But she held up her hand. “No doubt. But it might be better if you didn’t. We got the pictures back and closed the case to everybody’s satisfaction. If she was more involved and knew more than she let on then it might be better to pass over it in silence. If you tell me anything else, I’d be obliged to report it. That is the way it stands, isn’t it?”’
He nodded.
“But if I suggested that she was as crooked as a corkscrew, you wouldn’t feel obliged to leap to defend her good name?”’
He shook his head.
“Thought so. I was never entirely convinced by her story.”
“You weren’t?”’
“No. But we did get the pictures back, and that was all I was interested in. Keep the rest to yourself. But she may not be here simply on a holiday.”
Argyll shrugged. “I really don’t know,” he said cautiously. “As far as I can see she has more than enough money. And her complaints about being too old had an air of truth to them. What are you going to do about her?”’
“Nothing. Except watch her every step, bug her phone, read her mail and never let her out of our sight.”
“Which she will spot.”
“That’s the idea … She assures me she is here on holiday. Maybe she is. I just want to be certain.”
“Is that why you were late the other night as well?”’
She sighed. So that was why he was grumpy. In abstract she sympathized. In practice, she wished he had a bit more sympathy for her. What was she meant to do about it? Stay at home while things got stolen all around her?
“No,” she said patiently. “That was something else. We had a tip-off about a possible raid. On a monastery. I had to go down and warn them. I don’t like it, either, you know. But we’re short of people ever since …”
“I know. Budget cuts.”
“Well, it’s true. I don’t hang around street corners at night for my own pleasure, you know.”
“I’m glad to hear it. Oh, well. I’m used to it, I suppose.”
“Don’t be so long-suffering.”
“I am long-suffering.”
“And don’t be crabby, either. That’s my job. I’m a bit fed up too, you know.”
“Oh? Why’s that?”’
“Bottando’s going.”
“Where?”’
“Going. Just going. He’s been promoted. Against his will. It’s that or being demoted, it seems.”
Argyll put down his toast suddenly. “Good God. That’s sudden, isn’t it? What happened?”’
“A coup detat, I think. But he’s going in two months. To head some useless Euro-initiative, which will probably result in art theft doubling over the next few years.”
“You sound very certain. Isn’t he going to do anything about it?”’
“Apparently not. He says there’s nothing he can do.”
“Goodness. So who takes over?”’
“He remains nominally in charge. But he’s offered the day-to-day running to me. If, that is, I don’t want to go with him.”
“Do you want to run the place?”’
“I don’t know. Do I want everything to depend on me and be responsible for operations? I don’t think I do. Do I want to work for Paolo, or someone brought in from outside? No. Not that either.”
“You want things to stay as they are.”
She nodded.
“And they’re not going to. What will you do?”’
She shrugged. “I haven’t thought about it.”
“What would going with him involve?”’
“Sitting in an office from nine to five, organizing. Home every evening at six. No rushing around late at night. Vast amounts of money, tax free.”
He nodded. “Every sensible person’s dream, right?”’
“Yes.”
He nodded again as he turned this over in his mind. “Hmm. Do you want to do it?”’
“I’d get to spend more time with you.”
“Not what I asked.”
“Oh, Jonathan, I don’t know. I suppose you think I should go for the quiet life.”
“I didn’t say that. Obviously I wouldn’t mind seeing you every now and then.”
“I thought so.”
“But if you go with Bottando you could end up in a dead-end, boring job which drives you crazy, money or no. When do you have to decide?”’
“He’s given me a week.”
“In that case you should think about it for a week. And so will I. So let’s change the subject. This monastery. Did you fend off the criminal classes? Which monastery was it, anyway?”’
“San Giovanni. On the Aventino.”
He nodded. “I know it.”
“Really?”’ The things he knew about this city never ceased to amaze her. She had never heard of the place before.
“It’s got a dodgy Caravaggio in it.”
“Under restoration.”
“Ah. Who’s doing it?”’
“A man called Dan Menzies. Ever heard of him?”’
Argyll nodded fervently. “The Rottweiler of Restoration.”
“So it’s worth a lot of money?”’
“If it’s a Caravaggio, and if Menzies hasn’t repainted it as a Monet, yes. And the subject matter is a bit gloomy for your average buyer of stolen works of art, as I recall.”
“What is it?”’
“The breaking of St Catherine on the Wheel. A bit morbid. And good evidence for it not being by Caravaggio. He didn’t take to women much. These private collectors usually go for the more cheerful stuff, don’t they? Sunflowers and Impressionists, and all that sort of thing. Baroque religion doesn’t look so well in the dining room. Puts people off their food, in fact. Besides, it’s probably quite big. Getting it out would need a removal truck, I’d imagine.”
“So what’s the story on Menzies?”’
“None that I know of. Very loud, bellows away so you can hear him from miles off, but it may be that his bark is worse than his bite. I’ve never met him. More than that I can’t say. You think he’s in cahoots with someone, do you? Tipped them off the picture is out of its frame so they can sweep in and roll it up.”
She shrugged. “No. But if someone is going to pinch that picture, and would want to hit it before it goes back on its stretcher, they’d have to know when the best moment would be to go in.”
“Better put a tail on Menzies, then. Tap his phone, that sort of thing.”
“We don’t have the people.”
The first thing Flavia had to deal with when she arrived was Giulia, who brought her crisis of confidence with her into the office. This did at least make her forget about major career decisions. “Oh, stop making such a fuss,” she said crossly, when Giulia recounted her meeting in the cafe with Mrs Verney and then burst into tears. “It happens, and it’s partly my fault for not telling you that she’s a bit more complicated than she looks. Now stop making that noise.”
Flavia paused for a moment when she realized how very much like Bottando she must sound to the poor girl. Except that Bottando would have managed to be a bit more avuncular, which was quite beyond her range. Naturally Giulia was upset; it was more or less the first time she’d been allowed out of the office since she’d arrived after her
