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After we congratulated Gomer, we made our way back to Sinful. We had a lot to discuss. Gomer’s haunted house coincided with the steakhouse grand opening. Given our past Wasteland challenges, we couldn’t attend unless we were fully prepared.
We needed costumes with discreet places to hide a few guns. We would want to be totally unrecognizable, on the chance that the mobsters accompanying Elle were there to settle a score.
There were now a number of things we couldn’t dismiss. A few short weeks ago, we helped a family escape from the bayou. They were in protective custody hiding from the mob. Doris, the woman in witness protection, had successfully convinced everyone that Jax Daigle wasn’t there to help families.
She warned us about Jax and his son. In less than an hour, our worst fears about the Wasteland witness protection project had become a reality. The people who would be searching for those in witness protection were helping with the Wasteland project. Jax Daigle was dangerous and if he had the chance, he would lead others to Doris and her family. He would, according to Doris, order the hit.
Much to our surprise, Jax’s life came to an unexpected end soon thereafter. Doris was long gone by then, but she wasn’t to blame. According to Wasteland’s Sheriff Davidson, Jax’s life was ended by his son.
Saying it and proving it were two different beasts, however.
“The guy at Hollowman’s farm mentioned Elle would be with someone named Nicky. Can you contact Harrison and find out what he knows about him?” Ida Belle asked.
“I already sent a text,” I said.
Gertie adjusted her rearview mirror. “And?”
“He hasn’t responded yet, but he will.”
Ida Belle frowned. “Harrison may be getting false information from the Feds. Where Jax and the Daigle empire are concerned, he hasn’t been a wealth of information.”
“Harrison may have been misinformed,” I said, feeling like I needed to defend my former partner-turned-CIA handler. “But we should probably focus on Elle for the time being anyway.”
“Wonder why her dad is letting her come back here?” Gertie asked. “Not that I’m complaining. It’ll be nice to see her.”
I smiled, but didn’t really share Gertie’s sentiments. Since learning that Jax had lost his life, I hadn’t been sure about Elle or what role she might have played in Jax’s murder. She’d played us, but we didn’t matter. We were still practically strangers.
What bothered me was how well she’d played her grandfather. Had she ultimately provided information that somehow landed in the wrong hands?
“If she’s not a true mobster’s daughter, we’ll never meet one,” I said, thinking aloud.
“True,” Ida Belle said thoughtfully. “I wonder, was Jax really trying to protect his granddaughter or was he using her for leverage?”
“Probably leverage,” I said.
Gertie looked conflicted. “Jax believed in what he was doing. He wanted to keep Elle safe. She witnessed a mob hit. Jax realized the mob would come for her because Elle’s the only witness.”
As we approached Sinful’s downtown area, Ida Belle said, “The minute Jax fled New York, he must’ve known his life was over. I’ve had a contact digging up what he could find on Jax’s son. Brigham Cable, goes by Brigham now that his dad is dead, is a soulless creature. Father and son were estranged, but the dated reports I found all had one common thread. It was widely understood that Elle’s dad would never stop looking for her.”
“He searched and he found,” I said. “But I don’t think there was ever any real danger that Elle would testify against her dad or any of his men.”
Ida Belle sighed. “The underboss might as well have been her uncle. His name is Louis Scazarri. If he gets a hint that there’s ten million dollars waiting for him in the bayou, Elle and her family will be the least of our worries.”
Gertie hit the brake. “Why are you digging into their past?”
“It’s the present that I’m worried about,” she said.
“Is there a more sinister reason for Elle’s return?” Gertie asked.
“I can’t shake the feeling that I may already be on the Daigle’s radar,” I admitted, watching Ida Belle’s shoulders stiffen. “I can’t imagine why Elle’s father would kill Jax and drag Elle back to New York only to return for Gomer’s grand opening. Her grandfather was killed here.”
Gertie cleared her throat. “Since someone has been snooping around, maybe there’s more to see than a childhood friendship that is staying in place for the good of the children.”
“Elle and Gloria have stayed in touch, but she’s only been gone a couple of weeks so it’s not like they’re already begging to see each other,” Ida Belle pointed out. “But Brigham is anything but Father of the Year. If he’s coming here with Elle, we need to find out why. The sooner, the better.”
Gertie’s gaze flicked to mine in the mirror. “This Wasteland event is a big deal since Gomer made national news with his coin.”
