Pirates in Peril: A Made in Savannah Cozy Mystery (Made in Savannah Cozy Mysteries Series Book 10) Hope Callaghan (unputdownable books TXT) 📖

The receptionist handed Mercedes a sheet of paper and began explaining the form while Carlita watched Pridgen walk away.

Had Pridgen just threatened them that if they kept opening businesses in Savannah, certain area business owners and longtime residents would start snooping around in the Garlucci family past?

The thought made her dizzy. There were powerful people in Savannah…powerful people who might very well have connections to organized crime.

If the mafia up north caught wind of or even suspected Carlita had cash on hand, Castellini and maybe others would be on her doorstep demanding to have a look around, whether she wanted them to or not.

Carlita followed her daughter out of the office and they began making the trek home. “What do you make of Pridgen’s comments?”

“I think he’s a bully and he’s trying to intimidate us,” Mercedes said. “I ought to open up a graffiti art studio just to spite him.”

“And graffiti what?” Carlita chuckled. “I know...you could start a business and call it Courtyard Art.”

“The only problem is that I’m not artistically inclined.”

“Practice makes perfect.” Carlita linked arms with her daughter. “Maybe I’ll join you. It could be very therapeutic.”

“Have you decided what you’re going to make for Cool Bones’ courtyard get-together?”

“I was thinking of trying Tierney’s marinara sauce recipe. Could you send me a copy?”

“You know what?’ Mercedes abruptly stopped. “I don’t think she’s sent it to me yet. Let me check.” She stepped off to the side and whipped out her cell phone. “Nope. The Ghost Roast is right around the corner.”

“I’m running out of time. I would like to give it a kitchen test run first and tweak it to make it our own. Maybe we could swing by there to get a copy.” The women turned left when they reached the corner.

The Ghost Roast was busy. Mercedes patted her stomach. “I’m kind of hungry. We should grab a bite to eat while we’re here.”

“Sounds good.”

The hostess led them to a table near the front and handed each of them a menu.

Carlita perused the offerings. “I want to order Tierney’s marinara sauce, so I can take it home to compare it with mine. Other than that, I think I’ll go with the grilled fish after last night’s pizza.”

“Fried fish sounds good.” Mercedes closed the menu and glanced around. “I see Tierney in the back. Here she comes.”

The young restauranteur stopped by several tables before making her way to Mercedes and Carlita’s table. “You again? Let me guess…you can’t stay away from my secret marinara sauce.” Tierney’s eyes widened and she clamped a hand over her mouth. “I forgot, didn’t I?”

“You did.” Mercedes nodded. “It’s okay.”

“I had it ready to send and then forgot. I’ll send you the recipe right now.” She pulled her cell phone from her apron pocket and tapped the screen. “There. You should have it.” She slipped the phone back into her pocket. “How is your investigation going?”

“It’s not. We have too many suspects and not enough clues,” Mercedes joked. “Even our friends are beginning to look suspicious.”

“Kyle’s information wasn’t helpful?” Tierney asked.

“He gave us a big break when he told us about sneaking back on board the Mystic Dream and overhearing Lawson having a conversation with a man in Spanish. He said it sounded like a heated argument, but he didn’t know what they were talking about.”

“Because he couldn’t hear what they were saying?”

“No.” Mercedes shook her head. “Because he doesn’t know Spanish.”

Tierney snorted. “Kyle told you that? He speaks fluent Spanish. In fact, he lived in Mazatlán, Mexico for a couple of years before moving to Savannah.”

Chapter 21

“Are…you sure?” Carlita asked.

“Of course. I’m positive.” Tierney glanced across the restaurant and began motioning to someone. “There he is.”

Kyle made his way over. “Hello, Mrs. Garlucci, Mercedes.”

“Hello, Kyle.” Carlita smiled back.

“We were discussing your conversation the other night. I hadn’t heard the story about you sneaking back on board the Mystic Dream and overhearing Lawson speaking to someone in Spanish. Mercedes said you told them you couldn’t understand what they were saying.”

“No.” Kyle shook his head. “I was on the other side of the door and they were speaking in low voices. I know they were speaking Spanish, though.”

“But…but.” Mercedes voice trailed off. Kyle had told them he couldn’t understand what they were saying. In fact, he told them he heard two words and even looked one of them up…recoger.

Carlita tapped Mercedes under the table. “We must have misunderstood you, Kyle. It was such a long day and by the time we got here, I’m sure we were just confused.”

“That’s okay.” Kyle swept his bangs off to the side. “How is your investigation going?”

“We have plenty of suspects, motives and opportunities, but haven’t been able to figure out who attacked Lawson and damaged the Mystic Dream.”

“Well, good luck.” Kyle excused himself and made his way to the kitchen.

“I better get back to work, too,” Tierney said. “The special today is the turkey club with chips for nine forty-nine.”

“I think we’re going to try the fish,” Carlita said. “I also want an order of your marinara sauce to go.”

“Good choice. The fish is delish. Sorry again about the recipe mix-up.” She stepped over to another table and began talking to the diners.

“What do you think?” Carlita whispered.

“I think Kyle is lying.” Mercedes covered her mouth. “We’ll talk about it later.”

The server made his way over to take their lunch order, which arrived hot and fast a short time later. While they ate, they discussed Emmett Pridgen.

“I think we should steer clear of him,” Carlita said. “He could cause us some serious trouble.”

“How? He doesn’t know anything about us.”

“But he has his