Walt Murphy – Part Two – 28

We stopped talking for a minute when the waiter appeared with our meals. Once he was gone I asked, "Do you follow the news?" After Caiazzo nodded I said, "Then you may have seen the story of the woman who was attacked and killed behind a local gym. That woman was the one Frank Milano was involved with while he was in Shreveport."

"I see," Caiazzo replied. "Why are you interested in her?"

"She hired me to find the son she gave up for adoption over twenty years ago."

"Milano's son? No, it wouldn't have been his. He would have been in his teens back then."

"Well she was eighteen, but you're right. From what I've learned he was five years younger than her. Besides which, I know who the father is."

"Did you find her son?"

"No." We finally began to eat. The food was good—very good actually—so it was a few minutes before I got back to what we'd been talking about.  "I've been warned not to pursue Ms Engel's murder, by the cops and by someone else."

"So when you found out about Frank, and that his father was a member of the mob, you immediately thought he could be the killer for whatever reason. That is, speaking as an Italian”—he grinned—"a very prejudiced response."

"I'm not quite that prone to jumping to conclusions," I grumbled. "However, from what I have learned, his relationship with Ms Engel ended abruptly, and soon after she told my informant that she had come into money. An inheritance according to her."

"But then that's what she would say, whether it was that or she was blackmailing young Frank. Correct?"

"Yes. I was tending more towards her having stolen from him, but blackmail would work."

"If he didn't want anyone to know who his father really is and she knew, it would."

"She was a conniving bitch, pardon my language. She wanted to marry rich. She tried to force her son's father into marrying her. Then there was a man in… well where isn't important. She went after him as well, with no success. Who knows how many others were her victims until she finally came up with an alternate plan."    

"Find the son, who might have money since you implied his father did."

"The son stands to inherit a large sum of money. I'm sure she planned on wriggling her way into his life to get her hands on at least some of it."

"A good reason for the father to want her dead."

I nodded. "So is blackmail, if she managed to discover where Frank Milano is now, and tried it again. Presuming that's the reason he left her in the first place."

"I can make a few phone calls and possibly find out. But not right this moment. Let's finish this excellent meal. It deserves our full attention."

I chuckled. "Which it hasn't had so far."

We ate, chatting about nothing particular, and then we parted with his promise that he'd call me if he found out anything about Frank Milano's reasons for leaving Ms Engel.