Chapter 18
Tank was running Rangeman like a well oiled machine. Ramon was busy with Hal working on the programs for the new computer systems that had to be replaced when half the equipment was confiscated. They couldn't wait around to get it back. Rangeman had contracts that needed to be handled. They didn't have time to waste. Crime happened; it didn't stop because the computers were not working. If it was known that fifty percent of the monitoring system at Rangeman Security was down, it would make for easy targets. Several businesses had called to make sure they were still on top of things. Ramon needed a raise. I didn't see him leave the third floor now for two days.
Tank watched the floor, hands clasped behind his back, blue tooth receiver in his ear. All systems looked to be operational. I stood next to him in my brown business suit. Tank and I had met with Mitchell Gaskil this morning. We had done the final walk through of his building. Ranger was supposed to be doing this with Tank, I filled in for him. All the new implements were in place, and Rangeman had control of his security. If Mr. Gaskil was happy with our system, we would be signing contracts for three more of his buildings. One was in Miami, one was in Chicago, and the other was in Los Angeles. Rangeman security was now on site. The building came up on our system. I think we both sighed with relief. The cameras were excellent, and the boards ran smooth as we watched the building.
I checked my phone again, still nothing from Connie about the tapes.
"What are you thinking about?" Tank asked as I put the phone back in my pocket.
"Dessert."
He looked at me strangely.
"I'm in charge of bringing dessert tonight to my parent's house. I don't know what to bring."
"Bring apple turnovers."
Ramon came up behind him. "Apple turnovers? Are you discussing the Sunday dessert again? Bring cherry pie. I love cherry pie."
Hal overheard us talking. "Bring cheesecake. Chocolate cheesecake. Better yet, bring one of those cheesecake things that have all different types of cheesecake. Cheesecake is the best. You can't go wrong with cheesecake."
We all stood in a semi circle.
"Lemon Meringue pie is good also. You could bring one of those. How many people are we talking here?" Ramon asked.
"About ten? I think I would need more than one pie."
"You would need at least two pies." Tank said. "I'm stickin' with apple turnovers. It's an American tradition. Everyone likes apple turnovers. You can make as many as you want. They are all separate entities. Easier to manage."
"Yeah, but cherry pie, that's tops."
They turned to me. I took a deep breath not wanting to hurt anyone's feelings. "They are all good suggestions. I don't know what I'm bringing."
"Yeah, but which one are you leaning towards?" Tank said. "The apple turnovers, right?"
"No, I bet the cherry pie" Ramon said.
"Come on, you know the cheesecake is best. That way everyone has a choice. The other two, they are ok, but what if someone's not in the mood for cherry pie or apples? Cheesecake wins, every time." Hal said with confidence.
They didn't understand that I wasn't good with spur of the moment decisions when it came to dessert. "I can't decide!" I stormed off and got into the elevator for the seventh floor. I heard Tank still arguing with Hal and Ramon about apple turnovers as the doors closed.
My phone rang as I got out on the seventh floor. The doors smoothly shut behind me with a whoosh of air. It was my mother, no doubt reminding me about tonight's dinner.
"I don't know what to bring for dessert."
I heard my mother breathe in harshly. "You haven't picked up dessert yet?"
"No. I'll pick something up on the way over."
"What if there is nothing left? Sunday is a big day, no decent bakery would be open today, Stephanie. Where are you getting dessert?"
I hadn't thought about that. Almost all the small delis and bakeries in Trenton would be closed. It's Gods day. Everyone knew that. Oops.
"Is Costco open today?"
I heard her gasp into the phone. "No good person would buy a Sunday dessert at Costco. It's unheard of. You're going to have to make something."
I was silent. I couldn't cook. I couldn't bake. I didn't even have a kitchen.
"Maybe you can help me." I said. "I can come over and bake something at the house."
"The oven is full of pot roast! And the stove, there is no room here." She said in a panicky voice.
"Ok, I will figure something out, no problem."
I heard a cork pop in the background of the phone. "Mom, I got this, don't you dare start drinking this early."
I hung up and let myself into Rangers apartment. What the hell was I going to do? I went to the computer and booted it up. I got the numbers and started calling all the bakeries in Trenton. Then I called all the bakeries in Newark, and then I started calling all the bakeries in New Jersey. She was right! No one was open on Sunday. Shit!
I called Ella. The machine kicked in to leave a message. I wouldn't panic. It was still early. I had plenty of time to figure this out. I took the stairs down to the third floor. Tank was again standing sturdy as the floor supervisor, hands behind his back, watching the screens and people in front of him. I slid up next to him.
"Where's Ella?"
Tank moved his eyes my direction. "Ella is on vacation. There is a note on the bulletin board in the break room. She will be back Tuesday."
Tuesday? Don't panic Stephanie Plum.
"The desserts you guys were talking about, can I get any of those at Costco?"
Tank turned fully towards me. "Costco won't be open today. It's Sunday."
Double shit. I took a deep breath. "Do you know of any place that would be open today that has desserts?"
"No."
"Do you know how to make those apple thingys?"
His eyebrows rose. "Do I know how to make apple turnovers?"
"Yeah, do you have the recipe?"
Tank looked around. I think he was worried someone would hear him. He whispered "Yes, I know how to make them. My mom taught me how. Do you need the recipe or something?"
I was thinking more "Or something."
"Is it easy?"
"What do you mean, is it easy? It's easy if you know what you're doing."
"What if you don't know what you're doing?"
"How would you not know what you're doing? Don't you know how to cook?"
"I can make microwave burritos. Does that count?"
Tank took a deep breath. "Is this for tonight?"
"Yeah."
"Why didn't you get something yesterday?"
"Jeez! I didn't know the fricken' bakeries would be closed!" I yelled. I looked around checking to see how many people heard me. Everyone heard me. They all turned slowly back to the monitors.
Tank looked down for a moment. "Ok, go to the store. Get these things." He used a pad of paper he had in front of him. He wrote down ingredients for me to pick up.
Hal came over and looked at what Tank was writing. "Need any help?" He read off the items on the list.
"Butter,sugar,flour,apples..Wait, apples? Are you making apple turnovers?" He smiled at me.
"I don't know how to make apple turnovers. Tank is going to help me."
Hal smiled at Tank. "Really? You know, cheesecake is easy. I could make it for you. I know how. I am an exceptional dessert maker." He closed his eyes and smiled at his known accomplishments.
Tank looked at him. "She asked me first."
