the body,” the detective said. “I need to follow up on all of the leads, including questioning anyone who lives or works in the vicinity.”
“I understand, but you must know your line of questioning is coming across as accusatory.”
Polivich ignored her comment. “I would like to speak to your tenants.”
“Of course.” Carlita led the detective through the back door, across the hall and up the stairs. She knocked on Autumn’s door first. The door flew open, and the young woman appeared in the doorway. “Mrs. G.” She shot the detective a look. “Hello.”
“Autumn…this is Detective Polivich. He’s here to ask you a few questions. I’ll let him explain.”
“About what?”
“Tony discovered a man’s body inside the shed on the vacant lot across the street. Since your apartment faces that direction, he was wondering if you noticed anything.”
“No way.” Autumn’s eyes grew wide. “I…I saw someone last night before I went to bed.”
“Do you remember what time?” The detective reached for his notepad again.
“It was late.” Autumn shifted her feet. “It was after ten because I had finished watching the ten o’clock news. I was pulling my bedroom blinds shut, and that’s when I saw them.”
Chapter 7
“Saw who?” the detective asked.
“These two guys. They were coming from over in this direction. It looked like they were up to something.”
“Did you happen to see what they were wearing, what they looked like?”
“No. Like I said, it was dark.”
Autumn turned to Mercedes, who slipped out of the kitchen and joined them near the door. “Did I mention anything to you about seeing two men lurking around last night?”
“I…no. I don’t recall, and I didn’t see anything.”
“So, one of you saw something, and the other didn’t. Strange,” the detective muttered under his breath. He turned to Carlita. “I would like to see if your other tenants are available.”
“Cool Bones, Charles Benson, lives in the apartment behind me. Sam Ivey, a former police officer, lives in the apartment next door.”
“Sam Ivey?” Detective Polivich lifted a brow. “Ivey is one of your tenants?”
“He is.”
The detective thanked Autumn and Mercedes for their time and then followed Carlita into the hall, waiting while she knocked on Cool Bones’ apartment door.
He answered moments later. “Hello, Carlita.” Cool Bones greeted his landlord first before greeting the detective. “Hello.”
“Mr. Benson, I’m Detective Polivich with the Savannah Police Department. I’m sorry to bother you. I would like to ask you a couple of questions.”
Carlita stepped aside and listened quietly as he questioned her tenant. Cool Bones had nothing to add and claimed he hadn’t heard or seen anything the previous evening or that morning.
The detective thanked him for his time, and they made their way across the hall to Sam’s door. No one answered.
“I have Sam’s contact information.” Carlita pulled her cell phone from her pocket and rattled off his number. “Is that all you need from me?”
“For the time being. I’m going to question a few of the others in the area and would like to come back to check your surveillance cameras.”
“Of course.” Carlita led the way down the stairs and held the door for the detective. After he left, she made a beeline for the pawnshop, which had just opened for business.
Tony was inside and helping a customer. Not wanting to disturb him, she returned to the apartment. Mercedes was waiting for her in the upstairs hallway.
“I’m guessing it was Ricco and Luigi that Autumn saw patrolling the neighborhood last night,” Mercedes said in a low voice.
“I’m sure it was. Thank goodness Angelica is the only one who knows about Ricco and Luigi, and she’s on her way out.” Carlita glanced at Autumn’s closed door. “We need to keep them out of sight. Did you mention them to her?”
“No. I’m pretty sure I didn’t, and she was at work when they got here.”
“Involving Brittney’s bodyguards could bring us a whole heap of trouble. I don’t believe they were involved in Davis Rutger’s death.”
“Davis Rutger?” Mercedes’ jaw dropped. “He’s dead?”
“Yes, and I’m not sure how much the authorities want the public to know about the identity of the victim.”
“The ringleader of the Savannah Six is dead.”
“Dead with his body found directly across the street and only feet away from where the trolley incident happened less than twenty-four hours ago,” Carlita consulted her watch. “It’s only a matter of time before Reese shows up on the detective’s radar. I need to give her a heads up.”
Mercedes promised her mother she wouldn’t discuss finding Rutger’s body, Brittney or her bodyguards, and then Carlita headed home to call her friend. The call went to voice mail, so she left a brief message, asking her to call when she had a chance.
She set the phone on the counter and slowly made her way to the balcony doors. Rutger’s killer had been nearby sometime between late last night and early this morning. Had Rutger and his band of thugs been in the neighborhood, breaking into area businesses?
Concerned the Savannah Six may have been messing around, Carlita ran next door to Ravello’s. Although Tony, Shelby and Shelby’s daughter, Violet, lived above the restaurant, it was possible someone could have broken in without being seen or heard.
She checked the perimeter and then the inside of the restaurant. All was in order much to Carlita’s relief. After confirming the property was secure, she returned home to check the surveillance video footage.
Tony installed
