Family Business (24 page)

‘We must remain mindful of the victim, is what I say,' Ignatius White said.

‘But think,' Marie said. ‘He woke up this morning and thought it was just another day. He went down to have breakfast with his mother planning to tell her all about the gorgeous women he had in his car last night. And suddenly, there's a knock at the door! Who can it be at this time on a Sunday? And even then he doesn't have the slightest hint that his whole world is about to crumble.'

‘Some world,' the Old Man said.

‘It can't be helped,' Angelo said. ‘Solve one person's problem, and you make a problem for the next.'

‘That's a bit philosophical,' Gina said.

‘Maybe I'm in the wrong business,' Angelo said.

‘Maybe it should be the knight in shining armour business,' Gina suggested.

‘What could I do?' Angelo asked.

‘I made the broccoli with almonds, Iggy,' Rosetta said.

‘It's delicious,' Ignatius White said. ‘Everything is delicious, truly. But the broccoli is specially commended. Might I have some more?'

Mama's eyes shone as she passed the broccoli. ‘So tell me, Iggy,' she said, ‘what do you do for a living?'

‘At the moment I install computers. But I'm moving into sales.'

‘Not a lawyer, then?' the Old Man said.

‘More Parmesan?' Mama said abruptly. ‘That's not enough.'

‘It's plenty,' the Old Man said. ‘Is it supposed to be a blanket?' After a moment he sprinkled another spoonful of Parmesan over his spaghetti.

‘That's how I met your lovely daughter, the computers,' Ignatius White said.

‘And Iggy is going to save us lots of money,' Rosetta said.

‘Money?' the Old Man said.

‘How's that, Rose?' Angelo asked.

‘You know all this new equipment we have on trial?'

‘On trial?' Angelo said. ‘I thought we bought it.'

‘Noooo, silly! I haven't signed anything,' Rosetta said. ‘But Iggy knows how we can get it cheaper.'

‘Nothing fraudulent, I hope,' Angelo said. ‘Not that I'm accusing you of dishonesty,' he added quickly. ‘It's just that we have an investigation that has suddenly become a large fraud case.'

‘We?' the Old Man said to Mama. ‘He says “We”? So where is he when the Shaylers want to consult?'

‘Yes, Angelo,' Gina said quietly, ‘do tell us what you were up to yesterday while the rest of us were capturing thieves in their vans, gathering evidence for fraud cases, and solving murders.'

‘I heard that,' the Old Man said. ‘And it wasn't a murder. Not a real murder.'

‘He hears when he wants to hear,' Mama said to Gina, shaking her head.

‘Are the African documents you brought home last night the fraud evidence, Grandma?' David asked.

‘That's right,' Mama said.

‘All for companies that don't exist,' the Old Man said. ‘Order forms, invoice forms, receipt forms, and not one company is real. Not one.'

‘Is it against the law to print forms for fake companies?' David asked.

‘You can print what you like,' the Old Man said.

‘So what's the fraud?'

‘When you go to the bank to borrow money because you're doing such wonderful business in Africa, that's the fraud. Huh!'

Angelo said, ‘If you use the documents to pretend you have assets, and then borrow money on those assets.'

‘Like,' David said, ‘if we borrowed money on our new computers, but they aren't really ours?'

‘That's the idea,' Angelo said. ‘Only with this case the idea was probably to borrow a lot of money and then abscond to a country where there's no extradition and live in luxury.'

‘Can anybody do that?' Marie asked.

‘Not stupid people who get low GCSEs,' David said.

Marie smacked David's arm. ‘They were just mocks, as you know perfectly well.'

‘A fraud case, that's what it is,' the Old Man said. ‘
Not
murder.'

‘How much money was involved?' Salvatore asked.

‘No telling until they go through the details,' Gina said.

‘No fun sorting all that out,' Salvatore said.

‘I wondered if maybe they'll get Mr Shayler to do it,' Gina said.

‘Fun?' the Old Man said. ‘Work has to be fun? When did they make a law? Huh!'

‘Go on, Papa,' Salvatore said. ‘Are you telling me you didn't get a kick out of breaking into Block Letter? Because if you tell me that, I won't believe you.'

‘A son should believe his father,' the Old Man said, but he could not help grinning.

‘See,' Salvatore said. ‘What he is at heart is a ram raider.'

‘Someone had to do it,' the Old Man said. ‘With nobody else around.' He rubbed the shoulder that broke Block Letter's door open. ‘Pepper. Where's the pepper?'

‘Here it is, Grandad!' Marie said brightly, passing the pepper.

Gina said, ‘Sally, I thought you were going to bring someone to lunch?'

‘She couldn't come,' Salvatore said. ‘She had to work.'

‘Work?' Mama said. ‘She's a tourist.'

‘It's not Muffin, Mama. This is a girl called Cheryl.'

‘Cheryl?' Mama asked. ‘But—'

‘I don't know what's happened to Muffin,' Salvatore said. ‘She just vanished.'

‘Don't be silly,' Mama said. ‘Muffins don't vanish.'

‘Angelo knows about Muffin,' Gina said.

‘Do you, bubba?'

‘Angelo?' Mama said.

‘Muffin went home,' Angelo said.

‘Home?' Mama said. ‘What do you mean, home?'