Hal glared at Tank. He took a piece of paper out of one of the printers. While you're at the store Stephanie, get these things." He started writing down more items to pick up. "I'll show you just how easy cheesecake is. You'll see. I bet mine will be done faster than his."
Tank almost growled. "Faster is not better. It is the slow cooking that makes the dessert good. Not speedy Gonzalez. Apple turnovers are good because they take time to cook and make. It makes them perfect. I would put up the turnovers against the cheesecake any day of the week."
"Oh, you are on!"
Ramon walked up.. "Hey settle down. What the heck is this about?"
"Cheesecake Vs apple turnovers, I guess." I said.
"What about cherry pie?"
I shrugged. "They are making me go get the ingredients for both things. I don't know how to make cherry pie either."
Ramon watched Tank and Hal furiously write a list of things they needed.
"Well shit." Ramon picked up a piece of paper.
I had three lists when I got into the Jeep. If I would have waited any longer, Cal and Lester would have me getting something too. Ranger had the biggest kitchen. They would meet me there. I motored off to the market to get my dessert ingredients. I guess bringing three desserts would be better than not bringing any at all.
Ramon's cherry pies were finished first. He proudly stood over them, making sure they were cooked to perfection. Ranger's apartment smelled really good. I watched Hal make the final touches on his dark and light chocolate cheesecakes with the Oreo cookie crust. Tank was watching the apple turnovers brown in the oven.
Hal leaned against the kitchen counter looking at Tank. "Who knew Tank the tough guy, could be so delicate in the kitchen?"
Ramon stifled out a laugh, and then caught himself.
Tank smiled as he turned towards Hal. "Neither of you get it. It's not how quick you get it done; it's the time you put into it that makes it worthwhile."
"I was done first, though." Ramon said. My cherry pies were quick and easy."
"Yeah?" Hal said. "Well, mine were done second, and I made two kinds. Cheesecake is easy, but not too easy. Who wants something too easy?"
"Most people like easy and fast." Ramon said defensively.
Hal barked out a laugh "That's because you're a Metallica fuck, Ramon. Quick and easy is your specialty."
Ramon launched into Hal. I think he must have offended him. Maybe Hal was right, he was quick.
Tank helped me bring the desserts to the Jeep. Hal and Ramon were still busy cleaning up the kitchen, and the living room. The fight started in the kitchen and ended up the bathroom. Hal went through the glass coffee table, but he wasn't hurt. It was like watching a Godzilla movie. These two guys were massive. Tank stayed calm, watching both destroy Rangers apartment, protecting the turnovers that were still cooking, I stood behind Tank, hoping for some sort of shield. He called downstairs and Lester came in with Cal and separated both of them. They were now on cleanup detail. I had one cherry pie, one cheesecake and of course, all twenty of Tanks apple turnovers.
I parked in front of my parent's house. Reluctantly I looked towards the front door just as my mother peeked out the curtains. Val's brown minivan was parked in front of me. She had two bumper stickers. One said "I brake for Angels" and the other "My child is an honor student at Grace Elementary school". I wondered for a moment if the honor student was Mary Alice or Angie. Being that Mary Alice was more interested in what her plastic horses told her lately than school work, I was leaning more towards Angie. Was it possible that I to would sport a minivan and honor student stickers if my marriage to Dickie Orr would have been successful? For some reason, I didn't think so. I think our marriage was doomed from the beginning. I was in love with the image that my parents portrayed. Both Valerie and I had the fantasy imbedded in our brains. The difference or at least one of many differences was that I did not immediately get knocked up when I married Dickie. Val, she knew what she wanted. She wanted the kids and the minivan. The house and the garage. She wanted the dream badly enough she made it happen twice. When her first marriage took a dump, she did it all again. When mine took a dump, I took the high road, or the low road. Not sure which you would call it.
I was waiting for Bernie to show up. Grandma Mazur has never missed a Sunday dinner yet. Val was next to peek out the door curtain windows. Jeez, they were twins. If grandma was here, she would be standing there with them. Three generations of lookie-loos waiting patiently for me to come in the house. I checked my watch. It was already five thirty. Maybe they weren't coming. Now both Valerie and my mother's heads peeked out the window curtain together, and you know what was worse? A third smaller head peeked out with them. Angie. The insanity continued. I waived and held my "Wait just a second" Finger gesture towards them all. You know, the index finger held up and the look of impatience on the face. All three moved away from the curtains, one at a time.
My hand reached over to the seat next to me, my fingers finding the plastic of the bag that held the apple turnovers. I took one out as I watched a black Cadillac slowly roll down the street towards us. I slithered down into my seat happy that I had left the top on the Jeep, providing me with some cover. Of course there was a dilemma. What exactly did I plan to do with Bernie once I had him? I had a nightmare last night of Bernie strapped to the dining room chair at my parent's house. Everyone giving me the stink eye as Grandma lovingly fed Bernie with a spoon. I think I had a plan. I was going to handcuff him and then call Tank or Hal to come and pick him up for me.
Grandma would never forgive me. I sighed. Her happiness was more important than Bernie Horowitz. She was getting up there in age. How many more years did she have? I should let them enjoy themselves. I picked at the apple turnover. I saw the driver's side door open. Bernie slowly got out of the car. He closed the door and made his way to the passenger side. He opened the door. I was impressed that he was a gentleman, and it made me feel icky inside that I was thinking about arresting him. He helped my grandmother out of the car. Ok, that's it. I couldn't go through with it. Bernie led grandma over to the sidewalk and she busied herself with adjusting her skirt. He opened the back door and helped Bella out. I grimaced, she had been nice the last two times I had seen her. I just hoped she would be this time also. After Bernie made sure the car was locked up safe, all three of them walked slowly up the street towards me.
The door to the house opened. My mother stood with Valerie watching me, then watching them. She crossed her arms.
"Your Grandmother is worried you will ruin her night by arresting Bernie. I told her you wouldn't do a thing like that. I rolled my eyes and grabbed my stuff.
"Fine. I said. "I won't get Bernie tonight." I ate the apple turnover and went in the house.
"Is that Dessert?" My mother said as I handed her the bag.
"That is a chocolate cheesecake and a cherry pie." I held up the other bag. "These are apple turnovers."
"You brought three desserts?" Her eyebrows rose with disbelief.
"No one could decide."
I walked into the kitchen with her. Val was at the table feeding Lisa in a high chair. Valerie was three months pregnant, and already she was showing.
