His eyes opened wide, realizing a thought he might have missed.
Madlen’s ex-husband! What if he told him he was going to kill Madlen if he wouldn’t have come immediately to an established place? That could be the only solution, therefore we need to get our hands on the man before it’s too late.
He stood up from the couch and reached the room he used as a studio. There, he switched on the computer, and connected securely to the main server of the Police Department.
He searched through the archives of the mobile phones they’ve obtained the full log. He hoped to find something in Madlen’s one. The idea that her ex-husband was guilty, not only of the psychological abuses and stalking but also of the murder of Mr. Calvani, started to make sense.
Going through the whole list would have taken the rest of the night, but on the other hand, there wasn’t any chance he could have done anything else but think.
It’s useless, here there isn’t any telephone number which... hold on! he thought as his eyes stopped at something interesting. Here’s another unknown number. Another prepaid sim card...
Getting closer to the screen, he searched for more information about the call. Of course, the owner couldn’t be traced, but according to the search, the location was in Rome. He went through all the contacts he could find in Madlen’s phone directory, and that particular number wasn’t stored. Nevertheless, she received several calls from that number, and I’m wondering why she didn’t save it. The provider is foreign, but according to the GPS, the phone was in Rome. Could it be a glitch or perhaps it was the number belonging to her husband? Who else could have been the caller? Her daughter? Why?
He held his head between his hands, clenching his fists, grabbing and pulling his hair. I’ll go crazy! Why didn’t I choose an easier job? Why a Police Officer, and why would I even want to pursue a career further to become a detective?
Listening to his heart racing in his chest, his eyes raised once again to the screen and his attention was caught by the clock, which read 02:00 am.
***
Like every morning, Anna woke up at seven, at the insistent ringing of the alarm clock, perfectly corresponding with the calls of Giovanna from the adjacent room.
With a curse, she opened her eyes and noticed that Maurizio didn’t come to bed at all. “I’ll figure out this one too, but first, I need to get the second alarm switched off,” she muttered, standing up from the bed. “I’m coming, I’m coming!” she said sleepily, limping to the room where Giovanna was insistently calling for her.
“Would you ever give me some time?” She groaned, taking Giovanna in her arms.
With a sigh, she needed to figure out what happened to Maurizio. Reaching the living room, she noticed his jacket on the couch.
“At least he returned home,” she said, glancing around. “Let’s see if we can find him in the studio.”
“Bingo!” she said aloud as she spotted Maurizio asleep on the chair in front of the computer.
“Detective Scala, are you sleeping on duty?” she yelled.
With a jolt as if he’d been tasered, he stood from the chair like a spring, “No, Sir!” he replied.
Realizing where he was and Anna laughing at him, he relaxed his posture and expression. “Fuck! You almost gave me a heart attack.”
He glanced back at the chair, “I fell asleep and didn’t realize it. Yesterday evening I almost killed Gennaro, one of the workers of the cleaning company.”
“Why? Did you fall asleep at work too?” She giggled, playing with Giovanna’s hair.
“No, I lost track of time, and when he started his rounds, I thought he was an intruder.”
“How hilarious, an intruder at the Police Department,” her sarcastic tone was palpable.
“You can laugh about it, but this wouldn’t be the first time that some punk got caught trying to intrude on our premises.” He switched off the computer and started to walk to the bathroom to have a shower. He kissed Anna and caressed Giovanna before leaving the room, “I love you two, madly.”
“And we love you back, isn’t it so, Giovanna?”
The little girl with a giggle nodded, watching her father leaving the room.
CHAPTER 15
It took a couple of extra strong coffees to get Maurizio started the next day before he arrived at the Department, allowing him to be ready to add more pieces to the puzzle. Before reaching his office, he directed himself to the room adjacent to his own, where senior officer Sandra Milani and officer Carlo Silvani, the two agents helping him, were trying to get through the long list of data.
“I need your help, urgently!” he commenced, justifying the reason for his irruption into the room. “I need to identify Madlen Fazekas’ ex-husband. I need his present location and telephone number, and I needed them yesterday! I want to talk to him as soon as possible.”
“I’ll be right on it,” Senior officer Milani said. “As I get the info, I’ll forward it to you, although this might take longer than yesterday.”
A smirk appeared on Maurizio’s face, “Let’s try it anyway, ok?” Without waiting for any reply, he rushed to his room. He wasn’t sure what he wrote last night, before falling asleep, but certainly the notes he remembered having written would have cast some light on the case.
From the glass wall, he spotted Leonardo as he was walking to the common room to get a coffee. “LEO!” he yelled as he quickened his steps to reach him.
“What’s wrong with you. Have you been sampling coke confiscated by the anti-narcotics?” he chuckled, watching Maurizio.
“I barely closed an eye last night; I’ve been working until late evening and I continued from home until I fell asleep on the computer. I’ll
