Chapter 4

"Are you sure it was him, Kelly?" Bosley asked from behind his desk. It was the fifth time he had asked her.

"Yes, Boz." Kelly repeated patiently.

"He called me last night wanting to know if you three had started yet. He said he was in San Francisco." Bosley said, chewing the tip of his pen. "Why is he lying to us?"

"I don't know, but I don't like it." Kelly answered.

"I agree with Kelly. I think he's using us." Sabrina called out from the bar, where she was busily pouring coffee for everybody. "He wants us to find someone for him. The question is, what does he plan to do once we've found him?" she mused. She finished pouring and started handing out mugs. Kelly and Jill took theirs gratefully. The three girls hadn't slept well last night. There were so many questions and absolutely no answers.

"We need to talk to Moretti again." Jill said, taking a sip of her coffee. "Figure out what he's doing during these little midnight parties of his." She sighed wearily and rested her head on the bar.

"From the looks of it, they were planning something." Kelly said. "Too bad they couldn't have planned in English."

Jill lifted her head off of the bar. She had an idea.

"Do you think we can go back and bug the place? Maybe they'll meet again and we can record their conversation and take it to Charlie. He's bound to know someone who can translate for us." she said excitedly.

Sabrina and Kelly looked at each other. That could definitely work.

"Now there's an idea." Bosley said thoughtfully. "We'd just have to know when they were meeting again."

"Call Moretti and set up a meeting. See what day he tries to avoid. That might be the day he's already set aside." Kelly suggested. The girls had all moved from their seats at the bar and were now crowded excitedly around Bosley's desk.

Bosley nodded and picked up the phone. He dialed the number Moretti had left him and waited patiently for him to pick up. Suddenly aware that all three girls were uncomfortably close to him, he gave them an amused look and stood up to get some room. Sabrina had been resting her hand on his chair and as he vacated it, it slid forward, spilling her to the ground. She popped up immediately and shot Jill a warning look before Jill could open her mouth.

Bosley's attention was pulled away from the girls antics when Moretti answered the phone after the fourth ring.

"Tony Moretti." he answered shortly.

Bosley gave the girls a thumbs up, then immediately regretted it as they crowded around him again.

"Mr. Moretti, hello!" he started. He again pulled away from the girls and waving them off, he leaned over and clicked on the speakerphone. "John Bosley here. Listen, I was wondering if it would be at all possible to meet sometime this week here at the office."

The girls backed away from Bosley and wandered over to stand next to the speaker, watching him intently.

"Is something wrong?" Moretti's voice came back.

"No, no not at all. We're just having a hard time getting started and I think another meeting would help." Bosley explained.

Kelly started gesturing wildly to him. Bosley gave her a baffled look. She gave up her cherades game, grabbed a pen and started scribbling something on the back of a bill he was going to mail later today.

"If you need me to answer questions, Mr. Bosley, we can do it over the phone." Moretti responded, irritation evident in his voice. "Just not right now, I'm in the middle of something."

Kelly finished scribbling and held up the paper to Bosley's face. He pushed her arm back a few inches and squinted, trying to decipher her small, messy handwriting.

ASK HIM IF WE CAN SEARCH HIS HOUSE.

Bosley nodded his head. That would certainly get Moretti's attention and it would give them an opportunity to plant a bug.

"Well, actually we were wondering if it would be alright if we looked through your house. Maybe there's a clue to someone in your past that would help open up some doors for us."

Bosley was correct. That did grab Moretti's attention. He paused for a moment and then began speaking again, his words rushed and agitated.

"There's nothing in my house that would be of any use to you, Mr. Bosley. I don't keep mementos or souvenirs from my past." Moretti said evasively.

"Well, we need more information." Bosley pressed. "If you can't come down, how about a phone meeting with myself, the girls, and Charlie? Would you be able to do that sometime this week?"

Sabrina yanked the pen out of Kelly's hand and jotted down something on the paper. She held it up to Bosley. Her neat text was easier to read than Kelly's.

AT NIGHT

"It would have to be late in the evening, if that's alright."

Moretti sighed loudly.

"Alright, any night but Thursday will work." he agreed reluctantly.

