Kowalski pulled a gun from the drawer of his desk and played with it. "Anyway, I have nothing to lose anymore." Gideon was pressured by the appearance of the gun, especially because he also knew Kowalski had nothing to lose, but on the other hand, he did not want to imply to the police outside he was threatened by a gun until he had enough time to extract a confession from Kowalski. If the surveillance unit realized he was being threatened, they would barge in and Gideon wouldn’t have enough time to get a confession about the disappearance of Amos and about the case of Daniel. Therefore, he didn’t say a word about the threat hovered over his head. "If you already knew I exposed you and the whole case, why did you kill Amos? You killed him, right?"
Kowalski released a ridiculous smile. "You know, Amos’ last wish was really stupid. I promised him I would do this, but c’mon, to burn his body and disperse it into the sea? Where did he get those stupid ideas? And where would I be able to burn the body without arousing any suspicion? Oh and the dirt…" Kowalski crumpled his face.
"Then where did you put his body?" Gideon ignored the outrageous behavior Kowalski got himself into.
"Wait a minute, are you in a hurry to go somewhere? We have all the time in the world. Now we are sailing to Haifa, and we will wait there until the morning to stamp our passports and we will take a trip to Cyprus. You will of course go down in the middle of the trip and I will continue all the way to Cyprus."
"You are planning to throw me in the middle of the sea? Is Amos also in a place waiting for you to throw him somewhere along the way?"
Kowalski breathed heavily and focused on Gideon’s face. "What’s your stake in it? Anyhow, you won’t be able to help him anymore. You can’t get out alive from here." Kowalski looked at Gideon’s terrified eyes.
"Just for full disclosure," Gideon said, "Do you think I came here alone, and it must be obvious to you there are taps?"
"Just for disclosure, I am a communication genius, and if your friends are here, they will not be able to hear anything, because I blocked the communication with a very advanced measure. In simple words, I destroyed their taps. Second, if they are indeed here, both of us won’t get out of here alive."
"I won’t get out from here alive, but the truth will come out. My partner is in the United States at the moment waiting for the test result of Mr. Fisher and his son Daniel. He was the one who exposed the whole case and he was the one who believed your son was a partner in the crime. Only you or I can clear him, but no one will believe you, and until Naor will prove his innocence, and there will be nothing left of his family or of his big communication company."
"He is not connected with this. Naor doesn’t know anything about this!" Kowalski yelled furiously.
"I believe you, but I’m sure the police don’t. I can promise you, if you get out of here and admit it, I will support your version Naor was not involved."
Kowalski went back to sit in his place, thinking.
"You know you have nowhere to run," Gideon continued in his persuasive efforts. "You are trapped. It’s not only that I know. The moment Fisher will know, you are finished. At least, save your son."
Kowalski held his face in despair, while playing with the gun in his hand all the time. Then he reached for the device was in his desk and neutralized the electronic blocks. "It has to be clear to everyone that Naor is innocent."
Gideon nodded in agreement.
