by Redemption
"Did she give any reasons?"
"No sir. She said she had to be brief and for us not to contact her. She asked our ETA Foggia. I calculated and gave it to her. She said she would make a quick call one hour before to confirm. There's no need to alter course at this time."
"Thanks Charles, Foggia it is. Make sure I talk to her when she calls."
"Very well, sir."
Before he dozed off he emailed to Raj: 'Your methods continue to work well for me and I cannot thank you enough. Please prepare a presentation for our forthcoming group meeting - as to which of the Eastern techniques you feel can fit in with our future endeavours and how they will contribute.'
CHAPTER 13 New truths
'Organised crime is by far the largest industry in the world. It exceeds a trillion US dollars yearly. It pays little tax. It reaches into every corner of the planet and causes untold suffering. It continues to grow rapidly and is seemingly unstoppable. Where might it all end, if at all?'
More provocative words, thought Kent as he skimmed through the Naples file. Occasionally he felt he should be pinching himself. Organised crime? A truth machine? When Luigi Maraposa first floated the possibility he thought the Mediterranean climate had affected his brain; he had put too much effort into his searches of Southern Europe. But ensuing reports confirmed its reality and potential. As he flicked through the pages Maraposa's voice-over on the video spoke and visuals unfolded.
"Mario Tontini was born to peasant workers on a vineyard. He showed early promise and the vineyard owner, whose extravagant living far exceeded his modest income from grapes, arranged for his schooling and university."
"He specialised in electronics and biology, fertile and challenging grounds for his imaginative and creative mind. His patron was a devotee of the Middle Ages and Machiavelli, and a middle level member of the Calabrone (Hornet), local chapter of organised crime." ('The Prince' was one of Kent's few well-read books, so he felt a degree of empathy, a measure of familiarity.)
"He encouraged Mario to become involved in research on lie detectors and lavishly supported him with equipment. In 1895 Italian criminologist Cesare Lombroso had invented the first scientific instrumental method of lie detection, and it was a natural and patriotic urge to follow in his footsteps. But with a difference - the invention would not be available for public use… The Calabrone and truth may seem strange bed-fellows, but the clandestine association is not as incongruous as it first appears. If absolute truth could be maintained within its membership and from its 'customers' its power and influence would increase dramatically.
"So Mario took as the subject of his Ph D 'The integration of advanced physiological and psychological measurement with computerisation and electronic means in the development of enhanced psychogalvanometry'. Or 'an improved lie detector' as he told his friends. Or 'a super lie detector with amazing power' as anyone familiar with the field would have said - if they could have inspected it.
"With great difficulty and extreme care I have gleaned partial information," said Luigi. "Mario's compound polygraph is a most sophisticated instrument. It incorporates not only physical variations in pulse rate, blood pressure, salivation, perspiration and respiration, but also refined measurements of emotional stress from body language, eye movement, iris characteristics, brain waves, voice patterns and thermal imaging of blood flow around the eyes. He has overlaid and extended computer software and algorithms developed by the Israelis to interrelate answers to different but connected questions and also to similar questions over a period of time. Questions most likely to detect untruths can be generated progressively as an interview proceeds, leading the subject into a 'deceit trap'. Like a tricky tarantula, he says, not being able to keep track of exactly what each of its devious legs has been up to.
"He also claims to have incorporated other elements which he is nervous to talk about that will make the machine totally foolproof. A brilliant, key feature is that he ingeniously has integrated four different fields of detection that can be used individually or in combination. Whereas it may be possible with training and practice for an expert to fool any one field by itself, the methods of detection in each area differ, and in some cases are opposite. As the person is not aware which of the fields are being used at any time, the integration and cross-referencing makes it impossible to outwit the machine. Uncertainty within the person being tested and fear of the unknown heightens tension and provides further 'insurance'. So, although the covert rationale is to further crime, it would have obvious and substantial value in fighting crime. It also opens up intriguing possibilities in ethics and the conduct of society.
"But Mario came to know his creation would be 'contaminated'. The further he went it became increasingly obvious his project, with so much potential to inhibit crime, would be hijacked to further crime. He enjoyed the work - it had become his creative life and its scientific and technical stimulus his reward. He resented funding / briefing sessions with his patron, the drift of his questioning and the direction of his encouragement. But he had nowhere to go - he knew the police and university authorities had suspect connections and his wife and parents were 'under protection'.
"When he feigned a slow-down of development, the patron was restless. When he created imaginary obstacles to progress the patron's fury was frightening. He was in a bind. He wanted to finish his research work and gain his Ph D but he didn't want his brainchild to be used for evil purposes.
"Pressure mounted. Hints were dropped, threats made. His parents lost their jobs for being 'too old'. A car knocked him off his bicycle 'by accident'. He became extremely agitated and uncertain what to do. It came to a head tragically when his beloved wife died mysteriously. The doctor couldn't be sure, thought she may have been poisoned, but wouldn't be questioned further.
"It was at this stage I heard of his work, despite it being conducted largely in secret."
