The Michaela Bancroft Mysteries 1-3 (82 page)

"Did you know that Erin was looking for Sterling the morning of the polo match?"

"I told her not to bother. Look, the guy was calling and harassing me. He made up lame stuff like he had me on video and he was going to show his friends and anyone else who wanted to see. Erin wanted to track him down and tell him to leave me alone. She found out he was going to be in that match, so she went looking for him. Then she wigged out when she realized that she would have to do his makeup."

"She told you all of this?"

"Yes, she did. We don't keep things from each other."

"What if I told you that Sterling wasn't lying to you about you being on tape?"

"What?"
Sheila looked truly horrified. "How do you know this? Are you sure?"

"I'm sure, and it's a long story," Michaela replied.

"Oh my God. I thought he was only trying to get me to come back over to his place. He was such an ass. Oh jeez. I never in a million years thought he was that sick."

"Do you think Erin knew about the tape?"

"No way. How would she?"

"I don't know, maybe Sterling said something to her about it at the show. You know, she came really unglued because he was harassing her about you."

"No, and you know what? Contrary to what people think about Erin, she's not a bad person. She's had some rough experiences and she's pulled through them."

"But you're looking for her?"

"Yeah," Sheila replied. "After you and your friend stopped by to talk to her the other night, she kind of freaked out. She called me and said that you were asking a lot of questions, and she was afraid that after the argument she and Sterling had on Sunday that the cops would come back and press her about it. Cops aren't exactly Erin's favorite people. She spent nine months in jail for a crime that she didn't commit. So she packed up and split, and I've been calling around looking for her ever since."

"I'm sorry." Michaela could understand how Erin might've felt. The police had been on her back since Sterling's murder, and even though she had nothing to do with it, Peters had been relentless. "You mentioned something about Sterling and his harassment. You figured that it was all just talk."

"I guess I was wrong."

"Do you know who his friends might be?"

She sighed. "No. I only spent one night with the guy, but I remember who he was partying with the night I went home with him."

"Who?"

"This one guy, middle-aged Italian dude, thought he was Al Pacino or something. I think he runs that club—Sinners and Saints. What a jerk—but Sterling told me that he did business with him. There was this little chicky there, too. I never caught her name, but she didn't like me hanging around with Sterling. I got the feeling she was hot for him. She looked kind of stupid, though. I'd seen her before."

"Stupid?"

"A wannabe. I know she had a wig on. Too dark a complexion for blonde hair. I don't know, maybe she dyed it, but it looked like a wig to me because she had one of those Britney Spears kind of beret hats on and she just looked dumb. I think she knew the Italian guy, too, because he kept whispering something to her."

"Were they there as a couple?"

"I don't think so. I think they could've been related. Then this other kid came in. Kind of a cute boy-next-door type with dimples, but trying to be a bad boy, you know. He wore a tank, looked like he had a new tattoo, and wore earrings."

"Earrings? What kind?"

"Diamonds. Big freaking ones, too."

"What was his name?"

"I don't know. I know they talked about playing polo."

"Was it Zach or Tommy?"

"Like I said, I don't know. I wasn't paying attention. Look, that's all I know. I went home with Sterling. He was an ass at about five in the morning, kicking me out. That's when I called Erin to come rescue me."

"Thanks. Hey, I'm sorry about Erin," Michaela said.

"Sometimes she likes to spend time in Big Bear, when she needs to think. She'll be back. We've had our issues before, but we always get past it. I might drive up there if she's not home in a day or two."

The receptionist tapped on the door. "Sheila, your client is here."

"Thanks. I better go."

Michaela eased out of the storage room and headed to her truck.

So, Sterling, a middle-aged Italian guy, and a younger Italian woman with a blonde wig had hung out. It hadn't been Mario wearing the wig after all, but more likely Lucia Sorvino, hanging out with her cousin Diamante Pizzini. What kind of craziness had they all been up to together? And the other guy? It had to be either Tommy or Zach. They both were good-looking and played polo. Michaela was banking that it was Tommy hanging out with them that night.

It was time to talk with Lucia Sorvino.

