“And we found the address to the bar where he works on a pay stub in his house,” Gloria said.
“We looked for him every day and night. It was all we could do to help you, Vero. But he didn’t come back to his house again. Not until tonight.”
“Tonight, our persistence paid off!” Gloria said proudly.
“We didn’t want to take any chances that he might run,” Norma said, “so we ambushed him as he was going into his house. Gloria held him down while I tied him up. We tried to get him to agree to help you, but every time we took the rag out of his mouth, he yelled and fussed. We got tired, and we didn’t know what else to do with him, so we brought him home with us. We thought we could all get some rest and a hot meal.”
“Maybe if we feed him, he’ll come around,” Gloria said.
Vero buried her head in her hands. “Mom, what did you do?”
“We found him, Vero! And now you’ll have an alibi. We’ll call Don after lunch. He can take Theo’s statement. I’m sure once we explain how important this is, Theo will agree to testify at your trial—”
“I’m not having a trial!” Vero said, throwing up her hands.
Norma frowned. “What do you mean, you’re not having a trial?”
“Finlay and I figured out who stole the money. The sorority dropped the theft charges, and the police took off my ankle monitor and released me from custody. I have to pay a fine and do six months of community service for the gambling, but it’s over. Or at least itwasover, before you two kidnapped my alibi!”
“Oh no,” Norma whispered, paling from the shock.
Gloria dropped her rolling pin. “What have we done?”
“Help me get him out of the car,” Vero said to me.
Theo’s eyebrows shot up with panic as we each grabbed him under an arm and hauled him out of the trunk. Vero untied the shoelaces from his ankles and marched him into the house by the back of his shirt. Norma and Gloria hung their heads as they followed the three of us inside.
Vero stopped abruptly in front of the living room. Lenore, Eugene, and Wendell stood around the coffee table, arguing with one another. Lenore held the roll of duct tape. Wendell shook his cane. Eugene waved the dirty kitchen knife around as they bickered over who should get the last slice of pizza. Joan woke up with a loud snort. She bolted off the couch, her cannula stuck in her hair. “What did I miss?”
Theo blanched when he spotted the bound, gagged vandal on the floor. His stunned gaze lifted to the recliner. Javi’s eyes narrowed. He started thrashing violently and shouting into his duct tape. The Fantastic Four all turned to see what Javi was fussing about. Theo whimpered at the disturbing tableau.
Vero leaned close and whispered in his ear. “The man on the floor was messing with my family. And you see the one in the recliner? He was the last boyfriend of mine who tried to ghost me. Look very closely at them and then listen to me, because if you don’t, the next person in that duct tape could be you.” Theo’s eyes widened as she went on. “I was released by the police this morning. There are no more charges against me, and as long as it stays that way, that means I’m free to leave the state and go wherever I want. If you keep your mouth shut about what happened to you this morning, I won’t tell anyone what you and your friends were doing in that print shop, and you will never, ever hear from me or my family again. But if you breathe a word of this, toanyone, I will send them after you. Every one of them,” she said, pointing at her elderly neighbors. “I know where you work and where you live, and I will make your life miserable. Do you understand me?”
Theo nodded. He smelled like he might have wet himself. Vero plucked the rag from his mouth. Theo started to speak, but Vero held up a finger. “Not. One. Word,” she warned him.
Theo snapped his mouth shut as Vero untied the shoelaces from his wrists.
“I’m terribly sorry for the confusion,” Norma said. Theo flinched as she patted his shoulder.
“Can we pack you something to take home to eat?” Gloria offered him. “We have capirotada.”
Theo started to shake his head, but Vero pierced him with a glare. Theo swallowed and nodded. Vero patted his other shoulder.
I cringed at the traumatized look on his face. “Would you like me to give you a ride home, or should we call you an Uber?”
“Uber,” he croaked.
I took out my phone and arranged for his ride. Gloria handed him an insulated tote full of leftovers in Tupperware. Norma gently took his arm and walked him to the door. “I hope you can forgive us for the misunderstanding. Give me a call when you’ve finished all of this, and I can come by to pick up the containers. Don’t bother washing them. I’ll handle it.” She hid a grimace, as if she were recalling the state of his kitchen sink.
Theo cast horrified looks at Javi as Vero escorted him out the front door. The Uber driver was waiting at the curb.
“That’s your ride,” Vero said. “Don’t take this the wrong way, Theo, but I hope I never see you again.”
Theo made a run for the car, dove inside, and locked the door.
CHAPTER 34
After the Fantastic Four had tidied up the living room and filed out of the house on their canes and walkers, Vero cautiously approached the recliner. Javi looked like a caged animal, his eyes tracking her as she gingerly removed the tape from his mouth. He didn’t say a word as she slowly unwound it from his arms. When she was done, and he was free of everything but his cast, he finally spoke.
