11 The Cats that Cooked the Books Read online

  “Yep, heard that, too.”

  “Word travels fast. As a matter-of-fact, I’m here to talk about Rachael. I’ve fallen hard and fast.”

  “Never heard you say that before. Whatever happened to love ‘em and leave ‘em? When’s the wedding?”

  “Could happen, if she’d have me, but until that time, I need to keep Rachael and Salina safe.”

  “And why come to me?” Dave said, moving his legs from the desk and sitting up normally in his chair.

  “Since Dad died, I know you’ve taken over some of his operations.”

  “Yeah, what’s your point?”

  “Since you’re still in the loop of what dear old Dad called the family business, and I’m not—”

  “Because you went clean and have stayed clean. I’m proud of you, bro,” Dave said genuinely. “So, what is it you want me to do?”

  “We need protection.”

  “That’s easy enough. From whom?”

  “The mob.”

  Dave choked on his own saliva. “The mob? You don’t ask for much. How the hell did you get involved with the mob?”

  “I’m not, but Rachael’s ex-fiancé is connected to one in New Jersey.”

  “Damn. Tell me more.”

  “She left him, and came to Erie to open a café.”

  “Now that’s a story. Leave the big city for our little town.”

  Stevie filled Dave in on the details about Rachael and her fiancé — as much as he knew. “I think he abused her, and she was strong enough to get away from him. Now, she’s terrified he’s going to find her and kill her.”

  “Why would he do that?”

  “He said he would, and she takes him at his word.”

  “Does this have something to do with the shooting at her place?”

  “Yep. I think the hitman was gunning for her and the cops got in the way.”

  “What?” Dave asked dubiously. “The mob doesn’t hire a hitman to do away with girlfriends that have annoyed their boyfriends. There has to be another reason. Maybe she stole something from them? Money? Drugs?”

  “I know it’s not drugs. She’s definitely not a drug user. Maybe money. I don’t know what. However, I do intend to find out.”

  “Out of curiosity, where was Rachael when the cops were shot?”

  “She was with me. We had a date. I took her home and all hell broke loose.”

  “Where’s she now?”

  “She’s staying with Salina and me until the cops say she can move back to her place. I don’t want this gangster anywhere near my home, with Rachael and my daughter there.”

  “Understood. This can be arranged. I can have my guys keep an eye out on your house, but once she goes back to her place, that’ll be difficult.”

  “Yeah, I know. You don’t want to call attention to yourself. I get it.”

  “Rachael lives on the main drag. Those old biddies in the neighborhood watch group don’t miss a trick.”

  “Yep, I hear ya.” Stevie didn’t mention how Gladys Kramer was one of those biddies and the one who called in the break in.

  “How long will Rachael be at your house?”

  “Up to two weeks.”

  “Okay. I’ll take care of it,” Dave said.

  “I appreciate it, but there’s one more favor I need to ask.”

  “What? Name it.”

  “Text me if a guy comes in the bar and appears to be from out-of-town, especially if he asks a bunch of questions about Rachael or me.”

  “I can do that too. Does this dude have a name?”

  “Ray Russo. He’s Sicilian.”

  “Yeah, right, little brother, like the Godfather?”

  “Just sayin’.”

  “Okay, if I see a Sicilian, I’ll text.”

  “Okay.” Stevie started to get up.

  “Do you know what he looks like?”

  “Nope.”

  “Then how will I know he’s Sicilian?”

  “Don’t know, but I trust you’ll figure it out.”

  Dave chuckled. “I reckon I can do that. Take care now.”

  “Thanks,” Stevie said, leaving.

  * * *

  Later, at seven p.m., Stevie and Rachael walked over to the pink mansion.

  Jake answered the door. “Hey, long time no see,” he said to Stevie, then glanced at Rachael. “You must be Rachael. I’m Jake. Katz’s other half. Come right in.”

  Katherine stood in the living room’s doorway. “Hello. I’m so glad you two made it. Let’s sit in here.”

  Stevie and Rachael walked in and sat down on a damask-covered loveseat while Katherine moved to a vintage wingback chair.

  Rachael wondered if that was the old chair Salina had talked about.