‘Back to America, Mama.'

‘Why would she do that?' Mama said. She frowned deeply. ‘So sudden. Salvatore?'

‘I don't know anything about it,' Salvatore said.

‘Muffin flew back to America yesterday,' Angelo said. ‘She's trying to sort out a difficult personal problem.'

‘What personal problem?' Mama demanded. ‘Salvatore, why does Angelo know all about this nice girl?'

Angelo said, ‘Muffin needed to go back to America, but she was afraid and nervous, so I went to the airport with her.'

‘Why was she afraid?' Mama said. ‘What did Salvatore do to upset her so much?'

‘I know you liked her, Mama,' Salvatore said. ‘I liked her too. But I don't know anything about it.'

‘It was nothing to do with Salvatore,' Angelo said. ‘She had a different problem altogether. Truly, Mama.'

Mama sighed. Could there be a more difficult problem than Salvatore? And if he's always going to disappoint, why bring them to the house at all? Why torment a mother so? Mama said nothing.

‘Is Muffin really gone forever, Dad?' David asked.

Angelo nodded.

‘But she was going to teach me things on the computer.'

‘And she owes
me
money,' Marie said. ‘Ten quid.'

‘So what's this new one you got?' the Old Man asked. ‘Another doctor?'

‘No, Papa,' Salvatore said with a laugh.

‘A lawyer, maybe? To support you with her income?' But before the Old Man could develop either a legal or a financial theme, the door bell rang. ‘Is somebody expecting?' the Old Man asked. He looked around his family.

Rosetta said, ‘Not me, Papa.'

Salvatore got up. ‘I'll see who it is.' He left the room.

‘Does anybody know who it can be?' Gina said.

‘It doesn't matter as long as they pay,' the Old Man said.

Everybody laughed except Ignatius White. The Old Man said, ‘What's funny?' As he did so, the telephone rang. ‘And now the telephone? What is this? Who rings?'

Angelo rose and went to the nearest phone, which was in the kitchen.

‘Excuse me,' Ignatius White said.

‘Yes, Iggy?' Mama said. ‘Some more broccoli? More sauce? Look at him. He wants building up.'

‘You were just talking about someone who had promised to teach David about the new computers.'

‘That's right,' Mama said sweetly.

‘Well, if David would like some instruction, I can probably help.'

‘There you go, brain-drain,' Marie said.

‘That's very generous of you, Iggy,' Gina said. ‘Isn't that kind, David?'

David looked across the table at Ignatius White.

‘I'd be pleased, delighted to help you, David,' Ignatius White said.

David managed to say, ‘Thank you.'

Angelo appeared from the kitchen. ‘Marie. For you.'

Marie jumped up and closed the door behind her father as Angelo returned to his seat.

‘Who rings people in the middle of Sunday lunch?' the Old Man asked.

‘This call,' Angelo said deliberately, ‘was from a classmate of Marie's named Terry. He says he wants to talk to her about a band called Easy Money.'

Before anyone could comment Salvatore reappeared. He carried a cage. ‘For Gina,' he said.

‘What for does Gina want a birdcage?' the Old Man asked.

‘For her canary,' Salvatore said, pointing to a tiny, pale lemon bird with black markings perched in a corner.

‘For me?' Gina said.

‘From an old guy with braces,' Salvatore said. ‘He said he was a friend of yours. He said he knew how much you must be missing Jasper.'

‘The Shaylers' neighbour,' Gina said.

‘Your friend says he's sorry Patch isn't orange like Jasper, but he's sure Patch is male and that he'll be a good singer. Keep the cage as long as you need it. And if you want to drop in, he has some bird books you might find interesting. To tell the truth, Gina,' Salvatore said, ‘I think the old guy's in love with you.'

Gina buried her face in her hands.

‘You going to satisfy this customer?' Salvatore asked.

‘The Shaylers,' the Old Man said to Ignatius White. ‘Satisfied clients. But definitely
not
a murder case.'

‘How interesting,' Ignatius White said.

‘Now Norman Stiles,
that
was a murder case.'

From around the table groans arose. Ignatius White did not understand them at all.

About the Author

Michael Z. Lewin is the award-winning author of many mystery novels, short stories, and radio plays. He is best known for two series set in and around his hometown of Indianapolis. Albert Samson is a wry, low-key private eye who neither beats people up nor owns a gun. Leroy Powder is an irascible Indy police lieutenant who repeatedly “helps” his colleagues to become better cops. Both character also appear in Lewin's short stories. The main characters from the two series and other Indianapolis titles often appear in lesser roles in other books.

Since 1971, Lewin has lived in England, currently in Bath, where his city center flat overlooks the nearby hills. It also overlooks the front doors of the Lunghi family detective agency, a newer series of novels and stories set in the historic city. Visit him online at
www.MichaelZLewin.com
for more information.

All rights reserved, including without limitation the right to reproduce this ebook or any portion thereof in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of the publisher.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, events, and incidents either are the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

Copyright © 1995 by Michael Z. Lewin

Cover design by Kat JK Lee

ISBN: 978-1-4804-4375-4

This edition published in 2015 by Open Road Integrated Media, Inc.

345 Hudson Street

New York, NY 10014

www.openroadmedia.com

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