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"That's a good idea."He closed the lid on Tomas's box and picked up both boxes as his grandmother closed the door to the now empty safe deposit box and followed him out of the vault.
He stashed the boxes in the back seat of the car, then squeezed himself behind the wheel.As he pulled away from the bank, he noticed a car coming up fast behind them.
His pulse jumped as he looked into the rearview mirror and saw a man in a black hoodie with dark glasses over his eyes.He hit the gas, but the car stayed right on his tail as he swerved through traffic.
"Nick, why are you going so fast and in the wrong direction?"his grandmother asked, bracing her hand on the door.
"Someone is following us."
"What?"She turned to glance over her shoulder."It's a man wearing a black sweatshirt with a hood like the thieves I saw in the museum.Do you think it's one of them?"
"I don't know."
"Why would he be following us?"
"Maybe he's not, but he's been on my bumper for the last three turns."
"What are you going to do?"
"Drive to Lavezzo's office—Piazza San Ignazio.Do you know how to get there?"He didn't want to slow down to put the address into his phone.
"Yes.Turn right at the next light."For the next several minutes, he followed her directions, keeping an eye on the traffic and the car behind him.It had dropped back slightly now.Maybe he'd realized he'd been caught tailing them.
When he pulled up in front of the Palazzo Raguzzini, where the headquarters of the Carabinieri was located, the car sped past him.He made a mental note of the license plate number before it disappeared, then grabbed his phone to jot it down.
"He's gone now," he said, seeing his grandmother's tight grip on the armrest."We're okay."
"Maybe he wasn't following us.Otherwise, he would have stopped when we did, right?"
"Possibly."He didn't want to upset his grandmother, but he was absolutely certain the car had been following them, and that was disturbing.Whatever was going on was definitely not over.
ChapterSeven
After parking the car, Nick escorted his grandmother into the eighteenth-century building that housed the headquarters of the Carabinieri T.P.C.He'd forgotten how beautiful and old the buildings of Rome were, a far cry from the law enforcement offices he frequented.After getting through security, they made their way upstairs to meet with Captain Lavezzo.
Antonio Lavezzo had a corner office with windows overlooking the piazza.He appeared to be in his fifties with light brown hair and sharp green eyes.After Nick introduced himself as an FBI agent and Anna Caruso's grandson, they sat down in the chairs in front of the captain's desk.
"How are you feeling today, Signora?"Captain Lavezzo asked.
"I'm still shaken, even more so after what just happened."
Lavezzo straightened, interest gathering in his eyes."What happened?"
"We were followed here by a man wearing all black with a hood and dark glasses," Nick replied."I got the license plate number."
"I'll take that."Lavezzo picked up a pen and jotted down the numbers that Nick read off his phone."I will look into this as soon as we are done speaking."
"We'd appreciate that.How's the investigation going?Has the security guard been able to give you any information?"
"Unfortunately, he could not identify the thieves, and the security system was hacked, turning off the alarms and the cameras."
"Will Enrique be all right?"his grandmother interrupted.
"Yes.His condition is serious, but he is expected to recover."
"I'm so glad," she said with relief.
"What about the paintings that were stolen?"he asked."Any idea why they would have been targeted over other more valuable works?"
