Barbeques and Baffling Clues: A Cozy Tiffany Black Travel Mystery by A.R. Winters

Author:A.R. Winters [Winters, A.R.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2024-12-06T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

Stone and I related our interview with Ol’ Diddles, where we learned little, although he had mentioned Lenny being unhappy at his straight jobs. Did that equate to conspiracy? Well, there were plenty of jobs I’d done that were no fun. I’m sure that went for many people.

But for me, working retail hadn’t inspired a life of crime. And I had luckily sidestepped a career of drinking.

“Okay, let’s look at Nicola Henderson’s bankruptcy,” Rosie said. She brought up a different screen. “She was CEO and treasurer, and Ralph was CFO. So the two of them were officers of the corporation, even though only Cola filed.”

“Because Ralph was in jail?” Nanna asked.

She nodded. “Date seems right.”

“Chapter 11?” Stone asked.

“Yep,” Rosie said.

“Usually an easier way to go, but a little weird that Ralph wasn’t involved. He had money invested in the business,” Stone said.

“What makes it easier?” Rosie asked.

“If you file as a business, you avoid the means test,” Stone said.

“Ah!” Rosie said.

I couldn’t follow. Bankruptcy was something I hoped to avoid for my entire life. “What happened with the business?”

“Liquidation. Sold off all the assets. Pretty much all she wrote,” Rosie said.

“Any other investors?” Stone asked. “Silent partners?”

“Not in what I’ve seen, but I just scratched the surface. Investors couldn’t get their money back, right?”

“No,” Stone said. “Unless there was some agreement.”

I looked at the screen. “Well, that name jumps out.”

Rosie looked where I pointed. “Oh yeah. Elvin Thompson. Chick.”

“One of the creditors,” Stone said. “Looks like he was paid off. Which doesn’t seem to match up. He’d lent them a lot of money. More than you could cover by selling restaurant and catering equipment.”

“Guess he settled,” Rosie said. “What else could he do? Times were tough, and you can’t get blood from a turnip.”

“Huh. Wonder why he’s first on the creditors’ list, even higher than the credit card companies,” he said.

I didn’t know how any of this worked. Letting Rosie and Stone work it out, I sat back. Rosie had a computer brain when it came to numbers. Stone had run and owned several large businesses. If there was motive here, I’d let them sort it.

They talked back and forth for a while.

“The credit cards were partly paid, the rest of the debt written off.”

“But no cash amount for Chick’s loans. That means something,” Rosie said.

“If they made a deal outside of court, we probably won’t be able to figure it out.”

“Maybe Cola’s customer list? Something like that?”

“If Chick’s 24-Hour Smokepit does catering, it might be worth something to him,” Stone said.

“And it wouldn’t be to a bank or credit holder.”

“Except the company wasn’t in business that long,” Stone said. “How many customers could Cola have drummed up?”

Rosie frowned, tapping her fingers on the desktop. “Some secret deal, then?”

“Secret deal?” Nanna suddenly looked more awake. She blinked at me.

“What are you…” I interrupted my own words. “No.”

“But they’re the same. Or look the same.”

Rosie’s eyes moved from Nanna to me. “Are you talking about—”

“Ralph’s sauce.” The nickel dropped for Stone.

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