Chapter 6 - THE EMPTY OFFICE
Sabrina Voss's former office was in a commercial building near Madison Avenue. By the time Dante's team arrived, the room had been cleared.
The computer was gone. The filing cabinets were empty. A desk drawer had been left open.
“Someone knew we were coming,” Marco said.
Dante examined the room.
On the desk lay a small photograph, face down. He turned it over.
It showed Lorenzo standing beside Sabrina outside the department store. They were not speaking like colleagues. His hand rested on her shoulder, and she was smiling at the camera.
On the back, someone had written a date.
The day before the microphone was discovered.
Marco photographed it.
“There's more,” he said.
He had found a receipt beneath the desk. It came from a tailoring shop and listed a repair to a black silk tie. The customer's name was recorded as L. Valli.
Dante stared at it.
“Lorenzo took the tie to be altered.”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“That's what we're going to ask him.”
They returned to the mansion after dark.
Lorenzo was no longer in the guest room where Marco had asked him to wait.
A guard hurried into the foyer.
“Boss, Mr. Valli left through the service entrance.”
Dante's face remained calm.
“When?”
“About ten minutes ago. He said you had released him.”
“I didn't.”
Marco checked the security footage. The camera showed Lorenzo leaving with a small overnight bag. Before stepping outside, he looked directly into the lens.
Then he raised his hand.
Not in farewell.
He held up two fingers and pointed toward the camera.
A message.
Dante watched the footage twice.
“He knows we've found the receipt.”
Marco nodded.
“And he knows the device has been recovered.”
May you like
Dante turned toward the staircase.
“Find him. Quietly. And protect Elena and Lily.”
