Manny and his cronies were already under surveillance, and Christophe put out an all-points bulletin for Wilt. I suspected he wouldn’t remain missing for long, especially traveling in the massive RV. I felt a faint glimmer of hope that Wilt might survive after all.
“If Wilt’s account is true, then I guess the husband really did do it,” Tyler said. “That’s how it happens almost all of the time.”
“We’ll get Wilt’s statement when we find him.” Christophe turned to Aunt Pearl. “In the meantime, tell me everything you know.”
Aunt Pearl held up her hands, palms outward. “There’s nothing else—”
“The fake wedding,” I prompted.
“Oh, that.” Aunt Pearl glared at me. “Bones pretended to be the grieving husband, but he was only ever after one thing: the Racatelli empire. He forced Carla to marry him. If she didn’t, he threatened to kill Rocco. She agreed, but she outsmarted him. All the wedding paperwork was fake. The marriage license, the ceremony, everything.”
I flashed back to Rocco’s claim that Carla had a pre-nup. It apparently wasn’t the case—just Carla’s way of appeasing Rocco so that he didn’t feel threatened. “Bones thought that by killing Carla, he would inherit the Racatelli estate. He would cut Rocco out, at least financially.”
Mom sighed in relief. “Thank goodness the wedding was fake. It means that Rocco’s inheritance is safe after all. At least from Bones.”
Aunt Pearl raised her hand. “What about Manny La Manna’s people in the hotel? He’s already got his people inside the hotel, trying to take over. He’s infiltrated the casino operations.”
Aunt Pearl then turned to Christophe. “Is that why you’re here? Because of Manny’s attempted takeover?”
“I can’t answer that, Pearl. All I can tell you is that you’re safe as long as you stay here.”
“The rivalry between the Racatelli, Battilana, and La Manna families has been underway for a long time now,” Tyler said. “It’s not exactly a secret. The lobby shootout was one of those flare-ups.”
Aunt Pearl shook her head. “Such a shame. Manny was Carla’s one true love. They had a really good thing going.”
I frowned, thinking Aunt Pearl was with Manny. “B-but you…”
“I told you Manny was just a fling for me,” she snapped. “When Carla told me about her feelings for him, I dumped him immediately. I didn’t approve of her choice of husband, but who am I to stand in the way of her happiness?”
I gasped. “She married Manny too? For real?”
Aunt Pearl nodded. “That marriage was the real thing. In fact, it happened just hours before she died. It was a secret wedding, and I was one of only two witnesses. Rocco was the other.”
Now things were beginning to make sense. “The shootout wasn’t really about the Racatelli empire, was it? This is about the wedding. Rocco didn’t like it, and Manny wasn’t going to let Rocco get in the way. I guess Manny got what he wanted after all.”
Aunt Pearl started to cry. “I did everything I could, but it wasn’t enough in the end.”
I had seen my aunt close to tears many times, a lot of them in the last twenty-four hours. But I had never seen her cry. I placed an arm around her shoulder and hugged her. “It’s okay. You did your best. I just wish you had told us the truth to begin with. It would have made it a lot easier on everyone.”
We both jumped as Christophe’s cell phone rang.
He stood and walked towards the kitchen. He spoke in a low voice, but judging from his body language it appeared to be good news.
“They’re on Wilt’s trail, and not a moment too soon. Manny’s thugs are following him. I’m hoping we get to him first.”
Mom shivered.
“There are a few things we should take care of, Aunt Pearl. Like gathering up Carla’s documents. The marriage certificates for starters. That will back up your account.”
Mom stood, still a little unsteady on her feet. “I’ll help.”
It took us less than ten minutes to find the documents in Carla’s desk drawer. “These look genuine to me.” I pointed to the marriage certificate for Danny and Carla as I handed the papers to Tyler.
“I don’t see why this wouldn’t be real,” he said. “Carla and Bones had a valid license, and the ceremony was witnessed by both Rocco and the hotel manager. Where’s the fake part?”
Aunt Pearl blanched. “The marriage licence—I thought it was faked.”
“Uh-uh,” Tyler said. “It’s from the wedding chapel down the street. Their marriage was real, all right.”
Christophe frowned. “There’s just one question, and I think I already know the answer. Who killed Bones?”