‘Mr Dulac, you didn’t request this discussion purely to find this out, surely?’
‘Not exactly. Would you go through again, the sequence of events—’
‘Mr Dulac,’ interrupted the cardinal, ‘am I a suspect in this matter?’
Dulac waited an instant before answering, trying to regain the tempo of the questioning. It wasn’t the first time a VIP had tried to embarrass him by cutting to the chase. ‘Does it make any difference if I say no?’
‘I suppose not,’ said Signorelli, his air haughty again as he inserted both thumbs between the part of the fascia around his waist and his bulging black cassock.
‘Glad we understand each other, your Eminence. So when did you enter the Pope’s apartment?’
‘I think around quarter to three. Cardinal Legnano phoned me.’
‘Did you see anything unusual in or outside the apartments last night?’
‘Not really, no.’
‘And before?’
‘Mr Dulac, you don’t have to pry from me the slightest anomaly or unusual behavior of anything or anyone. I’m as deeply concerned about this as you are, and have been racking my brain to see what and how this happened. Unfortunately, I’ve come up as empty-handed as you seem to be.’
Swallowing the insult, Dulac smiled, his eyes still locked onto the cardinal. Dulac leaned forward, shoulders hunched, hands clasped on the desk. ‘Your Eminence, we both realize how delicate this is, but I’ve learned in my job that the mind plays tricks on the best of us. Something I might ask or say might trigger some seemingly insignificant thought or comment, which I might find vital. I know this is embarrassing, but it is necessary.’
The cardinal sat silent, arms crossed, giving Dulac that supercilious smile of his again. Dulac changed gears and went for the jugular. ‘Did you have access to the Pope’s drinking water last night?’
The prelate looked away, paused then said, ‘I suppose I did.’
‘When?’
‘Mr Dulac, if you are insinuating that I put the drugs in the glass, I would first have to know when the water would be poured in order to avoid detection, wouldn’t I?’
‘Which you didn’t?’
‘No. My access would be limited to the time when Sister Vincenza poured it, and the Pope drank it. I would have either had to go to Sister Vincenza’s room before she poured it, in which case she would’ve seen the drugs in the glass, or between the time she delivered it and the Pope opened the doors to his apartment and took the trolley.’
Dulac saw instantly where the Cardinal was leading him. ‘And the Swiss Guards would’ve seen you.’
‘Go to the head of the class, Mr Dulac.’
‘Unless they weren’t there. Did you order aspirin for His Holiness last night?’
‘As a matter of fact, I did. He said he felt stressed, so I spoke to Sister Vincenza. But you already know that since you interviewed her.’
‘I’m told she rarely locks her room. So anyone on that floor could have had access and substituted the dobutamine and arbutamine for the aspirin.’
‘I suppose.’
‘Including you?’
‘I find your question insulting, inspector. I won’t even consider answering it.’
‘You already have, your Eminence. Thank you.’
Inside the lower echelons of the Vatican’s administration, a vague, strained unease could be felt, but not identified. Following the Curia members’ meeting with the policemen, Sforza had returned dejectedly to his office. Unable to resolve the battle within his conscience between the divulgation and the keeping secret of the kidnapping, he’d requested another meeting with the cardinals in Legnano’s office.
An hour later, Sforza entered the ornately decorated room, only to find the cardinals already waiting, an air of impatience sketched on their faces.
‘Where is Cardinal Signorelli?’ asked Sforza.
‘With Inspector Dulac,’ answered Legnano from behind his desk. ‘He’ll join us shortly.’
‘I’ll get right to the point, your Eminences. I think we are
‘Not exactly. Would you go through again, the sequence of events—’
‘Mr Dulac,’ interrupted the cardinal, ‘am I a suspect in this matter?’
Dulac waited an instant before answering, trying to regain the tempo of the questioning. It wasn’t the first time a VIP had tried to embarrass him by cutting to the chase. ‘Does it make any difference if I say no?’
‘I suppose not,’ said Signorelli, his air haughty again as he inserted both thumbs between the part of the fascia around his waist and his bulging black cassock.
‘Glad we understand each other, your Eminence. So when did you enter the Pope’s apartment?’
‘I think around quarter to three. Cardinal Legnano phoned me.’
‘Did you see anything unusual in or outside the apartments last night?’
‘Not really, no.’
‘And before?’
‘Mr Dulac, you don’t have to pry from me the slightest anomaly or unusual behavior of anything or anyone. I’m as deeply concerned about this as you are, and have been racking my brain to see what and how this happened. Unfortunately, I’ve come up as empty-handed as you seem to be.’
Swallowing the insult, Dulac smiled, his eyes still locked onto the cardinal. Dulac leaned forward, shoulders hunched, hands clasped on the desk. ‘Your Eminence, we both realize how delicate this is, but I’ve learned in my job that the mind plays tricks on the best of us. Something I might ask or say might trigger some seemingly insignificant thought or comment, which I might find vital. I know this is embarrassing, but it is necessary.’
The cardinal sat silent, arms crossed, giving Dulac that supercilious smile of his again. Dulac changed gears and went for the jugular. ‘Did you have access to the Pope’s drinking water last night?’
The prelate looked away, paused then said, ‘I suppose I did.’
‘When?’
‘Mr Dulac, if you are insinuating that I put the drugs in the glass, I would first have to know when the water would be poured in order to avoid detection, wouldn’t I?’
‘Which you didn’t?’
‘No. My access would be limited to the time when Sister Vincenza poured it, and the Pope drank it. I would have either had to go to Sister Vincenza’s room before she poured it, in which case she would’ve seen the drugs in the glass, or between the time she delivered it and the Pope opened the doors to his apartment and took the trolley.’
Dulac saw instantly where the Cardinal was leading him. ‘And the Swiss Guards would’ve seen you.’
‘Go to the head of the class, Mr Dulac.’
‘Unless they weren’t there. Did you order aspirin for His Holiness last night?’
‘As a matter of fact, I did. He said he felt stressed, so I spoke to Sister Vincenza. But you already know that since you interviewed her.’
‘I’m told she rarely locks her room. So anyone on that floor could have had access and substituted the dobutamine and arbutamine for the aspirin.’
‘I suppose.’
‘Including you?’
‘I find your question insulting, inspector. I won’t even consider answering it.’
‘You already have, your Eminence. Thank you.’
Inside the lower echelons of the Vatican’s administration, a vague, strained unease could be felt, but not identified. Following the Curia members’ meeting with the policemen, Sforza had returned dejectedly to his office. Unable to resolve the battle within his conscience between the divulgation and the keeping secret of the kidnapping, he’d requested another meeting with the cardinals in Legnano’s office.
An hour later, Sforza entered the ornately decorated room, only to find the cardinals already waiting, an air of impatience sketched on their faces.
‘Where is Cardinal Signorelli?’ asked Sforza.
‘With Inspector Dulac,’ answered Legnano from behind his desk. ‘He’ll join us shortly.’
‘I’ll get right to the point, your Eminences. I think we are
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