Page 24 of Murder at the Ponte Vecchio

I got a call from Virgilio at eight-thirty, but it wasn’t to announce the arrival of the technician from the safe company or with news that Marco had woken up and started talking.

‘There’s been another murder.’ His tone was grim.

I found myself praying that it wasn’t Marco. Surely, the killer hadn’t been able to get past the officers on guard. Virgilio’s answer came as a relief, but also a surprise.

‘Axel Jacobs, age seventy-six, Dutch citizen, found dead in his room at the Grand Hotel.’

This came as a shock – but, given what had happened to David Berg, maybe not such a shock after all. My mind was racing. Why would anybody have wanted to murder Jacobs? This was surely too much of a coincidence. Had Berg and Jacobs been involved in something particularly shady? Jacobs had already told me that their deal had been clandestine, but had it maybe been more than an illicit transaction between two old acquaintances? Had a third party been involved in the deal or even cheated by the two old men? Had the same person who had killed Berg also murdered his associate?

‘What was the cause of death?’

‘Strangulation. There were bruises to the victim’s face so he must have tried to put up a fight, even though he looked frail.’

‘Any fingerprints or DNA left behind?’

‘Not a thing. A clean, professional hit.’

This sounded ominously similar to Berg’s killing. ‘Time of death?’

‘Gianni says probably between ten and midnight, but he’ll know more after the autopsy. The way I see it, Jacobs was in his room late last night when somebody came to his door. He was either expecting the person or the visitor barged his way in. Once inside, the killer strangled Jacobs, who struggled to defend himself, but in vain.’

‘Any CCTV footage?’

‘We’re waiting for it to be passed to us now. The good news is that there are cameras on every floor so, with luck, we should be able to identify the killer.’

‘Anything taken from the room?’

‘It’s been thoroughly ransacked. The killer was definitely looking for something, but whether he found it or not, who knows?’

‘I suppose the obvious thing the killer might have been looking for is the cigar box with three hundred thousand euros’ worth of gold or jewels in it. The question is, of course, how he knew about what was supposedly a very secret transaction between the two Dutchmen.’ I felt I had to state the obvious. ‘Do we think it’s the same perpetrator who murdered Berg?’

‘I’d be surprised if it isn’t. Forensics are going through the room as we speak. Let’s hope they find something, but if it is Berg’s killer, he’s unlikely to have been sloppy enough to leave a trace. That guy was a pro and this looks very much the same.’ Virgilio’s voice was gloomy.

‘Is there anything I can do? After all, I’m probably one of the few people Jacobs spoke to while he was here in Florence.’

‘It’ll be a good idea to give you a formal interview later on, but there’s no rush for now. You’ve already told us the substance of your talk to Jacobs, and Marco’s put it on file. I’ve put Inspector Faldo on the case. He’s busy interviewing the staff and guests in the hope that somebody remembers something.’

From his tone, I could tell he wasn’t optimistic and neither was I. If the killer had been a pro, there was every chance he would have been able to slip in and out undetected. Even so, I offered a bit of encouragement. ‘At least this means you know where Faldo is going to be.’

‘Yes, indeed. I’ll catch up with him later on after we’ve had a chance to take a look inside Berg’s safe. The flight from Switzerland arrives at nine-fifteen and I really want to go and see Marco first. The hospital tells me that he had a good night and he’s awake, so I’m hoping he might be able to tell us more about what happened yesterday. If you’re still happy to come along to the villa, let’s meet there at ten and hope that we find something of interest in the safe. If there’s a hold-up, I’ll call you. See you later.’

Because of the continuing warm weather, Anna and I had decided to stay out at my house in the country for a few more days, so it was barely a ten-minute drive to Berg’s villa in Signa, and it was with a feeling of considerable anticipation that I arrived there at ten o’clock. Virgilio’s car was already there alongside a blue and white squad car and I could see him talking to a uniformed officer. As soon as he saw me, he came across to talk. I had brought Oscar with me and he was so pleased to see Virgilio again, he stood up on his hind legs to be petted.

‘Ciao, Oscar.Ciao, Dan. First, the bad news: Marco can’t remember anything about yesterday afternoon at all, apart from going home to work on the computer. He can’t remember gettinga phone call and he can’t recall anything of the accident. The doctor I spoke to told me his memory may return in the course of the next few days, but there’s no guarantee. The good news is that he’s recovering well and should regain full use of his limbs within a couple of months at most. For what it’s worth, I’m going to spread the word that he doesn’t remember a thing and that he never will. Hopefully, that’ll put off the would-be killer from having another try. I’m also keeping the officers outside Marco’s door until he’s well enough to leave hospital.’

‘Good idea. It’s better to be safe than sorry.’ I nodded slowly. ‘What about the cars belonging to Verdi and Grande? Any signs of damage?’

‘Nothing at all, I’m afraid.’

I lowered my voice. ‘Did you manage to speak to thequestoreyesterday?’

‘He was at a conference in Venice and he’ll be back around lunchtime today. I’ve left word with his secretary for him to contact me as soon as he returns – as a matter of urgency.’

‘And the technician from the Swiss safe company?’

‘His flight was on time and he’s inside the villa at the moment, fiddling with the assortment of gizmos he’s brought with him. He’s confident he can get it open this morning, but he wasn’t prepared to hazard a guess as to how long it’ll take.’ He gestured back in the direction of the villa. ‘I thought in the meantime, it might be useful for me to speak to the members of the family. You’ve met them already, of course, but I’d quite like to get a look at them before we get sight of the will. Feel like coming with me?’

We went over to the front door and rang the bell. Ines, the housekeeper, greeted us and showed us into the lounge where the family were once again sitting on the two sofas in exactly the same positions as before. At first sight, it looked almost as if they hadn’t stirred for three days. I introduced Virgilio and translatedfor him when necessary, although his English was well up to the task. Casper Berg was quick to ask if there had been any developments. Virgilio answered with a question.

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