The Year of the Mantis

by P J Mann

  ***

  As everything returned to the normal routine and the cases seemed to get of easier solution than the murder of Mr. Calvani, the year reached its end, and with it, everybody at the police department hoped that criminality would for once take a break and enjoy the incoming holiday season.

  Of course, that was only an illusion, and everyone knew crime doesn’t take any breaks. In Maurizio’s memory there hadn’t been a holiday period, whether Easter, Summer, Christmas, or anything else, when crimes halted for a moment. Those were perhaps the times when they took advantage of the loosened surveillance to strike.

  It was a chilly day in early December, and Maurizio was trying to get the grip with the office work that had been left aside before the end of the year. The lights were enough to illuminate the rooms and the corridors, but the thick stormy cover of clouds made the day seem darker.

  Looking up from his computer, he grimaced as his eyes met the dark sky outside the window. He stretched his body, releasing a loud yawn, and walked to the window to have a better idea about the weather waiting for him outside.

  “It seems like the sky wants to fall, and this means only one thing— the traffic on the Tiburtine will be completely insane this evening,” he whined, knowing there wasn’t any other option.

  He recalled his promise to take care of finding a new apartment where to move, and so far, he was either too busy with the case, or there weren’t enough offers for their budget. “There must be a way to get rid of that cursed road,” he growled as his mood darkened.

  The knocking on his door returned him to reality, and he turned to see who was the visitor, from the window wall.

  Noticing Senior officer Milani, he smiled, “Come in.”

  “I was wondering whether you heard about the news,” she commenced introducing the reason for her visit.

  “Depends on the news.”

  “The news from the prison. Irina Leonova killed herself,” her voice got lower as she spoke as if her name was no more supposed to be mentioned. “She left a message stating that she wasn’t going to stay in jail for most of her life, and that was the only way she could think about being free again.”

  Maurizio lowered his gaze and furrowed his brows; he couldn’t say he wasn’t expecting something similar.

  Suicide was something fairly common between the inmates, particularly when talking about those who were condemned to a long sentence or were unfairly accused. She admitted the murder of her father and the use of illegal channels to reach Italy. Yet, she pleaded not guilty when they talked about the murder of Claudio Calvani.

  Whether it was indeed her father the one who killed him or someone else, it was clear her involvement in that murder too. Therefore, talking about being judged unfairly couldn’t apply in her case.

  “That’s very sad, although I can say I don’t understand her act. Many inmates find a new way of life in prison, and use the time to rebuild something, even if it’s destined to remain within the walls of the penitentiary; they most often prefer to use their time in a more constructive way, either by studying and getting a degree or thinking about their life and give it a new purpose...” He raised his right hand back on his neck and massaged it.

  “Indeed,” Senior officer Milani replied sadly. “Although she was a murderer, she could have still given a purpose to her life. Of course, by the time she would have gotten out of prison, she would have been a middle-aged woman... Perhaps she feared she’d lost everything, including the mother she tried to protect. We will never know her reason. I’m wondering whether she got heartbroken by the fact that Luciano didn’t remain by her side— who knows?”

  “Did she mentioned the fact that he left her?” Maurizio wondered as that could have been the most feasible reason for Irina to decide to end her fight.

  “No, this was my personal guess,” she replied. “I didn’t know her, and I would never condone what she’d done. Murder is something that belongs exclusively to extreme cases of self-defense, not a way to do justice on your own.”

  “This is the reason why we are here,” Maurizio pointed out thoughtfully, wondering whether there were more reasons behind her suicide.

  “Do you believe she had other reasons to suicide?” asked Senior officer Milani.

  “ I’m simply guessing too. However, I didn’t have the impression she was the kind of person who would have given up without a fight. I thought she would have worked on the way to get a reduced sentence. Working on the defense, she might have gotten out earlier, obtaining partial freedom. There would have been so many chances for her to have the sentence converted into a milder one... I don’t understand.”

  Senior officer Milani inhaled deeply as an uncomfortable feeling grabbed her soul. “Well, that was all I came here for, I thought you wanted to know...”

