I shuffled off to my bedroom and crawled under the covers.
I got up and took a shower.
I got dressed and went to the kitchen for coffee.
Morelli came in a couple minutes later.
I smell coffee, he said.
How long have you been up?
Not long, I said.
When did you get home last night?
Bob was in my spot in the bed and wouldnt give it up.
Morelli got a mug and filled it with coffee.
That works for me.
We stood in the kitchen eating cake and drinking coffee.
I have to go back to work this morning, Morelli said.
Must have been a riot last night.
It started out as an organized smash-and-grab and turned into a bloodbath.
There were a lot of people involved.
Some didnt walk away.
He rinsed his plate off in the sink and put it in the dishwasher.
What are you doing today?
The bus was leaking water yesterday.
Im going to check it out.
See if any real damage was done.
And then Im going to Benjis grand opening.
He bought the comic book store and renamed it Benji Land.
Clever, Morelli said.
Where do you suppose Benji got enough money to buy the store?
Do you have any ideas?
I have one or two.
I have one or two.
He kissed me and the kiss lingered.
Im definitely not on call tonight, he said.
I like it, I said.
And if we finish up early enough, we can catch the end of the ball game.
Youre such a romantic.
I have to go home to change clothes.
Ill take Bob with me.
Thanks for letting us spend the night.
Do you have anything you want me to tell the Rangeman guys parked in your lot?
Tell them Ill be out in a couple minutes.
When Morelli asked about my plans for the day, the unmentioned elephant in the room was Vinnie.
Neither of us had been able to make any progress at finding Vinnie.
I cant speak for Morelli, but I was exasperated that I couldnt go more proactive.
Surely there was something we could do to find him.
+++
The sun was shining, and the air had a chill in it.
I drove to the office, parked behind Connies car, and walked to the school bus.
The door was open, and I could hear a fan going inside.
I looked in at Connie.
Trying to dry things out?
It could be worse, but its obvious we need something better.
Itll take at least a year to rebuild, and we cant conduct business in this.
What if there is no business?
What if theres no Vinnie?
Harry will find someone else.
Harry needs this business.
Its part of his corporate image.
I didnt want to ask about Harrys corporate image.
There are things about Harry best left unknown.
I dont know how anyone can walk in sneakers.
My balance is all whackadoodle.
When Im in heels my boobies and booty are compensating for each other.
Theres just nothing happening when Im flat- footed.
None of my voluptuous body parts knows which way to swing.
I didnt have this problem.
My body parts were a lot less voluptuous than Lulas.
They didnt swing anywhere.
Anything new going on with the kidnappers?
I shared the fingernail picture with her.
Thats disgusting, Lula said.
Im not happy to see this.
This is something else.
If anyone tortures him, it should be us.
Or at least someone we hired to torture him.
Connie and I agreed.
So, what are we going to do about this?
I think we should entertain the possibility of raising the money.
Its eleven million dollars!
Yeah, but we might be able to getsomeof it, she said.
We could buy a bunch of scratch lottery tickets.
And we could start a GoFundMe page.
You always have to start with something that gets peoples attention.
We could tell people we want to save the highly endangered pointy-toed weasel.
Omigosh, Lula said.
We could put up Lost posters.
My neighbor did that when their cat disappeared.
A lot of people called her saying they saw her cat.
Maybe someone saw Vinnie get snatched.
Or they might have seen him get dragged into a building.
The Lost poster might work, Connie said.
We could offer a reward.
Ill make the poster, Lula said.
I always got a good grade in art when I was in school.
First thing, Im going to need a picture of Vinnie.
I dont have any on hand, Connie said.
Ill get one tonight.
I should be able to find something online.
Right now, Im going out with a Realtor to look at office space.
It would be great if you two could look for a storage unit for the files.
They cant stay in my garage.
What about the grand opening?
When are we doing that?
How about after lunch?
Do you have anyplace special you want us to look for storage?
Find something cheap and convenient, Connie said.
It doesnt have to be climate controlled, but it has to be secure.
Lula looked at the box of doughnuts on the table.
What about the doughnuts?
Are we leaving them here?
It would be a shame to leave them here to get stale if nobody is here eating them.
Take the doughnuts, Connie said.
Lula and I walked back to Hamilton Avenue and got into the Discovery.
Its a pleasure riding around with you in this car, Lula said.
It even smells nice.
It smells like doughnuts, I said.
Its the happiest smell in the whole world, Lula said.
I dont know anything about storage units, I said.
See what you might find on your phone.
Im suggesting that we start with the closest ones first.
There are two on Broad.
Then theres one on Chambers.
The first one on Broad didnt have any available units.
The second one was too expensive.
The one on Chambers had been turned into condominiums.
There are a bunch in Hamilton Township, Lula said.
Thats not so far away.
Pinos is delivering, Connie said.
I went with meatball subs.
What did you find out about getting a storage unit?
We have three possibilities, I said.
Theyre all in Hamilton Township and theyre all about equal.
I gave her two brochures.
The third one didnt have a brochure, I said.
But they were real nice, Lula said.
They liked my camo gear, and they didnt have any rats or anything.
Did the others have rats?
We didnt see any, I said.
There were droppings in one, Lula said.
I know rat droppings when I see them, and they were rat droppings.
Did you find an office?
I didnt think it would be this difficult.
Were going out again this afternoon.
The Realtor is picking me up at Benjis.
Suppose we got one of those already-made houses, Lula said.