"Mom was sure you wouldn't bring anything for dessert. She was panicking. She made me bring cookies just in case."
I turned and looked at her. "Thanks, Mom."
"Stephanie, I never know with you. I wanted to be prepared."
I should have been offended, but I didn't have time. The door opened and in came Grandma Mazur with Bella and Bernie.
"There were no good spots to park!" She handed a bag over to my mother. "It is pineapple upside down cake. I hope its ok. It's all we had time for."
I saw my sister's mouth drop. My mother grabbed the bag, and walked it into the kitchen. Valerie's eyes were still watching my mother. They went from me to her to my grandmother.
"You didn't trust either of us to bring dessert?"
Clearly, my mother was caught in her own web. Trying to make sure everyone had what they needed to make a perfect meal; perfect had gotten her in hot water.
"I just wanted to make sure. Dinner would be ruined without dessert."
"Dinner would be fine without dessert, Helen. Who put that nonsense in your head anyway?" Grandma said.
My mother looked at my grandmother with astonishment. "You did! You always told me that. Every time we had Sunday dinner it was imperative we had dessert!"
Grandma looked confused for a moment. "I did? I don't remember that. It's a stupid thing to say. Forget I ever said it. I am always to full for dessert anyways, and then Val brings it home. She is getting fat. We should stop the dessert thing."
Val's spoon dropped. Lisa started crying. "I'm not fat, Grandma. I'm pregnant!"
Grandma looked over at Valerie."You're always pregnant. You should figure out what causes that."
The pot roast timer went off, and my mother busied herself with kitchen duties. Grandma Bella sat down at the table and started knitting. Grandma Mazur helped me set the table.
The pot roast came out and took center stage. Next to it was my mother's famous mashed potatoes, green beans and rolls. Mary Alice sat her Breyer horse next to her, and put a little trough in front of him so he could eat too. Albert sat next to her putting his napkin politely into his shirt. He did the same for Mary Alice. Albert had tried hard to learn how to like sports. Mary Alice wanted to play baseball. Angie wanted ballet lessons. Valerie would take Angie to Ballet, and Albert would take Mary Alice to baseball practice. He was trying to learn the game. He had a Cubs cap on his head. He didn't know that the Cubs were not well liked in New Jersey. I guess he would figure it out soon enough. I asked Valerie about it and she said the hat was left at the Laundromat with tags still on it. He thought Mary Alice would appreciate it. Angie sat next to Lisa and Valerie. She had a baby doll in her lap that looked a lot like her baby sister, Lisa. Bella and Grandma Mazur sat down on either side of Bernie and my father was finally coaxed out of the bathroom to head the table. Next to me was an extra plate.
I pointed to it. "Who else is coming?"
"I thought maybe your new boyfriend would show up."
I sucked in my breath and adjusted my seat. I looked at the pot roast and started filling my plate.
"Does he know we have Sunday dinners Stephanie?"
"Yeah. He knows."
"So he couldn't show up? Even for a moment?"
"If he could, I am sure he would have been here." Not. I thought. Ranger knew my family was crazy.
"You have a boyfriend, Stephanie?" Valerie said, helping Lisa eat potatoes off the side of her face.
"The only reason someone is missing a dinner like this would be because he was married, had to work, or is in the clinker." Bernie interjected.
My mother stopped eating. "Are you seeing a married man, Stephanie!?"
"No! Jeez. He is not married!"
"So where does he work?"
"He works in town." I stuttered.
"On Sunday?" Albert said
Dang it. This was a trap. I knew this was a bad idea.
"Can we just talk about this later?" I said, shoveling more food on to my plate. "So, Val. What's your good news?" Instead of everyone grilling me, I decided to change the subject.
Valerie beamed. She looked at Albert. "Well, for one, we are having a boy!"
My mother jumped up. "Oh Valerie! Congratulations!"
I wondered if I would ever have the chance to see my mother jump up excited like that for me. I thought for a moment, my mind's eye wandering. I pictured my mother when she found out I was dating a man wanted for murder. She jumped up and said "Oh Stephanie! Congratulations!" I rolled my eyes. Nope that would not happen. Ever.
After everyone hugged, kissed and congratulated her, I was ready for dessert. I thought I would take my apple turnovers home with me and eat them all in front of the TV with a bottle of wine, preferably red.
"Also," she said. "We are buying a house! The place we have now, it is too small for our growing family."
"Mom said that I could get my own room, and it would have a horse stall for my stuffed animals." Mary Alice said, beaming.
"Maybe Stephanie could move into our old place since she isn't at her apartment anymore."
I choked on a piece of meat. The table grew quiet again.
"My mother looked at me sideways. She was smiling. "Of course she still has her place. Dillon said he was saving it for her."
Valerie nodded "No. I went there yesterday. I wanted to ask her about watching Mary Alice. Some Spanish lady answered the door. She told me she had lived there for more than a month. So I knocked on her neighbor's door and he said that Stephanie hadn't ever come back."
Everyone looked at me. "Where have you been staying, Stephanie?" My mother said quietly.
The apple turnovers were calling me. I got up.
"Sit down." My mother said, pointing her finger at me.
I sat my plate down. "What?"
"I thought you were still at your apartment?"
"I didn't want to stay there anymore, too many memories."
"So you have a new place?"
"Uh, not really. I am still looking."
"So, where have you been sleeping?"
Oh boy. Here it comes. "I have been staying at a friend's."
"Mary Lou?"
"No."
"I know where she has been staying." Bella said.
I looked over at Bella. I wasn't expecting her to pipe up, how did she know where I've been staying?
"We were driving back from Frieda Ferguson's viewing last week. It was after nine at night. I saw Stephanie pull into a building on one of the streets over in the business district and park in an underground garage. I think it was an apartment building."
"It's all industrial buildings over there." My mother said.
"Well, that's where she went." She said as she picked at the pot roast.
"Who lives down there?" My mother looked at me.
I sighed. "I have been staying at Rangeman."
Her green beans dropped off her fork. "Stephanie, are you dating that friend of yours, Ranger?" She had a look of horror in her eyes.
"What's wrong with Ranger?" I asked.
She picked up her wine glass. "Nothing. Nothing is wrong with him." She downed her glass of wine, and poured another.
My dad piped in. "Which one is Ranger? Is he that black guy?"
"He's not black, Dad. He's Cuban-American." I said quietly.
"He wears all black though, right?"