While the voice-over continued, a depiction of Mario was shown with head in hands, bowed and motionless. He reached into a drawer and, sobbing, held a small revolver to his ear. The phone rang. He picked it up slowly and held it to the other ear.
"I explained our mission and arranged to meet him discreetly. He was both nervous and overwhelmed but glimpsed a fantastic possibility to escape his predicament and further his project at the same time. I have confirmed that the machine works well and has passed all tests to date. There will necessarily be conditions: the move from Italy will have to be permanent and his parents will have to go with him, otherwise all their lives will be in danger."
Kent had agreed to the conditions in principle but wanted to meet Mario in person before finalising an arrangement. Six months ago he would have been dismissive and totally against such a development, as being interference by do-goody busy-bodies and against the natural order of things. Not that he used to tell lies, he didn't need to. Being economical with the truth and spreading judicious misinformation was usually enough. Now he chuckled at what a 'truth machine' might do in the world of commerce, and the people he knew who might have to make an honest living for a change. He saw intriguing possibilities for the machine.
V
T: Possibilities:
KBVO: "If it proved to be accurate and infallible the truth machine would be an invaluable tool in the fight against crime, shedding the clear light of truth into the dark corners of the underworld, causing it to shrivel in the glare like the malevolent fungus it is.
"The strength of the Calabrone and its cousins - derived from their deadly code of behaviour, lies, deception, terror, anonymity - would collapse if answers to questions from the authorities were clearly true or false. Questions could be arranged so that innocent people would not mind, would be happy to answer. Applied to theft, extortion, drugs, fraud, graft, intimidation, corruption - the thought makes me smile, as does the prospect of putting crime, the world's biggest business, out of business.
"Court cases, police work. Thousands of public servants and lawyers round the world could be put to bet
ter use, assisting rather than enforcing and protecting. Petty crime and welfare abuse - the list would go on and on, even politics, terrorism and the Olympic Games! Governments and insurance companies would save billions.
"Procedures would need to be adopted to ensure its orderly introduction and that its use was effective and not abused. Certain rights to privacy would have to be considered. It would need to be shown and emphasised as strengthening rather than weakening democracy. There are a multitude of factors to take into consideration but for the present, to my newly-ignited passions, it could be a great righter-of-wrongs."
=
The pilot put his head round the door. "Miss Peron to speak to you, sir. I have given her an updated ETA."
He picked up the phone. "Xena, what's happening?"
"Emergency. I'm on the run with Mario. We are in extreme danger. As soon as you land, open the door and keep the engine running. We'll drive on to the tarmac. Tell Charles to be ready to go like hell or that's where we'll all finish."
"Sounds a touch melodramatic. Where are Luigi and the parents?"
"Dead. Killed in a car accident. Except it wasn't accidental. These people play for keeps. Are you sure you want to go through with it?"
"Absolutely," said Kent, quietly and firmly. (After the briefest of pauses).
"Got to go," whispered Xena and hung up.
~
Three quarters of an hour later Charles radioed the Foggia control tower and in broken conversation obtained permission to land. "Just a minor problem, don't think I can make it safely to Naples."
Dawn was breaking as they touched down and taxied along the runway. Charles saw a pair of headlights come rapidly towards them. He braked quickly and shouted to Kent who opened the door and thrust down the steps. The car screeched to a halt. Xena and Mario jumped out and ran up the steps clutching small luggage.
Kent slammed the door with Mario's help and Charles gunned the jet immediately they were in their seats. Thrown back by the plane's acceleration, they strapped their belts as the plane became airborne. Looking back when the plane banked, they saw the lights of two large black cars that had converged on the vacated vehicle.
"No time to spare," gasped Xena, collapsed in her chair. "Do you think they were in that group?"
"Yes," said Mario firmly. "They followed us to the airport. Luckily they weren't aware of what we were going to do. Waiting for their opportunity, we took them by surprise." Turning to Kent: "You must be Mr Buchanan. I am very pleased to meet you. Do you often make acquaintances in this manner?"
"Not if I can help it," replied Kent, shaking his hand strongly. "Do you want to talk about it now?"
"The Calabrone - they have killed my wife, my father, my mother. They are murderers, they are evil. And they wanted this," patting his laptop computer and a second package, "to further their domination. But these items may, and I pray will be, the thing that helps kill them. Mr Buchanan I want revenge. I have nothing more to lose and the world has a lot to gain. Will you help me?"
"Yes," said Kent emphatically. "There's a lot more we have to find out, but I believe we can help each other significantly. We will, of course, have to do it in such a way that we don't finish up like your parents." They shook hands again.
"Charles, do you think it was dark enough for them not to see our identification number?" Kent asked on the intercom.
"I believe that would be the case, sir," came the reply. "Those particular lights were not, er, working at the time. I also took the precaution, I hope you don't mind sir, of making a mistake when I radioed our identification number earlier."
"Not at all, Charles. Thank you."
Mario was nervously fingering a shiny black object - a larger than life-size metal representation of a hornet - calabrone in Italian. "The largest stinging insect in the world," he gritted between his teeth. "It can cut a bee in half with one bite of its jaws. Unlike the bee it can sting many times without dying. It has extremely sensitive antennae to hunt down its victims."
