26 - Italy

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Upstairs in the villa bedroom, the buzzer from the basement made Jean curse aloud and he climbed from the bed and slipped on his robe. He tugged the tie around his waist tighter and watched out the window as his men arrived in two cars to get their orders.

Angelo Spataro had been picked up earlier and was sweating out his future in the basement of Jean's villa under the watchful eye of his lieutenant.

"Do you have to go now, cher?" Jean's mistress squirmed on the silk sheets of the massive bed.

"I have business to attend to." He discarded the robe with annoyance and slipped on a pair of cotton pants, a loose t-shirt and left the room, calling back, "I won't be long."

Angelo sat up as the door opened and Jean came into the room, his face was flushed and sopping wet.

"Jean, I swear I told you the truth!" he whined.

"Did you." The tone was flat. "Are you ready to tell me who is the woman that called and told me you were blaming this Carstairs for taking my gems?"

"Huh? What? What woman? Who-?" Angelo felt his world slip out from under him. The only woman he could think of was Monique. Had she done this to him?

Jean nodded to the man watching Angelo and in a second, he delivered a punishing blow to Angelo's midsection. He gagged and doubled over as far as the ropes binding him to the chair would allow.

"Care to try again?"

Angelo coughed and wheezed as he slumped back in the chair.

"It- it could be the woman the Agency sent to collect the stones." He coughed again and felt like he might throw up.

"I thought you dealt with a man . . . Peter somebody?"

He nodded. "She said he was- retired. They were unhappy with the merchandise." He risked a look to see how that was received. Ignored.

"And what about Carstairs?"

"I swear on my mother's life, Jean, I never even saw him. It's all a lie!"

"Why? Why would this woman say such a thing if she was dealing with you?"

"I don't know. I don't know." Angelo looked bewildered and frightened, he had no answer.

"What is the woman's name?"

"Monique. Monique St. Croix. She is from the Agency."

"Where does she stay?"

"I don't know; I met her at the marina at Petrolias'."

"Describe her."

Angelo did, as accurately as humanly possible.

"And you gave her the stones." Jean gave his man a head signal and the man left immediately.

"I had to, Jean! She- that's why she was there! If I didn't-"

"And Carstairs?"

"I told you, I don't know who he is!"

"You told me he was the man who killed my men." Jean stared hard at his prisoner.

"She told me to say that! It was her idea!" I swear, Jean."

"And what happens now, Angelo? What does the Agency want you to do now?"

Before he could answer, Jean's man returned and whispered into Jean's ear.

"You didn't mention you were planning on a trip, Angelo."

"Huh?"

"Your friend, Petrolia, says you wanted to get a boat.

Angelo just stared vacantly at the two men. He had no answers or excuses, nothing that would extricate him from his dilemma, just a foreboding of bad things to come.

"Nothing to say? Nothing to share, Angelo? Were you planning on retiring from the Agency payroll? Did you manage a little nest egg for yourself somewhere?" Angelo continued to just stare, voiceless. Jean made a face and hissed his disgust, nodding again to his man and leaving the room. As he climbed the stairs to the main floor, he heard the stifled scream and he breathed hard through his nose.

Upstairs his team of four were awaiting their orders and Jean made no bones about what they were to do and when. Monique St. Croix, if she was still in Genoa, was to be located and brought to him at the villa. If she had left the city, they were to find out where she went and go after her.

"Do you have any place you'd like us to start?"

"So far all this business has taken place along the marina and the harbor. Start there, maybe somebody will remember her. Call me as soon as you have anything."

The team left, moving with a purpose.

***********

It was all Monique could do get the young man out of her bed and dressed, promising to come back down to the restaurant for her lunch; breakfast was a dead loss. Finding that they had arrived on a motor scooter late last night, she clutched her head and tried to imagine what that must have been like. Monique had never had so much to drink in her life.

Subconsciously it must have been fear, fear of Nathan and Murray. Fear of losing the money she so carefully skimmed and fear of the loss of the stylish life she had created. The young man handed her a helmet and patted the seat behind him.

"Hang on like you did last night and we won't get to the restaurant," he admonished with a leer.

She grimaced and climbed on behind him.

************

Sol beamed as the others arrived independently of one another and took up places in the restaurant. Arnesto's, he felt, was an inspired choice. Good food. Great location and an ambience that would make their stakeout a pleasure. Sam went straight to the bar and ordered his food along with a tall beer.

Terrance found a corner table inside with a sight line along the trot. Tracy chose the heated deck as had Sol and Min and they acknowledged each other with a pleasant smile. Just tourists being friendly, sharing an experience. After eating thy would part again,establishing new observation points near the bank.

The motor scooter putted up to the side of the restaurant and Monique stepped off, stumbling briefly as she yanked the helmet off her head. Her hair was scattered all about her face and she could barely return the eager smile she was having beamed at her by her companion.

"Take the table by the potted palm tree, it's in my station and it gives us a modicum of privacy." His smile morphed into another leer.

Monique straightened her skirt, stepped into the restaurant, and marched straight through to the deck, glaring at the palm as she passed.

Terrance sat up so fast his head crunched against a small shelf above him and an empty Chianti bottle, wrapped in wicker, toppled into his lap. He cursed and massaged his head, trying to get Sam's attention before she got outside. Finally, he gave up and strode over to the bar.

"Christ, didn't you hear me?"

"Excuse me? Do I know you?" Sam glared.

"We're alone in here you ass. That woman that just walked through here, did you see her?"

"Terrance, we're not here to scope out women-"

"You idiot! That was Monique!"

"Huh? Monique?"

"Yes! And she's sitting right next to Sol and Minnie."

Outside, Sol and Minnie sat rigidly in their seats staring at one another with total confusion. Tracy had raised a paper up in front of her face and she was peering around it through the window trying to see Sam or Terrance.

"What do we do now?" Terrance leaned back and caught a glimpse of Monique's legs. "She knows me!"

"Nothing. Jesus, you heard what Murray said. You better get out of sight."

"But she's right here! That means Richard might be right around here as well!"

While the two men argued on an action plan, René entered the restaurant and waved to the bartender as she crossed the room and went out onto the deck. Both of them stopped talking and watched her progress with lustful interest.

"Jesus."

"Yeah."


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