Chapter 21
Tristan
Two weeks have passed since Chamonix, one month invested covertly investigating Lumina, and photos cover my home office wall. As I study the Venn diagram on the wall, one thing has become clear. For an organization that once prided itself on hiring employees for life, there’s been quite a lot of turnover and unexpected death.
The former CEO and CFO died two years ago. While the helicopter crash is credited to poor weather, I’m now wondering what event was so pressing the two men climbed into a helicopter in the face of high winds and an impending storm. The press coverage reported they were simply flying to a meeting in Munich.
William Salo, the unlucky chap with a knife through the eye and a wife conceivably willing to cash in, reported to a man named Doug Dolsten. He left Lumina about six months before William’s death. An Interpol colleague requested a meeting with him, expected and understandable given William’s involvement in a woman’s abduction, and that meeting is in a fortnight. He claimed a busy travel schedule with his new firm, and indeed, we confirmed he’s currently in the United States at a conference.
Nelson Peltz, the current president, is obviously a person of interest, but our tech team has reviewed his call logs and text messages and we uncovered nothing suspicious. If anything, he appeared to have minimal contact with William Salo.
We’ve scoured the firm’s phone logs and travel records, and as suspected, there’s no trail to Moscow. That would have been almost suspiciously lucky for someone to be so careless.
My interactions with the current CEO and CFO have been minimal, but we’ve uncovered nothing suspicious about the two. Of note, both are new to the company, brought on by the board for their experience in the pharmaceutical industry and their wealth of contacts. Since neither of them has direct experience with research, and both hail from the same pharmaceutical giant based in the United States, it’s highly unlikely they would be involved in the scam, as we believe it began before they joined Lumina.
It’s convenient and fortunate that I work down the hall from Peltz, but in truth, the more I observe him, the fewer suspicions I harbor. He has all the markings of an executive treading gingerly to reach retirement, and only worried that someone, mainly me, might alter the plans for his golden years. If he once held higher ambitions, my hunch is being overlooked for the CEO spot when it opened up destroyed any dreams once harbored. On a day-to-day basis, he’s relatively hands off with his direct reports, delegates everything he can to Lucia, and spends more time out of the office at long lunches and, when possible, golf with clients. My gut tells me he’d do nothing illegal because he’s too close to cashing out.
There’s a woman by the name of Cristal Litchfield who worked on William Salo’s account team. Her background report uncovered that her second cousin is a member of the Russian mafia. That doesn’t implicate her in a crime, but she has the connection. She doesn’t work on my account and thus far has dodged my invitations for an introductory meeting. I move her photo and bio to the center of my wall.
The others on Salo’s team are too baby-faced to have been involved years ago. Might some of them be complicit in a scheme to test drugs on unwilling test participants? Certainly, but we’ve checked all their financials and nothing is out of place.
And Saint’s source specifically said we’re looking for an older Swiss man.
I’m working from home today because I’m turning my attention to our clients. I followed Saint’s intel initially, looking within Lumina, but I’m running out of leads. In meeting after meeting, I have yet to come across anyone who has appeared remotely nefarious. I’ve compiled a list of the individuals working directly with William Salo, and those who worked directly with Salo’s former boss, and I’m waiting for Ozzie to provide background reports, but my expectations are low they’ll uncover anything fruitful.
My mobile rings and I glance at the screen before answering.
“You miss me, don’t you?”
Nigel snorts in response. “Now that you mention it, I have been having trouble sleeping at night.”
“Melatonin’s good for that.”
“I’ll take it under advisement.” Dry humor and Nigel go hand in hand, but I sense from his tone there’s more to this.
“Something wrong?”
“Penny let me know you’re working from home today so penciled in to call you.”
There’s no point in asking how his assistant knew where I was working today. If it truly bothered me, I’d turn my mobile off and store it in the vault.
“Looking for an update?” I wish I had one to give.
