Hope Callaghan - Garden Girls 04 - Death by Dumplings (9 page)

“Well, we’re happy you’re here.  Our special today is Spaghetti and Meatballs.”

Gloria’s eyes darted to Dot.  One of Dot’s dinner specials was Spaghetti and Meatballs.

Dot’s face turned beet red.  Her fist clenched in her lap.

Gloria stuck her head behind the menu and leaned in Dot’s direction.  “Remember, it’s an Italian restaurant,” she mumbled under her breath.

The waitress took their orders and headed to the kitchen.  She passed a man coming from the opposite direction.  It was the same guy that Dot and Gloria ran into in the alley the other day. 

He walked over to the table behind theirs.

“Hello, Amy,” the man said.

“Hi Uncle Joe,” she replied.

“Uncle Joe.”
Gloria mouthed the words.  The food critic was related to this man?
No wonder he got such a raving restaurant review!

They talked for several minutes before he headed back to the kitchen.

The waitress returned with their drinks.  “Say, the man that just walked out here – he’s the owner of Pasta Amore?” Gloria asked.

The woman set an iced tea in front of Gloria.  “Yes, that’s the owner. Joe Toscani.”

Bingo! 
Gloria had a name now!  She repeated the name to herself three times.  It was a trick she used to memorize important information. 

There was no need to worry about that.  Ruth was scribbling furiously on her drink napkin.  She shoved the napkin in her purse and winked at Gloria. 

Dinner arrived a short time later.  Gloria had to admit the food was good. 

“The food’s good,” Dot announced.

“But not as good as yours,” Andrea argued.

The others agreed.

Dot swirled the spaghetti around her fork.  “You’re just trying to make me feel better.”

The owner didn’t make a second appearance and the food critic behind them ate alone so there was nothing to eavesdrop on.  They divvied up the bill and paid before making their way back to the van.

The girls buckled in as Ruth backed out of the spot.  “We got some valuable information.”

Gloria agreed.  “We know the owner’s name!”

“And we know one more thing,” Andrea announced.

“What’s that?” Margaret wondered.

“Joe Toscani was in your restaurant the morning of the poisoning.  I remember seeing him in there.”

The color drained from Dot’s face.  “You’re kidding?”

Andrea shook her head.  “No.  I’m positive he was in there eating breakfast.  The reason I remember,” she explained, “was because he was complaining rather loudly about how his eggs were overcooked.”

She went on.  “Jennifer took care of it.  She tried to get him to wait while she brought out a new order but the man didn’t want that.  The more she tried to help, the more irate he became.”

“It was almost as if he was trying to make a scene,” Andrea added.  “He left not long afterwards.  Stormed out the door.”

“And that was before the man was poisoned,” Ruth said.

Andrea nodded.  “Yeah.  Wasn’t long after that Dot came back and served the dumplings to the couple.”

Gloria spoke her thoughts.  “He had motive and he had opportunity.”  She couldn’t wait to get home and log onto her computer to find out what was up with this guy.

The house was dark when Gloria pulled into the driveway.  She stuck her leftovers from dinner in the fridge before letting Mally out.  She followed her out onto the porch.  The night air was cool and a breeze made it even chillier.  She glanced out at the outline of her big red barn and shivered as she remembered the man that was hiding out in there a few months back.   

“C’mon, girl.  Time to go in.”

She fed Mally and Puddles while she waited for her computer to boot up.  Even if this Joe guy was a killer, how could she ever prove it?  So far, no one had seen anything or anyone suspicious out back that day. 

She settled into the desk chair.  She logged in to check her mail before starting her search.  Her fingers fumbled clumsily on the keys.  It took three tries to type in the correct spelling.  “
Joseph Toscani, Chicago, Illinois.”

She held her breath as the computer searched.  It was worth the wait.  The first thing that popped up on her screen was that he was the owner of Amici Trattoria.  She clicked on the link.  The news article was from three months ago.  
Joseph Toscani, the owner of Amici Trattoria, is being investigated by the Chicago Police Department in the suspicious death of his business partner, Giuseppe Serafino. 

The two men were co-owners of the Amici Trattoria.  Prior to Mr. Serafino’s death, an undercover investigation into their business had been ongoing for several months.

Mr. Serafino’s body was found under a bridge near the Chicago River on the morning of January first.  An autopsy revealed Mr. Serafino was strangled to death.  Police believe he was killed prior to his body being placed near the river. 

