Chapter 1

The three angels were spending a relaxing Saturday afternoon in the comfort of Jill's beach house. They had spent most of the day outside in the water, enjoying the beautiful sunny mid-April weather. After wearing themselves out, the girls had decided to make a nice dinner from scratch from an exotic cookbook that Sabrina brought. Though all three girls were excellent cooks, the recipe was difficult and God only knew what the results would be.

Jill Munroe tied back her wavy ash blonde hair, as she read from the cookbook. Her hair was getting in the way and making things more difficult than they needed to be. This was the second attempt at the recipe and although she was a very slender girl, she had a voracious appetite. This meal couldn't be on the table soon enough.

"Add one half cup of flour and whisk briskly." she read aloud to Kelly Garrett. Kelly reached into the cupboard and pulled out a bag of flour.

"Half a cup?" she asked Jill. Jill nodded her confirmation.

Kelly measured out half a cup of flour into the saucepan on the stove. Kelly had been having the same problem with her hair as Jill had. She absently reached up to tuck a loose bit of hair behind her ears, unknowingly streaking white flour into her dark wavy hair. When her hair came bouncing back into her face again, she let out a frustrated sigh and grabbed one of Jill's ball caps from the living room and pulled it over her head, leaving a white handprint on the side. Jill noticed but decided it would be funnier if she kept that information to herself.

"Ok, now whisk." she ordered her friend.

Kelly followed her instructions. Putting down the book, Jill leaned over to see what she was doing.

"I don't think your whisking briskly enough, Kell." she observed with a frown.

Kelly stopped whisking and gazed at her friend.

"This is as briskly as I can whisk, Jill." she said defensively.

"I dunno, I think you can do better."

"You're a slave driver."

"Start whisking."

The two girls chuckled while Kelly obediently followed directions. Her task complete, she looked to Jill.

"What now, Julia Child?"

"Ok, now it says…add meat. Hold on, there's a side note." Jill said, scanning the book.

"A side note?" Kelly asked, raising an eyebrow skeptically. "It's a cookbook, not English literature."

"Just be patient." Jill chided. She found the sentence explaining the side note on the bottom of the page. "Ok, here it is, it's a cooking suggestion." She paused dramatically.

"Cook meat."

Kelly stared at her.

"Whoa, whoa! Cook meat? " she repeated, feigning disbelief at the obvious cooking suggestion. "I don't know about this anymore, Jill. You never said it would be this complicated." She set down her spoon and crossed her arms over her chest, shaking her head sadly. "This is all just a tangled web of confusion and betrayal. I don't know what to think anymore."

Jill glared at her for a moment, but failed to keep her face stern. She giggled, in spite of herself. Kelly was in rare form today.

"You are impossible to work with. Sabrina needs to hurry up in the shower." she said, pushing Kelly lightly.

Kelly laughed. "She might be in there forever after all that salad dressing you spilled in her hair."

Jill winced.

"Yeah, I feel bad about that. But in my defense, she shouldn't have been on the floor."

"Jill, she was picking up the spoon that you dropped."

Jill chose to ignore that statement.

"Now, it says to add onions and garlic, stirring often."

Kelly laughed and shook her head. "Oh no, it's my turn to supervise, you do it. You've criticized my whisking one too many times. My heart can't take much more."

Jill grinned and switched places with Kelly. Sabrina Duncan rushed in at that moment, her tall, slim body wrapped in a white towel. Her straight dark hair was stringy and wet and still had traces of soap around her ears. Something had obviously interrupted her shower.

"Are you two deaf, the phone is ringing!" she yelled.

Jill and Kelly exchanged glances. Why hadn't they heard it? They followed Sabrina to Jill's room. The phone was indeed ringing. Jill waved her hand towards her phone and Sabrina answered it.

"Hello?" she said. She tilted her head to trap the phone between her cheek and shoulder as she adjusted her towel. The phone slipped off of her wet skin. After fumbling with it for a moment, she caught it and jerked it back to her ear to hear who was on the other end. Jill and Kelly snickered at her, offering no assistance.

"Good afternoon, Angel. I see you are visiting Jill. Is Kelly there as well?" the cultured voice replied. The girl's companionship had saved Charlie Townsend from making two additional calls once more.

"Yeah, Charlie, we're all here." Sabrina answered. At the mention of Charlie's name, Kelly and Jill hurried forward and leaned their heads against Sabrina's, wanting to hear what was going on.

"Excellent. Angels, we have a case on our hands, and a tough one from the looks of it. Drop whatever you're doing and come to the office. Bosley and I will brief you there."

"Will do, Charlie." Sabrina said, hanging up the phone. The phone had soap suds on it from the soap in her hair. Sabrina quickly wiped it off and then looked towards her friends.

