Angelina Bonaparte Mysteries Box Set Nanci Rathbun (i love reading books txt) 📖

He laughed. “It’ll hit the noon news. It was a lot bigger than we thought. Here’s the short version. In the late 1980s, when it seemed obvious that Yugoslavia was going to break up, Petrovitch decided to take advantage of the coming turmoil and ethnic factionalism. He recruited a bunch of Serbian families with Muslim ties, promising that he’d get them out if war broke out. In return, they were to watch for opportunities to loot both Serbian and Bosnian national treasures, like the book from the attic, and any personal items worth money, like the jewels and wedding clothes. If they didn’t agree, he not-so-subtly wondered out loud what would happen if their Serbian neighbors found out they had Muslim associations. We got that from two informants, and, no, Zupan wasn’t one of them. He refused to speak at all.

“By the time the Bosnian War was well underway, Petrovitch was already a U.S. citizen. As each family reached its quota of booty, or if things got hot enough that they might be caught, he arranged for them to emigrate and promised them sponsors and jobs. They didn’t all come to the States. Some of them went to Germany or places in the Caribbean. A couple even ended up in Singapore and Australia.”

“His connections were that good?” I asked.

“Yeah. He pretty much ran the organization from Milwaukee and Glenview. We confirmed that the Oliver Wendell Peterson identity was his. We’re not sure if there are others.

“Unknown to Adriana, her maternal grandmother was a Muslim who converted when she married the grandfather. Ditto with Dragana Zupan, whose parents were Muslim. We think Josif and Adriana’s father agreed to the scheme so their wives wouldn’t be in danger from Serbian fanatics.

“Dragana met the Johnsons through the law practice. We don’t know the whole story—and we probably never will unless Petrovitch opens up—but we think that she and Mrs. Johnson were in the dark until recently. When they found out how Petrovitch forced their husbands into illegal trafficking in stolen artifacts and money, they objected. We also think Petrovitch either hired or extorted someone from among those he recruited in Bosnia to kill them.

“Two of the men he extorted into working for him were more than happy to sing, in exchange for immunity or diminished charges. Colonel Lewis and the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia used them to track the money and some of the stolen artifacts. U.S. immigration charged Petrovitch with failing to disclose the crimes on his application for residency and citizenship, and the Tribunal issued a request for extradition today. He’ll probably be turned over to the war crimes court in weeks. He’ll do hard time, Angie.”

I sighed. “I guess that’s better than getting away with it. And, in the larger scheme of things, war crimes trump murder. But it burns me to think of what he did to those families. Speaking of which, what happens to Adriana and her parents’ bequest?”

“Not sure. All the accounts are frozen, pending investigation by the ICTY. It’ll probably be months, if not years, before the money trail is tracked and the original owners get their property—or recompense for property that can’t be found. Adriana won’t see it, that’s for sure.”

“It’s a shame that her parents didn’t use some of it to give her a better start. She wouldn’t have to pay it back and she could have her nursing degree by now.”

“Yeah, well, there’s a reason for Lady Justice’s blindfold and her two-edged sword. Sometimes impartiality hurts innocents.”

I was shocked at that admission. I knew how important the law was to him.

“But without the rule of law, there’s no justice for anyone,” he continued.

My heart was heavy for Adriana and all she’d go through when this news broke. But I had to agree with Wukowski. Law was an imperfect instrument, but a necessary one. Petrovitch’s actions proved that.

“What happens next?” I asked.

“Petrovitch will be arraigned in the U.S. district court in Chicago. The Milwaukee DA plans to issue conspiracy to commit murder charges against him, in case the extradition to the ICTY falls through. The IRS is also investigating his tax statements. If nothing else, he’ll do time for tax evasion.”

“Shades of Al Capone,” I said, recalling the mobster who ultimately went to Alcatraz, not for murder or racketeering, but because he cheated on his taxes. “Don’t mess with the IRS.” Wukowski snorted. “Who else knows the story?” I asked. “Bart? Adriana?”

“Don’t rip me a new one, but we had to bring Adriana in for questioning. Bart was with her.”

“You thought she was involved in this?” My tone was cold and hard enough to crack iron.

“Honest to God, I didn’t,” he said. “Nobody did. But we had to follow procedure.”

Procedure be damned. “Where is she now?”

“Spider and Bart took her away when we finished. I think any threat is over, but they weren’t convinced.” He took a breath. “I was just doing what I had to, Angie. You wouldn’t want Petrovitch to get off on a technicality, would you?”

“No. And I wouldn’t want Adriana to be terrorized by the very people who are sworn to protect her.”

“Now just a minute. That’s way out of line.”

It was my turn to breathe. It was several seconds before I could respond. “You’re right. I’m sorry.”

His sigh came across the line, loud and clear. “Okay, apology accepted. Jeez, Ange, you have to know I wouldn’t…”

“I do. I’m really sorry. I can get a little overprotective.” I paused. “So, I assume there’s no need for secrecy after the news comes out. I mean, I can get in touch with all the people who helped me on the case and let them know the outcome?”

“Sure. And believe me when I say, the MPD owes you a big thanks. Without you, this would still be an open case and Petrovitch would probably have fled the country in another week or so. He was making arrangements to close down his network and consolidate funds. You, Bobbie,