“Bertalucci never made it to Rome; he wasn’t in the car.” Mancetti slammed his cell phone onto the dashboard of the car.
“What do you mean? We saw him get into the car and his tracker traced him to Rome. How could he just disappear?”
“I don’t know! He just did!” Mancetti pulled his hands through his hair. “You would think he’d call. You’d think he’d just turn himself in. He seemed like he was onboard and ready to cooperate.”
“Unless…unless he flew the coop. Do you think he found a way to leave the country? What if he has Katherine? What if he’s the one holding her for ransom? Maybe we’ve been on the wrong trail the entire time. Fuck! How could we screw this up again?” Thompson got out of the car and slammed the door. “What do we do now? Time is running out. We have to find Anderson now!”
“I’ve got an idea. I’ll have my people check all the properties under his family name. We’ll cross-check all of Matteo Bertalucci’s properties as well. Perhaps something will come up. Maybe a lead or clue of some sort.”
Thompson grabbed the cell phone from his pocket. He took a deep breath and exhaled before punching in the number for his superior. He needed to brace for the shellacking he was going to receive. “I guess it’s as good of an idea as any. We don’t have any other options. Call your men. I’m going to see if there’s any more news with the ransom.”
Both men got on their cell phones and called their respective agencies. Thompson paced around the car as he received the information he wasn’t quite ready to hear. Not only had the kidnappers refused to extend the deadline, but Mr. Charles Anderson himself was on the way to Italy and he would be arriving in a few short hours. Mr. Anderson didn’t seem like the type to take bad news easily. Was he the man who could cost him his job? God, he hoped not. He’d worked too damned hard and long to get where he was only to lose everything because of his limitations with the Italian government. Thompson had to find Katherine before her father arrived. His presence would make the investigation much more difficult.
Mancetti threw his phone into the car.
“Well?” He needed something—anything. His world was spiraling out of control. Waves were crashing over him and he tried to swim to the surface, gasping for air.
“There’s a house registered to a Luisa Bertalucci.” Mancetti paused and jumped into the back seat of the car. He began typing away on his laptop.
“Please tell me she’s related to Massimo and Matteo.”
“Hold on, let me find out.” Manchetti continued typing away. “It appears that she was their grandmother. She’s been dead for about twenty years, but the house has never changed ownership and the taxes have been paid on it yearly. Someone is keeping it up.”
“I bet we know who. I’d also bet Katherine is in that house.” Thompson was finally able to surface. The storm was dissipating and fresh air filled his lungs. This was it. He knew it. Katherine had to be in that house. Hopefully, they could get there before it was too late.
“I have a hunch you’re right. Let’s go check out the house; I want to see who’s going in and out of it.” Manchetti closed his laptop and moved to the driver’s seat.
“Do we need to get a search warrant to go inside? How does this work in your country?”
“We don’t need a search warrant. But we do need to make sure we have plenty of evidence to put this guy away for good. Unlike in America, we need an enormous amount of evidence to convict someone. Even if they have stolen something and are in possession of it, they can be released. You’re more likely to get the conviction if you have witnesses or a video of the thief. That’s why most of our mafioso are set free. We don’t have enough evidence to show they’re guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. Many times, the evidence is lost or tampered with. The burden of proof is extremely high here.”
Thompson was frustrated. Why were things so complicated here? “So, we can just go in and arrest him right now?”
“Yes, and we can hold him for an indefinite amount of time while performing our investigation. However, if he’s behind bars, we won’t be able to collect the evidence we need to convict him.”
“What about what we got earlier? He confessed to everything on tape. We’ve got him.”
“That will certainly help. Unfortunately, we’re going to need a lot more. Massimo Bertalucci as a witness would be great, but we’re going to have to find a way to keep him safe. The mafioso is also known for having witnesses against them disappear.”
“We have the video from the Tomas Bertalucci, Massimo Bertalucci as a witness, and a recording of Matteo Bertalucci admitting he’s head of the mafioso. You’re telling me that’s not enough?”
“Probably not. We could use a few more witnesses and more information about his black market olive oil production. If we can get Anderson to identify him as the man who kidnapped her, that would probably seal the deal. Even then, it might not be enough.”
“That’s crazy. The amount of evidence we have on this man would put him away for life in America.”
“Italian law evolved from the Romans. It continues to stay true to many of its practices. We don’t have jury trials like you do in the States. Having a jury is rare, but if there is one, it’s usually comprised of lawyers and those knowledgeable of the law. They aren’t everyday citizens like you have.”
“I wasn’t aware of that. It’s amazing how two countries can have so many similarities with the people, culture, and beliefs yet differ so much. How do you suggest we approach this?”
“I want to go stake out the house for a bit and see who’s coming and going. I’d like to identify as many players as we can. It’ll be much easier down the road when I arrest them and try to get someone to crack and be a witness. We can’t be sure just yet that Anderson is in there. Perhaps by watching them, we could get a better idea. I’d also like to know if Bertalucci is in there as well. He’s a key player and could either be a victim or he could be a part of this entire conspiracy. We need to know.”
Thompson nodded in agreement. “In the meantime, what should we do about the guy who showed up in Rome?”
“He’s already been taken into custody. They found him at the Waldorf Astoria. We were able to apprehend him before he connected with Matteo. My guys are questioning him as we speak.”
“How far away is Luisa Bertalucci’s house?”
“It’s about two hours from here. I’ll have the surveillance team meet us there. Let’s go.”
“Sounds like a plan.” Thompson climbed into the car. He was eager to end this investigation and head back home. There were too many uncertainties when performing intel and investigations in foreign countries. He would much rather be on his own turf; at least he was in control there.