Alex Ames - Calendar Moonstone 02 - Brilliant Actors by Alex Ames

Author:Alex Ames [Ames, Alex]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Mystery: Cozy - Jewelry Creator - Cat Burglar - Hollywood
ISBN: 1500300071
Publisher: Alex Ames
Published: 2014-06-22T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

Explaining Henry

After our late lunch, I collected the latest inventory list of the things stolen. To be safe, I made a cross-check with the material at the bank, which was not too easy, considering that my head was whirling a little bit because of too much wine. I had digital pictures of most jewels, so I sorted them and burned a CD for the police on my trusted iMac at home.

It was around 6:00 P.M. when I arrived at the Redondo Beach Police headquarters. From accused to victim in two days, I thought when I entered. The procedure didn’t vary from Wednesday’s except that Mable shooed me right into Henry Steward’s office.

“Calendar, good to see you, hope you got over the burglary a little bit already,” Chief Steward—Henry—said when he shook my hand. He sounded honestly concerned.

“Thanks, Chief … I mean Henry,” I made a quick face and put my envelope on his table. “Got your list and pictures on a CD. Hope it helps to get the stuff back.”

We sat, Mable brought in our chief’s brews, and over the steaming mug Henry said, “Don’t get your hopes up. From what I heard, the jewelry gets broken down pretty quickly and is assimilated into the black and white markets within days.”

I nodded dutifully as if he had told me something new. “That’s what the insurance detective Fowler Wynn told me, too. Let’s hope for the best.”

“That’s the spirit! I have a tidbit of news for you as well regarding your other case. My detective searched the MO in the federal databases and came up with several hits.” Henry patted a file on his desk. “Seems that this particular style of breaking into a safe was a trademark of a never-apprehended thief in the early seventies. His nickname was ‘The Welder’ because of just that method.” Henry showed me an old Xeroxed picture of a floor safe with similar markings. “That guy opened about a hundred safes in jewelry stores and private homes.”

I looked up at Henry. “So, it is possible that … what? A grandpa thief robbed my shop?”

Henry gave a chuckle. “Maybe playing Bingo in Tampa didn’t do the trick for him. But yes, it is possible, but remotely so.”

“I am still putting my money on Rip Delaware. He had the perfect opportunity to spy out my shop from his pizza window across the street and, in his arrogance, faced me afterward on the beach.”

Henry looked at me for a few seconds. “Ahh, yes, Mr. Delaware.” He let his words linger for a second, and his demeanor made it clear to me why I never wanted to be caught at something stupid in his bailiwick and be questioned by him afterward.

“What do mean with this doubting ‘ahh, yes’?” I may have sounded a little annoyed.

Henry leaned forward over his desk. “Listen, Calendar, this is the way your meeting on the beach has been reported to me by my patrol officer. He had been patrolling the beach road and could oversee your encounter.

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