"He said to drop everything and get to the office." she explained.

Jill frowned. "Well, I guess we have to drop our gourmet dinner then."

"Hopefully, not on my head this time." Sabrina joked.

"Oh well, I had a feeling it was going to turn out badly, anyway." Kelly added with a rueful smile.
She went over to Jill's bed and picked up her purse. "Well, I've dropped everything, I'm ready."

"Hold on a minute! I need to get dressed here, I'm in a towel!" Sabrina cried, grabbing her clothes.

Kelly and Jill laughed.

"Yes. Please don't drop that." Kelly said with a grin.

The girls pulled up at Townsend Investigations twenty minutes later, anxiously awaiting their upcoming assignment. They had gone nearly two long weeks without a call from Charlie and they were getting bored and restless. Laughing and joking with each other, they bustled up the steps and into the office.

They immediately sobered upon stepping inside.

There was a heavy somber mood in the normally cheerful office and all three girls picked up on it instantly upon entering. A well dressed young man in his late twenties sat on one of the overstuffed sofas. He had a haunted look on his face and his eyes were red and bloodshot. A closer look revealed that his clothes, though expensive, were wrinkled and unwashed and he had a few day's growth of stubble on his face. He didn't acknowledge the angels as they walked in.

"Ah, right on time." John Bosley announced as the girls walked into the office. He looked grateful to have their company.

Ashamed of their inappropriately boisterous behavior, the three girls nodded at Bosley and quietly took a seat on the couch opposite from their client.

"Mr. Moretti, these are my associates that I was just telling you about. This is Sabrina Duncan, Jill Munroe, and Kelly Garrett."

The girls murmured a quick greeting as their names were called in turn. The man nodded his head absently without looking at them.

Sabrina cleared her throat and took the lead.

"What can we do for you, Mr. Moretti." she asked in her most professional business-like tone.

The man turned his head and stared listlessly at her.

"I want some bad people put away, Ms. Munroe."

Sabrina nodded her head slowly.

"That's something we can do. And it's Duncan." she corrected.

Moretti looked puzzled.

"Excuse me?"

"She's Munroe, I'm Duncan." Sabrina explained again, smiling awkwardly and jerking her thumb towards Jill. Damn, she should have just let it go.

Moretti appeared annoyed at her correction, but grunted in compliance.

Much to Sabrina's relief, the phone rang.

Bosley answered it in the middle of the first ring.

"Towsend Investigations." he called pleasantly into the phone. "Yes sir, everyone is here."

He leaned over and clicked on the squawk box.

"Hello, angels. Mr. Moretti." Charlie's cultured voice sounded out from the speaker.

"Hello, Charlie." the girls chorused in unison. Their voices were uncharacteristically joyless, giving even Charlie the opportunity to pick up on the tension in the office.

"Thank you all for coming so quickly. Ladies, this gentleman is Anthony Moretti. Mr. Moretti survived an attack that left his brother and several friends of his dead. He believes they was targeted by members of an Italian drug cartel based here in Los Angeles. He's hired us to find out who organized the hit."

"How are you connected with the mob, Mr. Moretti." Jill asked.

"I'm not anymore. I used to work for them when I was a kid. It's been years, though. I don't think they were after me."

Jill frowned. He was talking down to her. His face and body language told her that he was unimpressed by them so far. She looked to her right at Kelly, who raised an eyebrow slightly. She had been thinking the same thing.

"Do you have an idea who they might be after?" Sabrina asked.

Moretti sighed loudly and rubbed his face in irritation.

"I can't do this. Really, Mr. Townsend? These are your associates? Three girls? What are these kids going to do for me?"

The girls turned and looked at each other in indignation. This wasn't the first time they'd been underestimated and it certainly wouldn't be the last.

"Mr. Moretti, I assure you we are all qualified to handle this." Kelly replied evenly.

Moretti scoffed.

"Are you? How old are you, sweetheart? Nineteen? Twenty?"

Sabrina gently nudged Kelly with her knee to silence her. Kelly obligingly kept her mouth shut.

Jill didn't.

"Twenty three actually, Mr. Moretti. Well, at least I am." she spoke up brightly. She cupped her hand around her mouth as if revealing a big secret. "They won't be twenty three until a few more months." she whispered loudly, gesturing towards her friends. "Not that it matters. We don't play with dolls around here, our age has nothing to do with our qualifications or ability to do our jobs. If you need proof, you need only ask our former clients."

"We have yet to disappoint." Kelly added with a smirk.

"Don't let appearances fool you, Mr. Moretti. It's the so called secret to our success. Rest assured, Mr. Townsend chooses only the best to work for him." Bosley reassured him proudly, with a smile at the angels. He and Charlie had purposely waited and let the girls have the first shot at the man after his degrading comment.

