temptation in florence 04 - expected in death (8 page)

He looked at her. “How do you know? Why don't you give her a chance? I don't understand this fierce opposition at all.”

Carlina shrugged. “How can we give her a chance if she spits nails every time we see her? She's doing her utmost to hurt us.”

Uncle Teo pulled his bushy eyebrows together. “How so?”

Carlina took a deep breath, trying to bring across Olga's exact words. “She's . . . it's as if she were possessed. She doesn't even try to get along. Instead, she constantly says nasty things, right into our faces. It's malicious. I don't understand why she's being the way she is.” She slanted Uncle Teo a glance. “And you know, she ignores Mama completely. Refuses to talk to her.”

Uncle Teo snorted. “That's a very old story. It's high time they got over it. Silly.”

“I agree, but you won't get them to see that point of view. She made Benedetta and Leo incredibly uneasy by insinuating that Leo disinfected her whole apartment because he couldn't stand to live with her 'germs'. She fanned Lucio's jealousy until he looked ready to kill her and Emma too, then she said Annalisa was too stupid to live and--”

Olga's voice interrupted her from the door. “How very clever of you to slip into your great-uncle's apartment the second I turn my back.” She sounded sweet and completely in control but a pulse beat on her neck.

Carlina flinched and closed her eyes for a second.
Damn.
If only Olga had returned half an hour later. She got up in slow motion, turned to face Olga, and pulled back her shoulders. “I would appreciate if you could give me a little privacy with Uncle Teo.”

Olga's mouth stretched into one thin line. “Why should I do that? So you can invent lies about me and tell them to him with all the time in the world?”

Carlina clenched one fist. “I'm not inventing any lies at all. I'm telling Uncle Teo exactly what you said to the family in the last few days.”

Olga laughed. “No doubt. Obviously, you expect me to believe that you're painting a very fair picture, aren't you? I'm not the fool you think me to be.”

Carlina's mouth turned dry. “Why do you hate us so much?”

One eyebrow of Olga went up. “Who said I hate you?”

“You did. Indirectly. With every word and look and action.”

Olga snorted. “Phew. You're quite eloquent. However, I'm only reacting to you. You hate me; you don't want me here. You begrudge your Uncle Teo a little happiness.”

Carlina felt heat rising into her face. “No, we don't! He can have as many girlfriends as he wants, but the thing we won't accept is that he's being alienated from us all in the process. Because that's what you're doing!”

“Nonsense. I'm being perfectly fair and open, but you're totally set against me.”

“That's not true! In fact--”

“In fact,” Olga interrupted her with a malicious little smile, “you would be delighted if I moved in tomorrow?”

Carlina couldn't hide the sudden dismay that overwhelmed her. “You're planning to move in?”

“Yes, I am.” Olga smiled, and for a moment, she looked like an innocent porcelain doll again. “Oh, not into Teo's apartment, that wouldn't feel right. But he offered the apartment next door now that Leo has moved in with Benedetta, and I'm happy to accept. After all, he gives special rates to family and friends, doesn't he?”

Carlina gulped and looked at Uncle Teo who had gotten up from the sofa, polite as he was, and was watching the verbal match without trying to squeeze in a word. “Is that true, Uncle Teo? Did you offer Olga the apartment?”

He inclined his head. “I did.”

A warning bell rang inside Carlina's head. She was sure that Uncle Teo did not report the house's earnings correctly. Where would it lead? Would they all be thrown out? Sudden fear clenched her stomach. They had been in danger of losing the house before, and it had led to murder. “I advise you to think twice before moving in.” She made sure she looked Olga squarely in the eye. “You're playing with fire.”

Olga tittered. “Oh, my. Is that a threat?”

Carlina's temper took over. “Possibly.”

“Well, in that case it's a good thing that you're soon going to move out.” Olga smoothed the sleeve of her thin, light-blue sweater as if it were the most important thing in the world. “I have to say that it's quite providential because we're looking for a new place for Ugo to stay, and I've been wanting to ask Teo if Ugo could move into your apartment.” She turned to Uncle Teo. “What do you say, darling? You see, Ugo has to get out of his apartment by next month, and it would be great if he could take Carlina's apartment. I know it's a bit small for a man like Ugo, but he has--”

“I haven't moved out yet.” Carlina's voice was like ice. “And I'll thank you to wait for that to happen before you give my apartment away.”

