Swimming to Catalina (Stone Barrington 4)

“Did you form any impressions about the kind of business he does?”

“Not at first, but over a period of a couple of weeks I heard his end of some telephone conversations.”

“What did you learn?”

“He talked about moving stuff—he didn’t say exactly what, but I think he was talking about money. At first I thought it was drugs, but now I think money.”

“Did he talk about how he moves it?”

“He talked about pickups and deliveries.”

“So he moves cash around?”

She nodded. “I think so; between here and Mexico.”

“Does he keep any sort of schedule?”

“He goes away two or three times a week, but I’m not sure if it’s always to Mexico.”

“Do you think he’s moving money personally, as in his car?”

“The Porsche doesn’t have a lot of room in it,” she said.

“I know; was there ever any talk of anything larger?”

“He mentioned a truck once.”

“Do you know who his boss is?”

“He’s his own boss; it’s his company.”

“But you met him at the Safe Harbor Bank?”

“How did you know which bank? I didn’t tell you.”

“It was more than a lucky guess. Did you meet a man named Ippolito there?”

“Yes, he’s the head of the bank, I think; somebody pointed him out to me at the party. I got him a drink at one point.”

“What was your impression of him?”

“I think his impression of me was that he thought I was a hooker, which annoyed me.”

“Did you notice what kind of relationship Barone had with Ippolito?”

“Marty was doing a lot of major sucking up,” she said.

“I can imagine. Did Marty say anything to you about his relationship with Ippolito?”

“He refers to him as the boss sometimes. Not to me, but on the phone. I’m sure that’s who he’s talking about. My turn for some questions.”

“All right.”

“Are you a cop?”

“No, but I used to be; now I’m a lawyer.”

“What’s your interest in Marty and Ippolito?”