Page 34 of Booked for Theft

Would our parents survive? “This sounds like a bad idea, Bradley.”

“We’ll have a backup roast in the refrigerator, and we’ll make your mother make it for us after we fail at our pasta and sauce meal.”

Somehow, I kept from chortling over his plan, which had a high probability of working. “Or we could buy the roast, summon our parents, and threaten to make them homemade pasta and sauce. We can terrify all four of them in one go. And at least one will vote to take the risk of eating our cooking. That’s my mother, for the record. Yours will get mad because she has diabetes and shouldn’t have pasta, but she’ll want it, eat it anyway, and then get in trouble. Our fathers will vote to have the roast, as they value their lives. Our mothers will override them, and we’ll all be stuck with our meal. And my mother will start making the roast, understanding we will need sustenance.”

“And that is when we shock them all with our ability to make good Italian food.”

“Where is this Italian diplomat? I’m feeling brave and bold tonight.”

Bradley pointed at a woman who was engaging with President Castillo in a conversation. As the pair was out of their seats and people mingled, I assumed a security guard would stop me if I screwed things up royally. I kissed Bradley’s cheek before saying, “Wish me luck, I’m going in.”

“Operation: Pasta is a go,” he replied, and he grinned at me. “Good luck. I will sit here, where I will be surely ambushed by someone the instant they realize you left me unattended.”

“That’s your fault for being the most handsome man in the room.” Before he had a chance to reply, I angled for the Italian diplomat.

Before I had to worry about how to edge in on the conversation, President Castillo waved me over. “Janette, Ambassador Greco was just mentioning her book collection, and I was about to recommend she speak to you.”

I wasn’t sure which one of us was more relieved: her or me. I held out my hand. “It’s an absolute pleasure to meet a fellow book lover, Ambassador.”

“Ginevra.” She smiled and shook with me. “I just recently came across an original Encyclopedia Britannica set. I just had them restored, and it’s fascinating seeing how science has changed since they were written. It’s also interesting being able to identify the oddities that we now know were magic but hadn’t been identified as such. President Castillo mentioned that you’re a librarian?”

“I am.” Aware Italy had helped Senator Thaddens get his videos recorded, I was determined to cultivate a friendship with the Ambassador come hell or high water. “I would love to visit Italy one day. The Roman Empire and its architecture interest me.”

Ginevra’s expression brightened. “Do you have a favorite landmark?”

“Not yet, but my first plan, after reviewing all of them, is to pick one. I’m quite interested in the Pantheon. Is it true that Emperor Hadrian held significant responsibility for its construction?” I dug around in my ancient history and wondered if a tidbit I’d learned was accurate. “It was built on top of the ruins of a previous building, wasn’t it?”

“Yes. Agrippa’s Pantheon burned, and Hadrian had the current one built in its place. Some parts of Agrippa’s Pantheon remain, including the inscription for the temple, which was preserved during the rebuild. How delightful. Most don’t bother learning about such ancient history.”

President Castillo fled, returning to his table and taking shelter with his wife.

The ambassador muttered something in Italian before shaking her head.

“I take it he’s not interested in history.”

“He really isn’t.” The woman reached into her purse, dug out a business card, and offered it to me. “If you like the Roman Empire, there is a great set of modern texts that cover its rise and fall. I’d love to send you a copy, and I can include some notes on my favorite areas of study.”

I took the card and grinned at her. “I’d love that. If you have a moment, I’ll introduce you to my fiancé. He has business cards.”

“Of course. That’s ideal. Also, I wanted to thank you for making certain that Senator Thaddens was treated with care and respect after his death. I had the pleasure of meeting with him when he came to Italy recently, and we spent many an hour talking. Organ donation was one of his priorities. Is it true there was nothing that could be done for him?”

I nodded. “He had cancer engulfing his heart, which restricted his heartbeat and ultimately led to his heart attack and death. There was also cancer in his heart, which limited blood flow.”

She relaxed, and after she sighed, she nodded. “I wasn’t even aware we could suffer from heart cancer.”

“I wasn’t really, either. I’ll be making a point of checking now that I know what to look for. I can’t detect it as easily as I can something like diabetes, though. It doesn’t really influence the blood, so I have to look for it specifically.”

“Yes, President Castillo had made a mention you’d said that. He was taken aback over how many restrictions you have even with your aptitude.”

“If it was a cancer of the blood, I would have been able to detect it. I can purge the cancerous cells quite easily. It’s a mix of exsanguination and mending, apparently. The mending ability got lost in the noise, I guess.”

“I can understand how that might happen.” The ambassador accompanied me back to our table and smiled at Bradley. “You’re an extraordinarily lucky man, Mr. Hampton.”

Bradley, who’d been gifted a few moments of peace from the political sharks, returned her smile. “I am. Thank you, Ambassador Greco. Has Janette asked you about pasta and sauce yet?”

“No, she hasn’t.”

“We would like to see if we can learn how to make noodles and a basic sauce without killing our family members, as we are both rather inept at cooking. We figured if an Italian couldn’t point us in the right direction, there truly is no hope for either of us.”