Free The Apostrophe Thief by Barbara Paul Page B

episodes that was missing. Then somebody’s wife finds a copy she didn’t know she had, and they casually show it on television for anybody to copy who wanted to. Twenty years Ernie had been looking … and he ends up out on a limb without a paddle! That would turn anyone sour.”
    â€œOh, yes,” Marian said, thinking back. “I believe I watched that. Pretty bad, as I recall.”
    Augie laughed shortly. “It was dreadful. But that’s not the point. The point is it was one of a kind and nobody could find it. Ernie Nordstrom had just about made a career of looking for Lucy … and suddenly all these VCRs are whirring away, taping the thing straight off television.” He laughed again. “Jesus.”
    Marian asked, “Do you have an address for him?”
    The Zingones shook their heads. “Ernie doesn’t want people to know where he lives,” Mark/Luke said. “He deals out of his apartment, so he keeps a lot of valuable stuff there. He’s just being careful.”
    â€œDo you know of any partners he might have?” Marian asked. “Younger—one’s dark and quiet, wears his hair in a ponytail, and the other’s a hunk?” She got more head shakes, this time accompanied by looks of incipient suspicion that she hastened to squelch. “I got a tip that some man who had two younger buddies with him knew something about the Three Rings scripts. Augie’s pretty sure the one I’m looking for is Ernie Nordstrom, but I’d hate to spend a lot of time tracking down the wrong guy. All I have to go on is a description—short and stocky, wheezes a lot, middle-aged.”
    â€œThat could be Harley Wingfield,” Janet said, “but unless it has ‘Elvis’ written on it, Harley’s not interested.”
    â€œSo that leaves Ernie Nordstrom,” Augie said with an air of finality. “If he’s got a line on the Three Rings director’s script, I’d like to let him know a customer’s waiting to do business.” He cleared his throat. “So if anybody who knows him comes in …”
    â€œWe’ll take care of it,” Luke/Mark promised. “That’ll be our number-one agenda on things to do. We’d like to know what happened to the Broadhurst haul too.”
    Janet spoke up. “Wait a minute. You said one of the younger guys is dark-haired and quiet?”
    Marian looked at her quickly. “That’s right.”
    â€œNot a partner, but …” She turned to her brothers. “Didn’t Ernie use to hire some Latino whenever he had heavy lifting to do, or a whole bunch of stuff he needed to move—”
    â€œYou’re right,” Matthew said. “Uh, what’s his name … Vasquez?”
    â€œUh-huh, Vasquez, that’s it. He barely speaks English, I remember.”
    â€œFirst name?” Marian asked. Nobody knew that, or where he could be reached.
    The bell rang again; more customers. Augie looked at his watch and said, “I’ve got to get to work.”
    Marian thanked the Zingones and followed her “agent” out. Back down on the street, she and Augie exchanged phone numbers. “You’ll get in touch the minute you hear anything?” Marian asked.
    â€œCount on it,” Augie said with his big-toothed smile, and waved goodbye.
    Lieutenant Overbrook looked amused. “Matthew, Mark, Luke … and Janet?”
    â€œBest-laid plans,” Marian said with a grin. “But these two possibles look pretty good—they fit the descriptions. Vasquez is just muscles-for-hire, and I’m guessing the hunk is too. Ernie Nordstrom is the one we want. Shady dealer, smalltime.”
    â€œAPB?”
    â€œNot yet, it might spook him. Let’s give Augie and the Zingones a chance first. And now that I’ve got a name, I can do some more hunting myself.”
    Overbrook was frowning. “Vasquez … the