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"There's no such thing as the perfect crime, but so far, every thread has been perfectly snipped.Security cameras and alarms at the museum were conveniently disabled.No eyewitnesses to the robbery, a burglary here that leaves no evidence, no fingerprints on a weapon, no link to anyone besides an elusive contact on the web."
"Maybe we just haven't found the loose thread yet."She paused, seeing the speculation in his eyes."Or?"
"Or someone on the inside is working against a resolution."
"Are you suggesting that Captain Lavezzo is not trying to find the thieves?Why?What would be his motive?That's his job, right?"
"It is his job.But there's something about him that bothers me.Stefano, too.He seems to show up a lot."
"Stefano is a family friend."
"Who is very interested in the robbery and the paintings."
"That's true," she admitted."Stefano told me he asked to be alerted if any calls came in from this house.But that's because he's concerned about our grandparents.It's difficult to see why either Stefano or Captain Lavezzo would have a motive not to solve this crime."
"You're right.We have no evidence they aren't doing exactly what they're supposed to be doing.I'm just frustrated that we keep running into walls.And I want to do more to help.If we were in the US, I could get a team of people on this.But here, I'm an outsider.I'm lucky Lavezzo is talking to me at all.Anyway, we'll just keep looking into things on our own until we have more information."
"I'm glad to hear you say that because I was expecting you to suggest taking me to the airport and putting me on a plane again."
"I'm not against that idea, Isabella."
She was sorry she'd brought it up."I want to talk to the art historian and dig into David Leoni and this Juliette woman.While I could do some of that from California, I feel like I'm going to need to speak to people here in Rome, and that would be better done in person.But I'm not stupid, Nick.I know there's danger.Leaving is on the table, but not right this second."
"Fair enough," he said, meeting her gaze."We'll see how the day goes."
ChapterTwelve
As Nick drove through Trastevere, he appreciated the deep blue sky and bright sunshine, which helped lighten the dark shadows he'd been living under.After crossing the bridge over the Tiber River, he made his way through the historic district of Rome, where narrow medieval cobblestone streets melded into busy, more modern thoroughfares.
"I forgot how beautiful Rome is," Isabella muttered as he stopped at a light.
"When were you here last?"
"I came back for a long weekend about four years ago, but I just spent time with my grandmother.I didn't do any sightseeing."
"You haven't seen your grandmother in four years?"he asked with surprise."I got the feeling you were close."
"We are close.We video chat regularly, and she met me in Paris two years ago.She's been asking me to come back to Rome, but my memories of this country are complicated."
"Because of your grandfather?"
"Yes.But when I met my cousins yesterday, I realized that not everyone in the family felt the same way about me as my grandfather did.They just never had the chance to get to know me, and I didn't have the opportunity to get to know them.The summer I spent here as a teenager would have been more fun if I had spent time with Joelle, with people my age, if I could have seen that the family didn't hate me for being a child of sin."
"That sounds dramatic," he teased.
"No.Those were my grandfather's exact words.That's the way he saw me."
His smile faded as he heard the pain in her voice."He was wrong, and you know that."
"I do.But knowing it and feeling it are different things."
"I don't understand how he could have been so cruel to you.Or how Gloria let him say things like that."
"Well, he didn't say them when she was in the room, and when I tried to talk to her about it, she just made excuses for him.She said he was traditional and old-fashioned and very religious.None of that mattered to me.All I could feel was the sting of his glare and his harsh words.I couldn't wait to get out of there."
"I'm beginning to understand why Italy is a complicated place for you," he said as he drove
through the intersection."I guess he's the reason your mother never wanted to come back."
