Blood Orchid (23 page)
“And how long has Harry known about this?”
“From the beginning.”
Holly felt as if someone had kicked her in the stomach. “You mean, he knew who Pio and the old man were before I told him about them?”
“Yes.”
“That miserable son of a bitch. Why wouldn’t he tell me?”
“I guess it’s just Harry’s natural reticence,” Grant said.
“Well, it’s obvious from the connection with Trini Rodriguez and the hiring of Carlos Alvarez that they’re both into
something
,” she said.
“Well, yeah.”
“Does Harry know what it is?”
“Not really.”
“Do you?”
“I have my suspicions, but I can’t talk about that.”
“Why not?”
“Because it pertains to what I’m working on in Orchid Beach, and you know I can’t tell you about that.”
“Grant…”
“Listen, Holly, I’m trying to help you out here, but I can’t tell you more than that.”
“Grant…”
“All right, one more thing: Trini is a registered FBI informant; has been for a couple of years.”
“You mean, he’s working for Harry?” Holly asked, astonished.
“It’s not like that; he’s not an undercover agent. He’s just a guy on the street who gets paid for information.”
“Well, I’m relieved to hear it. Do you think that his status as a snitch has kept Harry from busting him?”
“Maybe, when all this started. Right now, Harry wants him off the street as bad as anybody.”
“I don’t believe this. I’m busting my ass trying to figure out stuff that Harry already knows but won’t tell me?”
“It’s the nature of the beast, Holly. I told you before that the Bureau likes to know more than everybody else, and it doesn’t like sharing.”
“You know,” Holly said, “I would really like to just bow out of this whole thing, except that I can’t, because Trini Rodriguez is trying to kill me and that poor girl upstairs.”
“Believe me, I know how you feel, but whatever you do, don’t let Harry find out that you know what you know, or I’ll be an undercover seal on an ice floe in Alaska by this time next week.”
“All right, Grant, but you will try and help me not to get killed because of something Harry didn’t tell me?”
“I’m not going to let you get killed,” he said, kissing her on the cheek.
“Okay, but you’re answering the doorbell from now on, while I hide under something.”
“Okay, deal.”
“And try and do a better job than you did with the pizza guy.”
She went and poured herself another drink. Sobriety was not in the cards for this evening.
“First time I’ve seen you have more than one drink before dinner,” Grant said.
“First time I’ve needed more than one,” Holly replied.
T
he following day, Holly worked listlessly, hungover and depressed, a bad combination. Just before lunchtime, she got a phone call.
“Hey, Holly, it’s Ed Shine,” he said.
“Oh, Ed, it’s good to hear from you.”
“How about dinner tonight?”
“Thank you, Ed, but I’m tied up.”
“Sounds like I’ve got competition.”
“Well, maybe.”
“How about lunch; you free?”
“Sure.”
“Come on out to Blood Orchid; meet me at the clubhouse, and I’ll show you what my new chef can do. Then we’ll play some golf.”
“Oh, I don’t think I can take the time for golf, but I’d love lunch.”
“Half an hour?”
“See you then.”
“I’ll leave your name at the gate.”
“Bye.”
Holly freshened up and put on civilian clothes, then drove out to Blood Orchid. The guard waved her
through the gate, and she drove to the clubhouse. As she got out of her car, she looked over toward the practice range and saw a very peculiar sight: Hurd Wallace taking a golf lesson! She went inside.
Ed was waiting for her at a table overlooking the golf course; he was the only other person in the dining room. She gave him a kiss and sat down.
“Drink?”
“Maybe a glass of wine with lunch,” she said.
“I’ve already ordered for us,” Ed said. “Trust me?”
Holly smiled. “Anytime. How’s it going with Blood Orchid?”
“I’ll tell you, this is going to turn out to be a better investment than I thought. I’ve sold six houses and three building lots; we’ve already got construction started on two houses.”
“How so fast?”
“The corporation already had the building permits, and the buyers liked the plans.”
“That’s great, Ed.”
A waiter arrived with soup: lobster bisque.
“This is wonderful,” Holly said, tasting it.
“This new chef is a wonder, that’s why.”
“Where’d you find him?”
