She checked the rear-view mirror, and I glanced back to see there was nothing trailing us through the darkness.
“I think he was right about Father Carlos’s last words,” I said. “The priest knew his killer.”
“If not Antonelli, then who?” Faduma asked.
“I want to know more about Milan Verde,” I replied. “Father Carlos’s death was exactly the kind of noisy statement the Dark Fates live to make.”
Faduma nodded. “Maybe he’s been using priests to transport money for him?”
“Maybe.”
We followed the snaking road down the side of the valley and soon joined the highway heading into the city. It took us over an hour to cross Rome, reaching Ostia shortly after 1 a.m.
“You didn’t have to drive me,” I told her. “I could have caught a cab in the city.”
“I’d like to take a look at what you’ve got on Milan Verde if that’s okay with you?” Faduma replied.
“So the ride was less of a favor, more a favor for a favor,” I remarked. “If we’re going to work this together, information has to go both ways. You share with me whatever you’ve got.”
“Deal,” she said.
She parked a block from the cell-phone store and we walked the busy streets.
“Exciting neighborhood,” she observed. “Very lively.”
“It suits me,” I replied. “As long as no one else traces me here.”
We walked through the alleyway to the yard behind the terrace and climbed the metal steps up to the apartment. When I reached the door, I sensed something was wrong. I was struck by the feeling that something here was out of place, like when a favorite photo is moved from its usual position or a painting hangs crooked. I realized the grubby welcome mat was not set flush against the bottom of the door frame anymore.
I signaled to Faduma to be silent and crept forward, sliding my key into the lock. I felt the tiny teeth run along the tumbler mechanism. Once they were fast, I turned it gently and slowly pushed the door open.
I moved inside and crept along the corridor, taking great care not to make a sound. I heard people in the living room and sidestepped into the kitchen to slide a carving knife out of the block.
Faduma’s eyes widened. I signaled for her to stay back.
I held the knife ready and pushed the living-room door open.
“Jeez, Jack!” Mo-bot yelled. “What the hell are you doing, wandering around like you’re in a slasher movie?”
I breathed easy and grinned at the welcome sight of Mo-bot, Sci and Justine. The three of them smiled right back at me.
Chapter 51
Justine leapt to her feet, crossed the room and threw her arms around me. As we hugged I felt the tension ebb out of her.
“Jack,” she said. “I missed you.”
“I missed you too,” I replied.
Faduma cleared her throat awkwardly. Justine and I parted reluctantly.
“Faduma Salah, this is my colleague and partner Justine Smith,” I said, and she stepped forward and offered her hand.
“Pleased to meet you,” she said.
“Likewise,” Faduma responded.
“And this is Maureen Roth,” I continued.
“Everyone calls me Mo-bot,” she told Faduma with a wave. “Or Mo.”
“And Seymour Kloppenberg,” I added.
He also waved. “Call me Sci.”
“Nice to meet you all,” Faduma said.
“How did you find me?” I asked.
“Your phone,” Mo-bot replied. “I tracked your location, looked at where you spent the night.”
It wouldn’t have been much of a challenge for Mo-bot, who was one of the world’s leading computer and digital surveillance experts. She didn’t look it now though, wearing a sensible cool white linen dress that was crumpled from the journey.
Sci was in his customary biker boots, T-shirt and jeans, busy reviewing the files I’d obtained on the various players in this investigation.
“Have you been working together?” Justine asked, returning to her spot on the couch next to him.
Like Sci, she’d been examining a stack of files, and I knew she’d be trying to build psychological pictures of all the key players. I was most interested in her insight into Milan Verde but sensed there was more to her question than simple curiosity. Was she jealous?
“Not really,” I replied. “We’ve just been out to see Elia Antonelli together, and Faduma wanted to check the information we have on Milan Verde.”
Justine smiled and nodded, but I wasn’t sure she was entirely happy. We’d had our problems in the past, and she had even become convinced I was involved with Dinara Orlova, the head of our Moscow operation. Faduma was a beautiful woman but I was devoted to Justine, who looked magnificent tonight in a long Pucci-print dress. I couldn’t imagine she had travelled in it. Had she put it on in anticipation of my arrival? Was her frustration due to the fact that we weren’t alone?
I didn’t have the time to indulge myself in such thoughts. Instead I briefed the three of them on what we’d learnt from Antonelli. I also brought them up to speed on the death of Father Carlos and everything that had happened since.
They listened transfixed, incredulous in places, and when I was finished, Mo-bot said, “I’m beginning to regret our decision to come here. Rome sounds dangerous.”
Chapter 52
Justine and I finally kissed and it felt great to hold her in my arms again. We were in the small bedroom that had become my temporary home, light from the neon signs outside bleeding around the edges of the threadbare drapes, lending the room an eerie orange glow. The old shabby furniture and peeling wallpaper made it one of the least romantic venues we’d ever experienced, but I didn’t care. I was just grateful to have her with me.
“Jack,” she said. “Don’t leave me like that again.”
I smiled. “I missed you so much,” I said, kissing her.
“I know it’s selfish but I need you with me,” she replied. “Every time you leave, you take my heart with you.”
“I know.”
I pulled her close. We were alone in the room but Sci and Mo-bot were just outside, sorting through gear and checking the files I’d put together on the key players. Faduma had left a few minutes before Justine and I had moved into the bedroom. Even though I longed for her, this didn’t feel like a relaxed environment where we could be uninhibited and free. One of the pitfalls of dating my beautiful, smart, talented colleague was the blurred, sometimes confusing, line between personal and professional. This was one of those blurry moments, but it didn’t last long.
There was a knock at the door and Mo-bot entered almost immediately. Justine cleared her throat and stepped back, making a show of looking around the room as though searching for something.
Mo-bot registered the awkwardness of the scene. “I’m sorry. I keep forgetting you two are an item.” She smiled and I wondered whether that was true or if she was just being mischievous.
“It’s okay,” I assured her. “We’re here on business.”
“Good,” Mo-bot said, stepping forward. She had a small device in her hand. “I wouldn’t want to intrude. Sci and I have been running inventory. We can mount a full-scale surveillance operation and we think we should target the Dark Fates.”
She drifted out to the living room and I followed, to see rows of mini-drones, listening devices and video cameras arranged on the floor by the window.
“We can get all this installed tomorrow, have eyes and ears on everything they do, with special focus on Milan Verde.”
“Sounds good,” I replied.
Sci was rearranging his holdall. “If they’re behind all these murders, we’ll find out. And we’ll get to the bottom of why.”
Satisfied with the rearrangement of his gear, he stood, slung the bag over his shoulder and walked toward my bedroom.