"I always asked myself how I would feel if I told my story. It’s not about make it easier for me, it has never hampered me, but I wonder if it will make something of me." Kowalski opened the confession:
"It was a bidding held by the U.S. Army, a bidding I was really interested in, because it would give me recognition as one of the best companies. Business in Israel is nice, China is even nicer, but doing business in America is already a different league, it is like touching the sky. But unfortunately, Mr. Fisher was a favorite. He was supposed to take the big bidding. He was known and they trusted him. When they say they don’t intend to undertake the low bid, they mark people like Fisher, people who pay them more in order to get the job. They have good names and they stand in time. With them, you don’t take the risk. Somehow, they had a problem with me. They don’t have any experience with me, so I should win at least one bid to prove myself and then I'll be on the horse. But I had no chance against Fisher. All night long, I was thinking of a way how to win the bidding. I bribed lots of people in the army, and they said they could try to help, but they can’t guarantee. Then the idea of kidnapping flashed into my mind, to kidnap the son of Mr. Fisher. Do you know how many children disappear every year in the U.S.? No one would suspect me. At first I thought of hiding him for a few days, but just like anything else, you know how to start, but not how to end. Then the moment came for executing the plan. The nanny of Tom, or Daniel, arrived to take him from the kindergarten. While she was out of the car, I went into the back seat and when she came back with the child and began to drive, I ordered her to go into the woods, where I left another vehicle. I knew the mother would not be worried the boy was not back yet. Based on what I saw during the days I followed them, it was just normal for the nanny to go for a walk with him. I pointed the gun on the nanny and asked her to write a note from the kidnapper, asking that no information would be leaked to the media, otherwise he would kill the child, and asked to wait for the ransom demands in an expected way. Of course, I did this in case the search began immediately or they discovered the body before I was be able to smuggle the child from America. After she did this, I shot two bullets in her head. Then I pointed the gun at the boy, but he looked at me in a way that scared me. He was always a special child, so small, but smart. I gave him a sedative and hung the letter with the nanny’s handwriting on the car window. Then, I bought a huge suitcase and put the sedated child inside. From there I went to my yacht in Manhattan. No one thought there was a child inside the suitcase. They didn’t know yet the child was kidnapped.
After sailing for several hours, I anchored in Connecticut. The whole time, no one was permitted to enter my room. This little bastard, who was with me in my room, and who barely saw me twice but remembered my name, was forcing me to get rid of him. All the way to Connecticut I was worried I had made a mistake by not shooting him along with the nanny, not to mention he was sedated the whole way. I arrived at the port of New Bedford in Connecticut and I called my son Naor to tell him the whole story and ask for his help, but Naor didn’t answer the phone. I thought it would be best that way. I was not even sure in my heart if I had to involve him in the story.” Just a bit of a pressure on him and he might tell everything to the police.
"That’s when I called Julia. She was not Naor’s mistress, but mine. That was your mistake in the story. I asked her to fly to me. I explained to her Daniel was my grandson, Naor’s illegitimate child. I told her his mother died and she asked Naor to take care of him, but Naor was worried about his wife and didn’t want her to know about it, or their marriage would be over, as well as, my business, because fifty percent of the company belongs to Naor’s wife. I offered Julia a large settlement to take my grandson away, probably to Romania, and take care of him. Julia was happy to go back to Romania and get a monthly payment. I arranged the papers for the child, I called him Daniel, a common Romanian name, and I flew them to Romania. Julia bought herself a house there and the money came to her as I had promised. When the media released news on the abduction of Fisher’s son, Daniel was already in Eastern Europe, thousands of kilometers away from America.
“Then I sat on the yacht with a cup of coffee, more relaxed. I flew to Fisher’s house and supported him in his hardest moments. From that day, our relationship became so much closer. Fisher never forgot my support during those difficult times. Do you know how many biddings I won thanks to him?
"For years I never stop wondering if I did a smart thing by not killing the child. Even when he was under Julia’s supervision, the fear continued to dwell in me. The fact the child was alive didn’t put me to rest and
I feared that my secret would be exposed. And I was right, on more than one occasion. The first time was when Julia suddenly showed up in my office, just two and a half years after the kidnapping. The boy still looked exactly the way he looked when he was two and a half years old. One look by an alert reporter was enough to expose me, one glance or alert from my employees would be enough to connect the puzzle. My son or his wife would be able to recognize Daniel. Oh, I was angry with Julia. America, she was telling me, she was going to destroy me and she was talking to me about America. She was not allowed to come here. If she wanted it, I would go to her. She was not allowed to come here in any way. I couldn’t trust her anymore. Her fate was sealed. An hour later, a woman from the Department of Social Welfare called me and said Julia left her a letter. I went to her and while she was making coffee for me, I replaced the letter and put a few thousand dollars in there to buy her silence. I knew she would take the money in her pocket and from that moment she wouldn’t say much about her meeting with Julia or with me. Now, all that was left was to finish with Julia before I got to the point of no return. I called and asked her to meet so we could clear things up. The moment she got into the car I sedated her and I drove off to Tel Mond. On our way, you won’t believe it, there was a check point. I was worried about the inspection. Fortunately, the police recognized me, shook my hand and let me pass. When I got to Tel Mond area, Julia was still sedated. I didn’t even have the need to kill her, I buried her alive and went on my way.”