"Yes, Mr. Moretti. A little faith goes a long way. Please trust that we will take care of this." Charlie said firmly.

Moretti didn't look convinced but slumped back in his chair, defeated for the moment.

"Fine. What do you need to know?"

"Anything you can tell us." Sabrina replied.

He locked eyes with her and then looked away. "I used to help out now and then for a few quick bucks back when I was a kid. I was a drug mule. I sold drugs for them at my school, at the mall, and in my neighborhood. Places where adults would look out of place. I stopped about ten years ago and haven't heard from them since. Like I said, I doubt it was me they were after, but I'm not aware of any ties to the mob with the people I was with." he said.

"And who were the people you were with?" Kelly asked him.

Bosley and the girls were surprised to see him tear up. He shuddered and crammed his knuckles towards his mouth.

"My brother, my best friend, my neighbor and his son." he choked out finally.

The girls glanced at each other awkwardly, feeling like intruders into this strange man's pain. When she felt like she had given him enough time, Kelly went on.

"Mr. Moretti, but can you give us their names? I know how difficult this is for you." she asked gently.

Moretti glared daggers at her.

"Oh, do you? You don't know anything of what I'm going through." he shot at her.

Sabrina nudged her again but Kelly ignored her this time.

"Once again, Mr. Moretti, you presume to know everything about me just by looking at me. We are going to help you, sir, but we need information. The names, please." she said shortly. Her pity could only be stretched so far.

Sabrina, Jill, and Bosley held their breath while Moretti and Kelly stared at each other.

Finally, Moretti spoke.

"Forgive me. I've not had an easy past few weeks." he apologized, his demeanor softening. "My brother's name is- was-" he corrected himself. "Vincent Moretti. My best friend was Teodoro Contadino. My neighor, Franklin Conrad and his son John Conrad."

Bosley jotted the names down in his notes. If any of them had a criminal past, Charlie would find out about it.

"And none of these men had any connections to the mob that you're aware of, Mr. Moretti?" Charlie asked.

"Not that I'm aware of."

Sabrina nodded.

"Did you get a look at the men who attacked you?"

Moretti shook his head.

"No, they had on masks. They made us lie face down on the floor, I didn't see anything."

"Was there anything unique about them? An accent, a dialect, anything distinct about them at all?" she pressed.

He shook his head again.

"No, Ms. Duncan. They were all so average. Average height, average build. It could be anyone."

Sabrina sighed to herself in exasperation. This wasn't going to be easy.

"There's nothing at all you can tell us?" Jill asked hopefully.

Moretti paused and thought for a moment.

"Someone else came in the room right before they started shooting. I didn't see him at all, but Theo did. He acted like he knew him. But as far as I know, Theo wasn't into anything shady. He was a good guy."

The girls wisely didn't comment.

"Well, that's a start." Bosley said, making a note in his pad.

"Did you bring the information I asked of your brother and your friends, Mr. Moretti?" Charlie asked.

Moretti nodded and reached into his jacket to produce a manila envelope. He handed it to Jill.

"He has it, Charlie." Jill called out for her employer's benefit. Sometimes they tended to forget that Charlie couldn't see anything inside the room.

"Excellent. We will return your photos as soon as we finish the case." Charlie reassured his client.

Moretti's focus wasn't on his photos.

"I want these guys found. And I want them to pay for what they did." Moretti said vehemently, his voice eerily soft.

Bosley and the angels shared a look.

"We aren't in the revenge business, Mr. Moretti. Charlie must have explained that to you." Bosley said uneasily. "We'll find who's responsible and put them in jail."

"Of course, Mr. Bosley. I want to see that happen more than anyone. That's why I'm here." Moretti said after a beat.

"The girls will get started right away, then." Charlie said quickly.

Moretti nodded and rose to his feet.

"I won't be in town for awhile. Whoever did this is bound to know that there were four bodies found and not five. I can't endanger my wife and child. You can reach me at this number. I want to be updated on your every move, day or night." he said, handing Bosley a card.

"We'll see that you're informed, sir." Bosley said, rising from his seat as well.

"Goodbye Mr. Moretti, and we will keep in touch." Charlie's voice called after him.

Bosley stepped over to him and the two men shook hands. Moretti turned to leave. He nodded towards the three girls and left the room. As soon as the girls heard his footsteps fade away, they all let out collective sigh of relief. The atmosphere of the room instantly brightened and all three relaxed, unaware that they had been so tense.

"Charming fellow." Sabrina quipped dryly.

Kelly and Jill nodded their agreement.

"I suppose he does have a right to be hostile." Bosley said thoughtfully, flipping the card Moretti had given him between his fingers.

"Yes, he's been through quite an ordeal." Charlie agreed.

