We're going out of town tomorrow morning, so I'm posting this tonight. I'm not sure when I'll be able to post the next chapter. It's only partly written.

You're the best! Thanks for reading and for commenting.

Chapter 95.

The next morning, we met Wilson at Nina's apartment so we could get the car. She'd agreed that we could use it in our investigation.

"I stopped to see Nina this morning. She says she feels much better and can't wait to leave the hospital." He was smiling. "I'll bring her home this afternoon."

"Before we go, I'll need to do a little cosmetic surgery on myself." Jess grinned at us as she took her shoulder bag with her into the bathroom. When she came out, I might have had a hard time recognizing her. She wore a blond wig, much shorter than her own hair, and lots of eye make-up behind round tortoise-shell glasses. Somehow, she'd made her nose seem smaller and her lips fuller. She still looked good.

"Where'd you learn to do that?"

She smirked. "That's my trade secret."

Jess dangled the keys to her sister's car in her right hand. "Let's go, boys."

The car was parked in the garage under the building. I'd only been in the BMW once before, when we'd driven into the Poconos looking for Petey. It seemed like an eon ago. I grabbed the keys out of Jess' hand. "I'm driving." It might be the only time I'd get to drive a car this classy.

Wilson looked it over before he got in the back seat, allowing Jess to ride shotgun. "There's not much you can ask them to do to this, you know. It's already spiffy."

"What kind of word is 'spiffy'?" I turned the key and the car purred. I smiled to myself as I drove it out of the garage into the street.

"I've been thinking about what we should be asking them to do." Jess turned to look at Wilson. "After all, we're not going to have the work done, just asking for an estimate."

"So?" I practically heard his eyebrows go up.

"How about a stripe down the side?"

"No one puts a stripe on the side of a BMW, unless it's one of those concept cars," he objected. "Certainly not a sedan like this."

I let them hash that out, although I had my own ideas.

"Well, then, how about adding a moon roof?" Jess suggested.

"Now you're talking." He sounded enthusiastic. "Nina was actually talking about putting one in."

"She was?"

At this time of day, the parking lot at the car place was pretty full. The gate on the back fence was open and people were walking in and out. No sign of Fido. Guess he only got the night gig.

"Should all three of us go into the office?" Wilson asked.

"Why don't you and Jess go in. I'll have a look around." I was as curious as they were about what they would find in the office, but I was more curious about the kind of work the company did. I watched a few people go through the gate to the back lot, then walked through just behind a well-heeled couple who'd pulled up in a Spitfire.

The vehicles on this side of the fence ranged from brand new sports cars to performance cars to a few luxury sedans of various vintages. The bay doors to a vast garage were open and inside several men, and a couple of women, were working on the inside and outside of a half dozen cars.

The couple I'd followed stopped when they reached a short but stocky man with a thick head of black hair and a large mustache to match. He held out a hand first to the man and then to the woman. "Mr. and Mrs. Mancuso. Glad to see you again. What can we do for you this time?"

Once I was sure they were there to have work done on a car, I moved away, slipping into the garage. Immediately, the sweet smell of turpentine one young man was using to clean some equipment engulfed me. Many of the workers had masks on as they sprayed primers and such, so they probably weren't aware of it. The turpentine and lacquers almost masked the bleach smell, but it was there, faint and distinctive.

It was a pleasure to be out in the fresh air again. And they say the smells of disinfectant in a hospital are bad! I made my way back to the front lot just as Jess and Wilson came out of the office.

Wilson shook his head. "I should have gone into the auto detailing business. They must be raking it in. At the rates they charge, I'd be making a forture."

"I only got a brief whiff of bleach in there," Jess said.

I nodded. "It was slight in the garage, too, mainly because of the other odors."

"So, was this the place or not?" Wilson asked.

Jess looked back at the building with narrowed eyes. "I can't be sure, but I think so. But now, what do we do about it?"

"Good question. Maybe we won't do anything just yet, aside from telling Julio and Bertoli." I opened the car door, then slammed it closed without getting in. "There's something we can do." I limped to the office door without waiting for Wilson and Jess. There were several customers, so the three salesmen were occupied. I walked around the place, examining the pictures and price lists on the walls. There was no indication that the Molino family owned the business, but there were large posters from various places in Italy. The people in the pictures were salesmen and customers, admiring the work on an assortment of cars.

One picture caught my eye. A young man in it looked very familiar. I turned to see whether Jess had followed me in. She was on the other side of the room and I beckoned her over. "Look at this picture and tell me that isn't who I think it is."

She looked closely, her eyes widening and her mouth turning down. "It can't be! What would he be doing here?"

I shrugged. "Molino sent him here from Sicily, so I guess it isn't surprising that he'd visit one of his businesses."

She stared at the picture. "But from this photo, it looks more like he was working here as a salesman."

"It does, doesn't it? So what would make Julio decide to leave and go to work in a restaurant? Did Bertoli lure him in some way?"

She rubbed her chin with her thumb. "I've been thinking that he was using his job with Bertoli as a way to get close to the Locarnos."

"But the connection between Bertoli and the Locarnos isn't well-known."

"True."

Wilson came over to see what we were talking about. I pointed to the photo on the wall. He looked carefully at it, then his eyes widened as ours had when we realized what we were looking at.

"I think it's time we had a little talk with Julio, preferably without Bertoli in the room." I started for the door.

A salesman stood in our way. "Did you change your mind? I can assure you we'll do a great job on your car. It'll be well worth the money."

"We still have to think about it," Wilson replied. He pointed to me. "My friend here says he worked with another salesman a while back. Young guy, named Gian-Carlo or something."

For once I corrected him. "Julio."

"Oh, Julio. He's been gone quite some time. He never said why he was leaving, and the boss was pretty upset."

Jess frowned. "He didn't give notice, just upped and left? That's awful."

He responded to her sympathetic tone. "I'll say. Left us short-staffed, too."

Wilson nodded. "Bet that's why the boss didn't like it."

"Well, that and the fact that he was family. Mr. Locarno sent him over from Sicily special, like, you know? You'd think he'd be grateful, but no, off he went and never even called."

I shook my head and tsk-tsked, but that was all the guy was willing to tell us. "You seem like a nice fella. We'll definitely think about having the work done."

He handed me a card. "Just ask for Tony. I'll be happy to set something up."

We thanked him and left. We were each wrapped up in our own thoughts on the way back to Princeton. The hospital was in view when Wilson asked, "Which of us should tackle Julio?"

That was part of what I'd been thinking about. Jess probably had, too, because she said, "I think he knows me best. We shared a traumatic experience and he might open up to me if I play this right."

I nodded.

Wilson got out of the car first when I parked it in the visitor's lot. "Then I'll go see whether Nina's ready to go home."

"If she's not, you can buy me lunch." I tossed him her keys.

"Even if she is, somehow I would have wound up doing that."

We entered the hospital together, only to find Bertoli and Uncle Johnny deep in conversation in the lobby.