“That’s horrible.”
“That’s the way it is, babe.”
“Don’t call me babe. It’s condescending.”
His shot me a subtle shrug.
“Why are you so certain the connection you’re looking for is through our clientele? Did Chico ever specifically tell you that or are you assuming?”
“I’m certain of it,” he said. “He told me he’d been approached on a delivery. He didn’t say if it was from a worker, or just someone he met randomly, but I’m betting the former. He was asked if he was interested in making, quote, more money than he’d ever make driving a van around town, unquote. He had a meeting set up and as soon as he knew anything more he’d let me know. We’d agreed to meet, but he never showed.”
Because he was killed and then stuffed in my freezer.
I shuddered at the memory flash of Chico, frozen like a Popsicle with a knife sticking out of his chest, then gave voice to the question that had been roaming around in my head every time I thought about finding him. “What was stuffed into his mouth? I didn’t get a good look at it in my haste to run out of the freezer. I only saw that it was green.”
He flicked me a glance then turned his attention back to driving. “Mistletoe.”
“Oh, sweet Jesus. That must have come from our front door. I’d hung a sprig when I’d decorated for the holidays.”
Tony stayed silent as he drove.
“I wonder what the significance of doing that to him was,” I said.
“There’s probably no sane reason, so don’t lose any sleep over it. We’re not dealing with the smartest or nicest people on the planet here, Donna.”
How true.
“Did you get any kind of, I don’t know, vibe from anyone so far?” I asked.
“Not really, but it’s early days. Chico drove for you a couple of months before he told me he’d been approached. Besides, I haven’t met all the regulars yet. We’ve still got six more deliveries.”
“To shut-ins, Tony, not criminals. You can’t possibly believe any of them are involved with drug dealers.”
My voice rose a few decibels and rebounded around the enclosed cab. I sounded shrill and waspish, but couldn’t help it. There was no way I would ever believe one of our elderly home delivery clients was involved in something illegal.
Tony shook his head as he pulled down a side street, close to our next stop. “I believe everyone’s guilty until I can rule them out, Donna. A healthy skepticism works well for me in my job.”
“So you thought my father or I had something to do with Chico’s death when you first found out about it?”
He blew out a breath. It was fascinating watching the muscles in his angular jaw tense, release, then tense again. His back molars must be almost worn down to the size of Chiclets from all the back and forth motion.
“Honestly, I never considered you or your old man had anything to do with it. You father is one of the most stand-up guys I’ve ever met. If he found out someone in his place of business was involved in something illegal, he would have gone to the police, first thing.”
I agreed with his assessment, wholeheartedly. It was nice, though, to hear him voice it.
“And me?”
“What do you mean? I already said I didn’t think you were involved.”
“You did. But I’m curious why not.”
A sound remarkably like a bark burst from him. It took me a second to recognize it as laughter.
“What’s so funny?”
“You are. Donna, seriously, I never considered you a suspect because, A. only someone stupid would store the body in their own place of business, and you’re not stupid. B. I know you’re strong but Chico had close to a hundred pounds on you and I can’t see you dragging him anywhere. And C? Well…”
“Well?”
He turned and flashed me a full-toothed smile that made my insides quake.
“You’d never murder someone you had a beef with. You’d torture them, make their lives a living hell, make them wish they were dead, instead.”
He wasn’t wrong. Still…
“I don’t know whether to be insulted or complimented.”
Tony squeezed the van into a parking spot, miraculously found right outside our customer’s apartment building. He threw it into park and turned his body full toward me. “It’s a compliment, bab, er, Donna. Now, are you coming up to introduce me?”
Five minutes later, a fourth floor walk-up apartment door was opened by Rosalie Bomba.
“Madonna. How’ya doing today?”
She held the door open wide and stood behind the threshold, her walker in front of her.
“Doing well, Mrs. B. thanks. Remember I told you about Chico?”
“Who, dear? Oh, yes, yes. Albert. Yes.”
I’d forgotten for a sec Albert was Chico’s given name.
“God rest his soul.” She made the sign of the cross.
Without even thinking, I did the same and was shocked when Tony mimiced the movements, too.
“This is Tony,” I said, wrapping my hand around his arm and tugging him into the apartment. “He’s gonna be our delivery guy from now on. I wanted to introduce him myself so you wouldn’t be nervous about a new face when he starts making the deliveries on his own.”
Rosalie Bomba, all four feet tall and equally as wide, leaned forward and, holding onto her walker with a death grip, inspected Tony from head to toes, her cataract glasses, thick and heavy on her nose. She lifted her head then dipped it down so she could view all of him.
“My, you’re a tall drink’a water, ain’t ya?”
He may have been dressed like a bad boy wannabe, but his open and dazzling smile was all good boy charm. He shifted her delivery box to one hand and stuck his other out to shake hers.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Bomba.”
“Call me Mrs. B, sweetie,” she told him. “Bomba makes me sound like I’m gonna blow up any minute. Well, come in, come in. Don’t be shy. Have a seat.”
This is how it went at every other delivery for the next hour. The female customers had all been utterly taken with Tony and I know if I hadn’t been there would have grilled him like a raw flank stake, wanting to know everything about him, with special emphasis on his love life.
The two male customers we’d delivered to had succumbed to Tony’s easy way and gracious manners as well.
By the time we pulled back into the parking lot behind the store I knew he’d be fine on his own.
“Tomorrow you go solo,” I said, jumping out of the van. “Now that you’ve met all the regulars and they’re okay with you, I can stay back here and do my job.”
“I told you, Donna, people love to talk to me. And old folks adore me.”
“That’s the truth, if nothing else.” He handed me the van keys. “When we were kids all the old nonne in the neighborhood fawned over you, my own included.” Shaking my head I started to walk back inside but Tony shot out his hand and grabbed my arm.
“What?” The heat from his grip felt like I’d stepped into a natural hot spring on a cold, winter’s day. Instantly, my body warmed inside and out. How the heck could one simple touch do that?