They couldn’t continue their conversation, because Tom Crane was escorted into the room by the butler.
Tom was in costume with his usual bright bowtie, black-rimmed glasses and bowl-style haircut. Carlo suspected his look was intentional to throw people off. Otherwise why wouldn’t he just get an image consultant since he loved being in the spotlight?
“Are you in Luxembourg City for long?” Carlo gestured for him to take a third chair.
“I have a few meetings tomorrow.” Tom sat. “I’ve just been to Zimbabwe, Ethiopia, Uganda, and Nigeria and am looking forward to getting back home to Seattle. However, thanks to both of you for seeing me.”
“Always a pleasure,” Davis said.
The butler poured Tom wine and topped up Davis’s and Carlo’s glasses before exiting the room.
“How is everything in Africa?” Davis asked.
“There is resistance from farmers on the genetically engineered seed and pesticides, but the governments have fallen in line.” Tom took a sip of the wine. “Oh, this is very good.”
“All the food and wine come from Carlo’s family estate in Spain.” Davis beat Carlo, avoiding his never-ending gloating.
“So it’s safe, then.” Tom’s cheeks turned a shade of pink. “Of course, it is.”
Carlo raised an eyebrow. “Everything is grown from ancient seed, and the land has never been touched with chemical fertilizers or pesticides.”
“Even his pigs eat better than we do.” Davis smiled.
“All our livestock is happy and healthy, roaming free and foraging. They eat the same quality of food we do.”
“I’m sorry for the comment,” Tom said. “You of all people would be conscientious of your food and only serve the highest quality. It’s just where I’ve been …”
Carlo waved it off.
“Did you deliver the Naintosa grants to the governments?” Davis asked.
Tom reached for some cured ham. “That money, of course, sealed the deals.”
“I will wait until the crops are ready to harvest and then send a journalist to write stories about how you’re helping feed the starving Africans.” Davis looked proud of himself. “I’ll let you know well in advance, so you can be there for photo ops.”
“That’ll work,” Tom said.
Carlo reached for an olive. “What else?”
“Oh.” Tom sat up. “I just forwarded another thirty million to the seed bank fund.”
“That will help with the final phase,” Davis said.
“How long before it’s operational?” Tom asked. “I’d like to go see it.”
“It’s still a few years before we can transfer the seed,” Davis said. “Maybe then you can see it.”
“Fair enough,” Tom said. “Did anyone ever find the American who was trying to get to the seed bank from Nordkapp?”
Carlo and Davis looked at each other, then at Tom.
“What American?” Davis asked.
By the expression on Tom’s face, he was surprised yet happy he knew something they didn’t. “A suspected American journalist tried to charter a boat to get close to the seed bank and then hire a guide on snowmobile to get him the rest of the way.”
“And what happened?” Carlo asked.
“Luckily, he spoke to the owner of the company that supplies cargo for Naintosa. They tried to stall him, but the American got away before Naintosa’s security arrived. He disappeared. The description was vague, because he wore a parka and a scarf that covered most of his face.”
“Any idea if he found another way to the seed bank?” Davis asked.
“As you know, Nordkapp is the northernmost town in Norway and the point he’d have to depart from. No one unauthorized has left from there, so I very much doubt it,” Tom said.
Carlo made note of finding out more but didn’t show signs of concern.
“It’s not the first time someone has tried to get a close-up of the construction.” Davis reached for his third slice of bread. “I’m sure it’s nothing to be too worried about. But thank you for bringing it to our attention.”
Tom turned his attention to Carlo. “It’s good to see the algorithms progressing so well. I understand you’ve almost finished the beta testing stage.” Tom made his fortune in computer software, so he knew what he was talking about. His people were partnering with Carlo’s people to create the programs to collect personal data when people were on the Internet.
“Thank you again for funding your part,” Carlo said. “It’ll be very useful for your future plans as well.”
