"So, Barceló Lufanzi is Jeff's new employer." Frannie read through her freshly printed papers on Jeff as the others were huddled around her. "Mr. Lufanzi owns an Italian restaurant simply called "Lufanzi's." It's on the other side of town. He just hired Jeff last week so I guess he's still new in Chicago."
"Anything else, Francesca?" Fraser leaned in.
"Yeah, Fraser," She looked at him for a moment and returned to her papers. "I did check on Lufanzi too. He's got a rap sheet thing as long as your leg."
"Arm, Frannie." Ray shook his head at his sister's vocabulary. "As long as your arm."
"Whatever, bro. Legs make more sense though. My legs are longer than my arms, aren't they Fraser?" She slid her chair back abruptly and propped her legs on the desk.
"Yes, they are, Francesca." He cleared his throat. "Although that is the proper expression, that particular phrase insinuates that arms are very long but legs are, in fact, longer than arms. Therefore, that would be a more exaggerative expression. There are cases, however, of people whose arms are longer than their legs…"
"Thanks for that, Fraser." Ray ended Fraser's speech sarcastically and put his arm around Cassie. He could put up with those speeches usually, but not now. Not until this was over could he find something enlightening in that speech.
"My pleasure Ray." Fraser remained unaware of the sarcasm in that.
"Let's pay a visit to Lufanzi's then." Hazel stood up from her squatted position next to the desk. "Come on, Dief!" She patted the wolf on his head and he followed her immediately.
xXxXxXx
"You guys really think he'd come back to his old job?" Ray Vecchio parked his Riv in front of Lufanzi's Italian restaurant. It was dinner time now and they were there on unofficial police business.
"Well, we got nothin' else to go by." Kowalski said.
"Since we're already here, we might as well ask Mr. Lufanzi a few questions." Fraser opened the car door and climbed out. The five entered the restaurant only to find themselves immediately crammed into the corner of the waiting section.
"Wow, must be good food?" Haze shouted above the chatting crowd. "Should I pull out my gun now for faster service?"
"I think a badge will do the job." Vecchio pulled his badge out of his pocket and held it above his head until the other customers moved aside. "Excuse me, ma'am." He marched straight towards the hostess.
The Italian hostess looked up at him and his group of cops and one random Mountie as if it was the most normal thing in the world. Then she returned her attention to sorting through a pile of menus atop her podium. "Sir, you'll have to wait your turn even if you are a cop."
Fraser pushed his way in front of Ray. "We are not here to to dine but to ask Mr. Lufanzi some questions. He's in trouble with the police and we would appreciate your assistance in arranging for us to meet with him." He explained.
"He's in trouble again?" She slammed down her pile of menus and started shouting curses in Italian.
"You know him well?" Ray Vecchio asked.
"I'm his wife."
"Oh," Fraser cleared his throat. "Then perhaps you could arrange a meeting for us? Is he here now?"
"Yes, he's in the back." She sighed. "Is he really in trouble again?" She whispered, hoping the crowd of hungry customers hadn't overheard their conversation.
"Not yet. He's got an employee that we're um...investigating" He looked behind him at an abnormally quiet Cassie bundled in Ray's arms. She wasn't holding up as well as she thought she was. It had been a very long and stressful day. "We just want to ask some questions."
The woman nodded and called for another employee to watch the podium. "Follow me." She led the five to the kitchen where Mr. Lufanzi was training a new chief.
"No, no, no!" Mr. Lufanzi shouted. "That's not how we stir the pasta! It's a delicate motion not a massage! Let me show you." He reached for the bowl.
"Barceló!" Mrs. Lufanzi called her husband from the kitchen door. "Come here."
Mr. Lufanzi glared up at her and noticed the Mountie standing behind his wife. "Er, here's the pasta back." He set the bowl of pasta down and walked towards his wife. "And remember… motion not massage." He told the chef while he was walking away. "Dear, what is it?" He whispered to his wife while his eyes remained fixed on the unusual spectacle of Fraser.
"The police want to talk to you. What did you do this time?" She hissed at him.
"Nothing, nothing!" He cleared his throat. "Um, let's not do this here in front of everyone. Come back to my office with me." They followed him to the door on the other side of the kitchen. "Please sit down." He pointed to the chairs in his office as he flipped the light switch on.
"I think I would rather stand Mr. Lufanzi." Fraser said. Cassie took his offer and sat down.
"Suit yourself. So what brings the five of you to my restaurant? I assure you I have done nothing wrong." He sat down behind his desk.
"Does the name Jeff Muniz sound familiar at all?" Ray Vecchio pulled a picture of him out of his pocket. He decided to take over the interview now.
"Yes, actually." He took the picture and recognized the face in a moment. "Good man, one of my most dedicated employees. Until recently."
"What happened recently?"
"He's been distracted lately and even leaves early sometimes. He didn't even come in to work today. I tried to call him but his phone was disconnected. I thought maybe him and his wife were having money troubles again."