“In New York; he was the number-two man in a big-time restaurant, but he wanted to get out of the city. I was able to offer him a very attractive package, and he jumped at it. He’s got a lovely wife and two kids, one of whom is starting school this year. I’ve helped him get the boy into a good private school.”
“Sounds like a wonderful deal for him,” Holly replied. “But how about you? Is this going to be a big enough operation to afford that kind of talent?”
“I want only the best,” Ed said, “and by this time next year, the place will be generating big revenues. Everybody I’ve hired has been the best available—except for my security chief, of course; he’s second-best.”
“I saw Hurd out on the practice range, having a golf lesson,” Holly said. “Never thought I’d see that.”
“Oh, Hurd’s a natural,” Ed said. “The pro thinks he’s going to be quite good.”
“Does he have time for golf lessons in the middle of the day?”
Ed grinned sheepishly. “Well, he’s a little underworked at the moment—will be until the place really gets going. I knew that would be the case, that’s why I gave him a golf club membership.”
“The course looks wonderful,” Holly said.
“I had the designer back to install some improvements, and we’re already under way. I’m keeping one of the three courses untouched while the other two are being worked on. That way, my members won’t be bothered with the construction.”
They finished their soup, and the waiter brought their main course.
“What is it?” Holly asked.
“It’s fresh sea bass, cooked in a potato wrapping, with an excellent sauce,” Ed said.
The waiter poured them a glass of white wine.
“And that’s a Batard Montrachet, ’eighty-nine,” Ed said. “The bastard of Le Montrachet.”
Holly tasted it. “Wow,” she said softly.
“Exactly. Now tell me, what’s up with you?”
“Oh, Ed, I’m up to my ears in a huge mess.”
“Tell me about it,” Ed said, concerned.
“Well, for a start, we found the guy who took a shot at you.”
“Hooray for that!” Ed said. “Who is he?”
“Was. His name was Carlos Alvarez, and we found him floating in the Indian River with a bullet in his head.”
“I never heard of him.”
“He was a hired hit man, the same one who killed the two Miami developers. He was quite a shot, too; you were very lucky.”
Ed gave a low whistle. “I guess I was. Who hired him?”
“I don’t know,” Holly admitted. “We’ve traced Alvarez back to some people named Pellegrino, in Miami.”
“There’s a restaurant by that name,” Ed said. “I’ve had dinner there; very good.”
“Pio Pellegrino and his father, Ignacio. Turns out the old man is a former mafioso from New York named Falcone. He disappeared a few years ago and turned up in Miami with his son and a new name.”
“So I had dinner in a Mafia restaurant?” Ed said, sounding delighted. “That’s a new experience. Are they the people who wanted me dead?”
“Yes, and whoever they work with or for. We haven’t gotten past them yet, although the FBI is working on it.”
“I guess they really wanted this property bad, then.”
“Yes, but you’re safe now, since you own it. There’s nothing in it for them to try to kill you again.”
“Who killed… what’s his name? The hit man?”
“Another hit man named Trini Rodriguez.”
“He doesn’t sound like Mafia,” Ed said.
“There’s all kinds of Mafia, Ed. We’ve even got a Russian involved in all this.”
“This is the craziest business I ever heard of,” Ed said, shaking his head. “I’m glad I’m out of it.”
“I wish I were out of it; these people have already tried to kill me.”
Ed’s eyebrows went up. “My God! Are you safe?”
“I work on it every day.”
“Listen, I’ve got a couple of guest cottages here; why don’t you move into one of them? They’re very comfortable, and this has to be the most secure place in Orchid Beach.”
“Thank you, Ed, that’s very sweet of you. I’m staying with a friend at the moment, but if that doesn’t work out, I might take you up on your invitation.”
“Is your friend anybody I know?”
“Maybe; his name is Grant Early. He looked at some property out here.”
“Oh, yes, I met him in our office; nice fellow. Some sort of
dot.com
millionaire, I believe.”
“Yes, he apparently got out just in time, before the crash in those stocks.”
“Some people are just lucky, I guess,” Ed said.
“Yes, and you’re one of them.”
“Keep me posted on your case, will you? It’s fascinating. I lead such a dull life compared to you.”
“Believe me, Ed, you’re better off with a dull life.”
H
olly felt better after lunch, the wine having helped her hangover, but when she got back to Grant’s house after work, she was tired.