Kowalski took a deep breath, "I thought the story with Daniel was over. What would a two and a half year old boy who was abducted remember after he saw me for a moment when he was five years old? That’s what I thought until Daniel arrived on my yacht one day and shocked me completely. You know, I was sitting, smoking a cigar when I suddenly saw him. Believe me, at first I thought he was just a ghost that came back to avenge me. I didn’t want to call the guards at the Marina because I thought I was just hallucinating, but it was not a hallucination at all, it was a delusional reality. Since then I have never been calm. I was afraid one day Daniel would discover the secret, and my worries have come true, Gideon.” He nodded sadly. "For twenty five years, no one knew anything, until you came along. And what did you gain from this? Was it worth it for you to lose your friend for the sake of a stranger like Daniel?"
"You killed Amos?" Gideon asked in pain.
Kowalski took a deep breath and nodded.
"Where is he?"
"He is buried in a secure place. He is not alone. It’s okay. I buried him in a mass grave in Hertzelia cemetery. There was a little bit of work but it was not what I thought, the soil was still soft.”
Gideon felt a blow to his stomach. The announcement his best friend from the army died in this way caused him intense pain.
He was so wrapped up with sadness, he didn’t immediately see Kowalski turning the gun on himself. He jumped at the gun to prevent him from doing it, but he caught two bullets instead. Gideon fell to the floor, struggling with pain. Immediately thereafter, the door opened, and men in uniforms with concealed faces jumped to Kowalski, handcuffed him and read him his rights while escorting him to the car.
Gideon was put on a stretcher and the first thing he wanted to know was if the test results had arrived. He turned on the phone and the SMS message from Alon was written on the screen, "It's positive. The tests confirmed that Daniel is Fisher's son." He thanked God for everything and dialed Alon. "It's over. You can go to the media. Kowalski admitted everything."
"How?"
"I paid a very big price; I lost Amos and got two bullets - one to my knee and one in my arm."
"Thank God you are okay." Alon said.
"I’m not okay…" Gideon said, but Alon already hung up the phone. He was in a hurry to go to the media. An hour later, Alon’s face was already visible on the TV screens, giving the interview of his life. Mr. Fisher even agreed to cooperate and answered a live telephone interview, as a courtesy to Alon.
53
Benjamin looked at his friend lying in the hospital bed. At the entrance of the hospital he already noticed a lot of curious people and reporters who came to interview Gideon after hearing about the case and seeing Alon on foreign channels. On the television screen the picture of Kowalski’s arrest was projected again and again aside Alon’s picture as he was sharing the details of the whole investigation process.
Benjamin was watching TV, waiting for Gideon to wake up.
The truth was he figured the whole case out as soon as, he saw Daniel in the door of the Warwick Hotel, but he had to admit Gideon deserved all the credit in the world. When he looked at Daniel, it was impossible not to feel the intense pain of a two and a half year old boy who was abducted and found his family after twenty-five years. What had he been through all these years? How did he live? He felt sorry for him. Even if his life was on its way to a huge improvement, there was nothing could compensate the pain and suffering of someone who had been separated from his parents since childhood. Benjamin thought that he had no right to play with the life of a child and his family, and certainly not with the destiny of the people who designated a role in finding the boy. He kept silent as these thoughts ran through his mind.
Gideon opened his eyes, looking at Benjamin sitting beside him watching television, and he knew how much effort was required for him to leave his office in New York, but he had good reasons. Amos was murdered and he was lying injured in the hospital.