Her cell phone rang, snapping her out of her thoughts. Joe said, "Hey, thanks for feeding the twins and hanging with Vince this morning. Me and Marianne were kind of beat, I guess."

"No, thank
you
. I should've waited until you woke up, but I wanted to try and question Erin Hornersberg some more. It looks like she's skipped town."

"Interesting. Well, I may have something on the Sorvino girl. Can you meet me? I've got to take little Joe to soccer practice. Wanna come to the field?"

"Definitely. I'll be there in twenty. I found out some other things, too."

"Can you bring me a soda and maybe a bag of chips or something? I'm kind of hungry."

"Who do you think I am, the errand girl?"

"I'm your Magnum P.I., remember? Yeah, you must be the errand girl."

"I thought I was Higgins."

"Same diff. That dude always catered to Magnum."

"Ha! I'm not getting in any trouble with your wife. She told me about your blood pressure."

"She did? Damn."

"I'll bring you a bottled water and some fruit."

"Some friend."

"You'll thank me when you lose that extra fifty pounds and maybe start to resemble Tom Selleck."

"Fine."

Twenty-five minutes later she parked her truck next to Joe's minivan. "Hey, Magnum."

Joe waved her over to the soccer field, where a group of boys chased the ball up and down the field, with parents on the sidelines screaming their brains out as to how the game should be played. She never did understand the whole soccer-parent mentality. It seemed like a form of cruel and unusual punishment for the kids, or at least emotional abuse.

"I wish I'd never made that remark about Magnum. You're never going to let me live it down, are you? You know I love that show? I got all of 'em on DVD."

"I am not surprised. Okay, so tell me what you found out about Lucia Sorvino."

"It's not so much her, but it's her cousin the Pez."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. Check this. You know how Marianne and I told you that he's spent time in and out of jail for theft. Well, some years back, one of the guys who works for him went to the big house on charges that he was taking real jewels like rubies, emeralds, diamonds, the good stuff, and replacing them with fakes, which he was selling to a high-end jewelry store."

"No kidding?"

"No, but it gets better: The jewelry store was in Santa Barbara. And Diamante was using rich kids in the area to steal for him as well—on the side. Didn't you tell me that Sterling got popped as a teen for stealing jewels and spent time in juvie?"

"I sure did."

"Uh-huh. Well, it's all connected. Sterling knew Diamante for the last eight years or so, and who knows how long and who they've been scamming. Sterling did his short stint in juvie, got out, and moved here soon after. His folks didn't send him away. He was a delinquent. He followed Diamante and I bet lived his life conning and stealing and soaking it all up. The guy in jail for the initial crime won't talk. Word is he knows that Diamante is connected and he got framed for the crime, 'cause it's really Diamante dealing in switching out fakes."

"You think that maybe the bracelet I found in the stall—which we know is a fake—is connected to this Diamante character and somehow connected to Lucia, who may have been involved with Sterling?" Michaela said.

She filled him in about what Sheila had told her about the Sinners and Saints club and who Sterling had been with. "I think Marianne was right last night when she said that Lucia has the answers. I had to try and talk to Erin to satisfy all my theories, but this really does come down to Pepe's daughter. Lucia is looking like she's a big part of this, and now I know why she told the cops that I was screwing around with Sterling: It's because she knew that people had seen him with a blonde woman, and because I refused Sterling's advances. She might have murdered him and framed me because it was easy to do. But still, why did Lucia need to go out with the disguise?"

"Pepe Sorvino. He wants his sweet little daughter to save her
virginal
self for marriage, and if he had an inkling that she's the little tramp that she is, he'd blow a gasket. I bet she was driving her brother's car the other day when she followed you. She was trying to figure out your next play."

"Why?"

"She's a dumb-ass kid, that's why. They do stupid things. Maybe she thought you suspected her of being involved and wanted to know what you were up to."

"I can buy that, I guess," Michaela replied. "But Lucia is not the mastermind behind all of this. She didn't come after me in the tack shop last night. What should we do next?"

He shook his head. "I don't know."

"Let's backtrack. Lucia's uncle could be trading out real jewels for fakes, turning around and selling them on the black market. Where is he getting the jewels, and how is Sterling connected?" Michaela said.

