Free Death in Tuscany by Michele Giuttari

responsible for her death? Am I right?'
    'Yes, of course, but the medical records may contain useful information.'
    'On her progress while in hospital. But the crime happened before she got to hospital. By the time she was brought in, she'd already overdosed and was close to death, wasn't she? And she died of that overdose, you've confirmed that.'
    'True, but the results of the blood test that was done soon after she was admitted may tell us a lot of things—'
    'Isn't what Professor d'Incisa told you enough? Or can't you just ask him for those particular results?'
    'How do you know I saw him?' Ferrara asked, angrily. Now he knew where the description of the girl had come from (Professor d'Incisa had called her a 'whore' during the autopsy). D'Incisa had complained and the complaint had reached Prosecutor Gallo, Anna's boss. And Lepri had been talking to Gallo before his outburst to Giulietti. . .
    There was an amused look in Anna's bright blue eyes. 'I told you, Chief Superintendent, I've made my own inquiries. You, though, aren't telling me everything, are you?'
    'The inspector who was originally following the case had the impression the hospital neglected the patient,' he admitted, 'and my conversation with the consultant confirmed that impression.'
    'I thought as much. You're talking about malpractice, is that it? Do you think there are grounds for opening an inquiry?'
    'No,' he had to confess. As I said, these are just impressions. But perhaps if we can obtain the medical records and find out more about what led to the overdose, we may also discover—'
    Anna Giulietti sighed. 'We're talking about two different investigations, Chief Superintendent. Do you agree?' 'Yes.'
    'Of the two, the first is of no great interest to anyone, except for you and now me; the mere possibility of the second has already created a fuss.'
'I don't understand.'
    'So you still have no idea why the Commissioner is getting so upset?'
'Because I went to the Nuovo?'
'Doesn't matter. But who's in the hospital?'
'Professor d'Incisa?'
    'Yes, but not just him. Other consultants, professors, surgeons . . . Doctors, Ferrara.' 'So?'
    'Come on, don't play the innocent. Do I have to spell it out for you?'
The puzzlement on Ferrara's face was eloquent enough.
    'Come on now! What world do you live in, Chief Superintendent? Freemasons! Don't tell me you don't know that in the medical profession, especially here in Florence, it's almost impossible to get anywhere in your career unless you're a member of some lodge or other, official or not!'
    It might have been an exaggeration, but there was a lot of truth in it. Everyone knew that many hospital doctors were Freemasons. And that the bonds of brotherhood between them were so strong that they would help each other in secret to protect the reputation of a Mason in trouble with the authorities.
    Anna Giulietti's observation moved the investigation into thorny territory. For good or ill, Freemasonry was a powerful institution, which had survived periodic persecutions and demonstrated a resilience and a tenacity capable of defying any government, since governments, by definition, were transitory. An ambiguous institution, but, as far as anyone knew, dangerous only when it deviated from the norm. Officially, it was a perfectly respectable organisation, which, over the course of its long history, had counted a large number of important figures from the political, military, artistic and cultural worlds among its members: Garibaldi, Washington, Lafayette, Beethoven, to name but a few.
His mind was working fast. 'Do you mean Lepri . . .?'
    'Ferrara, are you still playing the innocent? I don't know if the Commissioner is a Mason or not, it doesn't really matter. All it takes is for those who count in medical circles to exert pressure, and for the pressure to get to Lepri, Gallo, whoever, whether they're part of the Brotherhood or not.'
'And to you, too?'
    She smiled enigmatically. 'Does that matter?' she asked. As I see it,