by Hylton Smith
Pierze’s supporting cast was nervously awaiting their boss walking out of the room. They all knew this story; it had been world news for a couple of years. Salina eventually got their attention when he declared that there was a particular threat which had been underestimated if not discounted. “We never seem to learn that the weakness in any system dependent on humans, even for the most mundane tasks, is destined to be corrupted. It is only a matter of how.”
Pierze was now totally transfixed. He sat down. Salina cleared his throat just as Duarte breezed into the room and threw his ‘pork pie’ hat onto his neatly arranged desk in a territorial challenge to Pierze. He did not of course realise how important this moment would become in the investigation. Pierze swore under his breath while trying to think on his feet. He quickly decided to introduce Duarte.
The legal man stuttered, “Then who the hell are you?”
The reply was accusatory. “You never really gave me a chance earlier; I am Ricardo Pierze, Director of.....”
Salina was furious with himself. The identity of all heads of covert global snooping organisations was always protected. He immediately grasped that he would not actually be who he claimed to be, but officially authorised to parade as such on a single mission. This was his simulation for promotion. He was grateful that Duarte had inadvertently saved the day. “I think you had better leave Pierze so you can report back to Snr. X, the real director of your organisation.” The legal man was bemused; Duarte was verging on silent orgasm as Pierze & Co feigned contorted smiles while shuffling into a single file exit.
It got worse for Pierze, Salina was correct in his snapshot assessment of the simulation aspect. Not all of Pierze’s entourage was subordinate level personnel, one was an observer, and he was blatantly unimpressed. In order to prevent termination of his involvement in this case Pierze needed significant progress, and quickly. The observer pulled him to one side and stated the obvious. “We, or rather you, have missed out on something important which will now be divulged to that cretin Duarte, and to make matters worse Salina will stir up a plague of red tape around our own investigation. Not a good start to the day.”
However, Salina did not warm to the apparition of the burger-chomping Duarte any more than Pierze had. He went on the offensive again. “What have you learned so far from this Lightbox? There must also be clues in the apartment of his recent activities, and we need his personal effects to begin closure, as I’m sure you understand. You do know who I am?”
The legal man intruded. “May I introduce Senor and Senora Salina? Apart from being Konrad’s parents, Snr. Salina is head of Central Security for Iberia. I am his legal counsel; and my name is Jose-Maria Olmeda. So as you may appreciate there is both a personal and professional nature to our presence here.” His eye contact with Salina screamed ‘cool it’.
Duarte scratched at some of the flaky skin amongst the sparse remnants of his hair and filled the immediate conversational radius with onion flavoured relish. “I see. As a matter of fact I do know who you are Snr. Salina, there was a photograph of you and your good lady on the wall at the apartment. We still have much work to get through with second sweep forensics, and you’re absolutely correct about the other evidence of his recent activity – we are on to it. Personal effects, well it’s rather difficult to be precise at present, but maybe we can release some of them in a couple of days.” He didn’t want to disclose either the implications of the tattoo or the hidden object in the wall cavity at this stage.
Once more Olmeda cut off his boss, “We are staying at the Riu Principal. I’m sure that you appreciate Inspector Du....” He was sarcastically corrected. “Chief Inspector Duarte. I’m entirely at your service, as I guess you were just about to remind me of your requirement that I cooperate with your own investigation. I know you’ll understand that the police must first and foremost be satisfied that we are definitely dealing with an uncomplicated suicide. That’s routine and I assure you that we’ll release all we can to you when our jurisdiction issues are complete. I do sympathise deeply with this awful tragedy inflicted upon you as parents, and you can rely on our further support if and when you need our continued involvement.”
After a brief silence Olmeda and Salina conferred and the former, once more, assumed his role as spokesman. “We appreciate your candour Chief Inspector. Do you have any particular reason to doubt suicide?”
Duarte stalled. “Not the suicide itself. It’s already clear that the act of ending his own life was Konrad’s and his alone. I think it would be best if you get through the unpleasant formalities first. His body has to be identified. Once that is out of the way I can show you how we know that he did indeed commit unassisted suicide.”
Senora Salina could not hold back – she wept, and Duarte noted that the other two did not try to console her. Another exchange between Salina and Olmeda produced the question Duarte was angling for. “Do you therefore have any reason to delay declaration of straightforward suicide?”
Duarte responded in an empathetic way which gained him a modicum of respect from Salina. “No suicide can be straightforward. It can be from a police point of view, categorised as uncomplicated in terms of the act, but that’s only the beginning of the story - as to why? As a parent I can’t think of anything worse happening in my life, and I want to keep that in mind when briefing you on all aspects of our findings.”
The maternal voice at last entered the conversation. “Thank you Chief Inspector. We do need your help in coming to terms with the emotional devastation in which we are suspended.”
