because of the nap of the velvet. The room was chilly, damp, and smelled
of the previous night’s garlic and the accumulated smoke of five-years’
worth of cigarettes. Raymond was happy to keep on his hat and coat.
‘Two coffees,’ Vinnie called out to the man behind the bar. Wordlessly,
the man turned to an elaborate Italian expresso machine and began
manipulating the controls.
‘You surprised me, Doc,’ Vinnie said. ‘I truly never expected to hear
from you again.’
‘As I mentioned on the phone there’s another problem,’ Raymond said. He
leaned forward and spoke in a low voice just above a whisper.
Vinnie spread his hands. ‘I’m all ears.’
As succinctly as he could, Raymond outlined the situation with Cindy
Carlson. He emphasized the fact that all suicides were medical examiner
cases and had to be autopsied. There were no exceptions.
The overweight man from behind the bar brought out the coffees. Vinnie
didn’t respond to Raymond’s monologue until the bartender had gone back
to his glassware.
‘Is this Cindy Carlson the daughter of Albright Carlson?’ Vinnie asked.
‘The Wall Street legend?’
Raymond nodded. ‘That’s partly why this situation is so important,’ he
said. ‘If she commits suicide it will undoubtedly garner considerable
media attention. The medical examiners will be particularly vigilant.’
‘I get the picture,’ Vinnie said as he took a sip of his coffee. ‘What
is it exactly that you would want us to do?’
‘I wouldn’t presume to offer any suggestions,’ Raymond said nervously.
‘But you can appreciate that this problem is on a par with the Franconi
situation.’
‘So you want this sixteen-year-old girl to just conveniently disappear,’
Vinnie said.
‘Well, she has tried to kill herself twice,’ Raymond said limply. ‘In a
way, we’d just be doing her a favor.’
Vinnie laughed. He picked up his cigarette, took a drag, and then ran
his hand over the top of his head. His hair was slicked back smoothly
from his forehead. He regarded Raymond with his dark eyes.
‘You’re a piece of work, Doc,’ Vinnie said. ‘I gotta give you credit for
that.’
‘Perhaps I can offer another year of free tuition,’ Raymond said.
‘That’s very generous of you,’ Vinnie said. ‘But you know something,
Doc, it’s not enough. In fact, I’m getting a little fed up with this
whole operation. And I’ll tell you straight: if it weren’t for Vinnie
Junior’s kidney problems, I’d probably just ask for my money back, and
we’d go our separate ways. You see, I’m already looking at potential
problems from the first favor I did for you. I got a call from my wife’s
brother who runs the Spoletto Funeral Home. He’s all upset because a Dr.
Laurie Montgomery called asking embarrassing questions. Tell me, Doc. Do
you know this Dr. Laurie Montgomery?’
‘No, I don’t,’ Raymond said. He swallowed loudly.
‘Hey, Angelo, come over here!’ Vinnie called out.
Angelo slid off his bar stool and came to the table.
‘Sit down, Angelo,’ Vinnie said. ‘I want you to tell the good doctor
here about Laurie Montgomery.’
Raymond had to move farther into the booth to give room for Angelo. He
felt distinctly uncomfortable being sandwiched between the two men.
‘Laurie Montgomery is a smart, persistent individual,’ Angelo said with
his husky voice. ‘To put it bluntly, she’s a pain in the ass.’
Raymond avoided looking at Angelo. His face was mostly scar tissue.
Since his eyes didn’t close properly, they were red and rheumy.
‘Angelo had an unfortunate run-in with Laurie Montgomery a few years
back,’ Vinnie explained. ‘Angelo, tell Raymond what you learned today
after we heard from the funeral home.’
‘I called Vinnie Amendola, our contact in the morgue,’ Angelo said. ‘He
told me that Laurie Montgomery specifically said that she was going to
make it her personal business to find out how Franconi’s body
disappeared. Needless to say he’s very concerned.’
‘See what I mean,’ Vinnie said. ‘We got a potential problem here just
because we did you a favor.’
‘I’m very sorry,’ Raymond said lamely. He couldn’t think of any other
response.
‘It brings us back to this tuition issue,’ Vinnie said. ‘Under the
circumstances I think the tuition should just be waived. In other words,