Chapter 7

As soon as Duke left, Carlita hopped on the internet and snagged a time slot for her and Mercedes to visit their tenant and began researching Rudy McCoy’s death. Several old news stories popped up, all of them corroborating what Duke had said.

The minor league baseball player, a known bookie, had been murdered. Although no murder weapon had ever been found, it was determined he’d died from blunt force trauma.

“Having any luck, Ma?” Mercedes carried a chair over to the computer desk.

“Some.” She shared what she’d found. “I was wondering why the authorities would allow McCoy’s bat to be buried with him, considering it may have been a potential murder weapon.”

“Unless they tested it and ruled it out,” Pete said. “I wonder if a fingerprint is the only incriminating evidence they found against Cool Bones.”

“Circumstantial evidence. Witness statement. Being able to place Cool Bones at the man’s apartment around the time of the murder,” Carlita theorized. “Who knows? Only a jury can decide if there’s ample evidence to convict him.”

“It’s not a slam dunk,” Elvira said. “Although stacking up the evidence could help sway a jury. The argument. The eyewitness. The fingerprints. He’s gonna need a good attorney to get him out of this one.”

“Unless we can figure out who the killer is,” Carlita said.

“It’s almost showtime.” Mercedes turned the television on. Tony, Pete, Carlita, Autumn, Sam and Elvira gathered in the living room. She flipped through the channels until reaching Channel 2 news.

The outer bell rang. “I bet it’s Dernice.” Elvira took off. She reappeared seconds later with her sister close behind. “The news is on. I figured you would be watching it.”

“They’re reporting on the weather,” Mercedes said. “Hopefully, it will be a small clip at the end, right after the local sports, and no one will be watching.”

“I called everyone I could think of and told them to tune in.”

Elvira punched her sister in the arm. “Why did you do that?”

“Because this is your moment of fame. Soak it up. Enjoy.”

“I was arrested and thrown in jail,” Elvira gritted out. “Who needs that kind of fame?”

“I thought it was pretty cool.”

“Pretty cool? I wish it had been you.”

“Here we go.” Carlita held a finger to her lips. “Breaking news from downtown Savannah.”

She turned the volume up. The room’s occupants grew quiet. Johnson, the reporter, stood in front of the Thirsty Crow. He interviewed the bar’s owner, interviewed a couple who were on hand the previous night, describing it as a chaotic scene with patrons booing the cops when Cool Bones was arrested.

A photo of Carlita’s tenant flashed across the screen. Johnson explained why he’d been arrested and then an old photo of the original crime scene, along with a black and white snapshot of the victim, appeared.

“A new cold case task force has been assembled. Authorities are hopeful this murder case, along with several others, will be solved by year’s end.”

Johnson switched the microphone to his other hand. “Not only did Charles Benson, who goes by the stage name Cool Bones, have many supporters inside the bar, Mercedes Garlucci, a Savannah local, was arrested after striking an officer with a beer bottle. During the melee Elvira Cobb, owner of EC Investigative Services and EC Security Services attempted to interject herself in the situation and was arrested as well.”

Clips of Mercedes and Elvira being escorted to the cop car appeared on the screen.

Mercedes pressed her hands to her cheeks. “I look awful.”

“I think you look cute.” Sam hugged her.

“I guess I don’t look too bad,” Elvira said. “Maybe a smidgen ticked. It’s better than looking like a doofus.”

“You look ticked,” Carlita agreed.

“Because Officer Perkins was being a real jerk,” Elvira said. “And a bully.”

Dernice rubbed her palms together. “Johnson is getting to the good part. I hope he didn’t cut it out.”

Her sister eyed her suspiciously. “Good part?”

“Before I was able to escort him and his news crew out of the office.”

Johnson reappeared, now standing near Elvira’s office door. “While doing some digging around, I found Ms. Cobb’s arrest wasn’t her first run-in with the law.” He told viewers about her two previous arrests. “We weren’t able to get any of her employees to talk, but we found an interesting source of information.”

The camera jiggled and panned at a rapid rate. Snitch sat on her perch, warily eyeing the strangers.

