A rasping began in her ear. Its inflection sounded like Maddalena’s voice at its most strident. Serafina pulled on an earlobe. The disturbance did not abate.
Presently, Totò quieted. She eased him onto the sofa and was about to go tell Rosa of her change in plans when she heard Carmela’s footsteps in the hall.
“Rosa sent me in to find you.”
“I can’t go. Totò’s ill.”
“You’ve a killer to catch.”
“Not that again!” Carlo said.
Vicenzu turned from his abacus. “I suppose it’s all right with you if her stipend dies and you can’t finish school.”
Carlo’s eyes flicked from side to side. “But these are my free days and I’m left with a mess.”
Carmela glared at her twin as she strode into the sitting room and bent to kiss Totò’s forehead. “He’s fine. Give him to Assunta. She can take him for an ice.”
Totò’s head popped up.
Carmela stomped over to Carlo. “Grow up. And, Mama, you need to go. Now!”
The hissing in Serafina’s ears receded.
A knock on the door. Steps in the hall. A policeman appeared at the edge of the sitting room. All eyes were on him as he stood facing them.
“Badali, here.” He smiled.
“He’s going with us,” Serafina said.
“Rosa’s not taking her guards?” Vicenzu asked.
“Her guards scare bandits on the road. A show of strength, nothing more.” Serafina stood. “I might be gone a few days.”
“Then you’ll need a change of linen. I’ll pack for you.” Carmela raced out, glancing at Badali.
Serafina blew kisses to the room, motioned for the policeman to follow. Tall, handsome, young. Angle of nose, Roman. Perfect.
“Have you told your wife you might not be coming home tonight?”
“Not married,” Badali said.
Yes, indeed. Perfect!
CHAPTER FORTY
Badali rode with the driver. Rosa’s guards surrounded the coach. On their ride to the cala, Palermo’s ancient harbor where the admiral’s ship was docked, Serafina told her about finding Ugo’s body on the beach.
The coach wheels bounced over the cobbles. Serafina hung onto a handle as they careened down Via Serpentina. She told Rosa about finding gold and silver in Ugo’s home, catching Abatti at the scene of the crime, and his confession to poisoning then stabbing Ugo.
“Where’s the gold?”
“I’m coming to that.”
They were silent a moment as they swayed into a turn.
The madam shielded her eyes from the glare of the sea. “The most important evidence of all and you leave it for the end, but let me guess. Colonna believes Abatti and you don’t.”
“How did you know?”
The madam chuckled. “Cold cod, the shoemaker. But if Colonna had the gold in his possession and-”
“You’re getting ahead of my story. Now listen.” Serafina told her about her interview with the shoemaker on the day she found Ugo’s body. She spoke of Graziella’s melancholia. She told Rosa about the shoemaker’s shocked reaction at the wake when questioned about the rat poison, about finding a tin of it in his backroom, and finished with the account of the caretaker-that he’d taken the whole family to the station where they’d boarded the train for Bagheria.
“Must be headed for Palermo docks.”
“He didn’t know.”
Rosa was silent for a moment. “Do you have proof that the shoemaker knows Abatti?”
“I remember Abatti bounding down the shoemaker’s steps as I prepared to enter his shop shortly after I found Ugo’s body.”
“Perhaps the soldier bought shoes?”
Serafina canted her eyes in Rosa’s direction.
“A joke. Your word is enough for me. Quick: get back to the gold.”
The madam’s mind is like a trap. “Colonna plays shady dealings sometimes, but-”
“Sometimes?” Rosa asked. “How much?”
“A chest full of the stuff. The inspector told me he had an understanding with the shoemaker.”
Rosa held onto her hat as the coach rounded another corner. “I’ll bet. Where’s the gold now?”
“According to Colonna, the shoemaker has it.”
The madam rolled her eyes. “Except for Colonna’s generous cut-that’s the ‘understanding’ part. No wonder he swallowed Abatti’s confession.”
“But now the commissioner’s involved. He wants me to question the shoemaker in a more formal setting.”
“No doubt you persuaded him.”
“I reminded him that should fratricide be hinted and our initial investigation appear to be less than thorough, the press might-”
Rosa chuckled. “They’d have a delicious romp.” Her eyes exploded as she turned to Serafina. “What’s this I hear about you and Loffredo?”
CHAPTER FORTY-ONE
Serafina felt queasy when she stepped on board the admiral’s ship. She presented her identification and asked to see the admiral.
“Not here at the moment, dear lady.”
Rosa spoke up and soon the sailors escorted the group down to his office where the admiral gave her a blustery kiss. She grabbed the admiral’s sleeve, pressing it to her chest. “We depend on you. I know you’ll help.” She turned to Serafina who explained the reason for their visit and requested information regarding the shoemaker’s family who she believed had tickets on a steamer.
“The name of the ship? The date of departure?”
She did not know.
As they waited for his secretary to retrieve the passenger lists, the admiral smiled at Rosa. “Like yesterday and yet so many years have passed. Not a day older, my sweet.”
Serafina looked at Badali and smiled.
It seemed like hours before the underling returned. “Rodolfo Pandolfina, a shoemaker from Oltramari in the province of Palermo, boarded a paddle steamer this afternoon. With him were his wife and two children. Earlier this week, he booked passage on a foreign vessel, the Aleppo. Tomorrow afternoon it leaves Messina bound for Liverpool.”
“Why Messina? Palermo’s not good enough for them?” Rosa asked.
The admiral shrugged. “Probably booked tickets for the first available passage.”
CHAPTER FORTY-TWO
Wednesday, February 20, 1867
Early the next morning, Rosa’s carriage rolled toward Messina’s harbor. The screeching of the gulls filled Serafina’s ears. Although they had stopped for the night at a comfortable inn on the outskirts, her eyelids felt like shells in rough sand.
As the coach swayed from side to side, so did Serafina’s mind. She wondered if, after all, Carlo had been correct and she was acting to make herself look good in the eyes of the public. Was the shoemaker an innocent man determined to escape the meanness of his present life and create a better world for his family? She shook her head, convinced of his guilt.
They stopped at a promontory overlooking Messina. The harbor was almost as large as the port of Palermo, Serafina thought, and this morning, it bustled. Vendors hawked their wares to crowds gathered around several docked vessels. Wagons carrying trunks moved in all directions. Passengers scurried off paddle steamers lugging their belongings. They called for porters or to family members or stood in long lines for boarding one of several moored ships. For a moment the scene made her breathless.
Badali stood next to her, rumbling on about the difference between a ship and a barque, but she paid no attention. Instead, she marveled at the movement of so many peoples, wondered where they were heading and why. She felt the salt sea air on her face and gazed through mist to the mainland. Listening to the slap of the waves, she pictured for an instant the ancient hag she’d seen last week in Oltramari’s piazza and remembered with amusement Teo’s account of her. The image faded and in its wake, Serafina felt the weight of farewells.