Everyone was silent. We went back to eating. Except my mother, she was looking at the bottom of another empty glass.
"Ranger is really somethin'." Grandma said. "He has an excellent package. I touched it once."
I saw my mother refill her wine glass again. If she kept going, there was no telling what would happen.
"You touched his package?" Bernie said. "He bigger than me?"
"Oh jesus H Christ." My Dad said. "Helen, who is this person?" He pointed to Bernie.
"He is my boyfriend." Grandma said defiantly. "And you have a great package too." She patted Bernie on the knee.
"He is my boyfriend, too." Grandma Bella said.
Albert sat thinking to himself for a moment. I saw the cogs turn is his head, and I knew where it was going, I just didn't have the speed to stop him before he opened his mouth. I couldn't think of any way to distract him.
"Ranger? You are seeing Ranger? I thought he was in jail."
My father stopped chewing his food.
"In jail?" He said, folding his fingers together and glancing over at me.
"Yeah, haven't you guys watched the news?"
I was going to strangle Albert. I gave Valerie a "Help me!" Look. She whispered, "Albert, shut up."
He kept going. I think he felt he finally had something important to say to my father, it was his chance to impress him; he was going to throw me under the bus to do it.
"Ranger's real name is Carlos Manoso."
Oh, double shit. My father looked at me. "You're dating a murderer?"
"He's not a murderer. He didn't do it."
"I heard Carlos Manoso was a terrorist." Bella interjected.
My mother did the sign of the cross, and tried to pour more wine into her glass, realizing the bottle was empty.
Jeez, could this get any worse?
"I think Ranger is sweet, he wouldn't hurt anybody." Mary Alice said. The table stopped floating in my head for a moment. I wanted to hug my niece.
"How would you know, smarty pants?" Angie asked sarcastically.
"Because, he helped me color a picture of a unicorn when he was here for dinner before. He colored all the colors of the rainbow perfect and he wasn't afraid to use the pink crayons like other boys. "
"That doesn't make him not a murderer, Mary Alice." Angie said coolly.
"Yes, it does." She said back. "I like him,"
"Your mother dated a murderer before. Didn't you, Helen?" Grandma said.
The table went completely silent. I looked at my mother. Her fork was partway into her mouth. A piece of the pot roast poised on her lips. She looked around at the table, then slid her chair out and got up. She started clearing the dishes.
"I'm not finished!" Angie yelled, as my mother picked up her plate.
Although Grandma saved the day by getting me off the hook, I thought it was a little unbelievable.
"Yeah, right!" Valerie said thinking the same thing as I did. "Our mom? Very funny Grandma."
"Tell em' Helen, It's true."
"I wasn't dating him, He wasn't a murderer."
"Well, close enough. If it wasn't for Frank, Helen would have married Donnie."
I sucked in some air. The words Vinnie had said. "This isn't my fault, Stephanie. This is all Lula and Connie; I want you to know that now."
"Donnie Donatello?" I said grabbing hold of my bag with the file in it.
My mother stared at me in shock. "How do you know his name?"
"He's FTA. He is from the neighborhood, and he is related to Bella and Joe."
Bella looked at my mother. "You're Helen? You're the one who made Donnie crazy? You?" Bella got up. She looked at Bernie. "I want to leave now. This family is crazy. I want to go home to my daughters."
It wasn't that Valerie and I didn't know what my parent's life had been like, we just never took the time to really dig through it.
"I would not have married Donnie, Mom. He just wouldn't accept that I loved Frank. He got a little crazy and beat someone up. He didn't kill anyone. I heard he was doing ok and lived in Atlantic City."
My father threw down his napkin after wiping his face, "He tried to run me over in his car once, Helen. I would say he was pretty close to a murderer for that. Why are you still defending him?"
The night ended with my father storming out of the house to go play cards with his friends, and my mother passed out drunk on the couch.
Bernie and Grandma Mazur took Bella back to her daughter's house. Bella was pretty determined not to live with Grandma anymore. Not after finding out who my mother really was. Val, Angie, and Mary Alice helped me clear the table and clean up.
"Holy cow. I wasn't expecting that to happen." Val said. "So Ranger. You don't think he killed that girl?"
"No, but it will be hard to prove he didn't."
"Who is this Donnie character?"
"I don't know. I had no idea mom knew him. I'm not sure I want to do this bounty hunter stuff anymore. Some things should stay secret. Maybe this is one of those things."
"What would you do for a job then?"
"Maybe work for Rangeman. They offered me a job."
So you think you will take it?
"I'm seriously thinking about it."
"Well, The house will be available next month if you want it." Val Said. "The rents pretty cheap. Eight hundred a month."
I told her I would think about it. We got my mother upstairs and into bed. I can honestly say this night was the craziest yet. I took Donnie's file and dropped it back into my bag. It was a mystery for another day.
I went to bed with a bottle of red wine. I drank the entire bottle and passed out in the middle of the third episode of Criminal Minds. A blasting obnoxious tone was going off in my head. I opened my eyes, realizing it was the alarm clock. I looked over at the empty bottle sitting next to it, and I turned it off. Reluctantly I rolled out of bed. The sooner I cleared Ranger of this bullshit, the better. Next time I went over to see my parents, they would probably have an intervention meeting. Ugh. I can't believe I drank a whole bottle of wine. I threw up and went back to bed.
I woke up at noon. My head was still throbbing. I took a shower and tried to look presentable. I put on a black business suit and black heels. I needed to go see Les Seabring today. I couldn't get the circles to go away from under my eyes. I put on extra concealer. Nothing worked. I gave up and grabbed my sunglasses.
I called the office to see if Lula had shown up. Connie said Lula had been at the office since they opened. Lula was too happy for a Monday morning, and she didn't know how much more she could take. I asked Connie if I could borrow Lula for a few hours.
"Please." She said. "I'll pay you to get her outta here for a while."
Connie put Lula on the phone.
"Hey girlfriend, what's shaken?" The tone of her voice stabbed my brain, and I winced.
"You want to go with me to see Les today? I need to ask him some questions about Jeanne."
"Hell ya, are you kidding?" Lula said. "Anything is better than being here with little miss grumpy pants."
I picked Lula up in front of the bonds office. Connie was right, Lula was annoyingly happy for noon on Monday. She had on a black skirt and a gray shirt with sparkles all over it. Lula was smiling ear to ear.
I was envious of Lula's mood. I think she had sunshine following her around. She bounced happily over the car. I growled. No one should be this happy on a Monday morning. My eyes felt like they were going to explode. My sunglasses were not dark enough.
