Dolphin Hall, Oxford, England; Friday afternoon
Parker had finished up her Finals with one last burst of creativity that might net her another place on the Dean's List this semester; too soon to tell, or care, yet. She planned on being drunk for the next 24 hours, screw her ulcer. She deserved it.
But first, a call to Roma, and a policeman of her acquaintance from two years before. "Paulo, it's Parker. How are you, cara?"
"Parker! It's been too long, bella. I'm well, very well, but you must visit more often! We haven't had a good car crash near the Plaza since you left."
"You're flattering me. I like it." Parker laughed into the phone and stretched out, smiling up at the ceiling. "You could come visit me, you know."
"In cold and icy England? Brrrr." Paulo snickered, and then coaxed, "What can I do to convince you to come back to the city that loves you?"
An evil smile played over Parker's face. "You can tell me some things I want to know, bella."
"Ah! And I assume, these are confidential things? Hmm? Things to do with my job? Ah, for shame, she only wants me for my information," Paulo lamented.
"Not. Just. That." Parker smirked. "I'm on break from school now for the next month. I could visit. If I had reason to."
"Within reason..."
"Within reason." Parker's voice became more business-like. "The accident, six weeks ago. The jaguars at the zoo. Without giving away anything that would get you into trouble-- do you know, did they decide if that was an accident?"
A long pause. "It is interesting you should ask that, Parker. It looked like an accident. It must have been an accident. The catch on a gate was broken, but... that might have been time, nothing more." Giulio sighed, sounding troubled. "But the gentleman closest to the maulings, he was under suspicion, you understand? We had asked him to come in before, twice. To answer questions about the disappearance of his secretary."
Well, shit.
"He was a suspect in her disappearance?" she asked carefully. "Or merely in possession of information he did not share?"
"I can not confirm anything," Paulo said. "However. When the gentleman left Roma, his employers informed us that he would not be returning for several years. If ever. We did not have enough reason to place a hold on his passport. Several of my superiors were most agitated. Others... seemed sanguine. Too sanguine, perhaps."
Great. The Centre had pulled off another one of its bribes and rearrangings of reality. "The girl that disappeared, what was her name? Was she local?"
"No, and that is why the case was not pursued more stringently. A Mei Lin, American. Her roommate reported her missing the second week of January. Mr. Lyle's employers merely stated that the girl put in her notice the day she disappeared." Paulo sounded resigned. "We would have liked further details. It's all... suggestive, you see. Nothing to be proven. Nothing to be disproven. But. It paints a picture, no?"
"Yes." An employee goes missing; who knows why. Maybe she knew too much about something he was up to. Lyle needs to get out of Rome, so arranges an 'accident' for the colleagues that were supposed to be transferred, making an opening for him to go in their place. And then he's out of the country, and doesn't have to answer any more rude, inconvenient questions. "Paulo, bellisimo, what are you doing two weeks from now? Or rather, is there anything to prevent you from joining me in Corsica?"
"Nothing! Nothing at all! You are quite certain? I would not wish to be merely a recipient of gratitude...."
Parker snickered, then told him exactly what he could expect, should he join her at the townhouse she was going to rent.
"..." A pause, then, "I must remember to phone you more often, Parker. Or less. Now I shall think of this all day, when I should be working. The citizens of Roma have a grave complaint against you this day for distracting one of the carabinieri so well."
"Then I'll let you go now, so you can recover as soon as possible," Parker crooned. "Ciao, bella."
She hung up the phone, then got up and broke out that bottle of pepper vodka. Serious thinking needed to deal with this crap.
After she was done drinking.
[ooc: Establishy, but open for phone calls or e-mails, as Parker is now on Spring Break 'til the middle of April. Yay!]
But first, a call to Roma, and a policeman of her acquaintance from two years before. "Paulo, it's Parker. How are you, cara?"
"Parker! It's been too long, bella. I'm well, very well, but you must visit more often! We haven't had a good car crash near the Plaza since you left."
"You're flattering me. I like it." Parker laughed into the phone and stretched out, smiling up at the ceiling. "You could come visit me, you know."
"In cold and icy England? Brrrr." Paulo snickered, and then coaxed, "What can I do to convince you to come back to the city that loves you?"
An evil smile played over Parker's face. "You can tell me some things I want to know, bella."
"Ah! And I assume, these are confidential things? Hmm? Things to do with my job? Ah, for shame, she only wants me for my information," Paulo lamented.
"Not. Just. That." Parker smirked. "I'm on break from school now for the next month. I could visit. If I had reason to."
"Within reason..."
"Within reason." Parker's voice became more business-like. "The accident, six weeks ago. The jaguars at the zoo. Without giving away anything that would get you into trouble-- do you know, did they decide if that was an accident?"
A long pause. "It is interesting you should ask that, Parker. It looked like an accident. It must have been an accident. The catch on a gate was broken, but... that might have been time, nothing more." Giulio sighed, sounding troubled. "But the gentleman closest to the maulings, he was under suspicion, you understand? We had asked him to come in before, twice. To answer questions about the disappearance of his secretary."
Well, shit.
"He was a suspect in her disappearance?" she asked carefully. "Or merely in possession of information he did not share?"
"I can not confirm anything," Paulo said. "However. When the gentleman left Roma, his employers informed us that he would not be returning for several years. If ever. We did not have enough reason to place a hold on his passport. Several of my superiors were most agitated. Others... seemed sanguine. Too sanguine, perhaps."
Great. The Centre had pulled off another one of its bribes and rearrangings of reality. "The girl that disappeared, what was her name? Was she local?"
"No, and that is why the case was not pursued more stringently. A Mei Lin, American. Her roommate reported her missing the second week of January. Mr. Lyle's employers merely stated that the girl put in her notice the day she disappeared." Paulo sounded resigned. "We would have liked further details. It's all... suggestive, you see. Nothing to be proven. Nothing to be disproven. But. It paints a picture, no?"
"Yes." An employee goes missing; who knows why. Maybe she knew too much about something he was up to. Lyle needs to get out of Rome, so arranges an 'accident' for the colleagues that were supposed to be transferred, making an opening for him to go in their place. And then he's out of the country, and doesn't have to answer any more rude, inconvenient questions. "Paulo, bellisimo, what are you doing two weeks from now? Or rather, is there anything to prevent you from joining me in Corsica?"
"Nothing! Nothing at all! You are quite certain? I would not wish to be merely a recipient of gratitude...."
Parker snickered, then told him exactly what he could expect, should he join her at the townhouse she was going to rent.
"..." A pause, then, "I must remember to phone you more often, Parker. Or less. Now I shall think of this all day, when I should be working. The citizens of Roma have a grave complaint against you this day for distracting one of the carabinieri so well."
"Then I'll let you go now, so you can recover as soon as possible," Parker crooned. "Ciao, bella."
She hung up the phone, then got up and broke out that bottle of pepper vodka. Serious thinking needed to deal with this crap.
After she was done drinking.
[ooc: Establishy, but open for phone calls or e-mails, as Parker is now on Spring Break 'til the middle of April. Yay!]