“Maybe you could tell me what your job is at Meyer-Hofmann, Herr Von Klitzing?”
“I am the director of security.”
“And that means…?”
“Anything from internal issues involving staff and confidential information, to helping our holding companies with any security issues.”
“I work very closely with Herr Von Klitzing on these matters,” the lawyer interjected.
“I am sure you do, Herr Weiden! I would like to know why Herr Von Klitzing needed to contact Deputy Chief Hanson of the New York Police Department last year?”
“Deputy Chief Hanson? We don’t have any contact to the American Police.”
“I was asking Herr Von Klitzing.”Günther had again watched Von Klitzing’s face very carefully. He was hoping the question would get a reaction, and he wasn’t disappointed. He had visibly twitched at the question. Günther allowed himself an inner smile.
The ice man cracks.
“I have no recollection of such a contact.” Von Klitzing had regained his composure.
“Let me help you. You telephoned Deputy Chief Hanson on the fifth of October at 6:01 pm, then again on the third of November at 6:14 pm. He returned the call at 7:02 pm on the same day. Finally, you called him on the fifth of November at 8:13 pm. Deputy Chief Hanson was found dead in his home office the very next day.”
Weiden was now on his feet.
“We will be answering no further questions, Detective. Unless you are going to arrest my client, this interview is over.” Günther was not disturbed by the reaction. He had the answer he needed. He saw it in Von Klitzing’s eyes. He had spoken to Hanson. Now all he had to do was prove it.
“Unless your client has something to hide, he should be able to answer the question.”
“I have never heard of Deputy Chief Hanson.”
“The calls were made from your extension, in Gallery Street.”
“I don’t know what you are talking about. I don’t have an extension at the club. My offices are at our Company Headquarters.”
“Extension forty-two. Are you saying that is not your extension number?”
“That is not my extension number. It is a very big building, and there are very many extensions.” Von Klitzing’s answer was so coolly delivered, Günther almost believed him.
“Then can you explain why you answered that extension number only yesterday?”
“Enough! Herr Von Klitzing, do not answer that. We are leaving now!”
Von Klitzing rose from the table, his face visibly flushed. Following Weiden out of the office, his mind had already started to digest the implications.
Günther sat back in his chair and smiled at Monika.
“Well done, Moni!”
Leaning back so that the chair’s front legs left the floor, he could see around Monika. He directed his next comment in the direction of the mirrored glass window on the interrogation room wall.
“I want to know his every move from now on.”
Two officers left the room next door, leaving Commander Wilhelm Götz leaning on the intercom button.
“Well done, Günther.”
34
After returning home from the office, Lisa was desperate to know more about Phoenix IT. Throwing her bag on the lobby table, she turned on a few lights and went into the hobby room, which she had converted into a temporary office. Her company laptop sat on a small desk in front of the bay windows. Drawing the curtains, she made a mental note to get them changed. This was the only room in the house where Britt Petersen had obviously had no say on the interior decoration. Its walls were whitewashed, and the floor was covered in a cheap pine-coloured laminate. There were strange pieces of art on the walls, including an African mask. Framed, dried flowers and a massive collage of coloured glass chips interspersed with diamante crystals that portrayed a rough approximation of the garden beyond the bay doors added to the room. It was obviously an amateur piece, making Lisa wonder which member of the couple was responsible for the monstrosity. Firing up the laptop, she logged into the company server, knowing it was not the safest strategy, but time was not on their side. Michael could lose control at any time, so the sooner they could go to the authorities, the better.
Certain that Steve Walker was responsible for Phoenix IT, she started the search for proof. PricewaterhouseCoopers filing was very efficient, and it was not long before she found copies of the company’s registration. The company was Austrian and would have paid its taxes to the Austrian government had it not been writing off its main investment, a large office building in Ellmau. A few taps on the keyboard had shown development to have cost far in excess of fifty million euros. The company’s staffing bills were also astronomical, with over 200 employees, all of whom seemed to be on six-figure salaries.
This could be it. These were large sums of money, maybe to support a criminal network? Lisa was unsure if this was enough evidence to spark an investigation.
So intense was her concentration, she became oblivious to everything apart from the intricate web of companies built around Phoenix IT. All the companies were co-dependent, and all serviced the giants in the portfolio. It seemed that whenever Meyer-Hofmann were not able to find a suitable company for purchase, Steve would simply start a new one and make one of the Meyer-Hofmann board members its CEO. The variety was mind-blowing. It was accounting genius. Obscure companies all over Europe and North America completed a web of financial possibilities. One particular company stood out from the others: Mills Medical. They were a customer of Phoenix IT, paying enormous fees for a ‘complete business solution’. Including a small server farm, at a cost of six hundred thousand dollars. Mills Medical’s business was stem cell research, with laboratories in England and the United States. Its largest customer was another Meyer-Hofmann company called Brunwick Security Limited, who provided security for governments and large companies operating in the world’s hot spots. Like many of their American competitors, they were hiring ex-military personnel from all over the world and using them as security guards for plant, equipment, and personnel. The security firm was paying Mills Medical for stem cell enhancement, repair, and regeneration treatments. The circle was completed by an invoice addressed to Phoenix IT from Brunswick Security. The paper trail did loops, hoops, and pirouettes, all of which led back to Meyer-Hofmann and a massive money-laundering operation.
Lisa sat back in her chair and blew out a deep breath.
“This is amazing!” she said out loud. “And if any of these invoices are for actual services, these guys have put together a considerable mercenary force, which Steve is setting off against tax.”
Back in Munich, Steve Walker was just leaving the office when his mobile phone rang. The orchestral ringtone of the Star Wars theme escaped his pocket.
“Yes?” he said, without checking the caller ID.
“Can’t you sort that out by yourself? No, no, okay, I will get back to you.”
Turning around, he headed back into the building, tired and frustrated that his American colleague was not able to take care of the problem himself. Entering his dark office, he flicked on the lights and moved around his desk, pressing the spacebar on the keyboard to wake up the computer. Throwing his leather jacket over the back of his chair, he sat and rolled up his shirt sleeves. Logging on to the intranet, he hammered at the keys, becoming more and more infuriated by his colleague’s incompetence the more he thought about it. It was only as he was about to log out that he noticed the small computer icon in the corner of the screen. The intranet allowed a user to log in on multiple devices so that they could easily transfer information. By clicking the icon, you could immediately continue work remotely on another device anywhere in the world. Puzzled, he clicked on the little square, thinking maybe he had left his laptop on that morning. Staring at the screen, it was not long before he understood what was happening.