  “Yes, thank you. I guess it’s something we all need to think about and digest it. Suicide is the last thing you want to happen in prison. This means the case will forever be closed. She was probably the only one to know the truth about the murder of Claudio Calvani. Whether she kept secrecy to protect someone or to try for a milder sentence, the truth followed her to the grave, and if it’s so and one of the murderers is still alive and free, we need to hope this was the last crime.” Maurizio shook his head, pursing his lips.

  “All the clues lead to her and her father. I think she acted with his help, who hosted her in his house. It isn’t credible that one of them could act without the other knowing. Probably her whole plan was to get rid of Mr. Calvani as a possible threat to her mother’s happiness. Perhaps she knew about the life insurance and might have talked to her daughter, never believing she would have actually killed him.”

  A smile relieved Maurizio’s face. “Well, that’s a reasonable conclusion, and that’s the same one the judges reached after having examined the proof and listening to the witnesses. So, case closed?”

  “Case closed, Detective Scala,” she replied as she walked toward the exit.

  “Yes,” he said with a long exhale. “Case closed.”

  EPILOGUE

  It was the day before Christmas Eve. Maurizio was able to leave work earlier and on his way home, his attention was grabbed by a specific car parked outside the cemetery. There weren’t many people who owned a black Lamborghini, and even without checking the plate number, he was sure the owner was no one other than Luciano Calvani.

  Turning the car in the direction of the cemetery, he parked beside Luciano’s car, admiring it for a moment, wondering how it would have been to have no economic problems and be able to afford such luxury.

  With a slight shake of his head, he walked inside, knowing perfectly where to find Luciano at the grave of his father.

  Silently, Maurizio strolled through the alleys between the graves until he spotted the figure of Luciano, staring at his father’s tombstone.

  Without saying a word, he stopped a few steps away, waiting for him to be ready to leave to bid his condolences once again and perhaps wishing him a serene Christmas period.

  “Good afternoon, Detective Scala,” he greeted without averting his glance from the image on the grave of his father.

  “Good afternoon, Mr. Calvani. I was passing by and I couldn’t avoid noticing your car in the parking lot, so I thought I could come to give you my best wishes for this period. I understand it must be hard...” Maurizio almost felt his intrusion inappropriate, but that might have been the only chance he had to greet him.

  “I thought it would have been easier. I was sure I wouldn’t have missed him as much as I am right now; after all, he never cared about my mother or me.” His voice flickered. “We were nothing more than commodities, something vital for his social status. As a successful businessman, it was necessary for him to have a family. Although, my mother had an influence in the growing of the business, and received her recognition, I was never something he wanted.”

  Maurizio remained silent at that confession. Money won’t grant happiness, he thought. He had the i
mpression of having arrived at the right time, and Luciano had to take out all his bitterness.

  “You see,” Luciano turned his teary eyes at Maurizio, “he was the person I admired the most, everything I did was to gain his approval, to feel worthy of his name and attention. Yet, every time it was a flame that consumed itself too fast. There was always something better to take care of. One day it could be his job, then it could be his friends, or again he might have been too tired. I was never a priority.

  “But I couldn’t hate him. I wish I could... Then one day, my mother found out about the girl he was cheating on her with. There hadn’t been a big drama, she collected her things, called her attorney, and left. She had suggested that I go and live with her, if I wanted, but I still wanted to grab that chance of living with him and try gathering his attention.”

  As tears started to stream from his eyes, Luciano required some time to gather some strength and to get a grip on his emotions.

  “I hoped, we could still have more time together if we were living in the same house. I desperately needed him, and he never seems to understand that. He thought it was enough to suffice his lack of love with money.” He slowly shook his head, as he lowered his glance down to his feet. “All his free time was dedicated to his new girlfriend. One day, almost by chance I met Irina at the University. I had no idea who she was, but we both felt attracted to each other, perhaps because we both were missing a family. We found in each other company the missing part of our lives, what gave a sense to them both. Her father was an abusive husband, who couldn’t do anything better than stalk and threaten her mother. My father didn’t consider me... We were alike... I miss her, too.”