  Jake stood at the door. “I’ll be back in a minute. Got to pick up the pizzas.”

  Stevie rose from the loveseat. “Hey, I’ll come with.”

  “Perfect, because I wanted to ask you something about my Jeep. Sometimes it makes this funny noise . . .. His voice trailed off as Stevie and he left the house.

  Katherine asked Rachael, “Are you getting settled at Stevie’s?”

  “I’m so thankful he offered me a room to stay. I was at the Erie Hotel, but when they found out I was picking up my kitten, the woman at the front desk said the hotel didn’t allow pets.”

  “I think that’s a ridiculous policy. How is your kitten? I’ve forgotten what you named her.”

  “Intruder. She’s fine, but very tired from the spay.”

  “She’ll be climbing the curtains in no time,” Katherine joked. “I found a spare laptop. It’s in my basement classroom. I’ll go get it.”

  Rachael didn’t offer to go with her. “Oh, thanks, that’s great.”

  As soon as Katherine left the room, Rachael got down on her hands and knees and began feeling underneath the cushion of the second wingback chair, then she checked the lining. It was intact, so she crawled over to the chair Katherine had just vacated and glanced underneath it. She found the torn opening. “Eureka,” she whispered. She ran her hand inside, but was disappointed she didn’t find the flash drive. She tipped the chair and moved her hand inside a second time. Still nothing. She righted the chair just as Katherine walked in.

  “Did you lose something?” she asked.

  “Oh, yes,” Rachael said, startled. “My hair barrette. It’s made of glass.”

  “I’ll be on the lookout for it. What color is it?”

  “Pink,” Rachael stuttered. “Pink glass.”

  “Maybe it fell in the yard when you came over,” Katherine suggested, wondering why Rachael was down on all fours looking in the vicinity of the famous chair. Something set off faint alarm bells, but she couldn’t quite pinpoint the suspicion.

  “Hope so. It was a gift,” Rachael said, spinning the yarn as she spoke. “I’ll look when I go home.”

  “It’ll be dark. Better use a flashlight.”

  “I’ll use the one on my cell phone.” Rachael rose and sat back on the loveseat.

  Katherine moved over and handed her the laptop. “Keep it as long as you need it.”

  “Thanks so much.”

  “I ran a check on it to make sure it didn’t have a computer virus, so you don’t have to worry about that.”

  “That’s good to know.” Rachael leaned down and placed the laptop on the floor next to her satchel purse. Then she looked around the room. “Where are the cats?”

  “I locked them in their playroom.”

  “Locked?” Rachael asked.

  “I have an outside lock on the door because Scout, my resident Houdini cat, opens doors.”

  Rachael giggled. “Cadabra learned that trick from Roy. He was Magic Harry’s animal trainer.” Then as soon as she said it, she immediately changed the subject, “Oh, I was looking forward to seeing all your cats.”

  Katherine hesitated before answering. She didn’t want to let Scout and Abra out because their last encounter with Rachael had totally stressed Abra out. She’d r
eally preferred, and Jake agreed, that the Siamese never see Rachael again. Finally, Katherine spoke, “I’ll see if they want to come down. Give me a minute and I’ll be right back.” Katherine left the room and bound up the stairs. She opened the door to the playroom. Five cats were curled up in their cozy beds, except for Iris and Abby. They shot out of the room and ran down the stairs.

  Katherine glanced over at the cozy bed Scout and Abra were in. In a split second, they had gone from being fast asleep to sitting up, wide-eyed awake, as if they would run out as well.

  “No, my girls. Go back to sleep.”

  Their ears perked up in interest, then they laid back down.

  Iris and Abby, partners in crime, raced into the living room. They homed in on the wingback chair. They knew someone had been messing with it, but the scent wasn’t their humans’. It had to be that other woman who smelled like the pink prize. Their ears swiveled back, then forward. They looked at each other, and then Iris dove through the torn lining.

  Katherine returned to the room. “Iris, you silly girl, get out of my chair.”

  “Yowl,” Iris sassed.

  Rachael laughed. “Why does she like your chair?”

  Katherine proceeded to tell the “feline loot hidden in the chair” story.