"What's wrong with you?" Lula asked, getting into the Jeep. I hope it is not contagious. I am in a good mood."
"I drank too much last night."
"Not me. Been there, done that. I know my limits. You know what you need? You need some food. Fries and a Coke always works."
I was hoping she was right.
"Go to Jimmies. They always have fresh French fries. The key is in the freshness. While we're there, order me one of those double,double cheese burgers. I'm starving. I've decided not to snack anymore. Just breakfast, lunch and dinner. That's it. No extras."
"How's it working so far?"
"Well, I already had lunch. This will have to count as dinner."
"What are you going to do for dinner?"
"I got that all figured out. I won't eat dinner."
I thought the chance of that happening were pretty slim.
We took our order to go and drove over to Les Seabring's Office. I wasn't sure Les would even be in his office. If he was anything like Vinnie, He came in late and left early. Course, anyone who ran the office like Vinnie, would likely be out of business by now.
Les Seabring's Bail Bonds had more class and a better building than Vinnie would ever have. He also dealt with child custody bonds. Vinnie had tried to get into that business once, but it turned out to be a headache he was not willing to repeat. From what I heard, Les did ok working the cases with the child bonds. Jeanne Ellen worked for him and went after the people who did not comply with the bond agreement. She was his star player. I wondered what he would do now without her on the payroll. He had a four story building in the high rent district of Trenton. His office was the entire top floor of the building. The rest of the floors were leased out to whoever could afford them.
I checked the directory posted in the main lobby. There were four attorneys, three insurance agents, two stock brokers, a deli, a coffee bar, and a partridge in a pear tree. The deli and coffee bar was mostly for the people who worked in the building. It was a trend that I had seen with most of the corporate offices I had been in. Les probably made most of his money in rent. Vinnie had always told me he had been in competition with Les for a long time. I think Les was winning.
We took the elevator to the fourth floor. It was nicer than most apartments I had been in. The doors opened up to the main lobby reception area of Les Seabrings office. It was a white washed room with dark brown lush carpet with beautiful paintings adorning the walls framed in gold. Tall green ferns were at every corner. A large wood desk was successfully arranged to pull you in and ask for assistance from the young woman handling the phones. To the left of us were offices and to the right the same. Her desk was positioned between the two sections of the office. A large window overlooking the city was directly behind her. I bet she didn't do a lot of computer work here. the glare from the window would make it almost impossible. My guess was that she was the Connie of the office. More to stop clients from just walking into Les's office without being handled by her first. I smiled sweetly as we walked over to the desk. I had practiced this look in the mirror my whole life. She welcomed us to Seabring Bonds and Securities, and asked us if she could be of any assistance.
I held out my hand towards her. "My name is Stephanie Plum, and this is my partner, Lula Vongard." Lula looked at me funny. I hoped she rolled with it. I didn't know her last name. I had never asked. I thought now would be an inappropriate time.
"We would like a minute with Les Seabring, if that's possible?"
She looked a little put out. I think its part of the hiring process. If you are going to be a receptionist, you must practice your "put out" and you're "I'm sorry" face, or you will never keep your job.
"Do you have an appointment with Mr. Seabring?" She said, almost apologetically.
I didn't skip a beat. "Oh,no, I'm sorry." I said. "We just thought that we would pop on down and say hello. He is such a great guy over at the SnakePit. He told us to stop on by anytime. He just loves the girl on girl action we set up for him." I smiled again, this time I licked my lips for effect.
I think her mouth hit the table. She believed me. I know receptionists. Mentioning sex with other women usually gets them on their feet pretty quickly. Apparently, she didn't know The SnakePit went out of business years ago.
"Just a moment please." She said, jumping up and almost running to Les's office, no doubt.
Lula pulled me to the side. "Lula Vongard?" she said, shocked.
"I don't know your last name, Ok?" I said in a whisper. "I didn't want ask right in front of her. It was the first thing that came to me. I made it up."
"Well. That is a stupid last name." She paused. "I don't really know my last name; I think I am going to keep that one. I can right? Keep it?" She looked at me hopefully.
"What does it say on you drivers license?" I asked. I never knew anyone who didn't have a last name.
"I only have the one name." She said. "Ya know, like "Prince. Cher, and Bono". Instead of holding up the line at the public safety office, they just used "Smith". I like Vongard better. I am now Lula Vongard." She looked at herself in the mirror and repeated it several times. "I wonder if I have any relatives."
"Miss Plum? Miss Vongard? Mr. Seabring will see you now." She pointed down the hall.
"Last door on the right." She said, walking back to her desk.
"Thank you, sugar. You are sweet" I said to her with a fake southern accent. I didn't know if all dancers used a drawl, but if I was a dancer or a streetwalker ho, I would. You gotta make it a little fun.
Lula and I walked down a wide hallway. Photographs adorned most of the wall space along each side. As we walked, I looked at them. Les Seabring was a prizewinning tennis player, and he won numerous trophies for racing his yacht. He even played polo. He had pictures of himself cutting ribbons at new stores with mayors and council members of Trenton. The pictures ranged from the late 1960's until recently. He was big in the community. Politicians were probably on first name basis with this man. I had always envied him. But, there was no way on God's green Earth he would have ever let me do skip tracing for him, so Vinnie was still better. I knocked on the door.
"Come in" Les said in a deep booming voice. He was about 65 years old, but he honestly looked more like 43. He had charisma and charm. He was taller than Ranger, and he was even taller than Joe. I would say around six-foot two. He was deeply tanned from actual time spent in the sun. He also was known to have the best set of legs in all of New Jersey, but everyone knows that.
Les's office, like the building was really nice. It had a view of downtown, and I bet on a clear day you could see the ocean, (if buildings weren't in the way). His desk was solid oak. His office had a sense of calm. On the walls were framed awards and more pictures of him with prominent people in the community. I thought he did a lot more for himself than just having a bonds company. It said securities on the door. I wondered what kind of securities they were.
Les Seabring sat at his desk, his back to the window. He seemed relaxed. We sat opposite him in high back leather chairs. Les brought out a candy dish and a package of chocolate mints. He opened the package and poured them in.
"I saved these from our office Christmas party. I hope that's ok?"
Lula smiled, taking one of the mints he handed her.
"Let me take a wild guess here, Stephanie. You are here to ask me about Jeanne Ellen."
"What can you tell me about her?