"Are you awake?" Benjamin asked.
"You knew it the moment you saw the boy." Gideon stated weakly.
Benjamin nodded.
Gideon lay in silence, his injured leg elevated, and his injured arm resting at his side. "We lost Amos," Gideon said, his eyes were stuck to a point on the ceiling, "Benjamin, do you still remember how the three of us sat in Mount Hermon in the evening, after we've lost so many friends in the war? We cried like children, we swore we would never forget them. We decided every November we would meet on a high mountain and commemorate them. We did it for a few years then suddenly it was over. Suddenly the three of us didn’t call to remind each other of our agreement, as if we decided to forget." Gideon was silent for a while and took a breath, "When I went to see Kowalski, I knew he was dangerous. I knew him more than Amos knew. If I had laid the cards right in front of Amos and told him everything, he wouldn’t have made any irresponsible moves like meeting Kowalski. But I walked up high to the mountain, while I pushed my friends at its feet. I was afraid to involve my friends in the discovery of the truth. I hid it from my best friends. I was afraid I couldn’t trust them with such a big secret, I was afraid they would betray me. But I know that I judged them according to my moral values. I thought I got to the top with this case, and look where I am, I’m lying in a hospital, mourning the death of my friend Amos. I wanted so much to be there in the moment Daniel and his father met. It would have been the highlight of my career, but instead, I’m lying here bruised and battered. My success has killed my best friend. It’s true he pissed me off. He drew something out of my wife I didn’t want to tell him, but why did I not trust him? What happened to me? Success probably got to my head."
"Don’t be so hard on yourself. We both know those had been the rules of the game between us for years. Usually, it didn’t bother us. I’m not much better. I put wire taps in your room and followed you as well."
"It was the first thing I did after you called. I searched and found the device, but I decided to fool you and talk only about what had already been suspected and not to give you any new material. But you needed to know something, on the same day Amos called and we both were in the elevator, I planned to tell you the whole story. I wanted to tell you everything from the very beginning, but Alon asked me to wait. I wanted to tell Amos too, but it bothered me he pressured me so much before I could consolidate something in my mind regarding the case. What will it be like without Amos?"
Benjamin closed his eyes and said, "I have many friends, but there was no one I could call my
brother except you."
These were the first words Amos had written in a military newspaper, after being wounded in the Yom Kippur War and moving to the army's newspaper. The article talked about three friends who survived the war and promised to remember their brothers in arms.
54
On her way back to Israel, Karina sat alone on the plane, sad and depressed. Everyone seemed happy except her. Daniel had found his family, Alon and Gideon gained recognition, while she was left with sadness in her heart. Daniel was further from her than he had ever been. She wondered if she could meet him any time she wanted to and whether the vague relationship they had would remain. She hoped with all her heart he would appreciate her efforts in locating his family and get in touch with her somehow, in spite of everything. For five days, she waited for a call from Daniel, but no phone call came. If Daniel had known what she had given up just to get to the United States... but he didn’t find a minute for her. Before she left, she even thought he would surprise her on the phone, but the two phone calls she had before boarding the plane were from Alon and her secretary. Both times, she jumped on the phone hoping it was Daniel, but she was disappointed each time. Even when she was packing her suitcase and when she was on her way to the airport, she still thought Daniel would call. She checked the phone again and again hoping to see missed calls from him, but there was nothing.
In the newspaper she was holding, there were five pages allotted to the story of the Fisher family. The smiling faces of Daniel and David Fisher were plastered on every newspaper. Daniel looked completely different from the Daniel she knew. It was a little bit difficult for her that Daniel suddenly belonged to everyone, close to everybody’s heart, but far away from hers. In the newspaper, an inaccurate story of Daniel’s life was published, told by Alon. There was also an expansion on Moshe Kowlalski’s story, and his connection to Fisher, pictures of Daniel with his family when he was little and more. Every newspaper was trying to give unique information.
Vanished Without A Trace Page 24
