Model Under Cover--Dressed to Kill

by Carina Axelsson

  I nodded. “I think I’ve figured out one of the clues.” I reached for our more in-depth guidebook and searched its index. Then I opened it at the relevant pages and quickly read the information. Yes, I thought, why not? It fitted.

  But before getting too excited, I needed to make a call and verify a couple of details. I pulled my phone out of my rucksack and stood up.

  “Ciao, Axelle? Making any progress?”

  “Hi, Ugo, yes, I am making some progress…” I didn’t tell him that, although I was making progress with finding the stones, I was still a long way from finding out who poisoned Elisabetta – I only hoped that both strands led to the same person. “But I have a couple of questions…”

  I asked him if he could remember Falco travelling at all in the time between his last couture show and going to the hospital.

  “Travelling? No, absolutely not. Certo. He didn’t have the time and he wasn’t feeling well. He was around after the show because that’s when the couture clients, like Tavi, buy the dresses and have their fittings. He forced himself to be present. Then he went into hospital two weeks later – and he never left. I was at Ventini every day, for hours, both in the time leading up to the show and then after the show until he went to the hospital. He had no time to go anywhere – not even for a day.”

  Good, I thought, he must have hidden the stones somewhere in Milan.

  “Also, Ugo, I’ve been looking at the logbooks. I can see that Elisabetta left the office every day at 6 p.m. and I’ve heard she visited Falco daily when he was in hospital…”

  “Yes, she’d go every day, straight from the office at six, that’s right. Sometimes with Alessandro.”

  “What about Francesca?”

  “She went daily, too, also after work – and after Elisabetta.”

  That tallied with her 7 p.m. office log-out times.

  “Have you any idea why everyone suddenly seemed to leave the office much earlier in the four days before Falco died?”

  “Ah, that will be because we were told he had only a few days left…naturally, we all tried to spend more time with him.”

  “So up to that point there was a chance that Falco could have lived longer?”

  “Slim, but yes. Everyone still hoped he’d be well enough to come out of hospital at some point.”

  Hmm…I ran my finger down the list of log-out times. During the last four days of Falco’s life, Ginevra had left Ventini at 4 p.m., Ugo at 5 p.m., Francesca at 5.30 p.m., Elisabetta had kept to 6 p.m., and Alessandro had left at various times.

  “Why are the visits so important?” Ugo asked.

  “I’m trying to account for everyone’s actions just before Falco died.”

  “But what does Falco’s death have to do with Elisabetta’s?”

  “I don’t know. I’m just being thorough.”

  “Of course… Anything else I can help you with, Axelle?”

  “Yes, actually… Where was Falco buried?”

  “Where was Falco buried? Are you joking? I thought you told me his death had nothing to do with Elisabetta’s! You don’t think he was poisoned, too…?” It was clear Ugo was bewildered, unsure whether to be terrified, or whether I was just pulling his leg.

  “Don’t worry, Ugo,” I said, “and, no, clearly he wasn’t poisoned. It’s just a question – but I really want to know.”

  “He’s buried here in Milan.”

  “Which cemetery?”

  “At the Cimitero Monumentale. His family has a plot there with a small mausoleum. Why?”

  “I can’t tell you now, Ugo. But thanks – you’ve been a great help.”

  “I have?”

  “Definitely. Now I have to go but I promise I’ll call you tomorrow – hopefully with some good news. Ciao, Ugo!”

  I looked at the time and quickly googled the visiting hours of the cemetery. It was closed – argh! I’d have to wait until tomorrow. They opened early but I’d be prepping for the show so I couldn’t go first thing – but I’d get down there as soon as we were finished.

  I turned back to Ellie and Sebastian. “I know it’s not on our To-See list, but I was thinking it might be fun to check out the Cimitero Monumentale tomorrow?”

  “The cemetery?” Sebastian asked as he reached for the map.

  I nodded, slipped one of the cotton gloves back on, and picked up the death card. As I held it high, I said, “This card represents death, right? And where better to find death than at a cemetery – particularly the one where Falco was buried!”

  Sebastian and Ellie looked at me, eyes wide. “That’s actually a brilliant idea,” Sebastian said.

  “And it makes sense,” Ellie added. “But how do you know where in the cemetery to look for the gems?”

  I set the card with the grinning skeleton down and shook my head. Frankly, even if the gems were in the cemetery I had no idea where precisely. My eye lingered for a moment on the image of the medieval lady on horseback. She was still, silent and smiling, as if hiding a secret. She must know, I thought.

  I picked up the card and studied her more carefully. It was an interesting image, and very flat in the way that the magician wasn’t. And although the lady and her horse were obviously supposed to be in motion – one of the horse’s front legs was lifted and the woman held the reins high – she looked like a statue. A glittering statue that gave nothing away.

  And yet, for my purposes, if the card with the magician represented Falco and the card of death represented the cemetery, then she must represent the treasure…could she be a statue that marked the location of the gems? I had until tomorrow evening to find out.

  It was time to go. I had some research I needed to do and I wanted to get a good night’s sleep. I had the feeling tomorrow would be a busy day.