Mr. Serafino’s partner, Joseph Toscani, is the prime suspect.  Police have uncovered mob connections to both Mr. Serafino and Mr. Toscani. 

The article ended by saying Joseph Toscani was out of jail on $100,000 bond.  Gloria leaned in to have a closer look at the mugshot of Toscani.  It was the same man they saw in the restaurant earlier. 

Joseph Toscani was a killer!  But would he risk killing again, just to eliminate his competition in a town as small as Lakeville?

Gloria thought of something else. 
Was his niece, Amy Martola, in on it? 

Or was it Judith?  She was in town that morning, too.  Maybe she tried to poison Dot. 

If only there was some way she could get her hands on the poison! 

And then Gloria had a thought.  Today was Sunday.  The incident happened four days ago. 

Gloria shoved back the chair and made a beeline for the phone in the kitchen. 

“Hello?”  Dot answered on the first ring.

“Hey Dot.  It’s me – Gloria.”

“Oh. Hi, Gloria.  What’s up?”

“I was just wondering…what day is trash pick-up at the restaurant?” Gloria asked.

“It’s Monday,” Dot said.  “Monday morning.  Early,” she added.

Gloria glanced out the window.  It was already dark out - but she needed to search the trash before it got picked up the next morning!

“Why?” Dot asked.

“I want to take a look inside the garbage cans out back,” Gloria confessed.

“Y-you think there might be some kind of evidence inside?” Dot asked.

“It’s worth a shot,” Gloria replied.  “Look, if it’s okay with you, I’m going to run down to the restaurant.” She glanced at Mally.  “I’ll take Mally with me.”

“Sure Gloria,” Dot agreed.  “You want me to meet you down there?”

“That’s up to you,” she answered.  “All I know is I need to sift through the cans before they get picked up.”

Dot tightened her grip on the phone.  “I can help!  I’ll meet you there in ten minutes!”

Gloria grabbed her purse from the chair and her car keys from the hook.  “C’mon Mally.”  She started out the door and then turned back around.  She would almost bet that the trash smelled to high heaven!

She grabbed a couple garbage bags and pair of latex kitchen gloves from underneath the sink before she and Mally hopped in Anabelle and headed for town.

Main Street was pretty empty.  Except for cars in front of Kip’s Bar & Grill.  The red neon sign flashed brightly above the front door.  Kip’s wasn’t really a “grill.”  Just a bar. The food menu was limited to the kind of stuff you’d find in a convenience store: hot dogs on a rotisserie, hamburgers they bought pre-packaged and nuked-to-order frozen pizzas made the same way.

Gloria turned right and headed down the alley.  She pulled into the small grassy lot behind the restaurant.  Dot’s van was already there.  She and Mally slid out of the car.

Dot met her by the driver’s side door.  “Why didn’t I think of this?” she asked.

“I didn’t, either, Dot.  Not until tonight.” Gloria replied.  “Better late than never.”

Dot opened her purse and pulled out a flashlight.  “I figured we would want to keep a low profile.”

Gloria nodded.  “You’re getting the hang of this sleuthing thing.”  She turned her own flashlight on.  “Especially since the killer is still on the loose.”

Mally, Gloria and Dot stayed close to the edge of the building as they made their way over to the back door.  “Still, you really should put up some kind of light back here,” Gloria commented.

“I know, I know. Ray and I keep telling each other that.”

Gloria flashed her light back and forth across the rear of the restaurant’s drab gray exterior.  “Where’s the trash?”

Dot pointed.  “Off to the side.”

Gloria tiptoed to the side of the building and shined her light between the restaurant and the building beside it.  There were two trash cans.  A large, plastic green bin on wheels and a smaller, round metal bin.  “Which is which?” she whispered behind her.

“The green one is regular trash and the metal one is recyclables,” Dot told her.

“Here, hold this.” Gloria handed her flashlight to Dot and grabbed the plastic bin with the wheels.  She wheeled it to the back of the building and onto the cement pad outside the kitchen door.

“Let’s grab the other one,” Gloria said.

The flashlight bobbed brightly as the girls, once again, made their way around the side of the building.  Gloria grabbed both handles and tried lifting it up.  It wouldn’t budge.  “This one’s too heavy.”

Dot squeezed past Gloria as she made her way around the other side of the metal can.  She tucked the flashlight in her front pocket and grabbed the side handle with both hands. 

