The agents were dumbfounded. They were going to need days to process everything that was happening and had happened. Cally finished off the last of the cookie crumbs. In her very best Cookie Monster voice, just for the visiting flatfoots she said, "No cry because cookie is finished. Smile because cookie happened." Dusting off her hands and taking a wipe from Sarah, The Always Prepared, she then pulled on her white cotton gloves.Pulling out the ship"s manifest, jeweler"s specifications and drawings, various wills and estate papers where she had willed the crown to herself and newspaper accounts of the crown since it came to this country. "You will want these as provenance. Sarah here will help you take legible photos and send copies to Sotheby"s. Sarah make sure to tag Gladys in all dispatches to the auction house. Now I have played with you guys long enough. I have curtains and fairy dust to go check out. Marcus, you"ll escort these fine examples of law enforcement until the end?"
Without waiting for anybody to comment she zipped through the door and out of the building. Marcus looked down at his hands."Fairy dust and curtains?" His life had been so boring, so dull and now he couldn"t catch his breathe around her.
Sarah was still stuck on the fact her Mom got to ask two questions of the Wotan and was guaranteed answers. "I want to be there! Mom better share the moment!"
The agents were looking at, to them indecipherable doc.u.ments. Even if it was in English the language was archaic. The medieval doc.u.ments were completely beyond their capabilities. "Sarah? Did that woman just randomly pull out doc.u.ments to get rid of us? Can"t we just get copies of everything?" Sarah looked at the selected papers. Based on her training with her Mom and her many years as an archivist, these were the exact paper trail needed. "No. Cally is um shall we say a savant? Brilliant but strange. The papers she pulled out give an exact timeline for the crown. She cut down unnecessary needed interpretation. I have just the camera to make detailed photos."
Until the paperwork was viewed by experts, the FBI"s Art Crime Team would stay in the area. Agent Winston directed her next questions to Marcus. "Mr. Knight, that woman, Cally Wotan inferred the crown was stolen after a former CEO of Wotan International died. Is Catherine Rosemount available to speak to us?"
"No. Cally was highly upset when she arrived here and realized that Ms. Rosemount was making false a.s.sumptions about property that pa.s.ses from each successive Wotan heir. The Wotan family is matriarchal. This is how it has been for that family for countless generations. Cally just arrived for Olen"s funeral when she found Ms. Rosemount taking liberties. Cally contacted the Rosemount family head and Catherine was ordered home. She left for their home in France a couple weeks ago."
"Why didn"t she call the police? She simply sent a thief home? This woman Cally is the strangest person I have ever run across. She appears to be incredibly wealthy, flaky, childish, a linguist. Not to mention rude to our fellow agent because of her idea of what his religion might be. Just how much of this can we be expected to believe? Just who the h.e.l.l is she?"
Marcus was quiet. How do you explain miracles? Finally he said, "Did you know Einstein was an expert with squirt guns. He was a good at shooting at the neighbor kids with the cowboy-style straight draw. Can you imagine Einstein in a water gun fight? And he had his front door painted red to help him find his way home. I am constantly surprised by Cally. She is strait forward, independent, wealthy to the extreme, has family history that is older than this country. Explaining Cally would be like saying a diamond is a really hard rock."
"Agents I will have one of my people help Sarah with getting you the copies. I need to step out and make a few phone calls. I will be in the next office if you need me." Walking out he paused and told Josie to lend her a.s.sistance. Entering his office he called the front gate while watching a camera view of said gate. He instructed the guard to inform the agents that their fellow agents would be down within an hour. He noted what appeared to be a line of salt separating the agents from the rest of the property.