CHAPTER 88

CHAPTER 88

— THEY FOUND A BODY! — Said Fernando on the cell phone, sitting on the couch in his office, he immediately called Gregory Evans when he received the daily report on his smartphone.

— What did you say? — The Detective asked.

— A body — Greg received confirmation as his mind returned to the image of the boy.

— On the banks of the Tiber — continued Fernando Dante — the information just arrived, I'm going there immediately with a team, near the Tiberina hospital.

FERNANDO DANTE PARKED the Fiat close to the bank of the Tiber. A small crowd had already gathered there.

A policeman came to meet him.

— Where is the person in charge? — Asked the agent showing the functional.

— This way, sir — he said as he pushed through the crowd.

Fernando was crouched beside the body when Gregory appeared behind him. And then he was at her side.

— It's the corpse of a man, Detective — said Fernando Dante as he partially uncovered the body — A tourist found it while walking with his son along the bank of the Tiber. — There was a lot of damage, the bullet disintegrated the back of the head, it was hit in the cerebellum, a place that would make any chance of reaction impossible. See, by the size of the wound, the author should be less than two meters from the victim.

Greg would recognize that face anywhere in the world.

— We didn't find any documents, Greg, nothing...

Greg crouched down beside the Agent, berating himself for how this had happened.

— And those clothes? — Greg murmured, his eyes fixed on the corpse.

— They look like some kind of mesh — said Fernando, turning his attention to the victim's black clothing.

— No, Ferdinand! Look, this is a material of very high resistance, very expensive. This looks more like a military ops ninja outfit...

— Look!

— What is this, Detective?

— This is a structure where there should have been a knife!

— Jesus, you're saying this corpse belongs to an army special ops soldier?

Greg got up.

— I'll ask you to identify him.

— It is not necessary.

The agent looked at him strangely.

— Do you happen to know him?

— Yes... we thought he was dead.

— Doesn't look very alive to me, Greg.

What the hell were you doing here in Rome?

Suddenly Fernando Dante's phone rings:

— Sure... I'll arrange that...

He hung up the phone and Greg asked:

— Did something happen?

— It seems that mysterious forces want to hide what is happening here, they asked us to go immediately to the headquarters of the Italian Army... now...

IT WAS ALMOST 16 HOURS when the Interpol car stopped at the main entrance of the army command in the capital. Greg identified himself.

— I'm Detective Gregory Evans, NYPD, and this is Fernando Dante, Interpol. We've come to meet Colonel Di Polli.

At the entrance, the soldier registered their names and checked their functional identities.

— Go straight ahead, then turn left — said the soldier — you'll soon find a gray building — the Army headquarters.

They entered and were greeted by the Senior Officer.

— Gregory Evans, I presume.

— It is a great pleasure to speak with you.

— Your fame precedes you, Detective — the officer said again. — Please come with me.

Following the major's quick steps, the two walked down a wide corridor, stopping in front of a door with the initials JL Di Polli written on it, and underneath his job: head of the capital's military police unit.

With a nod, the two policemen entered the room, which was large and decorated with various antique infantry items: sabers and pistols that dated back to the early 19th century.

— Well then, Di Polli, I'm here to listen to your explanations. After all, who is the boy?

The Army Colonel returned behind his desk, whose decor would make any eight-year-old boy happy; in it were tin soldiers dressed in the old uniforms of various Italian armies, horses and cannons. His hand came forward with one of the horses lined up in a battle stance, and then his eyes turned to Fernando Dante.

— I know I'm in your debt — he said, remembering a difficult case the agent had helped him with.

A recruit had unloaded a pistol on a former mayor's niece. It had been a rumored passionate affair. The ex-mayor had done everything to ensure that the deranged man was judged in a court presided over by a magistrate who was a friend of his family. Dante's testimony was decisive for a federal court to establish the jurisdiction of a court linked to the army.

Fernando Dante smiled and nodded.

— I want to know everything about the boy. Who was he, why was he killed and what was he doing in an Italian army special ops ninja uniform.

The colonel frowned at the demands of the federal agent in front of him.

— Dante you remain the same as always! If you were a criminal, you certainly wouldn't stay in this city anymore, my friend, especially as my son.

Fernando smiled at the officer's remark about the reputation of the detective at his side, and immediately afterwards he was stunned by the revelation. Even in the army they knew Gregory Evans was a real tough nut to crack.

— Your son?

He sadly nodded, but Greg remained adamant.

— I want answers, Colonel! A crime has occurred, a very suspicious crime... I know it's your jurisdiction, but given the peculiarities of this case...

— Peculiarities of this case? asked the colonel curiously.

— Apparently the crime took place in an area close to the Vatican — said Greg emphatically.

— Ah!... all right, Detective! I'll give you what information I have, but after that we're even — he said, looking at Dante.

Fernando Dante smiled.

— Okay, we'll be even.

The Colonel went to a file cabinet and pulled out a folder, handing it to Dante.

— My son's name was Emanuel Di Polli, twenty-six, an army lieutenant, assigned to the anti-terrorism division in the city of Venice. He was an expert with bladed weapons, but he wasn't on any missions for the army.

— His uncle is the current Cardinal Primate of Venice.

— Is the uncle a cardinal? — Greg was curious.

— Yes — confirmed the Senior Officer — I thought you knew. My brother is Cardinal Domenico Di Polli. There was even a dispute between him and Cardinal Joseph Messina over the position of Secretary General of the Vatican.

— I didn't know that — said Fernando, going into deep thought.

— He has a twin sister, Francesca, is always at the side of Cardinal Di Polli.

— You said this boy wasn't on any missions at the moment.

— Exactly! He was on leave of absence, was reportedly on a trip to the United States.

Greg realized that the more he investigated, the more pieces there were in this huge puzzle.