Krissy slowly turned to look at me as if irritated I was still there. “Your middle sister is probably going to prison for murder, and you know it. Now, please leave. Let the police do their jobs and stop trying to cover for your sister or your lover. Nice picture in the paper, by the way.”
It was hot enough that the heat filtering into my face would just mix with the rest. “Thanks so much. The news reporter is an old friend. Tell me aboutyourlover. Rich seemed intense.”
She sighed and rocked back on her tennis shoes as if needing to stretch. “He is, and I like him that way. Now leave before I have you arrested for trespassing, and don’t think for a second that I won’t call the newspaper to report the arrest. They can follow up on your earlier article, and your old friend can expand her fanbase. I couldn’t believe the number of clicks on that online article. I will call her, Anna.”
Ouch. Good threat. I scrambled to think of anything to ask that wouldn’t tick Krissy off, but nothing came to mind. So I turned back to Kelsey, who was a much softer sell. I got the feeling that she wanted to do the right thing but didn’t know what it was right now. “All right. If you have anything you want to talk about, please call me.”
Krissy looked at her sister. “I need some help in the back room.” Then she turned on her tennis shoe and disappeared through the doorway. Apparently the eldest Walker sister didn’t like me much.
I stood. “I’m sorry if I got you into trouble.”
Kelsey grinned and stood. “She’s always like that, and when Rich is cranky, she’s cranky. Don’t worry.” Then she walked to follow her sister, tossing carelessly back at me. “Good luck with the case, Anna.”
I watched her go but couldn’t reply as she walked away. The tattoo visible beneath the strap of her sleeveless blouse, directly over her right shoulder blade, was of a heart with a sword through the middle.
The letters BGC and PROPERTY were clearly inked right above it.
Chapter 21
My mind spun as I drove away from the funeral home. Kelsey had lied to me about the tattoo. Why? What in the world could BGC stand for? I quickly dialed Pierce and got his voicemail. “Hey, it’s Anna. Kelsey Walker has the same tattoo as Pucci and probably Rich. Thought you’d like to know.” Then I hung up and tried to plan my next move. The only thing I could think to do was head out to Rich Pucci’s business and see if he’d talk to me.
As I swung back toward town, my phone buzzed. “Hello.”
“Hey Anna, it’s Aunt Rachel. I heard you’re on a leave of absence, and I need a favor.” Her voice was chipper. My aunt had married Uncle Sean when they were both still teenagers and was often the calm in the storm of the Irish side of our family. Probably because she was mostly Swedish.
“Sure. What’s up?” I asked, speeding by a tourist going way too slow.
“Pauley is in a session with Cousin Wanda, and I’m stuck on the other side of the pass. A truck carrying salmon turned over.” A honk sounded.
I flipped a quick U-Turn to head back to the main area in town. “I can pick him up and take him to lunch.”
“Wonderful,” she breathed. “I’ll call Wanda to give him the heads up so he isn’t surprised. I really appreciate it. He’s a little off because one of his college classes was canceled after the professor came down with Shingles, so it’d be better if you took him to your place and not a busy restaurant. I’ll meet you there.”
“You’ve got it.” I turned down Main Street. “Grab me a couple of salmon steaks if it doesn’t get too hot, would you?” Whenever a food truck turned over near Silverville, the locals all rushed out for the food before it could go bad, and the truck drivers were on board with it because wasted food was bad for everyone. Last year a whole truck of prized lobsters turned over, and we ate like kings for a week.
I slid into a spot at the curb of a building holding different businesses in the middle of Main Street. Cousin Wanda Versaccio’s psychology practice was on the third floor. She was my fourth cousin twice removed, or something like that, but a shrink in the family was a shrink in the family. I saw her whenever I got too stressed out or worried about life, and especially about Jareth Davey.
After parking, I jogged up the stairs to the third floor. At the end of the hallway, a frosted glass window in her worn oak door allowed light to come from her office. I quietly opened the door to a freshly painted waiting area adjacent to a new wall that had been put in just a week before to separate the reception area and Wanda’s office, which right now had the door closed.
I took a seat on a new chair with pillows covered with pink flamingos and reached for the nearest magazine to leaf through.
The door opened when I was halfway through a quiz on whether or not the hot guy in my life was a keeper or not. Maybe it was better not knowing. “Hi.”
Pauley walked out, today wearing pressed jeans and a blue golf shirt. “Hi.” He appeared relaxed, so obviously he’d been given a heads up that I was coming. “Salmon all over the road.” He shivered.
That was a good point. “No kidding.” I stood.
Wanda moved behind Pauley and perched her glasses on her nose. Her black hair was up in a messy bun, and she’d chewed half of her lipstick off. She was in her mid-thirties but looked younger. “Tell your Grandma Albertini to stop trying to set me up with single women. I just got divorced, and the last thing I want is to start dating anybody, especially a pilot. I don’t like flying.”
I took a step back. While I liked Wanda, I wasn’t getting between Nonna and romance. “Sorry. We don’t have a pilot in the family. You’re on your own, Wanda.”
Pauley strode toward the exit, already several inches taller than me even though he was only sixteen. His brown hair was perfectly cut. Where he got the darker hair, considering his mom and sister were blondes and his dad a redhead, we’d never known. Kind of like me.
“I will see you next Thursday at ten a.m., Cousin Wanda. Ten a.m. Yes. Ten a.m.” He walked out into the hallway.
I hurried after him, keeping somewhat of a distance to give him space. I often needed it after pouring my guts out to the shrink, so he probably did, too.
We reached the sidewalk, and he paced toward my car.