“Oh, my, now I've upset you.” The words sounded soft, but Olga's eyes were hard like quartz. “But I thought it's up to Teo to decide who stays where. It's his house, isn't it? Actually, I doubt that you are an official tenant. Probably your agreement is only based on some informal arrangement, isn't it?”

Carlina gasped. She looked at Uncle Teo, waiting for him to jump in, to defend her, to say that she could stay as long as she wanted. But he was studying the tips of his elegant shoes as if he had never seen them before. What on earth was going on here? Had Olga insinuated that they were only using him, were sucking him dry, were all profiting from him without offering anything in return? “Uncle Teo? What do you say?”

“You needn't appeal to your Uncle Teo. He knows very well that the family is only exploiting him and living at his expense.”

Uncle Teo didn't look up from his shoes.

Carlina choked. “Now listen, you scheming little witch.” She heard her voice full of hate and was taken aback by the sheer venom in it. Was that really her? She tempered it somewhat. “I advise you to rethink your strategy. Think of Uncle Teo. He won't be happy if you alienate him from everyone he holds dear.”

Olga met Carlina's fiery gaze squarely. “I'll make him happy.”

“Oh, no, you won't.” Carlina narrowed her eyes. “You can't make up for a whole family. You can't erase decades of emotions and caring. Nobody can.”

Olga lifted an arrogant eyebrow. “Don't underestimate me.”

“Don't underestimate us,” Carlina shot back. “Or you'll be dead before you know it.” She turned on her heels and stormed out of the apartment. She was upstairs before she knew how she'd gotten there and rushed into her apartment, almost falling over Garini's long legs. He had been sitting on her comfortable armchair with the leopard print cover, but jumped up when she charged through the door. “Carlina, what happened?”

She balled both her fists and shook them. “I'm going to kill Olga with my bare hands.”

“Whoa. Easy.” He looked behind her, closed the door, and turned around. “Now tell me.”

The whole conversation poured out of Carlina. She walked in circles while beating her right fist into her left palm. Her heart beat so hard that she at first thought she could hear it outside, but then she realized that it had started to rain and that a fierce wind was throwing gusts of rain against the window.

When she had told him everything, she dropped onto the sofa, exhausted. “I'm stumped,” she said. “I have to idea how to save us. Olga will destroy this family unless someone kills her first.”

Garini looked at her with a bemused expression on his face and said, “I've never seen you like this.”

The next days passed as if someone had taken a big bucket of black paint and had poured it over everything. The mood was black and nobody talked to Olga who made a point of joining them for dinner every night. Even the weather let them down – it started to rain in sheets during the weekend and continued until Monday morning, running in rivulets down the intricate marble patterns of Santa Croce's facade.

Carlina unlocked the door to Temptation with a heavy heart.
Something's gotta give
, she thought again, just as she had thought so often in the past days. But what? And when? Where would this all end? She jumped when her cell phone started to ring and pulled it from her handbag before entering her store.

“Carlina, it's me, Francesca!” From the tone of her voice, it sounded as if Francesca were bent on coloring all of Florence single-handedly in a golden halo.

“Francesca! Are you still in Venice?”

“No, I returned on Friday? Listen, I have the most wonderful news!”

“Yes?” Carlina's heart lifted. Finally, someone was happy.

“I met a most gorgeous man at that crafts dinner! Remember that I told you about it?”

“Yes. You said there were two puny guys and one married.”

“Correct. Well, this time, there was another. It was amazing, the way we hit it off right away. We spent most of the weekend together.”

Carlina smiled and leaned against the door frame of Temptation. “Sounds great. And he's so nice that you decided to break the two-month-rule for him?”

“What?” For a minute, Francesca sounded disoriented. ”Oh, that. Now I remember. No, don't worry. This one is a keeper. I feel so small and safe with him, it's absolutely delish! This time, it can't go wrong.”

Carlina shivered.
I hope the gods don't listen.
She suppressed the thought and forced herself to make a light-hearted reply. “Sounds perfect. When will I meet him?”

“Soon. You know, I'm a little bit crazy. I simply can't wait to see him again, and I can't stop thinking of him, and we already talked twice this morning, and I had to share my happiness with someone, so I just had to call you!”

