The Brotherhood Of The Holy Shroud

10

NEW YORK WAS FLOODED WITH SPRINGTIME sunlight-it was one of those perfect days that came so rarely. The old man tore his eyes from the morning splendor pouring through the windows as he turned to answer the ringing telephone. The communications system in the office was configured for absolute security.

"Yes," he said firmly into the receiver,

"Number one is moving."

"No problems?"

"They're still using the same contacts as before and the same routes, and it all looks clear for them. The police haven't turned up."

"What about number two?"

"He leaves tonight. Number three, tomorrow; he'll be moved directly, in a truck carrying screws and bolts. He's the one who's most on edge."

"I'll speak with our people in Urfa today. We have to know how Addaio is reacting and what he's going to do."

"They might be better off if they never made it back there."

"Let things run their course. We need to know what Addaio does and what he decides. Anything new on his man in the cathedral?"

"His nerves are gone, at least for the moment. But neither the cardinal nor the police suspect him; they're taking him for a good man upset over what happened."

"We have to keep an eye on him."

"Of course. Our people there are on it."

"What about our brother?"

"They've been investigating him. Who he is, what his tastes run to, how he got to where he is today. They've been checking up on me and the others too. The cop, Valoni, is sharp, and he has a good team around him."

"We must be very careful."

"We will be."

"Next week in Boston."

"I'll be there."

The members of the Art Crimes team who'd remained in Turin reconvened the morning after the others returned to Rome.

"Where do we start, dottoressa?"

"Okay, Giuseppe, I think we ought to go talk to the workers again and see if they stick to what they told Pietro. Let's keep digging-where they live, who they live with, what their neighbors think about them, whether there's anything unusual in their lives…"

"That'll take time," Antonino pointed out.

"Yes, which is why Marco asked the chief of the carabinieri here to lend us a couple of men. They know the city better than we do, and they'll know if something we're told is off. Giuseppe can take that angle, and you and I will go back to the cathedral, talk to the employees again, the porter, Padre Yves…"

"Right," Giuseppe said, "but another round of questions might make them nervous, tip them oflf that we're really pushing this."

"If one of them gets nervous, it'll tip us off. I also think we need to interview D'Alaqua."

"He's a big fish. Maybe too big for questioning at this point. If we step on his toes, Rome could come down on us," Antonino warned her.

"I know, Antonino, but we've got to try. I'm curious about him."

"Watch out, dottoressa, don't let that curiosity of yours get us in hot water!" Giuseppe ribbed her.

They split up the work. Antonino would reinter-view the cathedral employees, Giuseppe would talk to the electricians, and Sofia would probe further into D'Alaqua and his interests and work on getting an appointment with him. They would try to finish up in a week, and then they could decide what to do next, assuming they turned up a lead.

Sofia convinced Marco to pull some strings to make sure D'Alaqua talked to her.

Marco had grumbled a bit, but he agreed that the man had to be interviewed. So the director of the Art Crimes Department made a direct request to the Minister of Culture, who told Marco he must be crazy if he thought he was going to let him stick his nose into a company like COCSA and investigate a man like D'Alaqua. In the end, though, Marco convinced the minister that it was essential to speak to the man and that Dottoressa Galloni, a cultured and extremely well-educated investigator, would proceed with infinite discretion.

The minister made an appointment for Sofia with Umberto D'Alaqua for the next day at ten. When Marco told her, she laughed delightedly.

"Boss, you're amazing! I know what this must have cost you."

"Then you know not to screw this up or we'll both be pushing files around in the archives division. Please, Sofia, take it slow and easy, all right? D'Alaqua is not just a big deal here but all over the world-he has investments across Europe, the U.S., the Near East, Asia… You have to handle this guy with kid gloves."

"I'm with Minerva. I've got a hunch about him."

"I hope your hunches don't backfire."

"Trust me."

"If I didn't, you wouldn't be going."

Umberto D'Alaqua's secretary looked more like a top executive than a secretary, no matter how important his employer was. He was a discreedy elegant middle-aged gentleman who introduced himself to Sofia as Bruno Moretti and asked if she'd like coffee while she waited for Signor D'Alaqua to end another meeting.

When she demurred, Moretti excused himself and left her alone. The room in which she found herself was breathtaking. On its walls hung a Canaletto, a Modigliani, a Braque, and a small Picasso.

Absorbed in the Modigliani, Sofia was startled by a voice behind her.

"Good morning, Dottoressa Galloni."

She turned to find herself facing the most attractive man she had ever encountered, studying her with severe yet curious eyes. She felt herself blush, as though she had been caught doing something wrong.

Umberto D'Alaqua was tall and elegantly dressed, probably in his mid-fifties. He radiated self-assurance and strength.

"Good morning. I'm sorry, I was looking at the Modigliani. It's stunning."

D'Alaqua merely smiled slightly. "We'll be more comfortable in my office, Dottoressa Galloni."

Sofia nodded and followed him to a nearby suite of rooms. D'Alaqua's office was comfortable, furnished with contemporary furniture that highlighted the magnificent works of art covering the walls: several da Vinci drawings, a quattrocento Madonna, a Christ by El Greco, a Picasso harlequin, a Miro… On a small table in a corner across from the large desk, the simplicity of a crucifix carved from olive wood drew her attention.

