honest Moro, had dared to question this. Brunetti was no longer in any
doubt that the answer to Moro's questions had been given, not to him,
but to his family.
'If you haven't already begun it, could you take a closer look at
Toscano and Filippi?'
'I was just beginning that when you came in, sir she said. 'But my
friend in Rome, the one who works in military records, has been sent to
Livorno for a few days, so I won't
have access to their records until the end of the week.'
Failing to remind her that she had been standing at the window, looking
out sadly at her past or her future, when he came in, not beginning to
work on anything, Brunetti thanked her and went back to his office.
By force of will, Brunetti kept himself at the Questura until the
normal time for leaving. He occupied himself with reading and
initialling reports, then decided that he would read only every second
one, then every third, though he scrupulously wrote a careful 'GB' on
the bottom of all of them, even the unread ones. As his eyes ran over
the words, the columns of numbers, the endless spew of facts and
figures that were as closely related to reality as Anna Anderson to
Tsar Nicholas II, Brunetti's thoughts remained anchored to Moro.
Just before leaving, he called Avisani in Palermo.
Again, the journalist answered with his name.
'It's me, Beppe,' Brunetti said.
'It's not even a day, Guide. Give me some time, will you?' the
journalist said waspishly.
'I'm not calling to nag, Beppe. Believe me. It's that I want to add
two names to the list Brunetti began. Before Avisani could refuse, he
continued, 'Colonello Giovanni Toscano and Maggiore Marcello
Filippi.'
After a long time, Avisani said, 'Well, well, well. If there's salt,
there's pepper; oil, there's vinegar; smoke, fire.'
'And Toscano, Filippi, I assume?' Brunetti asked.
'Very much so. How is it you've stumbled on those two?'
'Moro,' Brunetti said simply. They're both tied to the committee Moro
was working on when he left Parliament.'
'Ah yes. Procurement/ Avisani said, stretching the word out as if
better to enjoy the sound of it.
'Do you know anything?' Brunetti asked, though he was sure his friend
did.
'I know that Colonello Toscano was encouraged to leave his position as
consultant to the parliamentary committee and soon after that decided
to retire from the Army.'
'And Filippi?'
'My sense is that the Maggiore decided his position had become too
obvious.'
'What position was that?'
'Husband to the cousin of the president of the company from whom the
Paratroopers obtained most of their supplies.'
'Edilan-Forma?' Brunetti inquired.
'Haven't you been a busy boy?' Avisani asked by way of compliment.
Honesty demanded that Brunetti make it clear that it was Signorina
Elettra who had been a busy girl, but he thought it best not to reveal
this to a member of the press. 'Have you written about this?' Brunetti
asked.
Time and time again, Guido,' Avisani answered with heavy resignation.
'And?'
'And what are people supposed to do? Pretend to be surprised, pretend
this isn't the way they do business, too? Remember what that
television comic said when they started the Mani Pulite
investigation?'
That we were all guilty of corruption and should all spend
a few days in jail?' Brunetti asked, remembering Beppe Grille's
frenetic admonition to his fellow citizens. He was a comic, Grillo,
and so people were free to laugh, though what he said that night had
been in no way funny.
'Yes,' Avisani said, pulling back Brunetti's attention. 'I've been
writing articles about this for years, about this and about other
agencies of the government that exist primarily to siphon money to
friends and relatives. And no one cares.' He waited for Brunetti to
