"They're in Europe. They kept changing residences and addresses. Right now, they can't be located."
"Joe had problems too. He couldn't find any information," Malcolm said, pensive.
"Well, it wasn't easy. But some of the records, such as those of the associations which defaulted, are of public domain. All Joe had to do was to consult the archives."
"I see. You've worked hard, Paul."
"Yes, I did. And I also went without food all day. Okay if I join you?"
"By all means. Go to the buffet. It's excellent, especially the fish: breaded shrimp, grilled halibut, stuffed trout…"
"Too bad I don't care for fish. I'm sure they have some meat up there, too," Paul said, and rose.
"Don't rush. I need a good break now, since I have to go back to my office after I leave here," Malcolm said with a soft groan.
"So late? It's ten o'clock now…"
"There's something I need to do myself, and I want to do it when I'm least likely to be interrupted."
Paul nodded, but frowned.
With his plate heaped high, Paul sat in front of Malcolm again. "You worked late every night last week," he said with concern.
"Yes, but there's a job I need to do myself, one that takes a lot of thought. I can't delegate it to anyone else."
"Super confidential, eh?"
"Absolutely top secret," Malcolm said, nodding.
"All right, then I don't want to know any more," Paul said, cutting into a slice of rare roast beef. "By the way, you said you were close to finding more evidence about Leslie Hadson before I left. Any luck?"
"Plenty. Brian went through papers and calls of his ex-partner. He traced two calls made to Central America, and five financial deposits routed over there via Hadson's office. Enough evidence to get the police out looking for him."
"Is your super-secret project involved with that, Malcolm?"
"No. It isn't for his case I have to stay at the office. I have something very nasty on my hands."
"I'm too tired to be curious." He yawned. "You may not go home at all tonight, Malcolm, but I will. Good night."
"Good night, Paul."
Back at his office, Malcolm logged into the workstation reserved for receiving and sending confidential messages. Each data transfer occurred through special channels and was encoded with one of the newest ciphers. He looked at the log of the incoming messages. Five faxes had been forwarded from Interpol over the previous days. They had not reached him, though. They contained photos of Luigi Amedeo di Monteturro and Caltabieni. The first group showed the two men leisurely lying on the deck of the yacht Cecilia Maria. The second showed Caltabieni hugging Luigi Amedeo at the bottom step of the aircraft Il Falco. The enclosed text gave the information gathered by Interpol. Caltabieni was a prominent figure, professionally and socially. He was actively involved in helping young artists through aggressive fund-raising campaigns. He has been investigated twice because of his life-style, but cleared each time.