"Beats me—"

"Wait! You know what, I think I might know who is behind all of this and why, and also why Carolyn Taber was murdered as well."

"You do?"

"Yes. You ready to catch a killer?"

"Do you have to ask?"

THE NEXT DAY MICHAELA, JOE, HIS COUSIN ANTHONY, and Marianne all met at Joe's house. Camden and Dwayne had agreed to watch the Pellegrino kids, which Michaela was sure would prove interesting, while they put their plan of attack into action.

Phase one began as they pulled up to Sorvino's with Anthony driving and Marianne in the passenger seat. Michaela was in the back covered by a blanket. Joe had called to find out if Lucia would be working, and what her schedule was. He'd asked the hostess these questions under the guise that he was a friend who needed to drop something off for her.

Joe was also in the backseat and made sure that Michaela couldn't be seen. Michaela didn't really need to be there for the plan to work, but she knew she had to be for her own sanity. She'd dragged her good friends into this and wouldn't miss it for the world. She knew that it was likely going to be through Lucia that they would catch a killer—one who had possibly framed Michaela and then attempted to kill her as well.

They waited for Lucia to end her shift, which luckily was the lunch shift, because there was still much to be done, and the first thing they needed was to get Lucia Sorvino to cooperate with them.

When she emerged, she headed toward the black Explorer. "You ready?" Joe asked Marianne and Anthony.

They nodded and got out of the car. The night before, they'd all rehearsed how this was going to go down. Anthony was as eager as Marianne as they'd sat around the kitchen table.

"With the attorney general's office, eh?" Anthony had asked. "Don't you think when she looks at my card, she might ask why it don't say nothing about being employed by the attorney general?"

"It says attorney on it, doesn't it?" Joe said.

"Yeah, it says
tax
attorney, though."

"That's fine," Michaela said. "If she asks about it, then tell her that stealing jewels is not only considered theft, it's tax evasion."

"She's going to deny it," Marianne added.

"Of course she will, and that's where you come in," Joe said. "You are an undercover police officer and you're there to help her. If she goes with the two of you, then her father or brother will have to know about it."

"I like it," Marianne replied. "Playing a cop. Cool. Do I get to carry a gun?"

"No," Joe said. "No guns."

Marianne had frowned.

Now, Michaela and Joe watched as they approached Lucia. Would their plan work? They saw Lucia take Anthony's card, then look back and forth between him and Marianne. "Do you think she's buying it?" Michaela asked.

"We'll see."

Marianne then slipped her hand around Lucia's arm and escorted her to the minivan. "Nice move," Michaela said.

"That's my girl," Joe replied. "I knew she could do this."

Michaela ducked down in the backseat. Joe had moved up front, behind the wheel, and as Anthony and Marianne opened the side door to the van, Marianne got in first. and Lucia sat between her and Anthony. Joe started the car and locked the doors.

"Who's that guy?" Lucia asked.

"The driver," Anthony said.

"Driver? Do I need a lawyer?"

"I am a lawyer," Anthony said.

"I didn't do anything wrong. I didn't," the girl protested.

"We want to help you," Marianne said. "Here is what we know. We know that your cousin Diamante Pizzini, also known as the Pez, has been trading out valuable jewels for fake ones."

"I don't know nothing about that," Lucia said.

"Really?"

It was all Michaela could do to lie in the back and stay quiet. They needed Lucia to talk. They didn't want her to know that Michaela was there—not yet.

"Yeah, really."

"Huh, well that's not what Diamante told the feds."

Marianne was good at this.

"Diamante? What do you mean, he told the feds? What did he say?"

"He said that you're the one who gives him the real jewels and sells them direct to the jewelers."

"That's not true! No. I don't do that. Sterling did that, not me."

"Sterling who?" Anthony asked.

"Taber."

"The man who was murdered last weekend?" Marianne asked.

"Yes. Him."

"So he was trading your cousin real jewels, swapping them out for the fakes, but who was cashing in? Who was Sterling selling them to?" Anthony asked. Joe kept on driving and Michaela laid low.