Duarte replaced his hat; it was one of the few elements of attire which could possibly have made him appear even less like a policeman. “Then I respectfully suggest we go to the morgue.” They followed him to his car, the condition of which was likely to nullify any newly gained respect he had unintentionally acquired.
Butragueno was refreshed enough to re-engage with the task at hand. She had a sixth sense about the list of names in Konrad’s deposit box. The standard route would be through the police database and personnel, especially as some were in distant parts of the Republic. She wondered about contacting next of kin or relatives. She knew she should check this out with Duarte and called his mobile. His travelling companions stared at one another incredulously as a police officer calmly drove with one hand while having discussion with what was obviously another officer. He told her to go ahead with her hunch.
Chapter 5
The incident hit the media – it had to, Salina was a very high profile Iberian officer in President Sanchez’ organisation. It troubled Gretz, Verdasco and Boniek, not so much that another protest campaigner had been eliminated, but that this one would trigger the chain reaction they had worked so hard to avoid. Until now they had managed the P.R. in a ‘responsibly detached’ way. This would be different. Instead of the plausible association of the previously alleged deaths with ad hoc anarchical pressure groups, an investigation would be coming their way. Gretz pointed to the need for their collective muscle being employed to get to the truth first. “Knowing the result before others affords the critical space to manage perception. We need our own investigation.” Verdasco saw the merit and was keen to discuss the method. Boniek was not convinced. He firmly believed that it was a political matter and it was important to be seen to be absolutely neutral. “It would be extremely risky for us to be exposed in this way, and anyway I can’t really see what it is we have to fear.”
Gretz argued that rather than worry about being exposed they should grasp the high ground and actually announce that they wanted to cooperate with the various authorities to help in any investigation into the previous deaths of demonstrators, as well as the suicide of Konrad Salina. “I sense that we will be expected to react because this is a suicide rather than a suspicious death. We will also be expected to have a position on an apparent act of martyrdom by the son of one of the highest ranking government officials, whose remit is precisely that of keeping th
e lid on trends such as anarchy. After all we are selling absolute security on a global scale – to the anarchists as well as the institutions.”
Without feeling comfortable about it Boniek saw that Gretz had a point. The principle was agreed. The mechanics would be crucial and there was a need for housekeeping to run ahead of window dressing. They all accepted that the investigation had to X-ray their own organisation to eliminate any cause for concern. They needed a candidate to head up this project who wouldn’t only exude integrity but be publicly perceived as keeping the authorities on their toes. Gretz declared, “There is one obvious choice, and I’m mindful of the risk, but we could benefit from the certain controversy it would add to the cocktail.”
Verdasco and Boniek were silent with anticipation. Gretz turned and switched on the giant video screen and input the search criteria. Eventually a list of names appeared. They were headed by Manuel Salina.
“Jesus Christ.” Verdasco recalled the historical animosity between Konrad’s older brother and their father. Boniek remained silent. Gretz drew their attention to a couple of salient points. “He will undoubtedly be attending the funeral and he works as an investigative journalist for the Montevideo Independiente. He is therefore qualified, and being of Iberiana jurisdiction, he is not unduly influenced by Iberia Central. He will also have a unique position to divide the Salina family if that becomes necessary. There’s no smoke without fire.” They agreed to approach him personally.
The solemn process of identifying Konrad’s body precipitated a need for his parents to have some time to themselves. It therefore afforded the opportunity to Duarte to ask Olmeda a little more about the showdown with Pierze. The legal man replied, “It is pretty normal for this to happen. Pierze will be who he says he is, but not what he says he is. He should not however have allowed us to believe he was you.”
The response was philosophical. “Yeah, I had kind of figured that out, but Salina was apparently in the process of explaining something when I walked into the office. He never returned to the subject after Pierze left.”
Olmeda suggested it was down to his grief. “I suspect he was about to lecture you on his favourite theory of the rise and fall of anarchy within society. He firmly believes that in either Iberian democracy or Orient totalitarian doctrine, anarchy will flourish then recede, but for different reasons. The distribution of wealth – he believes – could not be more uneven, but whilst democracy allows peaceful protest and totalitarianism does not, they will lead to the same result. He suggests that relative affluence breeds higher aspiration and therefore challenge to government. Real poverty breeds seething discontent which eventually ferments to anarchy. He goes on to profess even the poorest cannot survive a diet of constant anarchy and that similarly, freedom alone does not feed the family. The same is true of the high-principled affluent society. So in his mind the fluctuating presence of anarchical trend becomes a constant in the equation of governing, albeit with a flexible value. The true constant, he insists, is corruption, and its lifeblood - temptation. He was about to say to you that whether or not your verdict was uncomplicated suicide, this should not cloud the near certainty that some of his son’s claims are true, and critically, SACRED is not as secure as we believe. At best it is another ‘big brother’, not too dissimilar to his own organisation. Sorry Chief Inspector, but you did ask.”
Duarte smiled at Olmeda and commented, “I guess both Salina and I agree that this is just the beginning of the story.”
