“Oh, nothing. Are all ghosts so snippy and sarcastic?”
“I beg your pardon? Did you just insult me?”
“It’s just that you remind me of the only other ghost I know. I need to ask a few questions to help Morgaine. Are you willing to answer them?”
“Ordinarily I’d never speak to a man in such dire need of a haircut, but if you can catch these felons and put them away, I’ll do what I can.”
“Okay.” Under his breath Konrad mumbled, “Talk about insults.”
“What was that?” Reginald asked in an angry tone.
“Never mind. What can you tell us about the robbery?”
“As I told the woman with the funny name, I saw the cops come in, hit the guards over their heads, tie them up with duct tape, and rob the place.”
“You know those weren’t real Boston cops, don’t you?”
“How would I know that? Come to think of it, how would you know that? Were you there?”
“No.”
“Well, then.” A long sigh emitted from Morgaine’s mouth. “They took my favorite Degas,Three Mounted Jockeys.”
“There were three of them?”
“No, you dolt. The name of the painting wasThree Mounted Jockeys. You know nothing about art, do you?”
“I know more than the average American.”
“That’s probably true. Ha. I cannot believe how stupid people are in this day and age. Well, back to the matter at hand. There were two robbers.”
“Fine. Can you give me descriptions?”
“I’m sure the two guards gave the police their descriptions, but because I’m in a generous mood, I’ll try to remember. They were both Caucasian. One was about six feet and the other slightly shorter. They wore fake moustaches and spoke with what passes for a Boston accent these days. Not the eloquent accents of my time, but an uncultured dialect that made them sound ignorant and uncouth. They used foul language too.”
“Did you notice anything else? Perhaps the thieves said something to each other after they stashed the guards in the basement?”
“How did you know about that? Perhaps you were in on it!”
“I read it in the newspaper. Why are you so suspicious of me?”
“Oh, no reason. I just don’t believe a security expert should have hair longer than the woman he’s with.”
“Let’s get back to the case. Did they say anything about already having a buyer?”
“They mentioned getting the stuff into the automobile and driving to Revere.”
“Revere! That’s a huge new clue. What else?”
“Well, they had a list.”
“It sounds like they knew exactly what their buyer or buyers wanted.”
“Yes, and someone knew the value of these items. Like a bronze beaker from the Shang Dynasty. It was at least three thousand years old, possibly four; in other words, priceless.”
“Did they take anythingnoton the list?”
“Only a Rembrandt etching that was postage-stamp size. A self-portrait. I imagine they thought they could hide it pretty easily.”