Les leaned back in his chair. "The police were here days ago. They asked all kinds of questions. I am afraid they were disappointed with my knowledge. I don't think you will feel any different. Jeanne Ellen was a very private person. She has worked for me, oh going on twelve years, give or take. She is the type of person who takes her work home with her. She is all business, all the time. From what I knew, she had no friends or even acquaintances here at the office. I am here nine to five, Monday thru Thursday. Friday I take the day off to golf. She was here when she needed to pick up files. Sometimes we would go out on cases together, especially if the case was pertaining to a custody bond. There is a lot of paperwork for those cases, and everything has to be just so. The morning I found her, we were supposed to check on one of our clients. I was to meet her at her apartment building very early. I had called, and her phone went to voice mail. Not at all like Jeanne. I went over to check on her. I believe you know the details after that."
"In all the times you went on case runs with her, did she ever mention anyone she was seeing? Did she ever confide in you about any problems she was having?"
"Never once in the entire time I knew her did we have a personal conversation. She was all about being professional. She kept her private life, private. I respected that. I don't really want to hear about personal problems my employees have. I like to have a working relationship only. I don't need details about how someone spends their off time." Les smiled. "I can tell you that it was a shock to find her, and everyone here at the office was upset. If you ask if anyone was overly upset to the point that I felt they may have a personal relationship, I would say no."
"Would it be ok if we asked around the office, see if anyone knew more about Jeanne?"
"I think that would be ok, as long as you don't interrupt them while they are working. Why the interest? I thought the police were pretty satisfied they arrested the right person. I have to say, I was relieved when I heard that they had a suspect so early on. Ranger Manoso always seemed like a loose cannon to me. From what I hear, the case is pretty much open and shut."
"I don't think any case is open and shut." I said. I was feeling like his answers were a little rehearsed. Like he knew someone would eventually ask him more questions.
He looked at me seriously. "You don't believe he did it, do you?" He leaned forward, interested.
"It's too easy to blame Ranger. From what I understand, Ranger was trained by Jeanne Ellen. If the circumstances were reversed, would you think Jeanne would be that stupid? Leave fingerprints, and security footage? She would have been a ghost. He would have been the same. They had a lot in common. Ranger wouldn't have been that careless."
He studied me. "You're right about that. I would have never suspected Jeanne if the tables were turned. She would never have left evidence." He paused for a moment. He stared straight at me, holding my eyes. "What about a crime of passion? If he was upset, he could have gotten sloppy."
"Maybe, but too many things don't add up. I think he is being set up. I am hoping to find out why."
"Honestly, Stephanie, he seems like the right guy. I mean, from what I've heard, Ranger was seeing her. At least that is what I am being told. He finds out she is seeing someone else, or that she is cheating on him, or I dunno maybe she makes him the wrong kind of soup, who knows why people freak out. He was in the army, maybe he had some sort of psychotic episode and he freaked out and thought she was the enemy. Boom, he kills her. Then, realizing what he's done, he freaks out and leaves without getting rid of the evidence. It happens all the time."
"Jeanne had a lot of enemies. I was hoping you could shed some light on what her every day schedule was like."
Les nodded. "I am not sure what you mean about enemies. Jeanne worked the cases for me, but she rarely had any threatening mail come in this office. Suzy brings me up to date on all things that pertain to my employees."
"Jeanne worked for other people besides you, Les. She made a lot of people angry through the years. It is very possible someone killed her because of something that happened in her past. She was seeing a woman named Mary. Did she ever have any visitors that you can remember? Mary is a muscular gal, about your height. Do you remember anyone like that?"
Les's eyebrows rose in surprise. "A woman? I would never have guessed."
I talked to her. She is pretty sure that Jeanne was seeing someone else. Mary said Jeanne broke it off with her so she could pursue another relationship. She said it was with a man."
Les picked up a pen from his desk and studied it. "This Mary character told you this?"
I nooded. "She told her she wanted to change her life for this person. She also told Mary she was pregnant."
Les looked up in surprise. "Pregnant?" I watched closely to his reaction. He looked shocked. He sat back in his chair.
"The forensics lab confirmed it. She was two months pregnant."
He swiveled in his chair and crossed his arms. "Well, then I was pretty much in the dark about Jeanne and her life."
"Did she have any family here?" I asked as a last ditch effort. "Anywhere we can send flowers?"
"As far as I know, she did not have any family whatsoever. It was strange." Les said seeming to think about it for the first time. "No family. Makes you wonder."
I nodded…Yes, It certainly does. Les seemed a little irritated; it seemed he wanted to get this meeting over with as soon as possible.
"I'm truly sorry, Stephanie. I'm just not convinced it wasn't your friend Ranger. If she was pregnant, it seems only more obvious that the killer could have been him. The police seem pretty sure they have caught the right person."
The phone buzzed. "Mr. Hogan is here to see you, Mr. Seabring."
"Tell him to give me a few minutes."
"Of course, sir."
Les turned towards us. "From what I understand, her services will be next week. Suzy can give you the details. Maybe you will be able to find someone who knew her there."
We both got up. I shook Les's hand. "Thanks. I appreciate you seeing us."
Les handed me his business card. "If you need anything else, please call me. I would love to help."
"He may have great legs, but how can you work with someone for over twelve years and not get to know them even a little bit?" Lula said as she looked at all the pictures of Les on the wall in the hallway. "How is that possible? She didn't sound like a lot of fun. Who would want to date someone like that?"
Mr. Hogan walked past us and went into Les Seabring's office.
I had to agree. Over the years, no matter what, you find out little things about a person. And I had to wonder about his reaction to her being pregnant and dating a woman. It seemed his attitude changed. He went a little cold once he found out more about her. I wondered who Les really was. He seemed so together with his pictures and his accomplishments. But was he really like that?
Suzy was at her desk when we came into the front office. I decided to ask her about Jeanne. Just because Les didn't pay attention, doesn't mean other people didn't.
"Jeanne?" She said confused. "I thought you were from the SnakePit."
"Would you have let us through if we just wanted to talk to Les?"
"No. Mr. Seabring Is very selective about who he wants to talk to."
"See? What about Jeanne Ellen? Do you know anything about her? Was she friends with anyone in the office? Did she seem overly upset lately? Did she ever talk to you?"
"I hardly knew who she was. She would walk in, get her cases from Les and walk out. She purposely said hello and goodbye. Sometimes she would go into her office. It is just horrible what happened."