“Yes, it will.” Tom looked determined. “Gentlemen, I know I’ve asked before and you’ve turned me down, but I can’t leave it alone. I need to be a part of the main group. We would all benefit greatly, working as equals together.”
Davis took a drink of wine.
Carlo reached for cheese to put on his bread.
Tom looked at Davis. “You’re the past chairman.” Then he turned his head toward Carlo. “And you’re the current chairman. Surely you two can make the necessary recommendations to make me a member of the Club.”
“Tom, you know it doesn’t work that way and isn’t that easy,” Carlo said. “You can’t just buy your way in. And your money is too new. Keep working hard, and maybe your son or his son will eventually become members.”
“But with all that’s happening and going to happen.”
“You’re on the preferred list,” Carlo said. “You and your family will be fine.”
Tom stood, all politeness drained from his face. “But I need more control. I need to be part of the overall decision-making.”
Carlo and Davis looked at him, but neither said anything.
Tom cleared his throat. “You may change your minds.”
“Keep up the good work and we’ll see.” Carlo knew he was treating Tom like a subservient employee, dangling a carrot he’d never taste. Just because Tom had more money didn’t mean he had more power. Davis and Carlo held those cards.
The disappointment was clear on Tom’s face. “I’m not going to let this go.”
“I don’t expect you to.” Carlo rose to shake his hand. “Thank you again for all your funding.”
After Tom left the room, Davis asked, “Why do you keep giving him hope?”
“You don’t want him to give up and stop doing our bidding and donating money, do you?”
Davis began to laugh and then clutched his abdomen. “Ouch. Don’t know where that came from.”
CHAPTER 12
May 6, 2003
We were on the road to London by 7:30 a.m. to buy the final supplies. I wanted to drive, and no one objected. Jorge was in the passenger seat of the Range Rover, giving directions, and Sue and Lorraine were in the back seat.
Traffic wasn’t as heavy as we’d projected.
The store we’d found was for winter sports, mainly skiing. It was the only one around, due to there being a lack of ski hills in England, let alone deep snow in winter. And of course, it was past the season. The last stretch of our coming journey would be by snowmobile within the Arctic Circle, so we needed special underwear, jackets, pants, gloves, boots, and goggles.
“Make sure everything is white,” I said.
Sue nodded as she looked for a jacket in her size and a design she liked.
Jorge and Lorraine looked at me as if they were surprised by the number of orders I’d given that morning. I’d felt clear as to our objective and convinced myself that my premonition meant just to be careful.
It took over an hour of combing racks and shelves, trying things on, before we each had what we needed.
As we loaded the back of the SUV with our bulky purchases, Sue stopped and looked toward the end of the store exterior. “I noticed that pudgy guy over there looking through the window when we were inside, and now he’s been watching us ever since we got to our vehicle. He’s pretty close to what I envisioned Ogden Dundst would look like.”
Everyone stopped what they were doing.
I
backed up a few steps from the rear hatch of the Range Rover until I was next to Sue. Between a parked car and the sidewalk, about sixty yards away, stood a man with a round face, long nose, thin lips, and weak chin. He had sunglasses on and was facing in our direction. His hands were in his brown jacket pockets.
He must’ve realized we were looking at him and took a step back behind the hood of the parked car.
“I’m going to have a word with him.” Jorge began walking toward the man.
“Wait for me.” I was right behind Jorge.
“Not without us.” Lorraine closed the Rover’s back hatch and then joined Sue, who was catching up to me.
The man stumbled backward, got his footing, turned, and ran.
“He’s guilty of something,” I said under my breath and began running after him.
Jorge was going full tilt, but I overtook him. Glancing to my side I was surprised at how fast Lorraine could run. Sue was right on our heels—she was so athletic that her size didn’t matter; her legs moved in a speedy blur. We all gained on our target.
His short legs were pumping and arms flailing. At the end of the block he turned right around a three-story building.