  “But even if we do find the stones,” Ellie asked as we folded the blanket, “how does that lead us to the person who poisoned Elisabetta?”

  “Well, I think maybe it’s time for me to make a move, show my own sleight of hand,” I said.

  “What, like flush out the killer?” Sebastian asked as he gathered our litter together in a bag.

  “Exactly, Watson.”

  “And do you have a plan yet, Holmes?”

  “No, but I’m working on one.”

  “Which means we won’t know about it until you’re good and ready to tell us. Am I right or am I right?”

  “You’re right, Watson.”

  We walked back to where Sebastian had parked his scooter. Sebastian and I didn’t kiss goodbye; instead we busied ourselves confirming when we’d meet up tomorrow and then speedily said goodbye before anything got too awkward.

  Even though the picnic had been great and Sebastian was being a massive help on the case, things still felt odd between us. Ellie and I caught a taxi back to our flat and Sebastian waved us off as our driver pulled away from the kerb.

  “What’s up with you and Sebastian?” Ellie asked. “The vibe between the two of you is kind of weird at the moment.”

  “Don’t ask.”

  “It’s not about the Francesca or Lucas thing, is it? That’s just too stupid.”

  I shook my head. “It’s not about her or him. There’s more to it than that.”

  “Like what?”

  “Like I think Sebastian’s annoyed that I don’t always put him first.”

  “And is he right?”

  “Maybe…but how can I always put him first? Especially when I’m working on a case? If someone’s life is on the line then that’s important. Solving cases isn’t just some fun hobby – they’re a huge part of who I am. Does that make sense? We each have things that the other one has to deal with. And if Sebastian wants to be with me then he has to understand that the cases take priority, even when we have other plans.”

  Ell
ie nodded. “I get you. Like I couldn’t be with someone who didn’t understand that I might have to suddenly get on a plane the next day for a booking.”

  “Exactly.”

  “But isn’t he supportive? I mean, I sometimes think he’s as keen as you are to solve your cases.”

  “I do too, but I think this case started at a moment when he had other expectations. He wasn’t keen at first, but I think now he is.”

  “Then why don’t you two just kiss and make up?”

  I shrugged my shoulders. “Because guy stuff isn’t always that simple.”

  “You can say that again.”

  Ellie and I sneaked past Mrs B’s eagle eyes unnoticed. Clearly she was occupied: the sound of the television was blaring from her flat. Moments later, Ellie was off, out again to her fashion party. I was happy to stay in and have some downtime on my own.

  Sebastian messaged me as I walked through the door to the flat:

  I miss you.

  Despite my conversation with Ellie, reading those three little words made me soar. Whatever I’d been thinking or feeling was instantly swept aside while my heart did a little flip-flop dance. I felt silly and giddy all at once. Why did Sebastian have that effect on me?

  I texted back:

  I miss you too. À demain, Holmes.

  À demain, Watson.

  And we left it at that. For the moment it was enough. And maybe tomorrow we could sort things out.

  I needed no alarm – I woke in a cold sweat at 6.30. Random snippets from conversations I’d had with Lavinia, Tavi and Ugo were racing through my mind, confusing and noisy all at once. It was like when my mum is driving and wants to listen to the radio but she can’t get a clear signal and a few different stations come in on the same frequency with varying degrees of clarity.

  I’d been dreaming of a hospital. Ugo, Francesca, Lavinia, Elisabetta, Alessandro and many more had all been there, queuing to visit Falco. Then, at some point Falco’s hospital had morphed into the one at home in London where my gran died. Over and over my gran said she had no regrets and a clean conscience. She felt free and happy and very, very proud of me. And she knew I would become a detective. I woke and nearly started to cry… Why was I thinking of my gran’s last moments now?

  I took a few deep breaths then grabbed my tablet from the floor beside my bed and turned it on. The best way to settle my mind was by doing some research. I had to figure out who’d poisoned Elisabetta. It wasn’t just about finding the jewels – although I knew the two were tied together somehow. But how? That’s what I needed to find out.

  Be systematic, Axelle, I told myself. Quiet your mind and start from one point. That’s easier said than done, though. So which point – where do I start?

  I plumped for the cemetery. At the moment I knew more about the stones – and it seemed there was a chance they might be at the cemetery. It was a good place to start.

  Right.

  I looked at various images of the Cimitero Monumentale. The pictures gave me no idea of the size of the cemetery – on the other hand I’d never seen a place with so many statues and mini-mausoleums.

  My theory was that Elisabetta had known exactly where the treasure was. Falco had told her – and given her the cards as visual reminders. It seemed to fit best at the moment.

  But when had he told her? It must have been in the time between his last collection and his death. Hmm…the image of a hospital popped into my mind again. Maybe it happened at the hospital? If Falco was bedridden for his last few weeks then where else could he have done it?

  Again I asked myself why, if Falco had told Elisabetta precisely where the jewels were, she had waited so long before retrieving them. Especially with her pressing financial problems?

  Argh! I still had no answers. The large digital clock next to my bed reminded me that I only had until tomorrow afternoon to solve this case – after that I’d be back in London.

