Carlita’s phone chimed. She snatched it out of her pocket. It was Tori. “Uh-oh. Tori is calling.”
“Hey, Tori. How’s it going?”
“Fine. My houseguests are settling in. I thought I should give you a call regarding a conversation Byron overheard.”
“From Brittney?”
“No. Not Brittney. It was a conversation between Luigi and Ricco. I think the tracking device might come in handy tonight.”
Chapter 20
Carlita frantically motioned to her son before pressing the speaker button. “I’m sittin’ here with Tony. I put you on speaker so he could hear. You overheard Luigi and Ricco talkin’ about going somewhere later tonight.”
“A meeting with Philip Duce or as they called him, ‘Phil the Pill.’”
“Did they mention a location?” Tony asked.
“Somewhere down by the river. I’m assuming not far from that horrid stallion club which should have been razed. Byron said they noticed him and stopped talking, so all he knows is there’s some sort of meeting with Phil the Pill this evening down by the river.”
“That’s more than enough to go on. Thank you for the heads up,” Carlita said.
“You’re welcome. The men are no problem. They like to hang around outside and in William’s game room. Brittney, she’s a little…” Tori abruptly stopped. “Never mind.”
“What were you going to say?”
“Nothing. I shouldn’t have said anything.”
“She’s a little high maintenance,” Carlita guessed.
“You could say that, but you mentioned she was a bit more work.”
“I’m sorry. I owe you one.”
“She’s keeping Byron on his toes,” Tori joked.
“Tell Byron I owe him one, too. I owe everybody one,” Carlita said. “It may be only a day or so before Brittney and the guys are able to come back here.”
“Take your time. Like I said, they’re livening up the place.”
Carlita thanked her friend again and disconnected the call. She waved the phone in Tony’s direction. “Ricco and Luigi are cookin’ something up with Duce or maybe Duce and some others from Big Joe’s Pool Hall.”
“It could be at Vito’s request,” Tony pointed out. “I was a little surprised when Vinnie said Vito sent them down to talk to Duce. When they were here last time, Vito was tryin’ to put the screws to the owner, Pat, and things didn’t end well.”
“Could it be Duce plans to set them up?” She popped out of her chair. “Think about it. Vito and Vinnie were here a few months back. They met with the owner of the Black Stallion Club to discuss a joint business venture - illegal gambling. For whatever reason, Vinnie originally told me Vito thought it was small potatoes. Let’s say for the sake of discussion, Vito walked away after a disagreement with Pat Duce, the former female owner.”
Tony picked up. “Pat Duce, Phil’s sister, ends up in prison. The brother takes over and re-opens the club. Somehow, the Savannah Six become involved…possibly because Davis Rutger is butting in on his business. Phil Duce has him murdered, and his body is dumped across the street from not only our home but also two of our businesses.”
“It’s all beginning to make sense.” Carlita pressed a hand to her chest. “What if Phil Duce found out Ricco and Luigi were staying here? He takes Rutger out, knowing the authorities are going to investigate the area, talk to me, maybe even see the video footage of Ricco and Luigi.”
“Yep.” Tony smiled grimly. “It’s the perfect setup. Duce and his men get away with murder…literally…and Luigi and Ricco - Vito’s men are on the hook.”
“Luigi and Ricco better not meet with Duce.” Carlita’s voice rose an octave. “They could be walking into a trap.”
The courtyard gate rattled, and Carlita caught a glimpse of Steve Winter. She hurried to the gate to let him in. “Hey, Steve.”
“Hey, Carlita. The guy working at the pawnshop said you were out here with Tony. Hey, Tony.”
“Steve.” Tony polished off the last bite of meatball and shoved the empty container in the bag. “How’s business?”
“Not bad.” Steve fumbled inside his pocket and pulled out a pack of cigarettes. “Smoke?”
“No, thanks. Shelby is hounding me to quit,” Tony said.
“That’s why I’m never getting married. Gotta give up too many of my bad habits.” Steve turned to Carlita. “Was Reese with you earlier?”
“Yeah. I’m sure you heard about the incident on board the trolley the other day, how Davis Rutger got into it with Phil Duce, pushed him out the emergency exit and then Rutger ends up dead.”
“With Duce having a perfect alibi. He was in the hospital.” Steve cupped his hands around his cigarette and lit the end. “Wouldn’t be surprised if one of his go-to boys did the deed. Duce’s a tough nut.”
“Sounds like the Savannah Six are, as well.”
Steve nodded as he took a deep drag on the cigarette. “They’re trouble, for sure, but not nearly the bad apples as Duce, et al., are. Word on the street is they’re getting involved with the big boys from Atlantic City.”
“You don’t say.” Carlita and her son exchanged a quick glance. “Involved as in how?”
“Racketeering, illegal gambling, who knows what else.”
“Speaking of the Savannah Six, a couple of the members have unique ring tattoos around their necks. Autumn mentioned you did some work for them before they started causing trouble,” Carlita said.
“Yeah.” Steve sauntered over to one of the potted yellow begonias and flicked his ashes in the dirt. “I was the one who did the ring tattoos. Guess it had some significant meaning to them. Circle of friends or something like that.”
“Circle of friends,” Tony snickered.
“I call bull on it,” Steve said. “It