Turning to stare at the clouds Mario, to everybody's surprise, started laughing, quietly at first, then almost uncontrollably, oblivious of them until Xena asked what was funny. "They, a monstrous criminal organisation, have put all that time and money into this machine and now I - we - have stolen it! It was supposed to have cemented their power, now I hope it will give them concrete boots." They burst out laughing at the incongruity of it, tempered by uncertainty about the underlying implications.
As they neared Naples with the sun rising Mario said "Let me show you my house, it may be the last time I will see it."
"There it is," he said pointing excitedly. "The little one on the corner beside the park."
His joy was abruptly shattered as he saw the roof explode and flames rush skywards. Violence incarnate. Evil in red licking tongues. Within a minute the building was engulfed in flames. He said nothing but tears welled in his eyes. Then he leapt to his feet and into the plane's toilet. Through the open door they saw him fling the hornet insignia into the bowl and flush it away.
"That's what I think of the Calabrone," he muttered darkly, returning. "Put them where they belong." After a pause "If only they were that easy to get rid of."
He stared numbly through the window, his knuckles white as he gripped tightly the secret world in his computer.
CHAPTER 14 Pow - Woww
POW - WOWW
I >> K >>U >> W
The symbols on the cover of the Oxford file irked Kent just as much as the first time he had seen them. More Oshkosh than Oxford. He wasn't used to an air of calculated mystery in unfamiliar territory.
While the others settled down to relax or sleep Kent switched on the video and opened the file. He hadn't examined it in depth before, thinking it less significant to their endeavours. But his staff were enthusiastic so now he persevered.
The Naples episode had been wearing; for lesser people daunting. To the Kent of old it would have been exciting and challenging. Now it was part of an equation: Mario and his machine could be valuable to his quest and worth more than the possible dangers. So in his mind he confirmed his acceptance of Mario and pressed on with the last leg of his journey.
Rosemary Danne was an unconventional academic, or at least less conventional than most. Trevor Urquhart recommended her ideas enthusiastically because he believed they could be a valuable part of any fabric of endeavour incorporating newness and change. To a background of pictures and events in her life and career, Trevor's voice-over said: "Rosemary has two main lines of thought and activity which are of particular interest. She works with a group of brainy people of whom she is the focal point and spokesperson.
"One concept is related to a different way to use language, the other to gathering knowledge in our modern world. She calls them Pow-Woww for reasons that will become apparent. In the past she has referred to these matters in her lectures but received little interest from her students. Her fellow academics are indifferent, condescending or contemptuous."
The serious face of Rosemary, in her late forties, appeared on screen. "I lecture in English, with my main interest in communication, particularly in the transmission and use of information and the role of language.
"I am distressed at the current hapless state of the human condition - disaffected, discordant and dysfunctional - and look to what part my efforts might play in ameliorating the situation. I see three main sources of problems related to communication - its volume, its lack of quality and its bias - and offer ways to counter each of them."
V
T: Communication:
Rosemary's voice over (RDVO): "Firstly, the sheer volume of it. Information comes to us through the media, our relationships and our work. It hasn't been easy in the past to keep up with it, and in recent times the volume and complexity have accelerated away from us. Too much of it can distract and isolate and reduce our ability to evaluate and absorb, let alone use it. We fail to cope with information overload and in the process become stressed, uncertain, insecur
e, confused.
"The Internet is a prime example. So much available, most of it of little value to any individual. Heaps of information but useful knowledge gained is a mere fraction of its potential. Technologies have advanced way ahead of our ability to use them as effectively and as responsibly as we could and should. We thereby benefit less, both personally and socially, and create technology-induced problems at the same time - pollution, road accidents and planetary warming for instance. From the mass of global knowledge (which currently doubles every 2.9 years), we have to be extremely selective, and it's difficult to be well informed in one's chosen areas. The more we learn, the more we see there is to learn.
"Secondly, the 'quality' of the information. I expect you know that much of the media and especially TV aims at the mentality of twelve-year-olds with short attention spans. The lowest common denominator. Significant events need to happen with rapid frequency to make the program a 'success', to entertain. Glamour, shallow values, pap - utter pap. As viewers we inevitably fall short of lofty expectations induced in us and our confidence suffers.
"The potential for creative, constructive, 'useful' communication is enormous; the actuality is pathetic. We don't need to use our brains so we don't, we read less, think less and are the lesser for it - wasted opportunities caused by 'the thief of our time'. Many people who should know better do nothing about it. Future generations will say it was scandalous to allow it to continue to happen in its present form. Negligent. Inescapably negligent.
"The third problem created by communication relates to lack of balance. Bias. Through the media we are fed a steady diet of sensationalism, violence, crime, titillation, - all with negative implications. Bad news is good news, good news is no news. Our subconscious is assailed and we become tentative, sceptical, jaundiced. Our children are deprived of motor skills and sensory experience. We are de-sensitised to violence, we become viewers instead of doers and our relationships suffer"