The Raven (The Florentine 1)

Instead, she put on some music and began to sketch a stranger’s face.

When she was finished, Raven poured herself a second glass of wine, absolutely ignoring her discarded dishes. This was anomalous, since she normally washed the dishes after every meal. On this evening, she felt the need for fortitude rather than cleanliness and so she sipped her wine and stared at the sketch once again.

The face was handsome and symmetrical, with high cheekbones. Its almost feminine beauty was counterbalanced by the masculine jaw and brows. Apart from a slight resemblance to photographs of a young Sting, the man in the portrait was a stranger to her. She didn’t know where his image came from or why she’d felt compelled to draw him.

Sometimes the Muses spoke in foreign tongues and she was ignorant of their meaning.

She was modestly pleased with the sketch, even though she knew there was something missing. On a whim, she signed and dated it and placed it on top of her dresser, at the foot of her bed.

Then, as if one of the Muses were whispering in her ear, she opened her laptop, taking note that it was now past eleven, and Googled the name William York.

She found several entries, one of which was to a story about a ten-year-old who’d murdered a little girl. Raven shuddered and moved past that link.

She skimmed through several pages of results, but nothing caught her attention. Certainly, if there were a William York living in Florence, he wasn’t much of a public figure. There weren’t any entries on him at all.

Raven hastily finished her second glass of wine, recalling what she’d overheard Professor Emerson say to Dottor Vitali. He’d described William York as a recluse who’d donated money to help restore the Palazzo Medici Riccardi.

When Raven clicked on the website for the palazzo, she found that the major restorations had been done long ago. There were restorations in 1874 when the building was taken over by the province. There were additional restorations from 1911 to 1929. The most recent modifications to the property began in 1992.

It was unlikely if not impossible that William York financed the restorations before 1929. That meant he had to be one of the patrons of the 1992 restoration. Dottor Vitali was already working at the Uffizi by then. Certainly he knew everyone of importance in the city. Since he didn’t recognize the name, Professor Emerson must have been mistaken.

But he’d sounded so sure. And he’d been indignant when Vitali claimed not to know who he was talking about.

Stranger still, the professor had identified William York as a patron of the Uffizi. Raven was certain that his name hadn’t appeared on the list Ispettor Batelli had shown her earlier that day.

The palazzo itself wasn’t far. It was mere steps from the Duomo on Via Cavour. She could walk to the building, look around, and be back in bed in an hour and a half. Of course, it would be preferable to do so during the day or perhaps after work, but she’d draw attention to herself by visiting the palazzo during the day. And there was the matter of her work schedule.

It was possible, she thought, as she put on a hooded sweatshirt, that she could speak with a security guard about the building’s patrons, since the guard would likely be unoccupied and perhaps bored at this late hour. The security guards at the Uffizi were a wealth of information and Raven had always found them to be extremely forthcoming, if one took the time to speak with them.

Perhaps the second glass of wine had made her bold. Perhaps it was simply her suspicion that she wouldn’t be able to sleep without expending some energy. But whatever the true reason, she exited her apartment with her knapsack, hoping she would uncover something that would put her back into the good graces of Dottor Vitali.

Despite the late hour, the streets were alive with pedestrians and people visiting with one another. Raven passed a few young families on the piazza, wheeling sleeping children in strollers. She always found it surprising that Florentine parents were so lax with bedtimes.

When she approached the bridge, she took a deep breath and began to run. As she had that morning, she felt joy in every step, her body bursting with happiness.

She was so captivated by her experience she didn’t notice the man who followed her at a distance on a black Vespa. He was dressed in black and helmeted.

She jogged to the Duomo, pausing to look up at the red-tiled dome. She could not have known this, but the Prince, who spent almost every sunset high atop the edifice, had not done so that evening. Instead, he’d spent hours on other, more important pursuits.

Not surprisingly, the palazzo was closed when she reached its double doors. Looking to the upper floors of the building, she saw light emanating from the windows. Someone was working, even at this late hour.

On a whim, she turned on Via de’ Gori, following the exterior wall of the palazzo, and made a right on Via de’ Ginori. Here she found the back entrance, its heavy wooden doors located inside an elaborate stone arch. Enormous black iron rings flanked the doors and Raven guessed they’d been used to tether horses at one time.

At the right of the arch, set into the palazzo wall, was a small white box. Raven recognized it as part of a security system. Certainly whoever guarded the palazzo at night would be monitoring the door. It would only take a moment to ask him or her a few questions.

She pressed the call button and waited.

And waited.

She waited for what seemed like an age, watching pedestrians and the occasional car pass. She did not see the black Vespa at the corner, or the driver, who was pretending to check his cell phone. She did not see the mysterious figure that looked down on her from the rooftop of the building opposite.

With a sigh, she turned to leave, but static emerged from the speaker and she heard a voice.

