The Lovely Chocolate Mob - By Richard J. Bennett Page 0,29
snack, took a shower, read my computer e-mails, caught up on the news, cleaned up the kitchen, then put on my shoes and went for a walk. It was a nice stroll down past the Dairy Queen and around the corner to the post office. I stopped and waited, but not for long. The large and slow recreational vehicle came down the street, but from the opposite direction than before. It stopped, and with no invitation I walked across the street and hopped in.
Walter was wearing his disguise, so I didn’t say anything until we left the city and made our way south, back to Estella’s bar and grill. We sat at the same booth, far from the other people; there were more customers there that night. There were some bikers I had been worried about; they appeared to be mostly in their mid-fifties, maybe even into their sixties and seventies; either that or they’d all had a rough life. I really had nothing to worry about, since they seemed to enjoy each other’s company, and their fighting and hell-raising days were far behind them now. At least a quarter of them appeared to be vets, based on the tone of their dress. American flags were sewn into their clothes, their bandanas, and even painted on their motorbikes in the parking lot. They seemed to know Kim and Walter, and were also comfortable in this setting.
We got comfortable, ordered some drinks, and Walter started talking. “I did a little research on your old sweetheart, Helen Ceraldi, or Helen Ceraldi hyphen Burke,” lowering his voice when saying the name a second time. “Guess what I came up with.”
I had some idea what he was talking about, and was extremely curious. I tried not to appear too anxious, but Walter knew me. “What did you come up with?” I asked.
Walter looked pleased, like the cat who ate the canary. “You know she married that doctor, right? Franklin Burke, M.D. They’ve got four kids: three girls, and one boy. Got that?”
“Got it. I knew that.”
“I did a little research,” he said. “A little fact-checking, and… did she tell you they’re broke, up to their necks in debt, practically one paycheck away from bankruptcy?”
I let this sink in for a moment. It didn’t make sense. Why would she keep this from me?
“No, she didn’t tell me this. In fact, everything I know about her tells me the opposite. Married to a doctor, four kids, sports car, a house…”
“Not just a house, a mansion!” Walter said with glee. He was enjoying this. “In the rich part of town!”
I started naming their known assets. “Kids, a mansion, a car…”
“And not just a car, an Italian sports car, an import!” Walter said. “That’s not their only car…”
I interrupted, “You better let me write all this down; let me get situated. This might get heavy.”
I borrowed a piece of paper from Kim. Fortunately, I usually carried a pen, so Walter talked and I wrote down everything important. It turned out that Helen and Dr. Burke owned an old, beautiful mansion near a gated community; it would have been included inside the gate, but was built many years before modern developers came along. The two oldest children had a car, which made a four-car family. It only made sense for Mindy to have a car since she needed to get around while at college. Their mansion had a five-car garage, located near the house; they all drove into a little courtyard area, between the house and the garage, the kind that used to exist back in the horse and carriage days, among those who could afford it.
Walter rattled off all what he found they owned, which included a swimming pool, a maid and a cook (but they were only part-timers). Well, nobody really owns a maid and cook, but they were employed. When the cook was off, the family ate out, especially on weekends, and many times at the country club, which brought even more expenses. They belonged to the Lovely Country Club, which, I suppose, is expected if you want to hob-nob with the movers and shakers.
Helen was on different community boards, including being a patron of the local arts, a sponsor and board member of the local public television group, and active with the local pet shelter. Oh yes, they had pets, and more than one. Sometimes they brought home dogs and cats no one wanted to adopt, until they could find homes for them. Many times