Daniel Ganninger - Icarus Investigations 01 - Flapjack (30 page)

“
You must get these men and bring them to justice for what they have done to Ernesto and Alfonso, promise me that,” Morales pleaded.

“
We’ll do it Doctor, don’t you worry,” Galveston assured him.

“
And why do you have on that horrible mustache and beard?” Morales questioned.

Galveston
looked at me without a response.  The jig was up.  I decided I could scratch my mustache now.

The phone suddenly rang in the
kitchen.  “It is the Black Bear guards checking up on me.  We need to get you two out of here.”  Morales wasn’t supposed to pick it up, it was an indication that they would be checking on him in minutes.

“
What do you propose?” I asked him.

“
The service entrance down the hall,” Morales said emphatically.

“
You’re the boss.  Let’s get out of here,” Galveston replied.

Morales took the lead and opened up his
front door.  The hallway was clear, and we began a quick walk toward the end and down the stairs that lead to the service entrance at the rear of the building. 

“
All clear,” he announced.  “I’ll do just what you told me.  Please let me know what you two accomplish.  I’ll do everything I can here, for Ernesto’s sake.  Now go.”

“
Thank you Doctor.  We’ll keep in touch, I promise,” Galveston assured him.

We waved to the doctor as we hurriedly jetted
down the stairs.  Luckily it was just as Morales had described.  The area was empty at the service door and we raced out.

“Can I check my drawers now?”  I asked Galveston jokingly, trying to make the best of a bad situation. 

Galveston
managed a smile.  “Mine might need to be checked too.”

Elizabeth
was waiting for us with the car’s engine running.  We jumped in and sped away.

“I take it that it was successful,” she said.

“
I hope so,” Galveston said handing my notepad back to me.  “I think it’s time we got the hell out of Sao Paulo,” he announced as we settled in for the drive to the airport.  I assumed we were heading back to Rio, before connecting with a flight home.

My bubble burst when
Galveston instructed, “we need to get to Washington D.C., Black Bear headquarters, as quickly as possible.”

“
We what?”  I exclaimed, not terribly excited about a new change of venue.

“
We need to talk to Placer and put the fear of God in him.  I have a feeling he isn’t acting alone, and we need to find out who else is involved.”

“
Won’t that just scare him away?”  I asked.

“
That’s a chance we have to take.  This thing is just too big for him to act alone, and with Murray involved, everything has changed.  We need the earliest flight out of Sao Paulo to D.C.”

“
Uh, did you forget something?”  I pressed him.

“
No, I don’t think so.  What did we forget?”  He asked me.

“
Uh, our fellow employee, Jane, she’s still in Rio.”

“
Oh yeah.  I’d appreciate you not telling that I forgot all about her.”

“
I’m sure she expects that by now,” I quipped.

Galveston
was in full steam ahead mode now.  Washington D.C. was next and this would, hopefully, bring us some closure.  But, for right now, all I wanted was some sleep.

-Chapter 59-

We made it to the airport safely and managed to get on the next available flight to Rio de Janeiro.  Elizabeth would accompany us on the flight. 

We rested on the flight from
Sao Paulo to Rio, and upon arriving, took the shuttle to the hotel where we had previously stayed.  I immediately bid the two of them a good night and raced to Jane’s room.  I knocked on her door, and as she opened it her face lit up, she threw her arms around me, and kissed me on the lips.

“
I’m so glad you’re safe,” she told me excitedly, and I hugged her back.  “How did it go?”  She asked.

“
Boy, do I have some stories for you,” I said sighing.  She led me into her room and closed the door.

The
next morning we took the earliest flight out of Rio.  Our only option was to fly back to Sao Paulo to get a non-stop flight to Miami.  From there we could connect to Washington Dulles.

Galveston
called Alex, informed him of our plan, and asked him to locate where Placer would be.  May was meeting with Chase this morning at a conference in Chicago and was planning to give him the false information about Dr. Sloan’s demise.

“So you didn’t come back to the room last night.  Would you like to kiss and tell?”  Galveston asked as we settled in our seats.  He attempted to goad me into revealing some juicy details, but I held firm.

“
We had a lovely night talking and enjoying each other’s company,” I managed to say with a smile.  He jabbed me in the ribs with his elbow.

“
I bet, you old dog.”

