“Does his description match the description of the person who robbed Mrs. Jarvis?” Carlita asked.
“No. Although the robber was masked, Mrs. Jarvis is certain it was a man.” The officer finished jotting some notes. “I’ll need to confirm with Mrs. Jarvis that this is her ring. Judging by the photo she provided, I believe it will be a match.”
Carlita and Tony accompanied Thryce to the door. “So, what happens next?”
“We continue our investigation. In the meantime, if you remember the name of the woman or any other information, I would appreciate a call.”
Carlita waited for him to exit the shop and pass by the window. “I don’t think he believes us. I mean, what are the chances we don’t have the seller’s information?”
“With this computer, the chances were pretty high. I’m sorry, Ma. I must’ve misplaced the handwritten record.”
“Or the seller knew it wasn’t a legit sale and took it,” Carlita said. “Either way, don’t beat yourself up over it. I would get that database replaced. The sooner, the better.”
Carlita returned home, all the while wondering who robbed Sandy Sue and then had the nerve to bring the stolen merchandise across the street to pawn it off.
Surely, the person knew the pawn shop kept a record of their information. Unless they got it from someone else, someone who didn’t know it was stolen, or they somehow managed to swipe the record when Tony wasn’t paying attention.
Perhaps it was someone who had no concerns about being caught. Perhaps they were using a fake identification, maybe even stolen identification.
Mercedes wasn’t home but showed up a short time later. “Did you return Elvira’s drone?”
“I did. I have more good news,” Carlita said sarcastically. “Sandy Sue’s robber stole a ring from her. It ended up downstairs in our pawn shop.”
Mercedes eyes grew round as saucers. “You’re kidding. Were you able to figure out who brought it in?”
Carlita gave her a thumbs down. “Nope. Remember how we were having trouble with the database the other day and ended up having to log the information in a book? The record of the sale is missing.”
“That’s crazy.”
“Something tells me the cops will be back. I had motive and opportunity, not to mention the goods were found in our possession.”
“We can’t sit here waiting to see what happens,” Mercedes said. “I did a little online research into Big Hog’s BBQ, the one Sandy Sue previously owned. After our server, Angel, mentioned Sandy Sue and her brother couldn’t stand each other, I started doing some digging around.”
Carlita perked up. “And?”
“I think you need to see this for yourself.” Mercedes nudged her mother, who was seated in front of the computer, out of her chair and reached for the mouse. With a few clicks, she pulled up a news story and then hopped out of the way so that her mother could read it.
“Family feud or fiction fodder?” Carlita read with interest the story about the ongoing dispute between Sandy Sue Jarvis and her brother, Gordon Coldwater. The reporter went into great detail regarding the various disputes between the siblings.
From what she could glean, it all began several years ago when Sandy Sue and her brother inherited Big Hog’s BBQ from their parents, who began the barbecue joint as a small business they ran out of their home.
It was almost as if the reporter had an axe to grind, claiming the Coldwaters had an inside scoop on a large development. They sold hundreds of acres of land near the highway and used some of the proceeds to build a lucrative strip mall. The strip mall was also the location of their barbecue restaurant.
“I wonder where their beef with each other comes in.”
“Keep reading,” Mercedes said.
The last half of the story centered on the siblings not agreeing on the sale of the strip mall. Sandy Sue wanted to sell. Her brother, Gordon, was against it. The case eventually went before a judge who ruled in favor of selling and the siblings splitting the profits.
“Gordon had to buy back the business,” Carlita said. “Sandy Sue wanted out so she could finish her restaurant across the street.”
“Reading between the lines.” Mercedes crossed her arms. “What if Sandy Sue’s brother is behind the robbery?”
“Why? Why not let bygones be bygones?”
“You missed the footnote at the bottom.”
Sure enough, there was tiny print at the very bottom, beneath the author credits. Carlita slipped her reading glasses on. “At the time of print, there is still some ongoing litigation between Gordon Coldwater and Sandy Sue Jarvis.”
“Which means there’s a chance what’s been going on around here has something to do with Gordon Coldwater and Big Hog’s BBQ. I think we should run by there.”
“I’m game,” Carlita said. “What do we have to lose?”
*****
Mercedes steered the car into the parking lot. There was no missing the flashing neon sign and pink plump hog perched atop the restaurant’s roof.
“Let’s check out the strip mall first.” Mercedes circled back around and drove to the low-lying u-shaped structure tucked in behind the barbecue joint.
The storefronts were all occupied. There was a national chain’s cell phone store and a pizza place, along with a Chinese restaurant which took up a sizeable chunk of real estate. An all-suite hotel was behind the strip mall.
Mercedes backtracked and returned to the restaurant’s packed parking lot. “They’re doing a brisk business this afternoon.”
“This is a prime location.” Carlita pointed to the cars zipping along the interstate. “I bet Sandy Sue and her brother got a pretty penny for this property.”
The tantalizing aroma of smoked meat greeted them as soon as they entered the restaurant. Barstools, filled with patrons, lined the bar on the left. Stainless steel tables and matching chairs