“State your business.”

She leaned forward, closer to the speaker. “Good evening.”

“State your business,” the man repeated, his tone bland and indifferent.

“I’m sorry to bother you,” she stammered, wondering what she should say. “I should have visited during the day, but I was delayed. I’m looking for—um—Signor William York. Can you tell me how I can contact him?”

Raven waited for a response, regretting the impulse to use the recluse’s name. But it was far too late for discretion.

Internally, she made an attempt to formulate an explanation for why she wanted to see William York. But the voice didn’t ask her that question.

In fact, the voice asked her nothing at all. There was a long, pregnant silence.

“Just a moment.”

Raven was shocked. She’d barely hoped to wheedle a little background information from one of the security guards. She hadn’t expected them to recognize the name of William York, let alone to provide her with contact information. Could it be that Professor Emerson was correct and that William York was a patron of the palazzo?

And if Emerson had learned of William York from Vitali, why was Vitali denying it?

Raven grew very nervous. If there were such a person as William York and he’d taken care to protect his identity, how would he feel about her showing up and asking about him? What if he was connected with the robbery at the Uffizi?

She took a few careful steps backward, looking to see if anyone suspicious was nearby. For the moment, at least, she appeared to be alone.

She decided it would be safer if she left and left quickly. As she moved, she caught sight of a small black camera, located at the top of the stone arch and pointing in her direction.

Great. Now they know what I look like.

Static emerged from the speaker again and Raven started.

“There’s no one here by that name. Leave now.” Someone else was speaking. His voice was more melodic, it was true, but it was also hostile.

She moved in the direction of the speaker. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to bother you and—”

Raven was swiftly interrupted. “It’s time for you to leave.”

She didn’t need to be asked twice. She began running in the

direction of the Duomo, as fast as her legs could carry her. A black Vespa took off from where it had been idling around the corner, driving in the opposite direction.

Raven was too anxious to notice the man and his machine, or the fact that, by the time she passed the Duomo, he was following her.

Of course, she didn’t realize she’d captured the attention of the decidedly nonhuman being standing on top of the building across the street as well.

Chapter Nine

By the time Raven returned to her building, her heart was beating furiously. Something momentous had occurred, she was sure of it, and she was fearful of the consequences.

She opened the door to her apartment and pressed the light switch on the wall.

Nothing happened.

Cursing, she closed the door behind her and blindly locked it, dropping her knapsack to the floor. She groped along the wall to the bathroom, reaching in to press the other light switch.

Nothing happened.

Muttering to herself about what she was going to say to the landlord the next time she saw him, she felt her way to the bedroom. She was just about to step through the doorway when she stumbled over something; something that felt suspiciously like a pair of feet. She flailed as she fell but before she hit the floor, a pair of strong arms came around her waist, catching her.

As soon as the intruder made contact with her body, she screamed and pulled away, falling on her backside. In the dim light that shone from outside the bedroom windows, she could almost see the outline of a figure lurking in the doorway. She scrambled backward like a crab, heading toward the only exit.

She felt the figure speed past her. Her hands collided with his feet as she approached the apartment door.

“If you scream again, I’ll silence you.” An angry voice, soft as silk, sliced through the darkness.

“What do you want?” Raven attempted to keep her voice steady. But she failed.

“I want you to answer some questions. Sit here.”

Raven heard a chair scrape across the floor and felt one of its legs press against her hip.

She could try to crawl to her knapsack and retrieve her cell phone. The chance of success seemed remote. He’d probably grab her.

Her heart stuttered. “Did you shut off the electricity?”

“Don’t give me a reason to hurt you.” He thumped the chair on the floor, as if for emphasis.

She startled.

She could scream for help but her closest neighbor, Lidia, was hard of hearing and probably asleep. There was usually so much noise emanating from the Vespa traffic in and around the piazza, she wasn’t sure her cries would be heard by anyone else.

“I am waiting,” he growled.

Whoever the man was, he sounded young, but his fluid Italian was decidedly old-fashioned.

She moved slowly, placing a tentative hand on the chair and pulling herself up. She slid onto the seat.

“I don’t have any money.”

“A better question is whether you have any sense.” He moved behind her.

She twisted, following the sound of his voice. “Who are you? What do you want?”

“I’m asking the questions. What were you doing at the Palazzo Riccardi?”

Raven’s stomach dropped. Perhaps he’d followed her or perhaps he’d seen her at the palazzo. In either case he must be fleet of foot or he’d driven in order to arrive before her.

She wondered why he was hiding his appearance.

“You’ve been a stupid, stupid girl. Don’t magnify your stupidity by trying my patience.” His tone grew menacing.

She drew a deep breath, forcing the tension out of her voice. “It was a mistake. I shouldn’t have gone there.”

“What were you looking for?”