“Can we drive by my place so I can grab some clothes?” Christy asked.
“You left your bag and keys at my house,” Anthony answered, giving her a sidelong glance.
“My landlady can let us in,” she replied.
“You have a landlady?” he asked, mildly curious as to why someone with her wealth would rent.
Fifteen minutes later after agreeing to pass by her house, they pulled into Arrowmont Apartments, a small community of duplexes that were neatly arranged in rows. Christy pointed at hers, and Anthony pulled up, eyeballing the phone company truck that had pulled out of the driveway next door and driven away.
He hadn’t even turned off the truck when a woman wearing a tight spandex shirt and bright blue clamdiggers appeared. She hobbled on her high heels toward the truck while carrying a small dog on her hip.
“I could see your blonde hair from my window!” she yelled, traipsing toward Christy. “I paged you not more than ten minutes ago. I was worried after you didn’t come home last night.”
“Thank you, Evelyn, but you know you don’t need to watch out for me. I was with a friend,” Christy answered, motioning at Anthony. He’d just climbed out and slammed his door shut.
“Oh my!” Evelyn exclaimed, giving Anthony an admiring once-over. “I haven’t seen you with a man before. I guess you were holding out for the right one.”
Or keeping her older lover a secret, Anthony thought to himself.
Ignoring the comment, Christy told her, “I need my spare key.”
“Got it right here,” she said, pulling a little keyring that was clipped to her belt loop.
Christy thanked her and snatched the key from Evelyn’s hand a little too roughly. Anthony started to follow her when Evelyn told him, “I’ll be right back. Christy got a delivery yesterday afternoon.”
“We’ll be inside,” he told the woman.
He stood in the doorway and surveyed the small but clean apartment. Everything was white. White furniture, white walls, white throw rugs on a white tile floor. He started to walk toward the white kitchen when Evelyn called from behind him. “Yoo hoo!! I’m back.”
She click-clacked past Anthony and laid a bouquet of flowers on the white kitchen table. “Your flowers came yesterday, Christy. I didn’t want to leave them outside in the heat, so I brought them next door and watered them for you,” she called out.
She then turned to Anthony and said, “She is so wonderful. I don’t know what she does with all these flowers she gets. Every Tuesday a new bouquet shows up, and I see her get in her car and drive off with them. I think she must be taking them to a nursing home or hospital.”
Or she has a secret admirer, Anthony thought. And she's trying to get rid of the evidence before her older lover finds out.
Unexpectedly, Christy came out of the tiny hallway carrying a small suitcase. “Thanks, Evelyn,” she told the woman sincerely. “I’m going on a short trip.” She eyed Anthony. “I’ll call the florist and ask them not to make any future deliveries until I get back so you don’t need to look out for them. You know my pager number if anything pressing comes up.”
Anthony could tell that the woman was dying of curiosity about not just him but Christy’s short trip. She looked like she was going to ask a question when something occurred to her.
“You had some visitors. Do you want me to page you if they come back?” she asked, looking from Christy to Anthony.
“If who comes back?” Christy asked.
“The men that were looking for you yesterday. Two handsome men in suits. They didn’t say who they were, but they looked important.”
Without giving Christy a chance to answer, Anthony asked, “What’s wrong with the phone? Why was there a repairman here?”
This caught both Christy and Evelyn by surprise.
“Oh, nothing’s wrong with our phones,” Evelyn said, waving him off. “When I asked the man working, he said he was doing a routine check for faulty lines in our complex."
Anthony looked hard at Christy and grabbed the bag from her hand. “It’s time to go.”
Christy seemed stunned at his sense of urgency. She just stared.
“Now,” Anthony said.
Christy headed toward a small cabinet and grabbed a plastic bag from one of the shelves. She walked toward Evelyn, and, shoving the bag at her said, "Please do me a favor and put this seed out every morning." Without giving Evelyn a chance to reply she scooped up her flowers from the kitchen table and headed for the front door. She was almost outside when she heard Anthony say to Evelyn, “You haven’t seen or heard from Christy. As far as you know, she took a little vacation. And you definitely don’t mention to anyone that I was here.” He headed for the door.
“Why? Is something wrong?” Evelyn asked. Her voice sounded more curious than concerned.
Anthony turned around and started to approach her. He was only inches from her when he stopped and looked down. She was instantly trapped in his stare. She slowly placed her right hand over her chest and gasping, took a step back from him.
"Of cour...of course," she gulped. "Christy's on vacation and I've never seen you before in my life."
Anthony slowly nodded at her. "You're a smart lady, Evelyn. And you don't ever want to let me think otherwise."
And then he and Christy were gone.
Chapter Ten
Naples, Florida 1978
“I think you’re in danger,” Anthony stated as they sped out of the development.
“Tell me something I don’t already know. You did kidnap me from Vivian’s bedroom yesterday,” she said, eyeing him warily.
“Don’t be a snot,” he told her. “Do you have any idea who those men might be?”
“No. Not a clue,” she answered honestly.
“The telephone repair truck was a knock-off. It looked like the real deal, but it wasn’t. I’m pretty sure someone is tapping your phone.”
“But…why? Who?” she stammered.
“You tell me,” he said. “I guess Van already knows you hate his guts. Have you been stirring a pot that shouldn’t be stirred?” He already knew who the men were. They obviously worked for the other sharks that Van owed, but Anthony wanted to see what Christy had to say. He didn't want to admit it, but he was curious as to what she'd been looking for in Vivian's bedroom.
“Yes, but it’s not like I announced it,” she exclaimed, crossing her arms in front of her chest. “I’ve been working on something. It’s why I was at their house yesterday. That is, before you came along and ruined it,” she added, accusingly.
“What were you there for?” he repeated.
“I told you this morning, it’s none of your concern.” She paused then and asked, “And why do you care so much anyway?”
“I don’t,” he answered a little too quickly. “I consider you an investment. I protect my investments.”
“That’s bull, Anthony Bear!” she yelled, challenging him.
He shot her a look.