I said goodbye to Tyler just as Rocco waved me over to his corner table. He sat with his back to the wall, giving him a clear view of anyone entering or exiting the bar. He nodded at two burly twenty-something guys in dark suits who sat at the next table.
The guy that faced me had a shaved head that glistened with sweat, despite the casino’s blasting a/c. He seemed to be the more senior of the two men. He nodded at Rocco as I sat down.
I hadn’t noticed the men before, but they were clearly Rocco’s bodyguards.
They had apparently noticed me, judging from the way they eyed me up and down.
I scowled at them and sat down across from Rocco. “I’m so sorry to hear about your grandma, Rocco.”
I was a little short on the details from Aunt Pearl, so I didn’t know what else to say. “What happened, exactly?”
“She got hit.” Rocco’s voice was flat, and he was surprisingly calm considering his grandmother had been murdered.
“She was hit by a car?” I flashed back to Tyler’s comments. Maybe it was another accident that wasn’t so accidental after all. I still couldn’t believe that someone might have killed Carla, despite what Aunt Pearl claimed.
He shook his head. “Not literally.”
“Uh…how exactly did she die?” I sipped my beer and steeled myself for the grisly details. I felt terrible asking at a time like this, but I had to know if Aunt Pearl’s account was true.
“I found her in the lap pool, floating face up. At first, I just thought she was floating with her eyes closed. But she never woke up.” Rocco’s voice broke. “The police said it was an accident—that she drowned.”
“But you said someone…”
He nodded. “Somebody took her out. I’m sure of it. I just don’t know how to prove it.”
I shuddered. I had covered a few accidental drownings for the Westwick Corners Weekly. I couldn’t put my finger on it, but something didn’t add up. “How soon after did you find her?”
“We had eaten lunch together less than an hour before that. I only came back to her place because I had forgotten my wallet.”
“You were the last person to see her alive?”
He nodded. “I was suspicious as soon as I saw her in the pool. She never ever even went within ten feet of that pool. She was deathly afraid of water.”
Since I was stuck here in town until after the funeral, it wouldn’t hurt to do a little sleuthing. “Did the medical examiner do an autopsy yet?”
“No. I don’t think they will either. Word is that they consider it an accident.”
I was surprised that they wouldn’t do at least a cursory investigation, considering the Racatelli name. A crime boss’s accidental drowning should raise all sorts of red flags. “Maybe the medical examiner will do an autopsy anyway. Despite what the police say.”
I could think of only one reason for the police to conclude it was an accident without any sort of investigation.
A cover-up.
I refocused on Rocco, trying to make sense of it all.
Rocco wrung one hand inside the other. “I really need your talents to get to the bottom of this, Cen.”
“Why me? I wouldn’t know the first thing about how to help. I don’t see how—” We didn’t exactly advertise our supernatural abilities but as a long-time Westwick Corners resident, Rocco was well aware of at least some of the West family talents.
“Pearl already gave me her word. She said you were a bit rusty and all, but that she’d give you a hand.”
“She did?” I was furious at Aunt Pearl’s constant pushing, though I felt bad for Rocco. Strangely enough, my preoccupation with returning home had been replaced by sympathy for Rocco. I wanted to do whatever I could to avenge his grandmother’s death. But everything about our encounter struck me as a little strange. Rocco acted surprised to see me, yet he and Aunt Pearl had already been talking about me. Maybe it had all been an act.
Rocco nodded. “Whoever did this is gonna pay. Everybody wants our business because Grandma built such a lucrative empire. Bones Battilana is no exception. He wants a piece of the action without doing any of the work.”
The larger of the two wise guys at the next table swore and punched his fist into the table at the mention of Carla’s husband, now a widower.
“They ain’t getting in on the action, not if I can help it.” Rocco frowned. “But first, I’ve got to stop them. That’s where you come in.”
“Oh?” If Rocco’s suspicions were founded, he really should be talking to the police, not an incompetent witch. “Have you raised your suspicions with the police?”
“I didn’t push it. They wouldn’t have done much anyway. They’re happy if we knock each other off. That makes less work for them. As far as they’re concerned, these turf wars are just a cost of doing business. Grandma built a very successful money laundering operation. She runs—I mean ran—everything through this casino. Battilana’s boys have threatened me, telling me I’m next. Once I’m gone, the business is theirs.”
While I felt sorry for Rocco, I wasn’t about to join forces with a crime syndicate.
I covered my ears. “Why are you telling me all this? The more I know, the more I’m in danger too.” Now I was doubly mad at Aunt Pearl. The free hotel suite pretty much obligated us to help Rocco out.
“I’m now the sole Racatelli survivor, so the business falls to me. That means that I’m next on the hit list.” Rocco frowned and thought for a moment. “Don’t worry though. Since you’re not in the business, you’ll be left alone.”
“What makes you so sure about that?” My pulse quickened as I leaned across the table. Getting involved was a bad idea. My heart said yes, even if my brain said no. In the end, my emotions won out. I wanted to help him.
“It’s an unwritten rule. Now that you know, we’ve got no time to waste. Let me tell you about Grandma.” Rocco signaled the waiter for another round and leaned forward.
As a journalist, part of me was dying to know the behind-the-scenes story. The risk-averse side of me wanted to remain in the dark. I downed the remaining liquid in my beer mug. “I’m listening.”