Exes and Woes: A Garlucci Family Saga Novel (Made in Savannah Mystery Series Book 14) by Hope Callaghan (good summer reads .TXT) 📗

“I wonder what caused it.” Carlita told the others what Dernice had said earlier, how she suspected someone had been inside the building, but nothing had been touched.

“Could be intentional. Maybe someone is targeting their investigative services company,” Tony said.

“A disgruntled customer,” Mercedes chimed in.

A Channel 11 News van arrived moments later. The crew exited the vehicle and began setting up their equipment. Brock Kensington, a local reporter, emerged. He swaggered onto the sidewalk and began smoothing his hair.

“Autumn can’t stand that guy,” Mercedes said.

Brock waited for the camera crew to give him the thumbs up. He approached one of the officers, turning so that they both faced the camera.

Kensington spent several moments interviewing him before approaching Dernice, who was standing next to a firefighter. She waved him off as she shook her head.

Not ready to give up, he shoved the microphone in her face.

Dernice glared at the reporter and pushed the microphone away. For a second, Carlita thought she was going to take a swing at him. The firefighter must’ve thought the same and stepped between them.

“He’s telling the reporter to buzz off,” Luigi said.

Kensington finally backed down. He leaned in and said something to his camera crew. They returned to their van and sat inside with the engine idling for a long time before slowly driving off.

The firefighters packed up their gear and hoses and drove away, leaving only the police officers and Dernice.

Tony consulted his watch. “As much as I’m dyin’ to know what happened, I need to get back to work.”

“This might take a while. I’ll keep you posted,” Carlita promised.

“I’m gonna take off too.” Mercedes followed her brother, careful to steer clear of the taped off area as she made her way past the building.

“They’re all leavin’.” Carlita craned her neck, watching as one of the last officers on the scene jotted something on a notepad, and then tucked it into his front pocket.

Carlita and Luigi waited until he and his partner left before joining Dernice near the entrance.

“What happened?” Carlita asked.

“I was gonna take Elvira’s rusty old propane tank to the store to swap it out for a new one. I left it by the door, so I wouldn’t forget. It musta’ had a leak, and something ignited it.” Dernice’s hands flew up. “The thing went off like a bomb and blew out my front door.”

“Luigi and I heard the explosion. We were in the alley when it happened.”

“Ten minutes earlier, and the tank would’ve gone off with me inside. I could’ve been blown to smithereens.” Dernice began removing the police tape. “It blew the glass right out of the door.”

Shards of glass crunched under Carlita’s shoes as they cautiously followed Dernice inside. The smell of rotten eggs hung in the air. “Is it safe to be in here?”

“Yeah. The firefighters checked the air quality before they left. Remember how I called the cops earlier because I thought someone was messing around but didn’t see anything on the surveillance cameras? I was wrong. The cameras did catch someone. Check this out.” Dernice removed a silver laptop from the desk drawer, placed it on top and lifted the lid.

The trio watched as a dark, four-door sedan crept by. An arm shot out of the driver’s side window.

“What are they doing?”

“I have no idea. Throwing something at the building?” Dernice shook her head.

“Can I see it again?” Luigi asked.

“Sure.” Dernice played the clip again.

“It looks suspicious.” Luigi shifted his feet. “When was this recorded?”

“This morning, around the same time I came back here and discovered the door was open.”

“With no sign of forced entry,” Luigi said.

“Nope.”

Carlita pressed the tips of her fingers together. “Is there anything you can think of that may have happened recently, maybe a client’s case that didn’t go as planned?”

“It’s against company policy to discuss client cases. Elvira would have a fit if she thought I was sharing confidential information.”

“And where is Elvira?”

“Believe it or not, she’s in St. Augustine.” Dernice began rubbing her temples. “I can’t take much more of this. She has plenty of time to run around, start new businesses and buy properties. Meanwhile, I’m stretched and stressed to the max.”

“Which is why Luigi and I were on our way over in the first place,” Carlita said. “You need help. Luigi has a security background.”

“I do need help.” Dernice popped out of the chair. “Before we get down to business, I want to show you what the firefighters found while they were checking the place.”

Luigi and Carlita followed her through the apartment to a set of metal cabinets in the back. She opened a cabinet door and stepped aside. “I had no idea this was here.”

Carlita’s heart skipped a beat as she inched closer and peered inside. The base of the cabinet was missing. She could make out what appeared to be a door…a door that looked very familiar.

Chapter 4

“It’s a trapdoor,” Carlita said.

“One of the firefighters noticed a cutout on the floor. That’s when we opened the cabinet and found the door. Mind lending a little muscle to pull the cabinet out of the way?” Dernice flexed her muscle and pointed at Luigi.

“Sure.” Luigi stood at one end of the counter, Dernice at the other and Carlita in the middle.

On the count of three, they pulled. The cabinet made a cracking noise but refused to budge.

Dernice opened an end door and stuck her head inside. “There are a couple of screws keeping it in place.” She ran out of the room, returned with a set of screwdrivers and made quick work of removing them.

The trio tried again, this time easily sliding the cabinet away from the wall.

Luigi and Carlita stepped off to