D'Alaqua gestured her toward the couch, and he seated himself in an armchair beside her.

"Well, Dottoressa Galloni, how may I help you?"

Sofia hit him without preamble. "Signor D'Alaqua, we suspect that the fire in the cathedral was not an accident. In fact, we believe that none of the unfortunate events that have occurred in the Turin Cathedral have been accidents."

Nothing in D'Alaqua's expression betrayed the slightest sign of concern, or even surprise. He looked at her calmly, apparently waiting for her to go on, as though nothing he was hearing had anything to do with him.

"Did you know the men who were working in the cathedral? And do you feel you can fully trust them?"

"Dottoressa Galloni, COCSA is one of many corporations I own or on whose board of directors I sit. You can understand that I don't personally know all the employees of those corporations. In this as in any other business, there is a human-resources office, which I'm sure will have provided you with all the information you need on the men working in the cathedral. But if you require more, I'll be glad to ask the head of that department to put everything you need at your disposal."

He picked up the telephone and asked to be put through to the head of personnel.

"Signor Lazotti, I'd appreciate your meeting with Dottoressa Galloni of the Art Crimes Department. She needs more information on the men working in the cathedral. My secretary will bring her to your office in a few minutes… Yes, thank you." He put down the receiver and looked at her calmly; clearly he considered the interview over. She'd blown it.

"Do you think what I've told you is utterly absurd, Signor D'Alaqua?" Sofia pressed.

"Dottoressa Galloni, you and your team are the professionals, and you do your job. I have no opinion at all with respect to your suspicions or your line of investigation. Is there anything else I can help you with?"

Sofia raised her chin slightly and smiled. "We may have more questions for you as our inquiry proceeds, Signor D'Alaqua. We just wanted to advise you of our thinking and that therefore we're going to be doing a thorough investigation of your personnel."

"Signor Lazotti will give you all the help you need, I'm sure."

D'Alaqua wasn't going to say another word. Sofia stood up and extended her hand.

"Thank you for your cooperation."

'A pleasure to meet you, Dottoressa Galloni."

Sofia was furious with herself but managed to chat amiably with Moretti, D'Alaqua's secretary, as he walked her to Mario Lazotti's office.

Lazotti greeted her with a smile. "Tell me, Dottoressa Galloni, what is it you need?"

"I need all the information you have on the men who were working in the cathedral, including all the personal details you have."

"I gave all that information to one of your colleagues in the Art Crimes Department and to the police, but I'll be happy to give you a copy of the entire file as well. I've already asked my secretary to prepare it for you. As for personal information, I'm afraid we won't be of much help there; COCSA is a large corporation, and it's difficult to get to know each and every employee. The supervisor at the cathedral might be your best source in that regard."

A young woman came in with a large file folder, which Lazotti handed to Sofia.

Sofia thanked him and setded more comfortably into the chair he had offered her. "Signor Lazotti, have you had many accidents like the one in the Turin Cathedral?"

"What do you mean?"

"COCSA is a company that does a lot of work for the Church. You've made repairs and done maintenance work on almost every cathedral in Italy."

"Italy and most of Europe. And accidents, unfortunately, happen, even though we closely comply with all security and safety regulations and take strict measures of our own."

"Could you give me a list of all the accidents COCSA has had in the course of its work on cathedrals?"

"I'll look into it and do everything I can. It won't be easy. In every job there are problems, incidents of one sort or another-cuts, bruises, falls, broken arms, that sort of thing-and I'm not sure we keep a record of all of them. Normally, the chief engineer or supervisor files a report at the time, though, so… How far back would you want me to go?"

"Let's say the last fifty years."

Lazotti allowed himself an incredulous look, but he never lost his air of cool efficiency.

"I'll do what I can," he repeated. "Where do you want the information sent?"

"Here's my card, and here's my cell phone number. Call me, and if I'm in Turin I'll come by and pick it up. If not, you can send it to my office in Rome."

"I hope you'll excuse my asking, Dottoressa Galloni, but what is it you're looking for?"

Sofia measured him with a quick look, then decided to tell him the truth.

"I'm looking for whoever it is that creates 'accidents' in the Turin Cathedral."

"Sorry?" Lazotti seemed genuinely puzzled.

"We don't think these events are accidents. We're looking for the person or persons behind them."

"You're joking! But of course you're not. But who would want to damage the cathedral? You suspect our employees?"

"That's what we want to find out-who and why."

"But are you sure? On what evidence? You're di-recdy accusing COCSA's employees of involvement in this?"

"It's not an accusation, but it's something we need to investigate."

'All right. Of course. You can count on us to cooperate fully."

"I am counting on you, Signor Lazotti."

Sofia left the glass-and-steel building, mulling whether she'd chosen the right strategy in revealing her suspicions to COCSA's head of human resources as well as to D'Alaqua. At that very moment D'Alaqua might be calling the minister to complain. Or he might not be doing anything-either because he gave their suspicions no importance, or because he did.

She needed to call Marco immediately. If D'Alaqua was talking to the minister, she had to prepare her boss for what was coming.

She had also come to a decision about Pietro. She was going to break it off. Their relationship suddenly struck her as disgusting.