"Her office? She has an office here?"
"First door on the right is her office. Sometimes she would stay in there all day; sometimes we never saw her for weeks."
"Can we see it?" I said hopefully. I was excited now. This might be the break we needed.
"Yeah. Sure, I guess. Maybe I should ask Mr. Seabring."
"You probably should ask, but isn't he with a client?"
She looked past her desk towards Les's office. "He hates to be interrupted. Are you helping the police find out who killed her?"
"We are. It would be a big help if we could just get a look at her office. It won't take but a few minutes. I just want to see where she worked, that sort of thing."
We followed behind her as she opened up Jeanne Ellen's office door.
"Did the police know about this office?" I said.
"The police? I doubt it. I wasn't here the day they came through. I don't know if anyone else noticed who had offices and who didn't. I am the only one who had the keys, and I keep my desk locked." She said with authority. Suzy wanted to keep her job.
"Why weren't you here when the police came through? If you don't mind me asking."
"No, that's ok. It's not a secret. They came over on Monday. Les lets me go home early Mondays. I have a baby, and his sitter has classes in the afternoon. It's really not that big a deal, Monday is usually slow anyways."
The phone started ringing at Suzy's desk. "Excuse me. I need to get that."
We waited till she walked away. I looked in the office. Jeanne Ellen had an office without a window. It looked like she wasn't big on decorating. Nothing personal on her desk or on the walls of the office. There was a two drawer file cabinet, a pressed wood desk with a blotter and a phone. There was a pen and pencil holder that had two pens inside. The holder probably came as a set with the blotter. The metal file cabinet was locked. I had some smaller keys on my key chain, and I tried them. The cabinet opened. Inside, there were numerous files, all looked to be in alphabetical order. The moment I saw them, I thought I should call Joe. I flipped through some, one caught my eye. "Edward Montoya." What was Edwards name doing in Jeanne's cabinet?
"What are you doing?" It was Suzy.
I shut the cabinet. "It was open, I was just looking."
"I happen to know that all the cabinets on this floor are always locked. I think I should call Mr. Seabring."
I grabbed Lula's hand. She had been admiring a statue of an eagle on Jeanne's desk and I pulled her out of the office.
"I am not sure it was ok for me to let you in here. You should leave."
"Ok." I said. "But I have a deep feeling the cops are going to want to look at those files."
She looked at the cabinet and walked us back to the elevator.
When the doors shut, I called Joe.
"Stephanie Plum. It's been a few days. You're slowing down."
"You need to have a team over to Les Seabring's office." I said, ignoring his sarcasm. "Jeanne has an office here. You might find something."
"We went through what they had there already." He said quickly.
"I don't think this office was on the tour. The secretary said she wasn't here the day the police came to talk to Les. She is the only one that had spare keys."
"Did you see the office?"
"Only for a moment."
"Did you touch anything?"
"Maybe. The office secretary caught me looking in the file cabinet. She threw us out."
"So, we will need a warrant?"
"Probably."
"Where are you now?"
"Waiting on someone to get here with a warrant."
"I'll send someone over as soon as I get one." Joe said, and hung up.
I sat on one of the benches in the lobby. Why would Jeanne Ellen have a file on Edward Montoya? I wanted to take that file. I really wished Suzy wouldn't have walked in.
"How long does it take to get a warrant?" Lula asked.
I shrugged. I had seen the cops on TV get warrants within the commercial break, but in real life, and with someone as high up the food chain as Les seemed to be? I had no idea.
"Should we wait?"
"I want to talk to who ever goes through the office. I need to know why Jeanne had that file."
While we waited, we went to the coffee house and then to the deli. I was getting restless. I called Joe back.
"Well? No one has been here."
"Believe it or not, it wasn't high priority to the judge we went to. We just got the warrant. Are you still there?"
"We are waiting downstairs."
I closed the phone and put it back on the table.
"What did he say?" Lula said. "Is he coming over with the warrant or not? My butt is falling asleep. I don't know why we need to be here anyway."
I saw an SUV pull up. Tank got out. "You called Tank?"
"I figure you have things under control. You don't need me. Tank said he would take me out to Dinner."
"You had three lunches. You said you were going to skip dinner."
"I figured it out, I wont eat tomorrow. That will solve everything."
I watched her walk out to meet Tank. I was considering just going back upstairs and figuring out a way to get back in the office myself. The warrant was taking too long. I could have pulled the fire alarm. Anything was better than waiting for the Calvary to show up.
I saw a white van pull up in front of the building. The passenger side door opened and Trisha got out. The driver was a man I had never seen. He opened up the slide and picked up a suitcase. Trisha picked up a bag and followed him in. I walked out to meet them. Trisha greeted me with an icy stare.
"Stephanie, this is agent Decker. Agent Decker, Stephanie Plum. She has been doing her own investigating of the Manaso/Burrows case. She does not work for us." She smiled at me. "I just want him to be clear on that."
I smiled sweetly to Agent Decker. "FBI?"
Agent Decker ignored me and hit the button for the fourth floor.
"Can I talk to you for one second?" I said to Trisha.
She looked over at Decker, and then walked over to me.
"Look, I have been waiting here for hours for someone to show up."
"Stephanie, no one told you to wait. You could have left."
"I needed to speak to whoever went into her office."
"Well, here I am." She said holding up her hands.
"There is a locked file cabinet. Inside I saw a file that could be important."
"We won't be sharing information with you, Stephanie. I don't know where you got that kind of information."
"What is your problem?"
"The FBI has taken over the case. I'm not even supposed to be here. I rode along because I asked to assist. You being here is making me look bad." She whispered. "What is the file your interested in?"
"Edward Montoya." She looked surprised. "The kid who worked for Ranger?"
"Yeah, I saw his name on one of the files. I don't know what the hell that is about. It might be important."
"Ok. All I can do is try to get a look at it. No promises."
She walked away, and I watched the doors to the elevator shut in front of them. My mind kept going back to the file. Why did she have a file on him, and who else did she have a file on?
I left Les Seabrings office confused. I wasn't expecting to find an unsearched office, and I thought Les's reactions were a little off. I wanted to talk to the team at Rangeman. Fill them in on what I had come up with. Ranger said to use the team, and I planned on it. I was very aware that I had no one watching my back. This wasn't the first time I felt I was out on a limb.
Tank was back on duty. The third floor was running smooth.
