“Thanks for bringing this to me.”
“Always.”
Jonathan heads out the door, and I follow shortly after. I need to talk to Rinaldo. I need to understand what he’s planning and how much he already knows.
*****
“I was trying to call you.”
“My phone’s been on the fritz,” Rinaldo says as he takes off his coat and hangs it up on the rack near the door. He wipes his shoes on the rug before sitting down at his desk and leaning back with a big sigh.
The phone problems are bullshit. If Rinaldo’s phone wasn’t working properly, he’d have a new one within an hour. I know exactly why he hasn’t been answering, but I don’t let on. I want to get right into it, and the phone is just a distraction.
“Rinaldo, I looked into the skimming you told me about the other day.”
He looks at me without speaking, glancing from one of my eyes to the other. I try to remain expressionless.
“And?”
“And I think I know why you didn’t want me to look into it.”
I can see the tightening of his jaw as he clenches his teeth.
“Then you know it’s not worth bothering with,” he finally says. “Is there anything else?”
“Yes, sir, there is.” He sighs and then nods for me to continue. “There’s more missing than just what’s been transferred to that one account. Justin’s entries for my payments are way off, but I’m not sure where the money went. He probably thought I’d never be close enough to check.”
“He’s not the one skimming now.” Rinaldo’s forehead creases as he thinks. “I told Becca I would take care of it. I don’t need her sticking her nose into it right now.”
“What’s the big deal?” I ask. “Why don’t you just tell her it’s moving into Felisa’s account? Call it her therapist salary or whatever. What does Becca care? Then she could figure out what else is missing.”
“It was a bit of a test for her,” Rinaldo replies with a shrug. “I wanted to see if she would bring it to my attention.”
“And now that she has, you’re not going to have her pursue it? She’s going to become suspicious.”
“I’m afraid I didn’t think it through all the way. Besides, if it was Justin, the problem is already eliminated, isn’t it?”
“Maybe.” I’m not confident with the assessment.
The corners of his eyes tighten. He grips his fingers slightly around the pen on his desk, but he doesn’t have any intention of writing anything down. He chews on his lower lip nervously. He’s still hiding something from me.
I look into his eyes and feel my shoulders drop a little. I want to call him out on it, but I can’t bring myself to do so. I wish he would just come out and tell me, but I can see that he won’t.
Rinaldo looks at me for a minute and then drops his gaze to the desk and lets out a long breath. He taps the pen a few times before glancing at me and then looking at his watch.
“I have to get back,” he finally says. “I want you to focus on what happened to the guns, and let me deal with the skimming.”
“You said before you wanted me involved in all the businesses.” The reminder obviously doesn’t sit well with him.
His shoulders rise and fall as he takes a deep breath. I’m pushing it, and Rinaldo is known to have quite a temper. Of course, when it flares, I’m the one usually doling out the punishment. He looks straight at me, his eyes stern.
“Evan, go find my guns.” He leaves no room for additional conversation.
I nod and stand as he grabs his coat and walks out of the room, sans formalities. Like the obedient son, I head toward the only lead I have—a man I put in the hospital.
Harpy is indeed in a coma. He lies in a room with other unconscious patients, and I can watch him from the hallway through a large window. When the nurses are changing shifts, I sneak into the room and get a glance at his chart. It’s clear that the shock from his wounds hasn’t left him much of a chance. He’s off life support but completely nonresponsive.
I won’t get anything out of him, but I am a patient man when I need to be. Back in the hallway, I watch visitors come and go until I find one who might be useful.