The three girls grinned widely and shared triumphant looks.

Perfect.

"How about Wednesday night, around nine?" Bosley suggested pleasantly.

"Fine. Talk to you then, Mr. Bosley." Moretti said curtly. He hung up.

"Good job, Boz!" Jill cried excitedly, clapping him on the back.

Bosley sighed in relief and picked up the bill Kelly and Sabrina had both written on.

"I was supposed to mail this today." he told them, his face taking on a look of despair.

Sabrina grinned at him. "Sorry, Boz. You should really keep some stationary around here."

Bosley gave her a pained look.

"I do." he said. He reached over a few inches from the stack of papers Kelly had grabbed from and pointed out a notepad. "Right here." he said, raising an eyebrow at Kelly.

Kelly laughed at her hasty mistake. "I didn't see it, Boz. I'm sorry."

"Forgiven." Bosley said, bowing his head.

"Well, I think Mr. Moretti has made it pretty clear that he doesn't want us searching his house." Jill said brightly. She grinned at her companions.

"So when are we going?"

Sabrina looked thoughtful.

"Tonight?" she suggested, raising her eyebrows expectantly.

"Tonight." Kelly and Jill agreed.

The angels pulled up a few houses down from Moretti's home. It was after midnight. Jill got out of the car and stood by the door, a pair of binoculars in hand. She looked through them, trying to see if the Moretti house was unoccupied.

It appeared to be.

"I don't see anything, it's dark inside." she whispered to Sabrina and Kelly, who were still in the car.

"Good." Sabrina whispered back. She stuffed a camera, a flashlight, her CB radio, and some batteries into a small bag. She slung it over her shoulder and got out of the car. "We ready to do this, then?" she asked Kelly and Jill.

"Yeah, Bri." Jill responded. She tossed the binoculars in the front seat and closed the car door.

The three girls crept quietly to the front door of Moretti's home. Kelly knelt down and began picking the lock, while Sabrina and Jill kept watch. No one was home, but that didn't mean no one was coming.

Kelly had the door open a few minutes later and the girls cautiously walked inside. It was pitch black inside the house. Sabrina groped blindly for her flashlight and flicked it on. The bright beam of light illuminated a normal looking den area. Kelly and Jill pulled out their flashlights and aimed them around the house, taking in as much as they could, trying to decide where to start.

"I'll take that hallway and all the joys it has to offer." Kelly whispered, gesturing towards an entryway on the right with her flashlight.

Sabrina nodded, a faint smile on her face from Kelly's dry sarcasm. "I got that one then." she said, pointing to the hallway to the left.

"I might as well stay and look around in here. That way I can spread the word if anyone comes by." Jill said. The girls took out their radios and made sure they were on the same frequency.

"Ok, girls, keep in touch." Sabrina said with a grin, as she headed off towards he designated area.

Sabrina and Kelly disappeared into the darkness of the house. Jill watched as the shadows in the house bounced and distorted with the light from their flashlights as they walked deeper into the hallway. The den darkened once more as her friends went deeper into their respective hallways. She looked around the spacious den, wondering where to begin. Her keen eyes soon spotted a shelf full of framed pictures and she headed towards it, hoping it would yield some sort of clue to her.

There were several pictures of Moretti with what she assumed to be either family or friends. She pulled her little camera out of her pocket and snapped some pictures of them in the hope that they would somehow be useful to her later. She paused at a picture of Moretti, Vincent, and another young man. It looked to have been taken roughly five years ago. The young men were at some sort of sporting event, grinning happily, their arms around each others shoulders. Jill studied their faces carefully. Was the third man another Moretti brother? It was quite possible, his resemblance to Anthony was uncanny. Deciding she had gotten all she could out of the pictures, Jill turned and headed towards the kitchen. If Moretti was anything like her, there would be notes and appointment reminders stuck to the refrigerator door.

She suddenly froze in midstep. Something had occurred to her.

She turned and headed back to the shelf of pictures and scanned them again. A puzzled look crossed her face.

There were no pictures of the wife and child Moretti said he had.

