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“Looks that way. I suppose it’s a good thing, although I’m starting to think it might be easier just to look for a new job.”
Lula bustled in. “What’d I miss? Did I miss anything? I overslept. And then I couldn’t figure out what to wear. And my coffeepot’s broke, so I had to stop at Starbucks, and the line was out the door.”
“We found out Vinnie didn’t burn up in the house,” I told her.
“Hunh,” Lula said. “But then on the bright side, since he isn’t dead, we might get to use the stink bomb after all.”
“Every cloud has a silver lining,” Connie said.
“You got bags under your eyes,” Lula said to me. “You spend the night with Morelli?”
“No. We’re in the off-again phase of our on-again, off-again relationship,” I told her. “It was just one of those sleepless nights.”
I had bags under my eyes because I’d thrashed around all night in a state over bread. And then I was in a state because I had two men in my life, and I had no clue what to do with them. I loved them each in different ways, and I was too traditional and Catholic to just enjoy them. How sick is that? I wasn’t a practicing Catholic, but I had guilt. And I was stuck with all these rules about relationships. And then there was my mother, who I suspect was mortally afraid I’d end up with Ranger. And my grandmother, who probably thought I was an idiot not to be sleeping with both of them. And my father, who didn’t think there was a man alive who was worthy of me. So I’d probably gotten about an hour’s sleep last night. And then Chet had called at seven o’clock. Midmorning for Ranger’s team.
“This morning, Chet called with a list of properties Sunflower owns through his holding company,” I told Connie and Lula. “I’m going to do a drive-by on everything that’s local.”
“I’m up for that,” Lula said. “It’s a nice sunny day out. Perfect for riding around. Maybe we should put the top down on the Jeep.”
FOR THE MOST part, the holding company owned commercial real estate that was leased out to a variety of businesses. A supermarket, a dry cleaner, a pet store, a hair salon, a natural foods store, and a couple empty lots.
“This is interesting,” Lula said. “Here’s this Sunflower guy who’s real bad, making his money off prostitution and gambling and drugs, and then he’s got this whole other side that’s got legitimate, boring businesses. Don’t you find that interesting? I mean, the man owns a natural foods store.”
“He doesn’t actually own the store. He owns the physical space.”
“Same difference. And a pet store filled with puppies and shit. I mean, can you see Bobby Sunflower selling puppies?”
“He doesn’t personally sell puppies.”
“But suppose he did. Wouldn’t that be weird?”
I’D DRIVEN PAST all the properties on Chet’s list and I was now parked on Liberty Street. Nothing on the list had the potential for holding Vinnie captive.
“I don’t know where to go from here,” I said to Lula. “I have two days to find Vinnie, and I’m out of ideas.”
“I got ideas,” Lula said. “They’re about lunch. I’m thinking nachos.”
“Good idea,” I told her. “I know just the place.”
I drove down Liberty to Broad and followed Broad across town to Marble Street. I pulled into the 7-Eleven lot and parked. Mickey Gritch was on the other side of the lot, conducting business as usual.
I gave Lula a twenty. “Get me nachos and a drink. I’m going to talk to Mickey.”
“You sure you don’t want me behind you doin’ backup?”
“No. I can manage on my own.”
I waited for a guy in a rumpled suit to walk away from Gritch. When the guy got in his car, I moved in.
“Hey,” I said to Gritch. “Long time no see.”
“Not long enough,” Gritch said. “Get away from me. You’re like poison.”
“How so?”
“I don’t know. By association.”
“Tal