  “I’m sorry, it must have been a double shock for you to understand she preferred to die, rather than to wait for her release, which would have happened eventually,” Maurizio replied, having the clear impression there was something hidden in his story. He didn’t dare to spell it out, but he was sure Luciano was going to answer his final doubts.

  Searching his pockets, Luciano slipped a handkerchief and wiped the tears from his eyes. “Yes, I can guess what you thought, and you’re completely correct; we planned a way to get rid of those people who would have kept hurting us for the rest of our lives; our fathers. We weren’t supposed to suffer for their sins, and if you’re wondering why I haven’t thought about killing Irina’s mother is because it wasn’t her fault the reason why my father ignored me. If it wasn’t her, it would have been someone else, or something else. Irina could provide the weapon for the murder and the easiest scapegoat; then we would have been free from them and we could have lived our lives together in peace. Her mistake was that of trusting other people to eliminate her father.”

  “So, it was you who killed your father?” Maurizio couldn’t say he was surprised. There had always been that little voice in the back of his head telling him that Irina was just one of the players in the murder. What surprised him the most was that there weren’t any clues leading to Luciano’s involvement— no proofs, no DNA traces, no fingerprints, nothing. Claudio Calvani’s murder was almost to be considered the perfect crime, and what churned his stomach was that without a single proof or clue, as Luciano also had an alibi on his side, he couldn’t arrest him. With a grimace, he narrowed his eyes.

  “Don’t take it so badly, detective. You did a great job, and I think I owed you this information, even if it’s destined to remain only between us. You can’t arrest me without any solid proof. Moreover, I can assure you there won’t be any other murders coming from these hands,” he raised his palms upward. “It still hurts, and I won’t stop regretting it for a single second in my life.”

  It was true, he had no grounds to arrest him; it would be his word against that of Luciano, and it wasn’t enough to reopen a case accusing a person who wasn’t possible to locate at the crime scene. His expression toughened, trying to keep the beast that wanted to kill that young criminal right in front of the grave of the father he’d murdered.

  Luciano glanced at his wristwatch, “I need to hurry, I’m leaving the country. I can’t risk you will find any sort of clues to frame me. Besides, I need a change in the air and think about the way I’ll rebuild my life.” He turned his shoulder at Maurizio, “See you in 25 years, detective, and perhaps I will also tell you how I did it.”

  Maurizio watched him walk away. “See you when the crime will fall into prescription... some son of a bitch!”

  He turned to look at the picture of Claudio on the headstone. “You weren’t a perfect father, but who is? The only hope is that he will find his karma, and maybe justice can still reach him even at the end of the world... who knows? I also have a daughter, and I know your struggles with raising a child, taking care of business, and trying to enjoy your time in this life. I will try to learn a lesson out of this story, so at least I won’t risk being killed by a neglected daughter.”

  Shivering at a gust of wind that suddenly blew in, Maurizio plunged his hands in his pockets and walked to his car. That was the beginning of his holiday and the end of the year— the year of the Mantis.

  the end…

  I hope you enjoyed following the investigation of Commissario Scala. The next appointment with another thrilling mystery is scheduled for 08.30.2021.

  In the next book, a serial killer is threatening the life of people who devoted their lives to charity causes. Yet, according to the messages left, there are dark secrets hidden in the past of those people. But what is the red wire connecting the victims to each other and to the serial killer, who signs his message as ‘The Shadows’?

  Stay tuned by following me on:

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  about the author

  Paula J. Mann lives a double life. She is a geologist by day and a novelist by night. She's best known for writing psychological thrillers and dramas, like her debut novel 'A Tale of a Rough Diamond.'

  She also writes historical fiction, like Aquila et Noctua, and paranormal suspense like ‘Thou Shalt Never Tell.’

  Traveling is another passion, and she shares her experiences on her blog together with whatever topic raises her attention: http://paperpenandinkwell.blogspot.com.