Swiped in Savannah: A Made in Savannah Cozy Mystery (Made in Savannah Mystery Series Book 12) by Hope Callaghan (ereader android .TXT) 📗

“Will do.” Carlita jumped into the car. She sped down the alley, around the block and to the front of the museum where she eased into an empty handicapped spot. Spelling and Vance helped a hobbling Autumn to the car.

“Thank you. Thank you so much. I…I’m such a klutz.” Autumn hopped to the side and then backed into the front seat. She tossed her shoes on the floor.

“Are you sure you’re all right?” A look of concern filled the curator’s face.

“Yes. I’m sure I’ll be fine.”

“Thank you for helping us,” Carlita said. “I’m sorry to be so much trouble.”

“No. No trouble at all,” Mr. Spelling said kindly. “You may want to leave the high heels at home next time.”

“I will. Silly me for even wearing them.” Autumn thanked the men again before pulling the passenger door shut.

Carlita climbed behind the wheel, gave the men a quick wave and backed out of the parking spot.

“Well? How did I do?”

“It was an Oscar-worthy performance,” Carlita said.

“I was trying to fake a fall but ended up twisting my ankle instead. A little ice and I’m sure I’ll be good as new.” Autumn reached for her seatbelt. “Did you find anything inside the storage room?”

“No. It was full of boxes, empty artwork frames and furniture. It would take hours to dig through everything. Plus, I don’t think the thief would be dumb enough to hide the artwork in the storage closet.”

“Are you sure? It would be the perfect place to hide it…right in plain sight.”

“I suppose. I took a few pictures. Maybe we’ll be able to glean some clues.” Carlita circled the block and returned to the alley before turning on the mic. “We’re ready.”

The porta potty door flew open. Elvira exited first, closely followed by Dernice. The women jogged across the construction lot.

Elvira hopped into the backseat and slammed the door shut. “I’ll never do that again.”

Dernice climbed in on the other side. “It wasn’t that bad.”

“It was disgusting. I can think of a million other hiding spots which would have worked.”

“You’re such a wimp,” Dernice shrugged. “You need to toughen up.”

“Well?” Elvira ignored her sister as she leaned forward in the seat. “Did you find anything?”

“I think I may be onto something, but it wasn’t anything I found inside the storage area,” Carlita said.

Chapter 10

“Like what?”

“Before I answer, what kind of information did you provide to the museum to get the security job?” Carlita asked.

“It was ridiculous,” Elvira grunted. “The application was three pages long. They wanted so much unimportant information, I had to start making stuff up. Along with filler information, I had to include past employment, previous addresses, personal and professional references.”

Carlita cut her off. “Who…did you use for a professional reference?”

“Well…uh.” Elvira shifted uncomfortably. “I used Glenda Fox and SAS.”

“With Glenda’s permission?” Carlita pressed.

“I…was going to. I planned to, but never got around to it.”

“Just like you used me as a reference?” Carlita pinned Elvira with a stare.

“We’ve already been over this. I was going to ask you, but I figured you would say no,” Elvira whined. “It’s not a big deal.”

“Not a big deal? You’re under investigation for theft, and you used me as a reference without my permission,” Carlita said. “So now, not only does this throw suspicion on me but also on my family.”

“It’s not like you’re not used to taking a little heat.”

“Elvira.” Carlita shook her head. She knew she wasn’t going to win the argument and changed the subject. “Along with the references, did you provide them with a driver’s license or social security number?”

“Yep to both,” Dernice answered. “They required the information for each person who would be working security detail for the event.”

Carlita’s mind raced as she thought about Dernice’s answer. “So…the museum directors and others would have access to your past conviction, Dernice.”

“No.” Dernice shook her head. “Elvira left me off the list. It wasn’t until after the painting went missing that they started digging around and found out about my past.”

“I think someone on the inside - inside the museum did find out.” Elvira’s jaw dropped. “Someone let us through, and gave us the job so they could lift the painting, and we would be blamed.” She flung herself back in the seat.

“It could be,” Carlita agreed. “We need to find out precisely who had access to your application. This might help us narrow down the list of possible suspects.”

“I filled out the application online. A couple of days later, Gaston Spelling, the museum’s curator, called me back.”

“Then what happened?” Autumn asked.

Elvira told them that after filling out the application, Spelling contacted her for a face-to-face interview. “During the interview, Spelling told me I was in the running for the assignment. He gave me a stack of co-applications and told me each employee working would need to fill it out and return it within twenty-four hours. I didn’t add Astrid’s information since she wasn’t an employee at the time I got the gig.”

Carlita remembered the young woman who was learning French. “Why would Astrid’s application be a red flag?”

“Because Astrid Herve is not her real name,” Elvira said.

“We don’t know Astrid’s real name,” Dernice added. “When we ran a background check on her, we discovered there’s no Astrid Herve from Savannah.”

“So she’s hiding something.” Carlita tapped the top of the steering wheel. “You said Astrid was saving up money to move to France.”

“To get back to her roots, her ancestry,” Elvira explained. “She’s got it set in her mind all her dreams will come true when she reaches Gay Paree. She’s a little on the innocent side.”

“Gullible,” Dernice added. “She sometimes strikes me as almost too innocent. Maybe it’s an act.”

“So maybe Astrid is a suspect in the painting’s theft,”