I see them riding down the highway all the time.
They got curtains on the windows and everything.
Pinos grandson Zak yelled, Knock knock, and stuck his head in the door.
I got subs, he said.
Grandpa threw in macaroni for free because he made too much for the people at table number four.
I like macaroni, Lula said.
Connie took the bags, paid for the subs, and gave Zak a tip that made him smile.
The couch was still too wet to sit on so we huddled around the tiny table.
This is like camping out, Lula said.
I never camped out, but I bet its like this.
I camped out once, Connie said.
Nature isnt what you see on television.
I had bug bites all over me and theres nothing to do.
Youre just out there in the woods.
Didnt you have television?
We were in a tent.
I wouldnt do that kind of camping, Lula said.
I gotta have television and a toilet.
We finished lunch and left the bus.
Everyone got into the Discovery, and I drove to Benji Land.
Carpenter Beedles Mercedes was parked in front of the store.
There were a few people wandering around inside.
One of them was Sparks in his Sir Lancelot costume.
Benji came over to us.
Theres a food truck out back, he said.
Wieners and soft drinks.
That was nice of you to give us Thor, Lula said.
Its the good Thor, too.
Sir Lancelot came over.
What do you think of Benjis store?
Its wonderful, right?
Theres a whole Tolkien section now.
Plus, hes added D&D, Magic: The Gathering, and Pokemon game-play nights.
I gotta go see Tolkien, Lula said.
Point me in a direction.
Benji said you didnt need our help anymore, so I guess everything got resolved.
Unfortunately, nothing is resolved.
A friend of mine is in the security business and hes running protection for me.
Rangeman, Beedle said.
Weve been seeing the cars.
Hows it going with you?
Im in start-up mode with the finance business, so its slow, but itll pick up.
I have a couple clients.
I see the bail bonds office is operating out of a retired school bus.
Connie is looking for something more substantial.
Lula and I are looking for a storage locker for some of the stuff we were able to salvage.
Did you try Susan Dippy Storage?
It didnt show up in Google.
Yeah, its under the radar.
I keep some stuff there.
It isnt fancy but its convenient.
Its a couple blocks from here on Cord Street.
If you go out the back door its a three-minute walk.
You turn left down the alley and right on the first cross street.
I found Lula in Superheroes, checking out the Thor action figure with short hair.
I might need this, Lula said.
It would be good to have both Thors.
I was just talking to Beedle, and he told me about some storage units a couple blocks away.
I thought we could take a look at them.
Sure, but I need a free wiener first.
I havent been to the food truck yet.
We went out the back door to the food truck.
I got a soda, and Lula got a hot dog and a soda.
Theyve got all the good condiments here, Lula said.
This is a first-class free wiener.
And the bun is just right.
Not too big and not too small.
Plus, the slit is on the top.
We walked down the alley and turned right on Cord Street.
Houses were set back on large lots.
There were lots of trees.
We came to the second block and didnt see Susan Dippy Storage.
Bingo, Lula said.
I just got the same idea you got.
We took the cross street to the alley and found Susan Dippy.
I dont see an office, Lula said.
Must be at the other end.
We walked halfway down the alley and a car came at us from behind at high speed.
It screeched to a stop and four men in ski masks jumped out and tackled Lula and me.
We were all rolling around yelling and kicking and clawing.
A moment later someone gave me a bunch of volts, and I went scramble brain.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Id been stun gunned before.
This was nothing new.
I knew the recovery process.
Tingling in my fingers.
Buzzing in my head.
I tried to relax and concentrate on breathing.
My hands were tied behind me.
Felt like a plastic zip tie.
The fog was lifting.
I was cramped into a fetal position, getting pushed along in some kind of cart.
Wheels on concrete, I thought.
I was finally alert enough to be scared.
I was sightless with the sack over my head, but there were horrible visions stuck in my mind.
Connies burns, Vinnie hanging upside down, bloody fingers without fingernails.
My heart was racing, and I think I was drooling.
Or maybe my nose was running.
Hard to tell when youre in a sack and your hands are tied.
I heard a door swing open, felt the bump of my cart being rolled over a threshold.
I was working hard to calm myself.
I was telling myself I had to be smart.
I had to watch for my moment.
Panic was the enemy.
Suddenly the cart was tipped, and I rolled out onto a hard floor.
Deep breaths, I told myself.
a male voice said.
You want me to beat her up?
Shes probably still stupid from the stun gun.
Take the sack off her so she doesnt suffocate.
Shes no good to us if shes dead.
Not a good sign that they were letting me see their faces.
I took it to mean that they werent expecting me to leave the building alive.
I didnt look beyond them.
I lay on the floor with my eyes unfocused and my mouth open.
Thinking I was pretty good at looking stupid.
Shes breathing kind of fast, Marcus said.
Youd be breathing fast, too, if you just took fifty thousand volts, Luther said.
Shes not going anywhere.
The door slammed shut and I got myself into a sitting position.
I was in a room about the size of my parents living room.
My eyes adjusted to the dim light, and I saw a dark blob in the corner.
The blob moved and I realized it was Vinnie.
Yeah, he said.
Im having a great time here.
We were wondering about that, I said.
Is there a way out?
You mean if I wasnt chained to a chemical toilet thats bolted to the floor?
I scanned the room.
Low ceiling for an industrial building.
Nine or ten square feet I was guessing.
Large vent of some sort in the ceiling over the toilet.
Do you know where we are?
