“Can you describe Zwerger’s uniform? Did you notice any unusual badges? Think of his collar—did you see the insignia of the SS on the right side? Like you saw on the car’s pennant?”

Nina closed her eyes, trying to remember. “I don’t think so, no. It was solid black. And on the other side there were some diamonds.”

“There was a patch on his sleeve,” Rosa added. “His left sleeve. It had the letters SD sewn on it.”

Nico nodded, but said nothing more, only drank down the rest of his wine.

“I still can’t believe you were friends with him,” Rosa muttered.

“He wasn’t my friend. We were in the same class at seminary, but only for a few years. He left in ’38. I assumed he’d returned home to Austria.”

“Do you know why?”

“He’d been bullying some of the other students. Poor boys, like me, who were cowed by his boasts of wealth and a powerful family. He stole from them, made them do his work, and I’m almost certain that he hurt at least one of them. Beat the boy up and then made him say it had been an accident.”

“What happened?” Nina asked.

“I went to Father Superior, expecting that he’d dismiss me out of hand, but he actually listened. Zwerger was sent packing the next day.”

“He must have known it was you,” Rosa said flatly. “And that’s why he’s come back.”

“I doubt it. I can’t imagine that Father Superior would have told him. And I wasn’t stupid enough to tell anyone else what I’d done. I just couldn’t stand the thought of his becoming a priest and having power over others.”

“So much for that,” Aldo muttered. “What if he returns and you’re absent again?”

“I’ll stay at home for a while. You and the boys are planning on helping Zio Beppe when he butchers the pigs next week, aren’t you? I have to stay put while you’re gone, and if he hasn’t made an appearance by then I’ll go looking for him.”

“If he suspects anything, learns anything, we’re as good as dead,” Aldo warned.

“How could he? He came here because he wanted to impress me with his exalted position. You heard what I said about his boasting when we were at school. Always wanting the rest of us to know about his family’s wealth back in Austria. Always making sure we knew he was better than the rest of us.”

“What does the SD on his sleeve mean?” Nina asked.

“Sicherheitsdienst. It translates as ‘security service.’”

Aldo paled. “Then he does suspect something.”

“No, Papà. On my life he doesn’t, otherwise he’d have arrested all of us. We do have to be careful, but that’s always been the case.”