  Rachael acted like she’d never heard it before. “Oh, that’s so cute.”

  “As soon as Jake and Stevie get back, I’ll have to put them up.”

  “Why? They’re not bothering me.”

  “Because they’ll steal the pizza right off your plate.”

  Rachael laughed again and hoped it didn’t sound too forced. She was upset she didn’t find the flash drive and wondered where it was.

  While Katherine and Rachael continued to chat, Abby had something else in mind. She trotted over to the blue-and-white-patterned oriental bowl, on the floor next to the fireplace, and fished out a pink flash drive. She clenched it in her jaws. When she let go, it dropped to the wood floor and made a sound. But the humans were too engaged in their conversation to notice. To guard her treasure, she placed her right paw on top of it and stayed in that position, like an Egyptian Bastet statue, and didn’t move until Jake and Stevie returned. Then she pushed it with her paw behind the bowl. “Chirp,” she cried happily.

  Jake and Stevie came back and entered the room with two large pizza boxes. “Let’s eat in the kitchen,” he said.

  Katherine added, “It’s a cat-free zone.”

  Iris yowled in protest. Abby didn’t care. She’d already secured her loot.

  Jake led the way. Stevie and Rachael followed.

  Katherine remained behind, “Come on Iris and Abby. Let’s put you back in the playroom.”

  The cats didn’t budge.

  “Treat?”

  Iris became very vocal while Abby spoke in her much more subdued voice.

  Katherine enticed the cats upstairs to the playroom by saying “treat, treat, and more treats.” Then she locked them in the room. The cats protested loudly on the other side of the door.

  “I know, my treasures. It was a dirty trick. I’ll give you treats later.”

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  A Week Later at the Pink Mansion

  Katherine stepped through her front doorway to check for the morning mail. She was barefoot, and had planned to rush out, grab the mail, and run back inside. The Victorian-style mailbox was empty, so she turned to go back in, but something unusual caught her eye next door. She glanced over at the Foursquare. Stevie’s truck was gone. Nothing extraordinary about that; she assumed he was at work. Then she saw Rachael’s Tercel parked in front. She hadn’t seen it parked there before. She remembered it from the first time Rachael visited her.

  She hadn’t seen Stevie or Rachael since they had come over for pizza, but Salina was keeping her updated on what they’d been doing. As Salina put it, Stevie and Rachael were “hanging out,” leaving the teen stuck at home, frantically texting her friends to complain.

  As Katherine moved to go back inside, Rachael walked out and headed toward her car. She was carrying her black kitten, Intruder.

  “Hi, Rachael,” Katherine greeted.

  “Oh, hello, Katz. I just got word that I can move back into my place. Isn’t that amazing?”

  Katherine joined Rachael on the sidewalk. She tiptoed to avoid stepping on something sharp. “That’s such good news. Can I help you carry anything?”

  “Thanks, but I really don’t have much.”

  “So, this is the little girl? Can I hold her?”

  “Yes, please do. Do you mind if I go back inside and get my last remaining bags?”

  “Sure.”

  Rachael handed Katherine the kitten and walked back into the Foursquare.

  Katherine held the kitten against her chest and kissed her gently on the top of the head. The kitten purred. “You really have a loud purr, little one,” Katherine cooed. “I haven’t held a kitten in a very long time.”

  The black cat mewed, and ran her pink tongue over her lips, then reared up and licked Katherine on the nose.

  “Thank you for the kiss. I think I love you!”

  Rachael returned and placed her remaining bags on the floorboard behind the driver’s side, then took Intruder from Katherine. She put the kitten inside a small cat carrier on the back seat. She shut the car door and faced Katherine. “I’m so relieved I can move back.”

  “I bet you are.”

  “Actually, I could have moved back yesterday, but I had to hire a cleaning crew to clean.” Rachael didn’t mention that they were a special cleaning service that dealt with crime scenes.

  Katherine understood what Rachael hadn’t said. She had to do the same thing several years before, when Patricia Marston shot Jake in the pink mansion’s living room. She launched into another topic, “I looked and looked for your barrette, but I didn’t find it.”

  “Barrette?” Rachael questioned.

