Page 35 of Takedown in Savannah
“And I would love to tell you, but I’ve been sworn to secrecy.” Dernice slipped into the bathroom, exiting a short time later. “I figured he wouldn’t put anything in the bathroom, especially if he was trying to hide it.”
Carlita made her way into the kitchen and began searching the cupboards, scouring every nook and cranny but found nothing even remotely resembling a clue.
Dernice caught up with her a short time later. “The living room area is clean. If Luigi is stashing stolen goods or drugs, they aren’t here.”
“Has he ever mentioned renting a storage unit?”
“No. He’s a minimalist…less is more is Luigi’s motto.” Dernice climbed onto the nearby barstool. Using her right hand to balance, she slowly stood.
“What are you doing?”
“Making sure we didn’t miss anything.” She began gingerly pressing on the ceiling tiles.
A shower of dust balls floated down and settled on the counter.
“Achoo.” Carlita sneezed loudly.
“Bless you.” Grabbing hold of the beam separating the kitchen from the bar area, Dernice cautiously stepped onto the counter.
Ducking down to avoid bumping her head on the drop ceiling, she gently pressed on the ceiling panel. Another clump of dust fell out.
Carlita sneezed again. Covering her nose, she backed away from the “drop zone.” “You’re gonna make a mess if you check every single panel.”
“Good point.” Holding the panel with her left hand, Dernice turned her flashlight on again and beamed it into the opening.
“Remember the time you got stuck in Elvira’s ductwork?”
“How could I forget? One thing is certain…I don’t plan on climbing in ductwork ever again.” Dernice shifted the panel to the side and slowly stood.
“You had better watch out for…”
It was too late. Dernice let loose an ear-piercing scream. With arms flailing, she ducked down and scrambled across the counter. “I saw two beady eyes.”
“It’s probably a mouse.” Carlita pointed to the mouse droppings mingled in with the dust. “These old buildings are a haven for rodents. Luigi will need to set a trap.”
“I’ve seen enough.” Dernice slid the panel back in place. “I’ll tell him I heard something scurrying around in the ceiling.”
Carlita gave her a hand, helping her down. “We need to clean up the mess we made.”
Working together, they swept the floor and sanitized the counter, removing all traces of dust and droppings.
Dernice placed the cleaning supplies back under the sink. “I’m relieved we didn’t find anything.”
“It still doesn’t explain the mystery behind Luigi’s conversation with the man on the phone talking about a pickup,” Carlita reminded her. “Too bad we can’t take a peek inside his fancy new set of wheels.”
“Who says we can’t?” Dernice reached behind Carlita and plucked a set of keys from the hook on the wall. “These are his keys.”
“Why stop now? We might as well search it all.” Carlita followed her out of the building. They reached the end of the alley and the driver’s side door of Luigi’s sporty black convertible.
With the car keys in hand, Dernice touched the handle and unlocked the door.
“Fancy.” Carlita whistled loudly. “I wonder what the payments are on a vehicle like this.”
“More than I’m willing to pay. I tried talking Luigi out of it, but his old sedan was nickel and diming him. First it needed brakes, then it needed a muffler. The last straw was when it started leaking oil.”
“Hopefully, we can figure this mess out. I would hate to see him lose the car,” Carlita said.
“Me too.” Using the key fob, Dernice popped the trunk.