Cassie nearly choked. "Wife?"
Mr. Lufanzi stood up and pulled a picture out of his desk drawer. "Jeff came in to help clean up and gave me this picture of him with his wife...wait..." He did a double take at Cassie and then looked back at the picture. "I-I don't understand." He handed the picture to Vecchio.
He studied the picture of only a second and sighed. "Aw jeez."
"What?" Cassie asked and Ray Kowalski swiped the picture from Vecchio and showed it to her. "That's... that's me?" She swallowed hard and took the picture of her and Jeff. "My mom took that picture at the engagement party Jeff's parent's threw for us but I thought I only had a copy of that picture?"
"Oh, about that." Vecchio scratched his neck. "I forget to tell you that your apartment was broken into last night." There had been a lot happening and he'd genuinely forgot to tell her.
"What? How could you forget to tell me that!" She shouted. "Where's Misty?"
"Don't worry Cassie, Misty is unharmed. I arranged for her to stay at the Consulate with Diefenbaker." Fraser reassured her. Cassie nodded.
"So you are not married to him then?" Mr. Lufanzi asked.
"Well we were married once...several years ago for only a short time." She looked down and decided it wasn't necessary to explain.
"Oh my." Mr. Lufanzi sighed. "He's been lying to me then. I thought he was a little crazy. All he ever talked about was how amazing his wife is. I take it you don't have children in college either then?"
"Ray, I want to go now." Cassie stood up suddenly. This was getting too ridiculous. She'd had enough today.
"Sure baby." He put his arm around her and led her out the door. "We'll er, we'll be out in the car."
"I think I'll join you." Hazel followed the two out. This was becoming hard for her to deal with as well. She was the only person who'd listened to Cassie when she came hurdling into the police station pleading for help all those years ago. Some of Hazel's fellow officers thought Cassie was drunk at first but Hazel knew she needed help. She could see it in her eyes. They didn't look drunk, they looked scared and helpless. A few bruises could be anything, but she could see the red marks around her hands where she'd been tied up. Cassie became a cop because of Hazel. She wanted to help people the way she helped her.
Fraser nodded and watched them walk out the door. He'd never seen Cassie like this before. She was always so strong. He was glad she had Ray to look out for her though. He wouldn't let anything happen to her. "Do you have any clue as to where he might currently be residing?"
Mr. Lufanzi shook his head. "I'm afraid not." He frowned. "Did I upset her?"
"No," Fraser immediately answered without thinking. "Well...perhaps but she's very uneasy. She's had to go through a lot over the past several days."
"If ya hear from him call the station and ask for Detective Vecchio." Ray slid a card with a number scribbled on it across the desk.
"Of course I will. I'm terribly sorry about everything." He collected the card and dropped it in his drawer before escorting the men out. Fraser held the door open for Ray as the walked to the car.
"Hazel was right, Benny. This guy's not just some woman beater, he's a full blown psycho." Ray fumbled through his pocket for his car keys. There was nothing Ray hated more than someone who gets a kick out of hurting women. That was one thing both the Ray's could agree on.
"Indeed." Fraser agreed. "Jeff will most likely qualify for psychological aid during his time in prison once we catch him." The two stopped just before getting in the car. He couldn't understand why anyone would want to hurt a woman either.
"If we catch him. There's plenty of Chicago for him to hide in." Ray sighed.
"We will bring him to justice, Ray."
xXxXxXx
"It was er, real nice of Lufanzi to give us some lasagna." Ray Kowalski said while he set two plates of lasagna on the table. Mrs. Lufanzi had overheard their conversation in her husband's office and caught them on the way out to give Cassie a takeaway carton of lasagna.
Cassie stared at her plate and eventually nodded. "I hate people feeling sorry for me."
Ray sighed and sat down next to her. "I know." It seemed there was nothing he could do to cheer her up and it was killing him. "I'm sorry."
"For what?"
"I just, I don't know how to help ya without killing him?" He forced a smile.
"Killing him and getting yourself thrown in jail will not help me." She took a small bite of her dinner and shoved it aside. "I'm sorry I don't have an appetite." Ray stood back up and took her plate back to the kitchen. "You have helped me you know. You're letting me stay with you while the FBI ransacks my apartment after all!"
"Sounds like a good excuse to me." Ray joked while he dumped the food off the plate and back into the container. He realized he didn't have much of an appetite either so he walked back over to the table to collect his plate. "You can stay over here whenever er, whenever ya want ya know."
"I know." She looked back at him and smiled. "Thank you for being here for me, Ray. You have no idea how much I need you right now." She remembered how badly she needed someone while she was going through this the first time and became overcome suddenly. Ray rushed to her side while she just let everything out finally.
"Shhhh...I'm right here baby." He squeezed her tightly while she grasped onto him and cried loudly into his shoulder. He knew this had to come out eventually.
xXxXxXx