  “Yeah, the pink glass one you lost.”

  “Oh, that one. You know, with everything that’s going on, I’d totally forgotten about it.”

  “Well, okay. I won’t keep you. I know you’re anxious to go back home and get this little one out of this heat.”

  “I’ll drop off your laptop as soon as I can.”

  “No worries. Keep it as long as you want.”

  “Super.” Rachael climbed in her car and drove off.

  Katherine headed back home to see Scout and Abra doing their meerkat pose on the windowsill of the first-floor turret window. She could tell they were crying their Siamese lungs out.

  “Oh, great. Now what?” Usually when Scout and Abra did their loud caterwauls, they were tattling on the other cats.

  She rushed in the house to find a white blizzard of pulverized facial tissue. A trail of shredded tissue led from the front door to the living room.

  “Darn it, you guys. Which one of you did it?” she accused.

  Iris trotted over and yowled. She almost sounded embarrassed.

  “Miss Siam, you don’t have to plead guilty to everything. I know this wasn’t you.”

  Scout and Abra jumped down and fled the scene. Katherine called after them, “Thanks for helping me clean up this mess.”

  Katherine thought, this is the handiwork of Dewey and Crowie. Their claws are as sharp as razors and more efficient than a paper shredder.

  The guilty seal-point brothers wrestled in a fluffy tissue mound near the credenza.

  Abby became very vocal, which was unusual for the Abyssinian. “Chirp! Chirp!” she cried in her soft voice.

  Nearby, Lilac sneezed. Katherine picked her up and wiped the shred of tissue stuck on her nose. She set her down next to Abby.

  Heading over to Dewey and Crowie, she tripped over the empty tissue box, but caught herself before she fell. The movement scared the cats who scattered to the four corners of the room. Reaching down to pick up the tissue, she noticed a pink object in the middle of the pile. “There you are,” she said, thinking she had just found Rachael’
s missing barrette. When she brought it closer to her face, she saw that it was a USB flash drive.

  It was unlike any flash drive she’d ever seen. The memory sticks she used were black with a sliding red button. This one was a two-piece with a removable cap.

  “I wonder who this belongs to?” she asked. She thought about who had recently been in her house. Through the process of elimination, she checked off who couldn’t be the owner. Jake used the same kind of memory stick that she did. Salina didn’t use flash drives. Margie and Chief London were ruled out, especially Margie, who resisted the computer like a swarm of bees, and had her daughter pull her emails and print them.

  “Let’s see,” she thought aloud. “Stevie and Rachael were here. Stevie is like Margie and doesn’t like computers.”

  The hairs on Katherine’s neck rose. “Rachael! The pink barrette! Well, it does look like the front of a glass barrette, that is, if you don’t scrutinize it, but why did she lie? Why couldn’t she just ask if I’d found a pink flash drive?”

  Abby rubbed against Katherine’s legs and reached up to be held. Katherine glanced down at the Abyssinian.

  “Chirp!” Abby cried.

  “No, sweetie. Mommy’s thinking.”

  Katherine began to put two and two together, literally, the thief and the thief’s accomplice. “Iris stole it. Abby took it from Iris. Dewey and Crowie thought it was a toy.”

  Holding the flash drive, Katherine walked downstairs to her basement-level computer classroom. She inserted the drive in a laptop and did a malware and virus check. When the drive passed the tests, Katherine removed it from the port and took it over to her computer. She plugged it in.

  Reading the directory, she noticed there were Excel files as well as PDF files. First, she pulled up one of the Excel files and found it was a list of bank accounts at a number of banks. The font was very small so she enlarged it and realized the spreadsheet included routing numbers for international banks. She was surprised that none of these banks were based in the U.S.

  She said aloud, “Why would Rachael have this?”

  Second, Katherine closed out the spreadsheet and retrieved a PDF file. The file appeared to be some kind of accounting — a ledger, perhaps — of names, addresses, banks, and business enterprises. Out of curiosity, she wrote down several of the names, then did a Google search on each person. Each name was a known criminal who had a long list of infractions, ranging from embezzlement to fraud to money laundering. Of the five names she researched, only one man didn’t produce any hits.