Was he lying about that as well? Jill shook her head and walked into the kitchen. Just as she had hoped, the refrigerator was adorned with a calendar and several notes taped to its surface. Jill read them all. Most were simple doctor's appointments and birthday reminders.

One entry suddenly caught her eye.

LUNCH WITH P- 1PM

It had been scheduled for today. Who was P? Could he be the reason Moretti sounded so anxious on the phone this afternoon? Jill pulled her radio out of her pocket.

"Hey, anybody have an address book within reach?" she whispered into the receiver.

Kelly's voice crackled through to her a moment later.

"Jill. You scared me."

Jill snickered to herself and then repeated her question.

"Are you someplace where he keeps an address book?"

Sabrina's voice answered her this time.

"Negative. I found where he keeps his dirty magazines though. Naughty boy." she tutted, clicking her tongue disapprovingly.

Jill closed her eyes and laughed to herself. The detectives on T.V. never had to deal with this.

"I'm in an office. I got an address book, Jill." Kelly's voice came back to her.

"Oh, good! Go to the P's." Jill instructed. She waited a few moments.

"Ok. What's the name?" Kelly asked.

Jill frowned. "I don't know, it just says P. How many entries does he have under P?"

Kelly was silent for a few seconds.

"Probably a whole lot more than there are dirty magazines." she answered.

"Oh, I doubt that." Sabrina's voice piped up. "There's quite a collection over here. Mother would be proud."

Jill bit her lip, stifling another giggle. Was she with two other detectives, or two members of the Carol Burnett Show? Sometimes the lines were blurred.

"About how many, Kell? It said he had lunch with P today. Remember how he was so anxious when we talked to him? He was meeting with this guy in ten minutes. Maybe that's why. What do you think?" she asked her friends.

"Worth looking into." Sabrina answered.

"I'm writing down all of the names and number with the first and last name starting with P. There's about fifteen of them. Maybe Charlie can eliminate some of them as suspects." Kelly called out.

"Thanks, Kell." Jill said into her radio. She stuck it back in her pocket and continued looking around the den.

After distastefully shoving the box of pornography back underneath the bed, Sabrina stood and went around the bed to the nightstand. She opened the drawer and rooted around, looking for something useful. Instead she found some prescription pills, eyeglasses, and a box of condoms. She shut the drawer and went into his closet, pushing through his clothes. Sabrina had a strange feeling all the while she was going through Moretti's things and as she looked through his closet, it finally dawned on her why. She had seen no evidence of a woman living in this house. Wasn't he married? There were no women's clothes in the closet. Why would a married man need a box of condoms? She picked up her radio again.

"Hey, is this place looking like a bachelor pad to you?" she called to her friends.

Jill's voice came through her radio. "I was thinking the exact same thing. There's no pictures of any wife and kid here in the living room."

"I was just coming to the same conclusion." Kelly called out. "These two rooms are an office and a guest room. I haven't seen any kid stuff at all."

"Ya know? I'm starting to really dislike this guy." Sabrina commented to her two friends. She hated liars.

"If you really don't like him, put a picture of his mother inside one of his magazines." Kelly said casually.

Sabrina laughed. Finished with the closet, she stepped back out and shut the door. There was a large trunk at the foot of the bed. She headed towards it and reached her hands out to lift the lid.

It was locked.

Sabrina studied it carefully. A simple pin and tumbler locking mechanism. She could probably pick it, but it would take her several minutes. Not wanting to waste any time, she picked up her radio.

"Kell? Can you come thieve your way into this locked trunk here in the bedroom?" she called into the radio.

Kelly's voice answered back after a few seconds.

"Can I come thieve my way?" she echoed indignantly. "Thieve my way? Thie- No, I'm afraid, you'll have to ask nicer than that."

Sabrina chuckled and rolled her eyes.

"My dear, sweet friend. Will you please lend me your mechanical savvy to gain entrance to the obstacle before me." she said overdramatically, adding a bow though Kelly couldn't see it.

"That's better. On my way." Kelly said.

Sabrina grinned again.

"You thief." she added quickly.

She heard Jill burst into laughter from the living room.

Kelly walked in a few seconds later, a laughing smile on her face.

