getting close to something. Angelica might have gotten immunity for her crimes, but there are still people out there who she didn’t implicate. Like I said, she didn’t do it alone. And corruption usually starts at the top. I think Charlie was assembling a list of everyone who was involved, and I think he was going to go after them.
“Every time I read through that file he left in the shed, something about it just didn’t feel right. There were sections missing, and sometimes he got a detail wrong about the case. Charlie never got details wrong. And I mean never. The more I read through the file, the more I realized your dad had made that file for me. Almost like a key that only I could understand. I knew he had to have the real files somewhere, but I looked everywhere. They were nowhere in the house, his office, the shed. So I figured he had them off-site.”
“In a storage unit,” I said.
“You really have become a very good investigator,” Vince said. “Your dad would be proud of you.”
I don’t know why that made me tear up. Maybe it was the hormones. Or maybe because I’d never really known if my dad was proud of me. He was kind of a hard nut to crack.
Vince moved in and took the cooling coffee from me and set it on the table. Then he gave me a hug, and I held on for dear life.
“Sorry,” I said a couple of minutes later. I pulled away and wiped my eyes. “I think marriage has made me soft.”
Vince’s lips twitched. “Believe me, the right marriage makes you the right kind of soft. You’re on the right track, kid.”
“What did you find in the storage unit?” I asked.
“I didn’t,” Vince said. “I couldn’t find the key. If you’d come here tomorrow I would’ve been gone. I was getting ready to head to the storage unit and break in with a pair of bolt cutters and hope for the best. I figured I could put all the files in the back of my truck and spend a couple of days at a cheap motel going through them. The longer I stay away from home, the safer your mother will be.”
“I’m not sure that makes you much safer though,” I said, making him smile wryly. “Fortunately, I found the key at the bottom of the file cabinet.”
“You did?” he asked, excitement shining in his eyes.
“I’m not sure what you have planned as far as how to clean up this mess,” I said. “But Nick, Savage, and Kate all know about this.”
“Then no one is safe,” he said. “Angelica is no one to mess with.”
“How do you know she’s behind whoever tried to kill you in Miami?” I asked. “Like you said, there were a lot of players involved. Maybe someone found out you went to visit Carmen and got nervous. Remember, Angelica has nothing to lose or gain by trying to kill you. Honestly, it seemed like she was rather fond of you and Dad. But she’s got immunity. Anything Dad found out about her wouldn’t matter.”
“It’s what he found out about others,” he said, nodding in agreement. “There’s very few people I trust to help me with this whole thing, but I haven’t been thinking straight. I’ve been retired too long. And I’ll admit, the close calls in Miami got to me. I’d never have thought I’d have to deal with that stuff this long after I left the job.”
“I’ve got the key in my van,” I told him. “Why don’t we take your car and swing by and pick it? I’m sure Rosemarie and Scarlet have had enough of the outdoors.”
“You go ahead,” he said. “I can’t leave just yet. I told you there were very few people I trusted with this information. I contacted them and they’re on the way here now. I’ll explain everything and then we can all meet over at the storage shed. Call Nick and your FBI friend. We should probably have as many witnesses as possible.”
I heard a car driving across boards and through the muck, and I stared at Vince in panic. What if whoever was trying to kill him in Miami had found him here? What if they’d followed me to get to Vince?
“I’m sure it’s no one to worry about,” Vince said. “Remember, I’m expecting friends. But just in case, why don’t you go out the back and stay low.”