Page 70 of Whispers of Redemption

CHAPTER 28

Cassie and Wade dropped their feet to the floor and exchanged another look. Then they both got up and walked down the center aisle between the desks, straight into Chief Roland’s office. The chief glanced curiously at the fluffy white dog trailing in their wake but said nothing as he closed the door behind the three of them.

Cassie noted how the interior of the chief’s office contrasted with the rest of the precinct furnishings. Plush blue carpeting covered the floor instead of the antiseptic gray tile of the main room and lobby. Two windows at the back of the office let in the glowing light of the early evening sun. Centered between the windows was a filled walnut bookshelf that matched the desk in front of it. The chief moved his large bulk behind the desk and indicated two chairs across from him with a small wave. Wade and Cassie each sat in one, and Angel curled up at Cassie’s feet. Zack already lounged casually on the front corner of the chief’s desk, facing them, one leg on the floor and the other dangling.

The painting, Madonna and Child with San Giovannino, had been removed from its crate and now stood leaning against the closed blinds of one window wall adjacent to the chief’s desk.

Chief Roland sat back down in his chair. His thinning dark hair was slicked back with gel and his brown eyes were alert as they moved between the two of them. He leaned forward, fingers clasped in front of him as he cleared his throat and said, “I believe you both know Zack Barrett.” He indicated Zack with a tilt of his head.

Cassie and Wade both nodded.

Chief Roland cleared his throat again. “Well, what you may not know,” he said, “is that he’s a federal agent.”

“A federal agent?” Cassie repeated, feeling confused.

“Yes, Cassie,” Zack spoke up. “I work in conjunction with the FBI Art Crime Team.”

“Oh,” Cassie said, still feeling confused. “But you work for Olga, too?”

“Sort of.” He gave a tight smile. “I’m actually working undercover. My team is running a sting operation and we’ve been working to bust one of the country’s largest art smuggling rings.”

“Wow,” Cassie said. “Does Olga know?”

Zack and Chief Roland exchanged glances. “No,” Zack said. “Actually...Olga is a key member of that ring.”

“What?!” Cassie and Wade exclaimed together.

“But she’s such a sweet old lady!” Cassie said. Her head was spinning as she grappled with the reality of what he’d just said.

Zack looked grim. “Yes, but we have evidence that this sweet old lady has been involved in a number of art crimes. My team investigated her many years ago, before I joined them, when they believed she was peddling looted goods. But they could never prove it, and then she seemed to go straight. Now, however, we’ve got evidence that she’s dealing with stolen art.”

“I don’t get it,” Cassie said. “What’s the difference between looted and stolen art?”

Zack smiled. “The difference is more a matter of semantics. Looting typically refers to art and cultural relics that have been smuggled from their countries of origin, usually during times of conflict or war. The laws around looting used to be much more ambiguous, so looting rings could make a lot of money because they could often get the full value when selling a particular piece of art,” Zack explained. “When we talk about stolen goods, we’re referring to artwork that is stolen from a museum or an individual. With stolen goods, art thieves only get a small fraction of what a piece of art is worth because it’s difficult to move it when everyone knows it’s stolen.”

“Makes sense,” Cassie said.

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