When we came around the corner, he was at the end of a short block and went right again.
I kept my breathing steady to match my footfall, remembering the long-distance running tip Sue had taught me years ago.
We all pushed forward, harder. Lucky there weren’t many people on the street.
We turned at the next corner and saw we’d gained most of the ground. Our prey was running out of steam. He ducked into an alley. I followed with Jorge behind me. Lorraine and Sue kept going straight to the end of the next short block.
The guy stumbled and stopped running, looking back at us. He was at a dead end and out of breath.
Jorge and I slowed to a jog as we came up to him.
“You’ve got nowhere to go,” I said.
He turned to us, chest heaving, and pulled what looked like a six-inch kitchen knife from his pocket. “This … is … for … you … you … fuc—”
Lorraine came bolting at full sprint, plowing into the chubby man. The knife went flying, and so did he. Two garbage cans slowed his momentum before he hit the brick facade wall, and then Lorraine used him to cushion herself from hitting the wall. His body flattened as she pushed into him, and he projectile puked. Fortunately for Lorraine, his head was pointing to the side of her. She let go of him, and he crumpled to the ground.
Lorraine stumbled back, and I ran up to catch her. “You okay?”
“Fine.” She wobbled and placed her arm on the wall for balance.
I looked over to where Lorraine and Sue had come from. Wow. The alley wasn’t a dead end; it took a ninety-degree turn to the next street. They’d taken a gamble at flanking him, and it had worked.
Jorge was on the man, who was groaning in pain. He placed his knee on the guy’s right side and searched his pockets. Finding a wallet, he opened it.
“This clown really is Ogden Dundst.” Jorge held up his driver’s license.
“Too stupid to even change his name,” Sue said.
There were sirens, and they were coming in our direction.
“Someone must’ve called the police,” I said.
“Nick, we’ll stay here and explain that this asshole was stalking Sue and Lorraine, pulling a knife on us when we confronted him,” Jorge said. “You shouldn’t be here because you were just released from house arrest. Go the opposite direction and meet us back at the truck.”
He was right. “Okay, I’ll wait for you there.” I jogged off through the alley from where Sue and Lorraine had come.
The sirens were really close now.
It ended up that we had almost gone full circle to the winter adventure store. Luckily, I’d driven and had the keys in my pocket.
How was Dundst able to find us? For sure he wasn’t Naintosa security.
I chose the back seat in case I needed to duck down.
It had taken almost an hour for the others to return.
Jorge took the driver’s seat. “We have to go to a local police station to give statements.”
Sue climbed into the back seat next to me. “Dundst needed an ambulance.” She gave an approving look to Lorraine in the front passenger seat.
“Are you okay, Lorraine?” I asked a second time.
“He was soft in the middle.” Lorraine faced forward. “He deserved it.”
“Man, did you plow him,” Sue said.
“That was a great flanking move,” I said.
Jorge reached over and patted Lorraine’s shoulder. “Well done.”
Lorraine shook her head. “No one messes with us and then pulls a knife.”
The three of them agreed on what to say on the short drive to the station.
Again, I’d waited in the back seat, as it took another hour for them to give their statements.
“How’d it go?” I asked as soon as everyone was back in the Rover.
“The police checked to see who we were and seemed suspicious of us but didn’t have any reason to not believe us,” Sue said.
Jorge was driving. “Lorraine caused some damage, so Dundst had to be taken to the hospital. I’ll find someone to keep tabs on him.”
We had to make one more stop at an outdoor equipment store that sold climbing gear, for two long ropes, carabiners, and ice screws.
On the way back to Burford, we thought of ways that Dundst could’ve tracked us but never came up with anything conclusive. Jorge was going to have our computers swept for any monitoring software, because that was the most obvious.
Eugene was at the gate talking to his brother Sam, and with a wave, opened it when we arrived.
“Ivan must be here,” Sue said.
“Thought he wasn’t coming for two more days,” I said.
