Italian Masquerade

Chapter 5: Project Enlightenment

"Surely they sell pickles in Florence," Peter grumbled, taking another glug of coffee.

"Of course they do," El said soothingly. "By the time we've finished breakfast, the shops should be open. Sara and I will pick up all the necessary ingredients."

She was glad they could joke about the famous Burke pickle juice remedy for hangovers. Given the ordeal they'd experienced, both men were in surprisingly good shape. They'd suffered some bruises and scrapes from the plunge down the hillside, but nothing that required a hospital stay. It could have easily been so much worse.

For once, she hadn't been by herself, stressing about what her husband had gotten into. Sara was with her and they'd forged a closer bond through mutual comforting as they waited for the police to go to the scene of the accident. When the men hadn't shown up at six o'clock as they'd promised, El only waited a half hour before calling Claudia. It had been a nerve-wracking ordeal till they heard from Neal.

She and Sara met the men at the hospital where they were both given exams. Claudia was present to take their statements. The euphoria provided by the grappa quickly wore off. Both men were cold, bruised, and grumpy. Neal's head injury, although painful, was minor. After a CT scan, he was released with the standard cautionary page of symptoms to watch out for. Sara pounced on the list in full Nurse-Nightingale mode. Judging by the dark circles under her eyes in the morning, she'd probably monitored him throughout the night.

It was a great feeling to know that El now had someone with whom she could share nursemaid responsibilities. Peter was always cranky after drinking too much. Even the enticing breakfast buffet hadn't done much to improve his mood.

Neal, on the other hand, appeared to be in a blissful glow as Sara waited on him, tempting him with Italian pastries.

"I hope I'm not interrupting," a familiar voice said. El turned to smile a greeting at Claudia. Up to yesterday, she hadn't met her. Now she was a reassuring friend.

Neal got up and greeted her with quick kisses on the cheek. El admired how adept he was. He'd been wise to advise Peter not to attempt the Italian greeting.

"Please join us for breakfast," he said, signaling to the waiter to bring over coffee while Peter retrieved another chair.

"Thank you," she said. "I've already eaten but I never say no to coffee. I'm leaving in a couple of hours and wanted to give you an update before I go." She paused while the waiter served her. "You both look well. I hope that's not simply a façade."

"We've both recovered thanks to your efficiency," Peter said. "The police arrived by the time Neal started to complain of the cold."

"Peter was too wasted on grappa to notice the frigid temperatures," Neal added. "The Mafia didn't realize they were being kind."

Claudia smiled at their banter. "We were able to locate the men who captured you based on your excellent descriptions. Although they haven't acknowledged any connection to Nardone, they have prior arrests and are suspected members of the Mafia. The attack was more sophisticated than you might have imagined. The car had been rented to Neal Caffrey."

Sara looked at Neal, dismay in her eyes. "They know your real name?"

"It's not a surprise," he said, giving her a sympathetic wince. "We suspected that Rolf Mansfeld may have bragged about the new person on his crew while keeping his own identity a secret. That stopover in Parma was planned with the assumption I was being tracked."

"I've informed Nardone that he will be viewed as an accomplice in any attempts to harm you and Peter," Claudia said. "He assured me that he knew nothing about the action. Nardone is smart. Now that he's on notice, I don't believe any further attempt will be made, but we would be glad to provide you with protection during the remainder of your stay."