  I jumped out of my bed and into the shower. The previous night I’d told Sebastian and Ellie that I was working on a plan for flushing out Elisabetta’s killer – and now I had it straight in my mind. But there was one person whose help I’d need. As I got out of the shower I sent Lucas a message:

  Hi Lucas, can I count on your help later on today? Can you be around at short notice?

  His reply was immediate:

  For you I’m definitely around. Short notice is fine. What will you need?

  I couldn’t help smiling – although Lucas was a flirt, I was sure it was his curiosity about the tarocchi that really held his interest. I wrote back:

  You’ll need to contact someone for me…

  Sounds mysterious…but no problem. I’m on call. Anything for you!

  Yeah, right! I sent him a simple thank you and told him I’d get back to him.

  I pushed any thoughts of his green eyes to the back of my mind, grabbed a quick breakfast and got dressed. I’d be on the go all day so Converse and jeans were the answer. But as I looked out of my bedroom window I also decided to take my super lightweight trench coat. Outside, a thunderous grey sky obliterated the sun and in the distance I could hear the rumble of faraway thunder. It looked set to be a stormy day.

  “Don’t worry, I’m prepared for later – I’ve got some leggings and my trainers in my bag.” Ellie was standing just outside my bedroom wearing loose pyjama-style trousers and delicate gold sandals. “But I have the feeling that even if the storm blows over, today won’t be too calm or quiet for us.”

  “I think – I hope – you’re right.”

  As Ellie and I dashed for the tramway, thunder rolled across the city in a series of loud cracks. We jumped on board just as the first heavy drops of rain began to fall. Twenty minutes later we arrived at the large palazzo where the Lei-Lei show was being held.

  I’d never walked in a men’s fashion show before and it felt weird to be surrounded by so many guy models. And the amount of preening was incredible! I watched them practising their pouts in the mirror and sucking in their cheeks, to emphasize their cheekbones.

  “Forget all their posing, what annoys me most about guy models,” Ellie said as we walked in, “is that they all think that every female they encounter is dying to go out with them.”

  I could see what she meant. They really thought they were pretty hot stuff – but their attitude was a major turn-off. Not that they noticed.

  I did keep an eye out for Alessandro – Ellie had mentioned he’d be in the show – but didn’t spot him.

  Ellie and I loaded up at the buffet table and then walked back to the seats that had been reserved for us at the backstage make-up area. As I passed the Lei-Lei mood board I noticed that in yet another uncanny coincidence – this time a fun one! – one of the major Lei-Lei runway trends for this season was for thick, black, geeky glasses – just like mine. In fact, the stylist thought I was wearing a pair of Lei-Leis and for a fleeting second I knew what it was like to feel trendy!

  Ellie immediately got to work on her phone, checking emails and organizing her life for the next few weeks. She had some major bookings coming up and would have to fly between Europe and New York twice in the coming week.

  I googled Cimitero Monumentale again and studied the images that popped up on screen. As I zoomed in and out the snippets of conversation that I’d heard in my dream began to replay through my mind…

  I don’t think she even owned a pair of sneakers…

  I begged her to forget Falco and to let sleeping dogs lie.

  I come to Milan twice a year, like clockwork…

  On his deathbed Falco was racked with guilt over bad decisions he’d made – surely hiding the jewels was one of them…

  She started talking to me about the jewel switch and how she had something important to do the following evening…

  Big deal, Elisabetta we
nt to the hospital every day when he was dying – so did I…

  She told me that I had no idea what I was talking about and that everything was fine and going according to plan…

  The stones on the most obvious parts of the dress are real, but the others are not…

  She told me that Falco’s ghost would finally be happy…

  I could feel the strands of this story somehow pulling together at the back of my mind. I was trying to make sense of it all but something, some little detail I’d missed or had yet to find, was still eluding me.

  A pang of fear gripped me as I sat in my chair. What if I’d got everything wrong? Time was ticking by and I only had until tomorrow – Saturday afternoon – to solve this case.

  I needed to catch Elisabetta’s killer.

  You will, Axelle.

  I took a deep breath and continued to look through the cemetery images on my screen. It wasn’t long, though, before my phone rang. It was my mum.

  “Axelle, love! Great news! I’m flying to Milan tonight!”

  Argh!!!

  I nearly dropped my phone.

  I felt my heart jump – and not in a good way. The last thing I needed was to have her breathing down my neck tonight!

  I didn’t know what to say. I sat, holding my phone, my mouth frozen into a grim line. Not that my silence mattered – my mum is a pro at filling in gaps.

  “You know how I love a good surprise! I’m so excited – it’s been ages since I’ve been to Milan. Anyway, the client I was going to meet later today has cancelled so I thought, great, I can fly out to see you tonight! This way we have the whole of tomorrow together now too. After all, this is the perfect opportunity for us to spend some quality time together before you leave for Tokyo on Monday.”

  Quality time! I nearly choked on the jam-filled pastry I was nibbling.

  “Your father is home to look after Halley, so no worries there, and you and I can start early tomorrow on the shopping and culture. And be sure to tell Ellie and Sebastian that they can join us for everything, all right?”

  Right, Mum, like trailing behind you is exactly what we want to do in our free time…