Chapter 6 #3
She shook her head. ‘I don’t think so – at least, not yet.
I tend to believe Emilia Cortez that her relationship with the victim was principally business – after all, she told us she’s only met him a few times, and I can easily check that with her employers – but there was a funny note in her voice when she referred to him.
Yes, she indicated that she didn’t necessarily approve of his business, but maybe the man attracted her.
As for Penelope Green, I still feel that her reaction to the sudden violent death of her boss was unconvincing.
Even if she and he weren’t involved together, I would have expected more emotion from her.
After all, discovering that somebody you know well has been shot in the head is pretty gruesome, but she didn’t even look pale.
She may just be a very tough character, but I’ve mentally put a question mark alongside her name. ’
I was impressed. The sergeant had more or less echoed my thoughts.
‘My feelings exactly. I also got the impression that she was remarkably unemotional. However, I can see no reason why she should have wanted to kill him, apart maybe from jealousy if she had been having an affair with him, and then Emilia Cortez had arrived.’ I looked across at Virgilio.
‘What about his will? Have you got people trying to find out who his personal lawyers are? My friend Paul at Scotland Yard told me that Angel used a whole bunch of lawyers in London, so I could ask him if you like.’
Before he could answer, the sergeant cut in.
‘I’ve just had a message telling me that there’s a problem.
The officers looking around upstairs can see that there’s a considerable amount of paperwork and a laptop in the study alongside the victim’s bedroom, but Signor Hicks has stepped in to deny them access without a search warrant. ’
Marco replied first. ‘That doesn’t come as a surprise.
Get up there straight away and see that the room is securely sealed off.
Put an officer on guard outside it to ensure that nobody goes in until we get the search warrant – and that includes housekeeping.
We need to lift as much information and as much DNA from that room as possible. ’
Virgilio nodded in agreement and Dini hurried out.
He glanced across at Marco. ‘Organise a forensic team to be ready to descend on that room just as soon as we have the warrant. And you’d better get Tech involved as well.
I imagine there’s going to be some fairly sophisticated security on Angel’s laptop.
What we need is anything that might provide us with a motive for murder.
Check to see that DNA samples have been taken from everybody here and that they’ve all been swabbed for gunshot residue.
If somebody here did it, they should test positive.
’ He glanced across at me. ‘Look, Dan, if you want to get away, I reckon Marco and I should be able to handle the rest of the people here. Thanks for the help so far, but why don’t you go and get yourself a late lunch?
I can get one of the officers to give you a lift back to Florence and I’ll give you a call later on if there are any developments. ’
Before I could answer, there was a movement at my feet and a Labrador nose poked my knee.
Virgilio had mentioned the word lunch, after all, and Oscar is remarkably bilingual when it comes to food.
If I needed any further confirmation that lunch for me was well overdue, I heard my stomach give a sinister rumble, so I leant down to my dog.
‘You’ve already had your lunch, Oscar. Remember? This is lunch for me we’re talking about.’
He just batted his eyelids at me and did his best to look as if he was about to succumb to malnourishment.
I didn’t buy it for a moment and headed for the door, stopping to give Virgilio and Marco a wave.
‘I’ll take Oscar for a walk up to Fiesole and I’ll get myself a sandwich, but then I’ll come back willingly, if you don’t mind.
This case intrigues me and I’d enjoy being involved.
If you’re lucky, I’ll bring you sandwiches as well. ’
Outside in the lobby, I met Eddie, the ‘right-hand man’, again.
He sidled up to me and spoke in hushed tones.
‘I’ve been thinking about possible murderers, and my money’s on a very dodgy character from South Africa.
His name was Church or some such. We met him in Monte Carlo in February or March.
Ask Mr Hicks. He’ll be able to give you details. ’
‘When you say, a “dodgy character”, dodgy in what way?’
‘He’s a mercenary. In this business, you soon learn to smell them a mile off. You ask Mr Hicks.’
‘Thank you, I’ll mention that to the chief inspector. Tell me something else, Eddie – you said that you provided protection for Mr Angel, but what about the big guy I saw in the dining room? Isn’t he here to provide protection as well?’
‘Pete? He’s a good boy, but he’s a bit too visible, if you know what I mean.
The boss doesn’t like to look too conspicuous, and going around with somebody the size of King Kong is a bit too obvious – unless it’s needed, if you catch my drift.
No, Pete’s on the case in here, but I’m the one who normally shadows the boss, unless we’re in a particularly dodgy place – and we’ve been to a fair few of them, I can tell you.
’ He shook his head sadly. ‘It’s a real pity he didn’t let me go with him this morning. ’