“I'm so glad to hear that you're happy.” Carlina smiled. “What a romance. Enjoy every moment.”

“I will.” Francesca promised. “And I'll come to Temptation as soon as I can to stock up on new underwear. But how about you? Did you manage to get rid of that Olga Ottima?”

“We're trying our best.” Carlina's voice held a bitter note. “But it's more difficult than I'd imagined.”

“Well, if all else fails, kill her off. You'd do many people a service, you know.” Francesca made it sound as if killing someone were standard procedure.

“I'm quite aware that killing her sounds like the best solution.” Carlina sighed. “But it's not easy.”

Voices could be heard in the background, then Francesca said, “Listen, I gotta go. I'll be in touch.
Ciao.
”

“Ciao.”
Carlina slipped the phone into her handbag and turned her head, only to see a startled tourist, staring at her with wide open eyes. She clutched her handbag to her chest as if it could ward off a vicious knife.

Carlina made an effort to smile.
“Buongiorno,”
she said. “The store will be open in just one minute, if you'd like to wait.”

The woman took a step back, turned on her heels and fled down Via Tornabuoni as if Carlina were pursuing her.

“All right.” Carlina swallowed. “I guess that's an answer, too.”

II

Piedro opened the door to Garini's office and peered around it with the expression of someone who had bad news to relay.

Garini looked up from the forms he was filling in and frowned. He knew that look on his subordinate's face. It meant they had a new case. “Come in.” He pushed the forms to the side. “And tell me about it.”

Piedro came closer with shuffling feet. “Tell you about what?”

“About the new case.”

“How do you know we have a new case?”

Garini suppressed a sigh. Piedro was not known for being quick on the uptake, but he was the son of his boss, and therefore it was impossible to complain about him. Instead of answering the question, he repeated, “Tell me all about our new case, and remember the rules about how to make an efficient report.”

Piedro nodded. “I remember.” He held up his hand and started to count off on his fingers. “What? Who? When? Why? Where?”

“Exactly.” Garini gave him an encouraging smile. At least something had stuck in Piedro's volatile brain. Maybe there was hope after all.

“What?” Piedro lifted up his thumb. “A suspicious death.”

“As we're working in the homicide department, that's a given.”

Piedro nodded, oblivious to the ironic tone in Garini's voice. “Yes, it fits.” He lifted his index finger. “Who? We don't know.” The middle finger. “When? We don't know.” The ring finger. “Why? We don't know.”

Garini held up his hand. “Hold on, please. Maybe we'd better concentrate on the things we
do
know.”

“But I was just getting to that!” Piedro gave him an injured glance and lifted his pinkie finger. “Where? At the San Niccolò Tower.”

Garini curbed his impatience. “Good. We're making progress. A suspicious death at the San Niccolò Tower on Piazza Poggi.”

Piedro looked surprised. “Is it on Piazza Poggi? But that's the Oltrarno area!”

He made it sound as if the other side of the Arno River was foreign territory.

“Is that a problem?” Garini's voice turned out sharper than he wanted.

“No, of course not.”

“All right. Let's continue. When did the call come in?”

Piedro checked his wrist watch. “Five minutes ago.”

“So we can safely say that the suspicious death occurred sometime before five o'clock today.”

Piedro's face lit up.
“Yes.
I had forgotten that.”

Patience, Garini.
“Good. Next step. Who found the victim?”

Piedro frowned. “Actually, you can't say that the victim was found, not in the real sense of the word.”

Garini eyed the top of his desk and wondered if it would help if he could hit his head against it to relieve his feelings. “Go on.”

“You see, the victim landed in front of him. Right at his feet.”

“It landed?” Garini bent forward. “You mean it fell from the tower?”

Piedro nodded with satisfaction. “Exactly.”

“That should have been your first sentence, Piedro.”

“Oh.”

“Now tell me: Who's 'him'?”

“Who's what?”

“Who was at the foot of the tower and saw the victim falling down?”

“It was the
Professore
Arno Alossi.”

Garini nodded. He knew Arno Alossi by reputation. He'd been head of the University of Florence for decades before finally retiring some years ago. He was also well known for his gentle nature. “So the
professore
called in and reported the death?”