Page 72 of Family Ties and Alibis

Vinnie emerged from the shadows and blocked her path. “Hello, Ione.”

She stumbled back, clutching her chest. “You scared me half to death.”

He nodded toward Royal Flush. “You doing a little gambling after work?”

“What’s it to you?” Her face twisted in an ugly taunt. “Are you stalking me? I should call the cops and report you.”

“Go right ahead. I have a lot to tell them. So, back to my question, are you doing a little gambling at Royal Flush?”

She lifted her chin. “Maybe. What’s it to you?”

Vinnie ignored the snipe. “Is Tommy loaning you some cash?”

“Tommy who?”

“Tommy Castellini, the manager of Royal Flush, who also happens to be my brother-in-law.”

For the second time that evening, a flicker of fear crossed Ione’s face. “You’re related to Castellini?”

“Don’t play dumb,” Vinnie snapped. “Everyone in AC knows we’re related.”

She defensively deflected from answering the question about Tommy loaning her money. “It’s not against the law for me to gamble at another casino.”

“It’s not,” he agreed. “However, I have it from a reliable source that you weren’t in there gambling. You met with Tommy and then left.”

“We had something to discuss. It’s none of your business. Based on our earlier conversation, I figured you were on your way to give the investigators evidence into Sal’s death.”

“Who says I haven’t? I figured it wouldn’t hurt for us to chat one more time.” He shifted his feet. “Going back to my attack behind Treasure Cove. You weren’t alone, and now that I think about it, I also recognize the person who called your name.”

The color drained from Ione’s face. “Who was it?”

Vinnie clenched his jaw. This…this was it. So many reasons for Tommy to want him out of the picture.

Royal Flush Casino showing signs of slowing down. Check.

Treasure Cove Casino posting record numbers. Check.

Vito naming Vinnie as head of the “family” only hours before his death. Check.

Maybe it had been eating away at Tommy. He’d been biding his time, waiting for the right moment, the right person. Someone who would help him sabotage his brother-in-law, ruin his reputation, and possibly even murder him.

“Tommy Castellini. What did Sal do to get himself killed?” Vinnie asked in a soft voice. “Did he double-cross Tommy?”

“I…uh.” Ione stumbled back, her eyes round as saucers. “Tommy didn’t attack you.”

“Okay, maybe he didn’t. What if you’re on his hit list? Because if Tommy took Sal out, you could very well be next.”

“It was you,” Ione accused, her voice lacking conviction. “You killed Sal and then staged your own attack to throw the cops off.”

“We both know this wasn’t what happened. Before I came here, I let the investigators know Ms. X named Tommy as Sal’s killer,” he bluffed.

Ione started to sway, and Vinnie thought for a second she was going down. “I didn’t rat him out.”

“So it’s true. Tommy killed Sal,” he bluntly replied.

She slowly backed up, clutching her backpack. “I-I didn’t say that. You’re putting words in my mouth.”

“Why didn’t you tell the cops Tommy killed Sal?”