Page 8 of Takedown in Savannah
Little did she know that what she considered one of her best lines of defense would soon come under intense scrutiny.
Chapter 4
“Juice, you and Duke take the north block. Ed and I will cover this section. You last two take a block over, the street the city is coughing up big bucks for, after the recent bomb threat.” Luigi gave his group a final set of instructions, making sure they had their radios on the same channel to receive calls, and waited for them to hit the beat.
Ed, Luigi’s partner for the night, took a step back and studied the exterior of the Garlucci family’s apartment building. “So this is your place?”
“Home sweet home,” Luigi quipped. “Got an ace apartment, a ground-floor efficiency right over there.”
“I see Ravello’s Italian Eatery is on the corner.” Ed pressed his fingers to his lips and made a smacking sound. “They have the best New York-style lasagna in town. I heard the owners are from up north.”
“New York born and bred,” Luigi said. “The Garlucci family owns this half of the block. Carlita is my landlady. Salt of the earth, that one.”
Ed cast him a sly side glance. “I also heard they were part of the family.”
“You heard right.”
“As in mobsters.”
“It’s a fact,” Luigi said. “I used to work as a bodyguard for the Castellini family.”
Ed’s eyes grew round as saucers. He made a choking sound. “You’re a mob guy?”
“Was. In my past life.”
“Does Elvira know?”
“Yeah.” Luigi chuckled. “Between you and me, I think it was one of the reasons she hired me. She figured I would be good at clunking a few heads together if needed.”
“I bet you can. I’ll take note of it.” Ed licked his finger and made an imaginary checkpoint. “Don’t mess with the boss man.”
“I haven’t had to use my previous skills for a long time now.” Luigi cracked his knuckles. “But the San Maris Gang might test my streak.”
“They’re some bad dudes.”
“Some of the worst.”
Luigi and Ed strolled to the end of the alley. Turning left, they walked to the corner and made another left, passing by Ravello’s front entrance, the apartment’s private courtyard and the Savannah Swag pawn shop.
Luigi beamed his flashlight inside the front window, confirming the place was locked up tight.
The pair crossed to the other side, passing by a jewelry store which had recently opened, part of a chain of shops, all in the south. Having recently hired EC Security Services to patrol the area, Luigi and Ed paid special attention, making sure the building was secure.
They finished patrolling the area and circled the block, strolling by The Book Nook and Colby’s Corner Store. Shades of Ink, Steve Winter’s tattoo shop, was one street over.
Bam!A loud banging echoed from behind the tattoo shop’s dumpster.
For a large, hulking man, Luigi moved fast. In no time flat, he had his gun in his right hand and flashlight in the other. Crouching low, he crept toward the sound.
Moving in lockstep, Ed stealthily followed close behind, down a narrow strip of concrete separating the shop from the building next door.
Bam!Another loud banging noise came from the general vicinity of the first.
Luigi slowed. One wrong move and he could find himself in a world of trouble. Becoming trigger-happy was an equally disastrous decision.
A mercury light beamed down, illuminating the rear of the property. A flicker of movement caught Luigi’s eye. Slowly…slowly…he inched forward.
Only a few feet away a man appeared, gripping a gun.