I walked up behind him. I watched him as he worked on a small computer and talk on the phone. He was having a conversation via-Bluetooth with a security officer at one of the locations. He looked over at me.
"We had an attempted break in at the MacArthur house. They broke a window, but didn't get any further. The alarm and security lights went on. A patrol is over there now." Tank paused, said thank you to the patrol, and disconnected from the call. "How did the apple turnovers work out?"
"They were devoured. Thank you for saving the day."
He smiled at me. "Anytime."
"Where's Lula? She said you were taking her to dinner."
Tank looked at his watch. "I dropped her at her apartment. We have reservations for eight."
"Eight?" I raised my eyebrows.
"She is hoping that after six, she can reset her diet and it can be counted for the next day." He smiled. "Don't even say it."
I changed the subject. I didn't think Tank needed me to tell him Lula's ideas were a little obscure. "I need to set up a meeting with the team."
"That is a good idea. Give me a half hour, Stephanie. I will set it up in the conference room."
Ranger's team consisted of all the men that had worked with me on many occasions. They are also the ones Ranger trusts the most. They were all partners in Rangeman, and they were also his friends. One side of the table sat Hal, Lester and Cal. The other side of the table was Tank, Ramon and I.
"Stephanie thinks it is time that we knew what she has come up with on Ranger's case. I also think it is a good idea to get everyone up to date, so we know what to focus on next." Tank sais, looking at all of us.
"So," Ramon said. "How did it go with the dessert? You don't think you can get away with not telling us which one your family liked best are you?"
Lester let out a grunt. "I can't believe you didn't let me in on this."
"Me either. Stephanie, you should have come directly to me. I would have set you up, girl." Cal said.
"Everything you guys made was eaten so fast, I think it was a tie. You guys rock, You totally saved me by doing that."
"Just so you know," Lester said, "We want in next time."
"Alright, enough. Stephanie wants us all to be aware of what has been happening. I think it is a good idea to put our heads together and see if we can help out." Tank said, taking control of the table.
Everyone turned their attention to me. I went through all I had learned about Jeanne Ellen's extracurricular activities. Including her affair with Mary Maggie and the boyfriend, and how she was pregnant.
I told them about my conversation with the FBI man. And that she knew there were people out to get her. I told them I thought she relied heavily on her security system, and it was likely what got her killed, just like Ranger had said. He felt responsible for turning it off. I don't think he knew just how much she depended on it to keep her safe.
"Did the mafia know about Jeanne Ellen?" Cal said.
"I think they knew, but it may have been like it was with Rangeman. Know your enemy. The man I talked to said Jeanne Ellen always had hit men after her. She took care of them before they got in the way. There was one guy that she hadn't killed. "Tony the Tool". I think he was assigned to her. I don't know If he was supposed to kill her or just watch her. He was found dead a few days ago. From what I understand, he could have been killed the same morning as Jeanne."
"Maybe she killed him when she found him watching her." Ramon said.
I never thought of that. I guess it was possible.
"Connie's uncle found Tony in a storage container. He called Connie. They had me call in the murder in exchange for tapes that Tony had made while he was doing surveillance on Jeanne Ellen."
"Where are the tapes now?" Tank said.
"I'm still waiting for them. Her uncle said they had to make sure there was nothing incriminating on them. He said they would call me with a location of the tapes in a couple days. I haven't heard back from him yet."
"So all the sudden, she dumps her girlfriend and decides to run off with this guy she falls in love with? She is pregnant and is starting her life over. If that was true, why did she start freaking out over Ranger calling things off?" Cal said confused.
"Was this Ranger's kid? Maybe it would be the reason she wanted to talk to him so badly." Hal said.
"DNA says no." I said.
"Doesn't mean that she didn't think it was his."
Ok, he had a point. But the timing was wrong.
"So "Tony the Tool" is found at the docks." Tank said, trying to get all the information straight. "Connie's Uncle calls you and makes a deal. He says Tony was doing surveillance on Jeanne the night she was murdered. He has the tapes. You call in the body, and he will give you the tapes."
"Right."
"Should we assume that means the tapes were evidence that Tony killed Jeanne?"
"Maybe, except if that happened, how did he end up dead at the docks?"
Ramon scratched his head. I was glad to know it wasn't just me who found this whole thing confusing.
Tank was the first to speak. "You went and talked to Les. What happened?"
"For one, he has a nice building that he manages. Multiple floors all leased out to different businesses. The top floor is his office. There are lots of cubicles, but I saw very few people working them. He has a receptionist a lot like Connie. She keeps a handle on who walks in the door. Lula and I met with him. He was nice, but his answers to my questions seemed rehearsed. He said he did not know anything about Jeanne's personal life. He didn't know much of anything, actually. When I told him she was dating Mary Maggie and that she was pregnant and wanted to change her life, he became slightly agitated . Not overly, but he crossed his arms and changed his approach. Suddenly he wanted to end the meeting."
Tank looked kind of confused. "Les has worked with her for at least 10 years, and he knows that little about her?"
"He said didn't want to know anything about his employees. He said she kept her personal life personal. But when I mentioned to him about Mary Maggie and the pregnancy, he seemed irritated."
"You may have found the boyfriend." Tank said.
It was exactly what I was thinking. "He acted overly surprised about the pregnancy, almost sad. Before he was telling us how he knew nothing about her. If that was true, why be surprised and upset about what she did outside the office?"
"Did you tell him she was working for the FBI?"
"Yeah, but he didn't act surprised. But I suppose I could have missed the reaction."
"So," Cal said. "If she was informing on us, and the mafia, maybe she was informing on him too."
"It's possible."
"On the way out of the office, I talked to his receptionist. I asked her about Jeanne. Her story coincides with Les. She never stayed very long. She would be in with Les, picking up files for a few minutes, and then would leave. She said she was always courteous. She told me Jeanne had an office. The police had no idea that Jeanne Ellen had an office at Seabring's. I was able to get the key from her. I called it in to Joe; I knew that the police needed to search it. Before they got there, I found a file for Edward Montoya."
Tank looked at me sharply. "Edward Montoya from RangeMan?" I could swear Tanks eyes turned black. He was truly angry. "Did you get the file?"
"The receptionist caught me breaking into the file cabinet. We were escorted out of the building before I could grab it. Trisha was part of the team that went upstairs. They had to get a search warrant. It took hours. She wasn't real happy I was still there waiting for them. I asked her if she could let me know about Edwards file."
"Do you think she will?"
"Maybe. But I'm not counting on it."