"I don't trust him." Kelly blurted out suddenly.

Her companions stared at her.

"Oh?" Charlie said. "Why not, angel.?"

"I think he's going to do something stupid and he's using us as bloodhounds to track down whoever he's looking for." she explained.

Sabrina raised her eyebrows thoughtfully

"You got a point there, he didn't go to the cops first, did he Boz?"

Bosley shook his head. "The families of the other victims notified the police already. So far they have no leads and until they do, he wants to lie low."

"That was his reasoning. He also said his family is unaware of his past. That's the way he wants to keep it. However, he wasn't quite so-" Charlie fished for a word. "Agitated, when I spoke to him this morning. He was so distraught I had to cancel our preliminary meeting and just have him meet you here with his information. He's very unstable. Be careful with this one, angels."

"We're trying to bring down the mob and you ask us to be careful of our client?" Jill wailed. "Charlie, we just can't win, can we?"

Charlie chuckled.

"I doubt he poses a threat to you personally, angels. Just make sure he doesn't get in your way. Luckily, he's going to be in San Diego, staying with family. He's asked me to have you call him with any information you find out, the moment that you have anything new. Be careful of that too, angels. Kelly, if your hunch is right, we don't want to lead him to our prize."

Sabrina grinned.

"So, we'll be contacting him over the phone then at all hours of the day and will only hear his voice? Gee, Charlie, however will we manage that."

"It is pretty silly, Charlie, when you stop the think about it. Such high expectations." Kelly joined in, grinning.

"It'd be much easier if he was here in person." Jill added in a bubbly, inviting voice.

Charlie laughed. "Now, now angels. I suppose great minds think alike."

"So, how will we be handling this, Charlie." Kelly asked.

"Well, angels, the first step would be to trace all four victims and try to find the link to any criminal activity or debt or anything that could get them mixed up with mobsters. Moretti should have brought photos of them all with addresses and phone numbers and a list of friends and relatives to get in contact with. That should give us a start. Once we find the link, we can infiltrate and take them out from the inside. I have a feeling it will be impossible to tie anyone to the murders unless we can get a confession out of them. We'll need someone to go undercover. It will probably be you, Kelly."

Kelly gave her friends a pained look. "I'll never stop paying for my past crimes, will I, Charlie?"

"You more than already have, angel. You're just the most logical choice. For now, though, split up the names amongst yourselves and see if we can come up with a connection somewhere. Let me know how it goes. In the meantime, I'll look through the names he provided and see if I can find anything. Now, if you all will excuse me, I have a pressing engagement to attend to."

Jill grinned.

"And who will you be pressing against, Charlie?"

"Oh Jill, the way your mind works." Charlie chided gently. A girlish giggle could be heard in the background on his line.

"Have fun, Charlie." Sabrina called out.

"Will do, Sabrina. Good luck and be very careful. Goodbye angels, Bosley."

They chorused their farewell and Charlie hung up the phone. Bosley clicked the speaker off and leaned back in his chair.

"Well, we certainly have our work cut out for us."

The girls nodded their agreement.

"By the way, thanks for being five minutes late. I truly enjoyed my time alone with Mr. Moretti. " he said sarcastically."

"Hey, at least he didn't call you a kid." Kelly pointed out.

Bosley smiled at her. He knew how much the girls hated that.

"I suppose I shouldn't complain then. That was a brilliant defense by the way, Jill."

"I have my moments." Jill answered back with a grin. She patted her own back.

Sabrina looked at her watch.

"It's almost six. We have time for a few stops. I think we should all go together, we don't know what were getting into here. Two of us will go in and the third will stay in the car as backup in case something happens."

"I like your sense of optimism, Bri." Kelly joked.

Sabrina gave her a rueful smile. "And I like being as alive as possible. Plus, we all came in Jill's car and it'll take too long to drive back to her place to pick up our cars."

Jill agreed and sorted through the photographs and papers she pulled out of the manilla envelope.

"I say we give Theo's widow a visit first." she said, pulling out a picture of a handsome dark haired man.

"Sounds like a plan. We'll call and check in after every stop, Boz." Kelly agreed, rising from her seat on the sofa. Sabrina and Jill rose with her.

"Be very careful, girls." Bosley warned as they headed towards the door.

"Oh, Boz, don't worry, we're always careful." Sabrina said over her shoulder as she walked.

She walked headlong into the doorframe, bouncing off with a startled yelp.

Kelly and Jill burst into laughter. Sabrina rubbed her nose and sheepishly grinned back at Bosley, her face flushed scarlet with embarrassment.

"See, Boz? How can you possibly be worried. It's all under control?" Jill teased as she flung her arm around Sabrina's shoulder.

Bosley watched them go, shaking his head in amusement. Never a dull moment with those three, he thought to himself.