We unloaded the bags full of our purchases and piled them to one side in the foyer.
“This will be our staging area,” I said. “We’ll bring everything out here tomorrow and check it against the list.”
“We’re ahead of schedule. Maybe we can leave before Saturday,” Sue said. “Let’s go find Ivan.”
“I’m thirsty,” I said.
When we opened the kitchen door, right in front of us were Ivan and Rose in an embrace, kissing.
“What the …” I stopped in my tracks.
“I guessed that was going on,” Sue said. “We’ll come back later.”
Ivan and Rose pulled apart, both blushing, yet still holding hands.
“Our apologies,” Ivan said. “We wanted to keep this private. Everyone has more important matters to focus on.”
“We have nothing to hide or be ashamed about.” There was defensiveness in Rose’s voice. “We’re adults.”
I was coming out of my initial shock. “Of course …”
“I think it’s sweet,” Sue said. “You two make a nice couple.”
“Yeah,” was all I could think of to say. Sue and I weren’t the only ones hooking up.
Ivan brought Rose’s hand to his lips and winked at her. “We have things to discuss.” He gently let go and motioned for us to follow him out to the living room.
Rose smiled at Ivan. “I’ll finish making dinner.” She seemed happy no one had objected.
“Thank you, my dear.” Ivan smiled back at Rose as if happy that their secret was now out in the open.
It was kind of mushy, but seeing them there together—they did make a good fit.
We went to the living room. Sue sat down on the couch, Ivan and I in the chairs.
“First, I hope you don’t mind that Rose and I have a special relationship? She is a wonderful lady, and it truly will not affect my work.”
“Of course it won’t affect anything. You don’t need our approval, even though we fully give it.” I took a quick peek at Sue. “As long as you’re happy.”
Sue looked back at me and then Ivan. “Yes, Ivan, we wish you and Rose only the best.”
<
br /> Ivan paused to glance at both of us. Did he suspect that Sue and I had gotten together?
I changed the subject. “So, what did you want to talk about?” We had nothing to hide, but … whatever. “Is the Council okay, now that my charges have been dropped?”
“Yes, they are comfortable again,” Ivan said. “There have been new developments in the research. First, the glyphosate study is complete, and all our hypotheses are confirmed. It definitely destroys people’s immune systems and is cancer-causing—yet another confirmation of Naintosa’s plan to hurt the population.”
“Is the study written?” Sue asked. “What happens next?”
“It will be finished within a week. Then it will go out for peer review. If all goes well it will be published within six months. I know of a journal that isn’t influenced by Naintosa that will cover it; others, I’m not so sure will want to take on the giant. The Council also wants to make a special presentation to the World Health Organization. With Dr. Schmidt dead, we hope they will be more receptive.”
“Great,” Sue said. “How is the neonicotinoids study coming?”
Ivan leaned forward. “That is urgent, because we are already seeing a strong decline in bee populations in countries that are spraying neonicotinoids. There is a definite correlation between neonicotinoids and the destruction of bees’ nervous systems.”
“I just can’t wrap my head around that,” Sue said. “Even if they succeed at wiping out a large part of the population, they’re still going to need bees.”
“Yes, I am not sure what their plan is there,” Ivan said.
Neonicotinoids were a new class of insecticides that hadn’t been thoroughly tested yet. Initial findings showed that they weren’t only toxic to insects and bees, but trace amounts of ingestion were causing problems right up the food chain to humans. After a period of exposure, neonicotinoids caused immune-system suppression and sterility, just for a start. It was another cog in the population control plan. “When will that study be finished?”
“Six months. Then it will go through the same process as the glyphosate study.”
“Okay, you’re making great progress.” I moved to get up.
“There is another development that I am sorry I had to keep quiet until now.” Ivan raised his hand. “Are you still planning on going to Naintosa and Pharmalin’s Colombia lab after you come back from the seed bank?”
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