"Hey." Sabrina greeted. She gestured to the trunk. Kelly dropped to her knees beside where Sabrina was crouching and playfully shoved her. Sabrina toppled over, unable to keep her balance. The two girls giggled and Kelly went to work on the lock. She popped the lid open a few seconds later.

Both girls gasped in surprise.

"Wow." Sabrina said in awe. She reached in and picked up a packed plastic bag. "Cocaine?" she asked Kelly.

Kelly nodded. "Either that or he's got a mean sweet tooth." she joked.

Sabrina pulled out her radio.

"Jill, get in here. Jackpot."

Jill appeared in the doorway moments later. Kelly held out two bags and Jill's eyes widened in shock.

"Crackpot, you mean!" she quipped happily, not missing a beat.

Her horrible pun made Kelly and Sabrina groan.

"Oh, Jill, of all the things you could have said, that was probably the worst." Kelly said, shaking her head sadly.

Jill laughed and dropped to her knees in between her two friends.

"Whoa, there must be about five million dollars worth of cocaine in here." she observed, looking into the trunk.

Kelly tossed the bags back in the trunk and slammed the lid down with a frustrated sigh.

"Ok, I've had it. We need to talk to Moretti. I'm tired of this."

Sabrina nodded.

"Yeah, me too. Only thing is, what if he flips out? I think we should listen in on that little dinner party of his on Thursday before we confront him."

"Oh, Sabrina, the voice of reason as always." Kelly mused, a grin on her face.

Sabrina smiled back at her. "Somebody's gotta keep you and Crackpot in line."

Jill giggled and rose to her feet. "Let's get out of here, this place gives me the creeps."

"No argument here." Sabrina agreed.

The three girls carefully arranged the house as it had been when they first arrived and exited through the back door.

They were back in the office early the next morning filling Bosley in on their discovery.

"T'm telling ya Boz, Enough coke to put Columbia out of business!" Jill exclaimed fervently to Bosley.

Bosley leaned back in his chair, absorbing everything that the angels had told him about their trip to Moretti's home. The whole situation confused him. Charlie was so thorough when researching clients. How had Moretti even gotten through the door?

"I do believe Charlie needs to know about all of this." Bosley said to the girls. He picked up the phone and dialed the familiar number.

"Charlie, it appears we have a situation with Mr. Moretti. I'll let the girls tell you." he said gravely into the phone as soon as Charlie answered. With Charlie on the line, he clicked on the squawk box.

"Hello, Angels." Charlie's voice greeted them.

"Hi, Charlie." they chorused.

"I understand there are some problems with our client. What's going on?"

"He's lying to us Charlie." Kelly answered immediately.

"He's not married, doesn't have any kids, isn't out of town, and he's into some kind of shady dealing at night in his house." Sabrina continued, pacing back and forth in front of Bosley's desk.

"Oh, and he has a giant trunk full of cocaine in his bedroom." Jill added. She turned and gave Sabrina a puzzled look. "How was that not the first thing out of your mouth?" she added in a whisper.

Charlie was silent for a few moments.

"I don't understand how this could have happened. I ran an extensive background check on him and nothing came up at all." he said, confusion evident in his voice. "Are you sure of this, Angels?"

"Positive." Sabrina answered. She stopped pacing and stood in front of the speaker.

"Charlie, we need to talk to him about this in person. After we listen in on his meeting Thursday night. Can you get him to come down to the office?" she asked.

"I'll do my best, Angel." Charlie answered.

"Oh yeah, and we have some names for you to check out. Moretti had a meeting with someone named P. Kelly made a list of all the P's in his address book. Think you can check them out for us?" Jill asked.

Charlie agreed and Kelly pulled the list out of her purse and read the names and numbers off to him.

"I'll run these through for you, angels, and let you know as soon as possible if I find anything. In the meantime, don't let him know that you suspect anything. He seems the type to get violent. Be careful, angels." he said. There was an audible click as he hung up the phone.

The girls and Bosley stared at each other, reflecting on the situation quietly.

Jill suddenly spoke up.

"Well, I don't know about you, but I can't wait until Thursday night."