Lisa Scottoline - Think Twice

Nobody but Mary noticed that Fiorella said nothing.

Bennie sat in her second interview room of the day, across from another set of odd-couple cops, the husky Officer Pete Mora, who took her statement on an IBM Selectric typewriter, and the gaunt Officer Kevin Vaz, who gazed at her from behind his aviator glasses.

“So that’s it,” Bennie said, finishing her saga. If they thought she was crazy, they didn’t let it show. “They’re busy investigating the fire in Cambridge County, and your Deputy Johnson says you don’t have jurisdiction to help me find Alice Connelly.”

“He’s correct. We don’t.”

“Do you know Azzic and Holland?”

“No, we’re just humble uniforms.” Officer Mora shifted forward. He was about thirty years old, with large brown eyes, a smooth chin, and a wide nose. His shoulders were broad, pulling at the seams of his summer uniform. “What about our friend the cabbie? That is our jurisdiction.”

“I would have paid him when I got into my house. Do you know anybody on the job in Cambridge County?”

“No, but given the fire, I’m sure the county will make it a priority.”

“It’s a question of their effectiveness, not their will.”

“I never second-guess other departments.” Officer Mora unrolled the statement from the typewriter. “Now, as for the cab driver, you say you can get the money and you’ll also produce proof that it was your house you were breaking into.”

“I have a copy of my deed at the office and I can have it messengered here.” Bennie took a sip of vending-machine coffee, holding the cup with two hands. “The Cambridge County police said they put an APB out on my car, a Lexus, but can you check into that?”

“I’ll do that for you.” Officer Vaz stood up wearily and stretched. He was the older of the two, with a graying mustache, but was trim as a marathoner, with lean limbs and a black runner’s watch that slid around on his wrist. “I gotta check the front desk, anyway. I’m expecting a message. My first grandchild.”

Officer Mora nodded. “Don’t count on Mike to bring it to you. He’s back and forth to the can, on those meds again.”

“They ain’t gonna help.” Officer Vaz’s gaze shifted to Bennie. “What kind of car did you say it was, again?”

“Burgundy Lexus, last year. I don’t know the plate.”

“Be right back.” Officer Vaz left, and Officer Mora handed her the statement, with a Bic ballpoint.

“Your autograph, please.”

“Sure, thanks.” Bennie read and scribbled her name on the statement, then handed it back to Officer Mora. He was stapling the papers together when the door opened and Officer Vaz stuck his head inside, motioning.

“C’mere a sec, would you, Pete?”

Mora turned. “You a grandpop yet?”

“No, c’mere.”

“Sure.” Officer Mora rose and left, and Bennie stood up, tugging down her shorts. She was almost glad the cops hadn’t recognized her because she’d never live it down. Her breasts were practically falling out of the glittery top, and she hadn’t waited around for the social worker to find her panties. Not only was she dressed like a hooker, she was undressed like one.

Officers Mora and Vaz reentered, but something was wrong. Concern crossed Officer Mora’s eyes, and Officer Vaz’s ennui had vanished.

“Why don’t you take a seat, Ms. Rosato?” Officer Mora retook his seat with a sheaf of new papers, while Officer Vaz stood in front of the door.

“What’s the matter?” Bennie sat down, and her shorts rode up.

“We have a few more questions.” Officer Mora held the papers in his hand, close to his chest. “Did you call a lawyer named Mary DiNunzio from a hospital in Pellesburg, in Cambridge County?”

“Yes, why. How do you know that I called DiNunzio?”

“Did you identify yourself to her as Bennie Rosato?”

“Yes, of course, in the message I left for her.” Bennie didn’t like the way this was going. She’d been in enough interviews to know when they turned into custodial interrogation. “Is there a problem?”

“Ms. DiNunzio has filed a complaint against you, for criminal impersonation.”

“What are you talking about? You must be mistaken.”

“Here’s a copy, filed this morning.” Officer Mora glanced back at Officer Vaz, then handed over the papers, and Bennie read the complaint, incredulous. It was all there, the message she left for DiNunzio, as well as a sworn statement that the woman DiNunzio heard from was Alice Connelly.

“This is crazy. It was me, not Alice.”

“Ms. DiNunzio’s statement is that she worked with Ms. Rosato at the office on Saturday.”

“I wasn’t at the office on Saturday. I was buried in a box in Cambridge County.”

“Ms. DiNunzio says that Ms. Rosato-”

“I’m Ms. Rosato. I’m Bennie Rosato.”

“You’ll see a supporting statement there, filed later by Ms. Rosato.”

“But I didn’t file anything,” Bennie said, but it was already beginning to dawn on her what was going on. She had assumed that Alice would run away, after trying to kill her. Instead, she was trying to take Bennie’s place. It was inconceivable.

“See for yourself.” Officer Mora reached over, flipped to the back page, and pointed with a thick finger. “Here’s Ms. Rosato’s statement, saying that she worked with Mary DiNunzio, at the offices of Rosato & Associates, and that she didn’t call Mary DiNunzio on the evening in question.” Officer Mora looked up, his eyes cool. “You called this Mary DiNunzio, pretending to be Bennie Rosato. You also represented to us that you were Bennie Rosato. That’s criminal impersonation, Ms. Connelly.”

“No, it isn’t. I’m Bennie Rosato. She’s the fraud. She’s impersonating me.”

“Do you have someone we could call, to verify what you’re telling us?”

“No.” Bennie flipped through the possibilities. Her closest friend, Sam Freminet, was in Hawaii on vacation. DiNunzio and Carrier had been fooled, and Lou was gone, too. None of her clients knew her personally.

“I’m hereby informing you that you have the right to remain silent. If you cannot afford a lawyer, one will be provided for you-”

“You don’t have to warn me, I know my rights. I’m Bennie Rosato. I’m a lawyer.”

“You have no ID. No proof.”

“Of course not, because she took it. She drugged me and tried to kill me, then stole my car and took my place.”

“How about your doctor? Your psychiatrist?” Officer Mora’s tone turned gentle. “Have you ever been hospitalized for a mental disorder?”

“Of course not.”

“Okay, stay calm.” Officer Mora glanced at Officer Vaz, and Bennie could see that they thought she was nuts. She would have tried to convince him that she was telling the truth, but being in that box had changed her. Now she wanted to get Alice, her own way. The criminal complaint didn’t matter. In fact, it helped. Now she didn’t have to hunt Alice down. She knew exactly where Alice was. At Rosato & Associates.

“You know, I think I understand what happened.” Bennie stood up, masking her emotions. “I want to call a lawyer. I want to exercise that right. He knows my doctor, too. They can help me.”

“This way, we can use my desk.” Officer Mora opened the door, Officer Vaz stood aside, and Bennie followed, apparently quietly. The cops led her into the cluttered squad room, which was empty, luckily, probably because of the vacation scheduling. The path to the door was clear. Nobody was at the front desk. Two uniformed cops stood at the back of the room, talking near the file cabinets. The cops led her toward the right, away from the exit, but suddenly she bolted left for the door.