want to have a lawyer here with me,' he said.
Mildly, as though Filippi had asked for a glass of water, Brunetti
said, 'Of course,' leaned forward, gave the time, and said into the
microphone that the interview was being broken off.
When he said that he didn't know a lawyer, the boy was left alone in a
room and allowed to call his father. A few minutes later he came out
and said that his father would be there with a lawyer in about an hour.
Brunetti called an officer to take the boy back to the room where he
had been questioned and told Filippi that he would be left there,
undisturbed, until his father arrived. Politely, Brunetti asked if he
would like anything to eat or drink, but the boy refused. In the
manner of his refusal, Brunetti saw generations of B movie actors
spurning the handkerchief offered by the commander of the firing
squad.
As soon as the boy was led away, Brunetti told Vianello to wait for
Major Filippi and the lawyer and to delay them as long as he could
before letting them see the boy.
Calling to Pucetti, he told him to go down and wait at the launch, that
he'd be down in a moment.
'Where are you going?' interrupted a puzzled Vianello.
'Back to the Academy. I want to talk to the Cappellini boy before they
get to him Brunetti said. 'Let them talk to the boy
alone as long as they want. If you have to, let them take him away.
Jusl see that it all takes as long as possible. Do anything you can to
delay them.' He was gone even before Vianello could make any
acknowledgement.
The launch stood before the Questura, the pilot gunning the engine in
response to Pucetti's excitement. Pucetti had already untied the
moorings and stood on the dock, holding the boat close to the pier.
Brunetti jumped on board, followed a second later by Pucetti, who lost
his footing on the already moving boat and had to steady himself with a
hand on Brunetti's shoulder. Full throttle, the launch sped out into
the Bacino, straight across, then turned into the open mouth of the
Canale della Giudecca. The pilot, warned by Pucetti, used the flashing
blue light but not the siren.
The first thrill of excitement was followed almost immediately by
Brunetti's embarrassment that, in the midst of death and deceit, he
could still revel in the simple joy of speed. He knew this was no
schoolboy holiday, no cops and robbers chase, but still his heart
soared with delight at the rush of wind and the rhythmic thump of the
prow against the waves.
He glanced at Pucetti and was relieved to see his own feelings
reflected on the younger man's face. They seemed to flash by other
boats. Brunetti saw heads turn and follow their swift passage up the
canal. Too soon, however, the pilot pulled into the Rio diSant'
Eufemia, slipped the motor into reverse, and glided silently to the
left-hand side of the f canal. As he and Pucetti jumped off, Brunetti
wondered if he f had been rash to bring this sweet-tempered young man
with him instead of someone like Alvise who, if equally decent, at
least had the professional advantage of looking like a thug.
'I want to frighten this kid,' Brunetti said as they started up the
Riva towards the school.
'Nothing easier, sir,' Pucetti replied.
As they walked across the courtyard, Brunetti sensed some sort of
motion or disturbance to his right, where Pucetti was. Without
breaking his stride, he took a quick glance at him and was so surprised
that he almost stopped. Somehow, Pucetti's shoulders had thickened,
and he had adopted the stride of a boxer or roustabout. His head
jutted forward on a neck that, to Brunetti, looked suddenly thicker.
Pucetti's hands were curled, almost as if poised for the command that
they be turned into fists, and his steps were, each one, a command that
the earth dare not resist his passage.
Pucetti's eyes roved around the courtyard, his attention turning with
predatory haste from one cadet to another. His mouth looked hungry,
and his eyes had lost all trace of the warmth and humour which usually
filled them.
Brunetti automatically slowed his pace, allowing Pucetti to cut ahead,
like a cruise ship in the Antarctic that moves aside to allow an ice
breaker to slip in front of it. The few cadets in the courtyard fell
silent as they passed.
Pucetti took the steps to the dormitory two at a time, Brunetti
following at a slower pace. At the door to Filippi's room, Pucetti
raised his fist and banged on it twice, then quickly twice again. From
the end of the corridor, Brunetti heard the yelp from inside and then
saw Pucetti open the door and shove it back on its hinges so that it
banged against the wall.
When Brunetti got to the door, Pucetti was standing just inside, his
hands raised almost to the level of his waist; his shoulders looked, if
this were possible, even thicker.
A thin blonde boy with acne-pitted cheeks was on the top bunk, half
sitting, half lying, but pressed back against the wall, his feet pulled
