As they were landing at Teterboro, Dino took a phone call on his cell and chatted for a couple of minutes, then he joined Stone on the way to the car. “One of my guys called: he says Roberta Calder gave her employees a cash bonus today.”
“So?”
“I think the operative word is cash,” Dino said. “In other words, she didn’t write them checks. In fact, she told them it was tax-free.”
“So Robbie is dipping into Randy’s cash reserve?”
“Sounds that way.”
“I’ll nip that in the bud,” Stone said. Once in the car, he called Herbie Fisher.
“Herb Fisher.”
“Hi, it’s Stone.”
“Are you still in Key West?”
“No, we just landed at Teterboro, and we’re on our way into the city. Dino just got some news that should interest you.”
“I’m always interested in interesting news.”
“Earlier today, Robbie doled out cash bonuses to her employees and told them not to bother reporting them to the IRS.”
“That’s not possible,” Herb said.
“Why not?”
“Because I sequestered all the cash in Randy’s safe and the package that was delivered. It’s under seal in a safe-deposit box. I was afraid she’d start dipping into it, and I didn’t want to have to deal with that.”
“Did Randy have any other cash stashed somewhere?”
“Not that I can find. I’ve been over his apartment with a fine-tooth comb, and there wasn’t even change on his dresser.”
“Does Robbie have any other cash you don’t know about?”
“I practically forced her to give me a sworn financial statement, and she had about sixty grand in her business checking account and less than twenty grand in her personal account. And she had bank statements to support those numbers.”
“Well, Herb,” Stone said, “I think Randy wasn’t the only one getting cash deliveries.”
“What are you talking about?”
“The KWPD, the Coast Guard, and the FBI busted up Randy’s smuggling ring and grilled everybody concerned. The owner of the shrimper they were using had mentioned two names to his crew: Hedger and Calder.”
“Holy shit! Robbie was in on the smuggling, too?”
“She was, apparently.”
“Then she probably has a lot more cash stowed away somewhere, assuming she and Randy were equal partners. I wonder why she didn’t move Randy’s stash from the apartment before we showed up there together?”
“Because she didn’t know about the apartment until she saw the address on the medical examiner’s report.”
“How long was the smuggling ring operating?”
“Just a minute,” Stone said. He turned to Max. “Did the shrimper’s owner tell the FBI how long he had been operating?”
“Yeah,” Max said, “something like three years.”
“Did you hear that, Herb?”
“I did, and if packages like the one delivered to Randy’s building had been arriving for that long, both she and Randy must have been awash in hundred-dollar bills. Well, it can’t be in her home, because the police have already turned it over.”
“Yeah,” Stone said, “but I’ll bet they stopped searching when they found what they were looking for: the snub-nosed .38 in her underwear drawer. Hang on again. Dino, have you got enough on Robbie to get a search warrant?”
“Well, let’s see: we’ve got the shrimper’s owner mentioning her name.”
“And Dixie mentioning it, too.”
“Yes,” Stone said, “but Dixie heard that from the boat’s owner. And we’ve got the fact that she paid bonuses to her employees with cash.”
“That’s not going to be enough for another warrant,” Dino said.
Max spoke up. “I can call the AIC down there and ask him to get more from the shrimper’s owner about Hedger and Calder.”
“Hear that, Herb?”
“Yes, I did.”
“Then you’d better not put further pressure on Robbie. Let her think she’s in the clear.”
“Okay, if you say so. Anyway, it’s not like I’m the investigating officer in all this.”
“No, you’re not,” Stone said. “We’ll just sit back and let old Dino worry about it.”
“You’re a prince,” Dino said.
“I’ll bet I could find her stash,” Max said suddenly.
“Why do you think that?” Stone asked.
“Because I know where women hide stuff.”
“You mean, like the .38 in her underwear drawer?”
“Listen, guys, if your Robbie hid anything in her underwear drawer, it’s because she wanted them to find it. You think she’d hide her jewelry in her underwear drawer?”
Neither Stone nor Dino had an answer for that.