Patrick stumbled to her side. He leaned against a pillar and retched, the contents of his stomach splashing on the ground.
He retched again.
Gina supported him at the waist, murmuring worriedly in his ear.
When he’d finished, he wiped his mouth with his shirtsleeve and stared out at the piazza.
It was empty.
He took Gina’s hand and led her away from the Loggia, to the center of the piazza.. He retrieved his cell phone and shakily dialed the police.
“I found a body,” he stammered, staring up at the corpse that hung from the Loggia.
Chapter Thirty-Six
A KNOCKING SOUND woke Raven from a very sound sleep. William, who lay naked beside her, rose from the bed and wrapped himself in an antiquated dressing gown.
She rolled to her side, unwilling to open her eyes.
She heard the door open.
“What is it?” William’s tone was curt.
“Forgive the interruption, my Lord.” Ambrogio was almost stuttering. “There’s been an incident.”
“What kind of incident?”
Raven opened her eyes to see William move into the hallway, closing the door on his conversation.
She heard murmurs from the hall but couldn’t make out the words, until William swore, loudly.#p#分页标题#e#
He re-entered the bedroom and strode to one of the closets, removing a set of clothes.
Raven sat up. “What is it?”
“Ispettor Batelli’s body is hanging from a meat hook in the Loggia dei Lanzi.” William tossed his dressing gown to the floor and began to pull on his trousers.
“What?”
“Photographs of the scene have been made public. The Curia will have learned of it by now.”
“Are you in danger?”
William turned his head.
His expression softened. “No, my lark. But I must act immediately.”
He continued dressing as she blinked away sleep. “Why would someone kill Batelli?”
William buttoned his shirt. “It’s the posing of the body that is more telling. He was positioned in a public place, just as the sun was rising. Whoever did it knew our attempts at covering up the kill would be hampered by the sun.”
“You don’t think the Curia did this?”
“It’s possible. But it’s more likely this was a vampyre, looking to attack me personally.”
“How?”
“By exposing my connection to the illustrations and those cursed Emersons. By exposing my connection to you.” He moved to her side and kissed her deeply. “Be careful. Be alert. I’d prefer you didn’t leave the villa today, but if you do, please have Ambrogio inform me. Be sure to take the security guards with you.”
He disappeared through the door.
Chapter Thirty-Seven
“WHAT THE FUCK?” Gabriel Emerson clasped his head with both hands as he stared in shock at the image on his laptop.
He was seated at the kitchen table in his house in Harvard Square, keeping Julia company. Clare had an ear infection and had spent most of the evening crying. Julia held the child in her arms, pacing the kitchen floor in an attempt to soothe her.
It had been a long night.
“Language,” Julia chided him, frowning at him over the baby’s head.
He ignored her rebuke, scrolling through a few pages on his computer.
“What is it?” She walked toward him, but he closed the laptop with a snap.
“Don’t look.”
Her eyebrows crinkled. “Why not?”
Gabriel ran his fingers through his tousled hair. “Do you remember the carabinieri officer who was assigned to investigate the Uffizi robbery?”
“Yes, what about him?”
“He’s dead.”
“Dead?” Julia’s hand went to Clare’s head, as if by covering her she could protect her.
“Murdered.” Gabriel gestured to his laptop. “There are photographs of the body, all over the internet.”
“They shouldn’t post pictures like that. Have they no respect for his family?”
Gabriel cursed again, his hands in his hair.
“The poor man.” Julia snuggled Clare into her shoulder. “I wonder if he had children.”
“This is also bad for us.” Gabriel’s blue eyes blazed. “The inspector’s body was posed near the Uffizi. Someone is making a statement.”
“You mean the robbery is connected to the murder?”
“It’s possible. Actually, it’s more than possible. It’s likely. He was the lead investigator. Those illustrations are worth a lot of money. Perhaps he was close to finding them.”
“What about the strange man who came to see you in Umbria? Do you think he’s involved?” Julia held Clare even more tightly, bouncing her lightly as she whimpered.#p#分页标题#e#