Marina was sitting in the living room alone, a drink in her hand.
“Hi,” Holly said.
“Hello,” Marina said disconsolately.
“Where’s Grant?”
“He went to the grocery store,” she replied. “I wanted to go with him, but he wouldn’t let me.”
“It’s best you stay in the house, until we know you’re safe,” Holly said.
Marina nodded listlessly. “I spoke to the undertaker this morning, and he called back this afternoon. They’re releasing my mother’s and my aunt’s bodies tomorrow, and the undertaker is taking them back to Fort Lauderdale. I want to go back tomorrow to make the funeral arrangements, but my car is still at the airport in Sarasota.”
Holly sat down next to her. “Marina, you can’t go back to Lauderdale while Trini is still on the loose. He’s looking for you.”
“I don’t care,” Marina said. “I have to bury my mother and my aunt; there’s nobody else to do it.”
“I understand, but you’re going to have to postpone the funeral until it’s safe.”
“While their bodies rot in a funeral home?”
“The undertaker will take care of them; they’ll be embalmed and kept in cold storage.”
“Yes, at a hundred and fifty dollars a day,” Marina said. “I’ve already missed a lot of work because of Carlos’s funeral, and now this. They’re not paying me for the time off, either, and I only have a little in savings. I’ll have to put all this on a credit card, and I just got them paid off.”
“Marina, I know it’s expensive, but isn’t protecting your life worth a few hundred dollars?”
“Oh, I suppose so, but I feel so helpless.”
“Tell you what, I’ll send someone over to Sarasota to bring back your car. Do you have the keys?”
Marina opened her purse and handed them to Holly.
“I’ll send two officers over there tomorrow, and one can drive your car back.”
“Thank you.”
“But you can’t leave here, Marina. I hope you understand that.”
Marina nodded. “I understand.”
Grant came in from the garage, his arms filled with groceries. “There’s more in the car,” he said. “Give me a hand?”
Holly went out to the garage and got the remaining bags from Grant’s trunk. The top was down on the Mercedes convertible, and as she walked back into the house, something in the car caught her attention. It was a matchbook, lying on the console between the front
seats, but she could read the name on it.
TRICKY’S
, it said.
BAR AND GRILL
.
They finished dinner and watched TV for a while, then Marina excused herself and went to bed.
“She’s getting pretty antsy,” Grant said.
“I know. She wants to go back to Lauderdale to bury her mother and aunt.”
“You’re not going to let her, are you?”
“Of course not.” They were both quiet for a moment. “Grant, what else do you know about the Pellegrinos?”
“Nothing I can tell you,” he replied.
“Oh, come on, there must be something else that you can tell me without compromising your investigation.”
“They’re very well connected,” Grant said.
“With whom?”
“You name it—if it’s a criminal organization, they’re plugged into it.”
“What sort of activities?”
“Whatever turns a million bucks—prostitution, gambling.”
“Prostitution? I thought that was a freelancer’s market these days.”
“There are some very fancy whorehouses in Miami,” Grant said. “You wouldn’t believe how fancy, and how beautiful the girls are. Or boys.”
“And the Pellegrinos are into that?”
“The Pellegrinos
own
that.”
“Jesus. And what sort of gambling? Bookie operations?”
“They’ve gone way beyond a bookie operation,” Grant said. “They’re on the Internet.”
“The Internet?”
“Come on, I’ll show you.” He led the way into the study and switched on his computer. He hit the Internet connection, then typed in an address. A title page came up, and there were buttons for football, baseball, golf, basketball, soccer, European soccer, South American soccer, dog racing, and horse racing. Grant clicked on one and got a display of odds on various games.
“Wow,” Holly said. “But that’s got to be illegal.”
“It is, in this country, but Pio and his pop are too sophisticated to get caught at it. The operation is based on an island in the Caribbean called Saint Marks. It’s a former British colony with very loose rules about gambling and banking.”
“How does it work?”
“Well, let’s say you want to place a fifty-dollar bet on a Yankees game. You hit the appropriate button, place a bet, give them a credit card number, and you get an on-screen receipt, which you can print out. If you win, the amount is credited to your card, and you can use it to pay down your bill, or you can take a credit refund.”