“Fortunately, the news crews were headed out before we even made it back to your car. They’re not sticking around.” Ida Belle sighed. “Maybe Harrison will weigh in before we head out there tomorrow night.”
“Either way, I’m going.” I would take extra precautions, but I would be there all the same. “Gomer deserves some happiness. He’s expecting us and we need to be there to support him.”
“I thought you might feel that way,” Ida Belle said, pointing to the left. “Turn here and let’s run by Walter’s first. Maybe he’ll have something that will help us conceal and carry. If we’re going to a haunted house, the least we can do is be creative.”
“What do you have in mind?” Gertie asked excitedly.
“Fortune will wear something unique, but nothing too bold. And there’s only one look that comes to mind.”
****
As soon as we parked and exited Gertie’s car, I noticed a problem in the making. Walter’s windows were decked out in a Halloween theme. Several mannequins were dressed in costumes, but the one in the middle wore a men’s suit and Fedora hat.
Celia Arceneaux, also known as Gertie’s and Ida Belle’s nemesis, ducked behind the middle mannequin, undoubtedly trying to hide until we passed. She’d already knocked off the hat, and now appeared to have her arm around the mannequin’s neck, either for balance or show.
I couldn’t think of why she would try to hide, but the longer I stayed in Sinful, the more I realized there was never any rhyme or reason when trying to figure out what drove Celia.
She was a strange bird.
The jingle bells on the door stopped Ida Belle in her tracks. She pivoted and looked behind her. “Why are we decorating for Christmas when we haven’t even finished with Halloween?”
Walter lowered his newspaper and grinned. “Good to see you, too, Ida Belle.”
I pressed my lips together and waited. The twinkle in his eyes served as a good indicator. Walter wasn’t done with Ida Belle yet.
“So is it ‘we’ again?” Walter beamed. “I always knew you’d make an honest man out of me in our later years.”
A muted laugh fell to the room and Gertie turned away as if to suggest she was the innocent party.
Celia practically fell out of the display window. Gertie caught a glimpse of her shoe and her eyes widened. “Watch your words, Ida Belle. There’s a dummy in the window and we don’t want to give the GWs anything to gossip about.”
Ida Belle peered around a clothing rack. “What on earth are you doing here?”
“Shopping with the competition, apparently,” she said, narrowing her eyes. “Tell me something, Ida Belle. If you give up the title for marriage, what will happen to that ridiculous group you claim to lead?”
Ida Belle bit back something that I couldn’t quite make out. She apparently had a few choice words for Celia.
Gertie whispered, “She’ll leave mad now.”
Celia wheeled around and stared at Walter. “I’m marching over to the Baptist church to talk with Pastor Don.”
“Told you,” Gertie said.
“Do you want a gold medal or something?” Celia snapped, apparently wise to the not-so-discreet side bet between us.
“Sterling silver will suffice,” I said, smiling.
“Did you hear me, Walter? I’m taking this up with Pastor Don.”
“And you’re telling me this why?” Walter asked.
“Because you’re part of the problem when you could’ve been the solution a few decades ago. Pastor Don needs to know how you and your friends alienate others.”
“We’re grownups,” Gertie said. “So tattle away.”
“You do that all the time anyway,” Ida Belle said.
Gertie studied her nails. “It’s a flaw, Celia. Why whenever we see you, that tongue is a ‘wagging.”
“Says the water to the kettle.” Celia threw up her hands and left.
Gertie dramatically inhaled. “Wow. That’s amazing.”
“What is?” I wasn’t sure what she meant, but took a deep breath all the same.
“Whenever Celia leaves a room, the air greatly improves. All that negative energy walks out right behind her.” Gertie clapped her hands together and headed to the costume closet.
“Come on, Fortune,” Ida Belle said. “We’ll find a perfect costume for you if it takes all night.”
“You make it sound like I’m hard to fit.”
“You are,” Ida Belle said sardonically. “But not because of finding the right size. You’re difficult to please when it comes to costumes.”
“Which is probably why you should let her choose what to wear,” Walter said.
I shot him a thumb’s up and he winked.
A few minutes later, boxes were moved into the aisles. Plastic containers were dragged from shelves. Gertie stayed bottoms-up until she found what she wanted. Dragging the three-part costume from an upright box that looked as if it housed a refrigerator, she said, “This is what I was looking for!”