His phone rang. “Duarte.”
“Pierze here. I have had further thoughts on the case. I think we should meet.” As he still wanted to know how and why El Schmuck had been so quick to the scene, Duarte agreed. “Very well I should be free within a couple of hours, come to the office.” Pierze struggled to remain polite. “Chief Inspector, what I have to say would be better communicated elsewhere. Can we have dinner?”
Duarte was tired. “As long as I don’t have to go home and change that would be acceptable.” The picture of Duarte stripping to his underwear caused Pierze to wince. “I will meet you at La Cucina, I am sure you know it – two blocks from your office.”
He conceded. “Ok, make it around seven. I don’t sleep well after late supper.”
*
Butragueno was about to start on the list of Konrad’s friends but she kept eyeing the brown envelope. She studied the contents again, and was intrigued by his assertion that if he was right about his friends being murdered, it was part of some greater plan. She mused – ‘to bring Iberia down from within’ – it all sounded rather preposterous and yet he was prepared to give his life in order to be taken seriously. Her thought pattern was interrupted by an incoming message from Duarte. He wanted her to look after Senora Salina, while he showed the initial video call from Konrad, and the subsequent recording of his final act, to Olmeda and Konrad’s father. The message said this had been advised by Olmeda, and anyway it was a good opportunity to get the lady to talk about her son. She was annoyed at the haphazard methodology of Duarte, having just settled down to one task to be spirited away to nanny duty. As she got up to comply she glanced in the mirror and was horrified; she felt she was becoming more like him every day, worst of all she was losing her dress sense. True, she did not need feminine attire for the tracking down of Konrad’s friends’ families, but it was an option. Now she felt she should change before meeting Senora Salina, whose elegance cleverly masked her age. Butragueno had no man in her life, and a mentor who was ridiculed by the very people who would determine her future. Things had to change. She showered, put her hair up and donned a very smart dark green trouser suit she had not worn for a couple of years. It was a tight squeeze – she needed to get back in shape – but it made her feel different. She was a tall woman with almost feline movement, especially when she walked. On the slender side, she had perfectly proportioned curves in the right places. On the way she diverted to her hairdresser and booked a weekend appointment to have a re-style and subtle highlights in her auburn tresses.
*
Duarte forewarned the audience of two, that the message Konrad would refer to, would stress the importance of the tattoo. Before they could accuse him of withholding information he said, “I wanted you to see this for yourself, after you had seen the body. I needed to know if you knew about this tattoo previously, it is after all a unique identifying mark.” Salina respected this on a professional level. They asked for the footage to be re-run in slow mode, with a few stops and zooms. Duarte studied their faces continually for any signs of recognition or anxiety. Salina asked for a still of the tattoo as he neither knew of its presence, time of origin, or any connection it may have to the protest group to which his son had belonged.
“Presumably you have begun decoding?” enquired Olmeda.
Duarte beamed, “Better than that, we have retrieved the contents of the safety deposit box. The code was quite primitive.” He noted what seemed to be an adrenaline surge in Salina. He continued. “You may now appreciate why I said we would discuss release of Konrad’s personal effects as soon as we could. I want you to see the contents of this lock-up first. He obviously felt they were important enough to protect, and ultimately die for, so we owe it to him to proceed with caution as well as diligence.” Both men, in their different ways felt they had been prematurely dismissive of Duarte’s acumen, as he had disguised it well, both in appearance and a seemingly scatter-brained approach.
*
Butragueno found Senora Salina in the lounge at their hotel. It was just as well she had changed, even so the opulence of this place made her slightly nervous. “Good afternoon, I’m Elle Butragueno – I report to Chief Inspector Duarte. This is not an interview; my boss felt you might appreciate some company while the others get through the rest of the unpleasant tasks. We’re all touched by the unusual circumstances of what happened, but I can assure you we will try to respect your family privacy while we complete our routine checks.”
She was welcomed. “Please s
it down – may I call you Elle? I have to deal with formality in all of my husband’s activities. I have no informality now that Konrad is gone. Manuel is alive of course, but we never hear from him or see him anymore. I’m sorry, would you like a drink or are you on duty?”
Butragueno softened further. “Of course you may address me as Elle; no one else seems to now. And yes, I’ll have – let me see – a glass of Chenin Blanc.” She almost fainted at the price displayed on the menu. As Senora Salina waved a waiter to the table Butragueno inquired, “Manuel, I’m sorry I don’t....”
The interruption was well timed. “Oh yes, Konrad’s older brother. There was only two years between them but they were so different. Manuel left for Southern Iberiana as soon as he graduated. It haunts my husband Antonio because he feels that in retrospect he was too controlling with the children. It comes with the territory when you are so much in the public eye, and he didn’t want the boys to be exploited. This is the price we have paid. I don’t even know if he would allow me to contact him to tell him what has happened, he refuses our calls.”