“Giving you one. Dr. Dolsten passed away yesterday.” I twirl the dry erase marker between two fingers. Two weeks before a scheduled meeting with Interpol. “Automobile accident in California.”
“Was he the driver?”
“Yes.”
“Foul play expected?”
“Police on the scene suspect drunk driving, but they are waiting on a toxicology report.”
“You don’t believe that.”
“No. I don’t. I think someone learned he had a meeting scheduled with Interpol and eliminated a loose end.”
“Any Solonoff sightings?”
“No. The information on the incident in California is limited right now. Since you’re working from home today, can you give one of our Arrow contacts a call? See what they can learn. Accident occurred in Los Angeles on Highway 101.”
“Will do.” Arrow has contacts with the LAPD. Shouldn’t be too much for them to access information.
“Tristan, it goes without saying, and you’re one of our best, but eyes and ears open.”
“You really do love me.”
“You’re the only one I can wallop at gin.” There’s a pause, and some clicking on his end like he got distracted. “Has that assistant you’re courting provided any leads?”
“Does the use of antiquated language equate to jealousy?”
Penny’s voice carries through from his end, no doubt telling him he’s got someone else on the line.
“One minute,” he says to Penny. “The reason I brought up your love interest is that I authorized a deeper background check.”
“Waste of time and money. She has no part in this.” I’ve spent every night over the last two weeks with Lucia, and she doesn’t have the character to take part in a crime of this magnitude, nor does she live like someone with illegitimate gains.
“Fascinating.”
I wait, expecting more, but a dull tone crosses the line. I check the screen and he ended the call.
Nigel. Curmudgeonly old bastard. What brought on renewed interest in Lucia?
Lucia: Dinner at the pub?
Her timely text has me checking my wrist watch. The day is getting away from me. She’s a reason I worked from home today.
At the office, when I come around behind her desk and glimpse her skirt, her thigh, any part of her really, even her ankles, I remember what we did the night before. And as if she has telepathy, her cheeks flush and her gaze darts about.
Thank goodness no one else works in the hallway leading up to Peltz’s domain. If they did, the water cooler gossip would boil over.
Me: Not feeling it. My place?
Lucia: Should I stop by the market?
Me: Are you offering to cook?
Lucia: Yes
Me: We can order in
Lucia: I’d like to cook. You have an amazing kitchen. Someone should use it.
In truth, I’ve grown tired of the menu options. Her cooking should be welcome. Yet, the idea breeds distinct discomfort. It’s not the domesticity, per se, but what it implies.
I can take comfort in the knowledge I’ll leave her in a better position than when I arrived. I have legal counsel addressing her request for Swiss citizenship and I asked Penny to do some searching for posts in EU countries that would be a proper match and offer vertical movement.
Me: Ring when you arrive
I should give her the code for the door. But this room prevents me from doing so. Of course, if I come clean with her, with a more aware perspective, she may recall something that rings with suspicion.
A quick internet search shows Dr. Dolsten’s vehicular accident. As expected, the article focuses more on the traffic accident than the occupant.
In my phone contact list, I search for Ryan Wolfgang. He resides in Santa Barbara, which is a couple of hours north of Los Angeles and this accident, but he maintains contacts with the local authorities throughout California.
“This is Ryan.”
“Hi Ryan. Tristan here. Do you have a minute?”
“Fire away.”
“There was a vehicular accident in Los Angeles involving William Salo’s former boss. He no longer works for Lumina, and he was in the United States on business. Can you look into it?”
“Send me the details. Should I alert Sloane or Sage Watson?”
“We need more information. But it smacks of someone cleaning up loose ends.”
“Copy that. Let me get some people on this and I’ll get back to you.”
“Much appreciated, Ryan.”
Who are these people that are willing to kill? And is it greed, or is more at stake for them? Whatever their motivation, it’s clear they’re dangerous.
I won’t bring Lucia into this. Whatever rumors she might have heard won’t be worth the risk to her.
I stare at the list of the deceased. What are the connections?