Gloria grabbed the other side and the girls half-carried, half-dragged the can down the narrow space and onto the cement pad.  They set it next to the other can. 

Dot lifted the lid on the green bin first.  Gloria gagged as the smell of rotting vegetables and putrid fish exploded in the night air.  She turned her head to escape the smell and plugged her nose.  “That is disgusting,” she wheezed.

Apparently, Dot was used to bad smells.  She waved a hand across her face before she pulled the flashlight from her pocket and turned it on the contents.

She wrinkled her nose.  “I’m not so sure about digging through this.”

Gloria took a step back.  “Yuck!  Me either!”  She shined her flashlight on the metal can.  “Let’s try this one instead.”

She popped the top off the can and laid it on the ground beside her.  At first glance, all she saw were soda cans, flattened cardboard boxes and empty plastic milk cartons.  “Wow!  You’re a good recycler,” Gloria complimented.

Dot smiled.  “Thanks.  I do try.  No sense in throwing perfect good recycle stuff in landfills and polluting the earth.”

Gloria grabbed a glove from her purse and slipped it on.  She held onto the flashlight with her other hand as she pushed the contents around.  “Can you grab the garbage bag from my purse and we’ll start sorting through this stuff.”

The words were no more out of her mouth when she laid eyes on something blue.  With a red plastic tip.  Gloria’s heart skipped a beat.  “Wait!  I think we found something!” 

Her eyes widened as she glanced over at Dot.  “Do you see that?”

Dot shook her head.  “No.”

Gloria waved a gloved hand.  “Over here!”

Dot scooted over to where Gloria was standing.  “Right there!”

Dot craned her neck and leaned forward.  She let out a small yelp.

Gloria stuck her gloved hand inside the trash can and plucked out an empty bottle of toilet bowl cleaner. “Does this look familiar?”

Dot shook her head.  “No.  We don’t use that kind.”  She reached out to touch the bottle.

“Don’t touch it!” Gloria blurted out.  “This is evidence and we don’t want your fingerprints on it!”

Dot snatched her hand back as if she’d been bitten by a snake.  “You’re right!”

“Here, grab the trash bag and we’ll put it inside,” Gloria ordered. 

Dot obediently opened the bag while Gloria dropped the cleaner inside and tied it shut.  “I need to get this over to the police department so they can test for fingerprints.”

Dot exhaled the breath she’d been holding.  “You think the killer was stupid enough to leave the evidence in my trash can?”

Gloria shook her head.  “Dumber things have happened.”

The girls emptied the recycle can on the cement floor and sifted through the rest of the contents.  Nothing else appeared to be a clue.  They dumped the trash back inside and pulled that and the other container to the side of the alley for the morning pick up.

Gloria peeled off the plastic gloves and dropped them on top.  “I’m going to run this by the station before I head home,” she said.

Dot nodded.  “I’ve been praying, Gloria.  I hope this is the break in the case we’ve been looking for.”

Gloria opened the passenger’s side door and set the trash bag on the seat.  “Me, too.  I’ll let you know what I find out.”

Dot’s voice quivered.  “Thanks for being such a good friend, Gloria.”

Tears stung the back of Gloria’s eyes.  “I know you’d do the same for me, Dot.”

Without saying another word, Gloria and Mally climbed into the car.  Instead of turning towards home, they headed in the direction of Montbay Sheriff’s office – and Paul.

Gloria pulled up in front of the station and turned the car off.  She grabbed the trash bag before opening the door.  Mally scrambled across the seat.  “Sorry, girl.  You can’t go with me.  I’ll be right back,” she promised.

That didn’t stop Mally from giving her “that look” but there wasn’t much Gloria could do. 

She hurried across the street, up the stairs and in the front entrance.  A young, short-haired brunette was behind the counter.  Her head popped up when Gloria walked through the door.  She smiled.  “Can I help you?”

Gloria didn’t make it a habit to visit Paul at the station.  In fact, the last time she’d been there was during Andrea’s murder investigation. 

She stepped to the counter, the trash bag clutched in her right hand.  “I’m looking for Paul Kennedy - if he’s here.”

The woman nodded.  “Can I give him your name?”

Gloria nodded. “Tell him Gloria Rutherford would like to see him.”

The woman disappeared through the side door. 

Gloria spun around and studied the cork board on the back wall.  It was full of mugshots of wanted criminals. She remembered her recent arrest in Tennessee.
At least one of them wasn’t her mugshot
. She shuddered at the memory of her one night in the slammer.