“Hello.”

“Hello,” Snitch replied.

Dernice, who was off screen, introduced the bird. “This is Snitch.”

“Hello, Snitch.” Johnson stepped closer to the birdcage. “Do you know Elvira Cobb?”

“Annoying Elvira,” Snitch squawked. “Cheapskate. Cheapskate.”

“What?” Elvira sprang to her feet. She lunged forward, getting right in her sister’s face. “Who taught Snitch to say that?”

“She must’ve overheard some employees talking,” Dernice said. “When I realized Snitch might not paint you in the most flattering light, I hustled Johnson and his cameraman out of the building.”

“Lock her up. Lock her up.”

Off camera, echoes of laughter could be heard.

A smiling Johnson reappeared on the sidewalk. “There you have it, folks. Snitch appears to be a disgruntled EC Security Services employee. As far as the investigation is concerned, details are still unfolding. Tune in to the six o’clock report for updates.”

“Snitch isn’t disgruntled. I’m going to find out who taught her to say that and make them eat their words,” Elvira ranted. “How disrespectful and to be caught on camera to boot.”

“She seems to have a bountiful vocabulary,” Pete said.

“Which is one of the reasons I wanted her. She has a mind like a steel trap. Anything you say…”

“Can and will be used against you,” Mercedes quipped.

“Adopting the bird is backfiring big time.” Carlita clamped a hand over her mouth, trying not to laugh. “Maybe it will drum up some business. Free publicity and all.”

“Drum up business?” she roared. “My loyal and faithful companion called me a cheapskate and annoying.”

“And to lock you up,” Tony snickered. “I thought it added a little levity to the situation.”

Elvira grabbed her bag off the couch and marched toward the door, a thunderous expression on her face. “Snitch and I are going to have a nice long chat.”

She stormed out of the apartment, still muttering and mumbling under her breath. The alley door slammed so hard it shook the wall.

Mercedes darted to the window, watching her neighbor march across the alley and disappear inside her apartment.

Dernice started to follow behind.

Carlita stopped her. “You might want to give her a few minutes to cool off.”

“Elvira’s just blowing off steam. She loves Snitch. I’m sure she’s feeling a little betrayed.” Dernice tapped Mercedes’ arm. “What time is your community service on Tuesday?”

“We have to report to the Savannah-Burnham Police Department at eight a.m.”

“Are you gonna be done in time for Shelby’s baby shower?”

“I’m not hosting it until seven, so we should be safe, unless they make us stay overtime,” Mercedes said. “I don’t want to postpone it. She’s going to have the baby any day now.”

“Shelby looks like she’s ready to pop. It’s a good thing Tony and the family made it home before she went into labor. I’ll be here for the party.” Whistling under her breath, Dernice exited the apartment. The alley door closed, much quieter than what Elvira had done.

Mercedes slumped down on the couch and leaned her head back. “A nice bubbly bath and a good night’s rest sounds wonderful.”

“I bet it does,” Carlita said. “I’m sure Cool Bones would be thrilled to be home.”

“With Carlita Garlucci-Taylor on the case, he has a shot at getting his name cleared,” Pete said.

“If I was being accused of murder, I would want you on my team,” Autumn chimed in.

“Based on what we’ve learned so far, he’ll need all the help he can get,” Sam said.

“At the risk of stating the obvious, bookies often have mafia ties,” Tony said. “You sure you wanna start digging around?”

“I’m not thrilled with the idea,” Carlita admitted. “If we don’t help Cool Bones, who will?”

“His daughter Jordan lives in Atlanta. I wonder if he plans on telling her what’s going on,” Mercedes said.

“It will be up to him. Hopefully, he’ll be exonerated before she finds out,” Carlita said. “If we have a shot at clearing his name, we’re going to need his help.”

“Cool Bones is my friend too,” Sam said. “I can put out a few feelers down at the police station to get an idea of where the case stands.”

“Any information will help,” Carlita said. “Hopefully by this time tomorrow, we’ll be hot on the trail of Rudy McCoy’s cold case killer.”