If anything,
this final stand would be a doozie, and I prepared myself mentally for the challenge.  All Galveston would tell me was that I would know everything after our unscheduled meeting with Timothy Placer, the CEO of Black Bear.

“
We have one or two days,” he muttered to himself. 

We
eventually touched down in Miami.  After a short layover we would be off to Dulles, and Washington D.C. 

Galveston
waited anxiously for May’s call.  He was probably questioning Chase as we spoke, and Galveston had a lot to tell him

-Chapter 60-

May arrived at the downtown Chicago Marriott at around 2 P.M. to question Weston Chase.  He would need to choose his questions carefully in order to not scare the fish away. 

Chase was attending a
n alternative energy conference and was one of the speakers from Global Energy Enterprise.  Obviously this was a fitting meeting given the events that were currently happening in the world. 

May
entered discreetly through the service entrance to the large ballroom.  He found a seat at the back of the room and surveyed the area.  The room was filled mostly with egghead types and members of think tanks, with a scattering of businessmen with an interest in this information.  May pulled out a notebook and got comfortable in a chair. 

A man in a blue suit was just finishing up his talk
.  A smattering of blue and green graphs illuminated the screen behind him as he used a laser pointer to point out pertinent items.  The man finished up his talk, and after the attendees gave a polite bit of applause, the moderator came up to the podium. 

The moderator gave
Chase a rousing introduction, filled with accolades and well wishes about all the wonderful work he had done in establishing his organization.  The man, May recognized, was Weston Chase.

May looked around him and found an unused program sitting on an adjacent seat.  Chase’s lecture was called,
“Business Models in a Capitalist System to Increase Utilization of Alternative Energy Solutions”.  Quite a mouthful, May thought. 

Chase thanked the moderator, pulled some notecards from his suit coat, and placed some reading glasses on his face.

“Thank you again for those kind words Mr. Franklin, if only everyone felt that way about me,” Chase started, garnering a laugh from the audience.  “These are trying times in the global energy market.  World events continue to dictate how we, as a country, use our energy resources.  Based on this dependence, I realized the importance of starting an organization that was independent of political thinking and focused mainly on utilization of cost effective energy solutions in developing countries.  Lessons learned in those countries could be applied here at home.” 

May’s eyes were already beginning to glaze over.  He had heard this line before, just a lot of words with very little action, but he managed to stay focused on what Chase was saying. 

“We live in a changing world and our business models must reflect this.  During this lecture I hope to give everyone a sense of what it entails to survive and thrive in the energy sector.  It goes beyond having good ideas and intentions.  To survive in energy implementation and to be effective, we need a model that is productive, and even more so, profitable.  Without profitability, we can’t establish the need for these services, and to change thinking and progress, we have to give the consumer, large and small, something that they will need,” Chase said.

May scribbled some notes on his pad.  It was an interesting idea
, and he agreed.  If people wanted it they would buy it, it would become popular, and conventional thinking would change.  In May’s mind, Chase could have stopped there.

Chase continued his lecture. 
“Global Energy Solutions researches, develops, and produces alternative forms of energy in a cost effective manner.  We are a leader in energy production and work for public policy changes.  We have already begun research and development on a new, revolutionary product that will change how everyone uses energy.  Let’s just say that it will be as simple as the cell phone battery in your phone.”

May sat up at this news.  Chase was
giving overtones about Dr. Sloan’s battery.  He couldn’t believe what he was hearing.  Chase was telling how he was going to make money from Dr. Sloan’s invention.  No one in the room flinched, but May knew too much about the case not to notice what had been said.  Chase was priming the pump for this group to expect a new, revolutionary battery. 

May listened
silently to the rest of the discussion.  Chase proposed that in order for people to embrace a new technology certain restrictions imposed by the government must be lifted, and a product that was cost effective needed to be developed.

People would only be motivated to change for something that would positively affect their life
, May thought.  The dreams about saving the environment or cleaning the air only went so far with the average person.  After forty minutes, Chase finished up his lecture and began to field questions. 

May
contemplated the content of the lecture.  To truly embrace these new alternative energy sources so desired by the members in the room required complete regulation and mandates by the government, forcing people to change. 

The
thought hit May like a brick, and he scribbled a name on his notepad, Senator Eastman.  The Senator, he knew from information Galveston had given him, was from the camp that dreamed of more government regulation on everything; fuel standards, environmental controls, paying for the miles you drove, and higher taxes on businesses and individuals if they didn’t comply with the energy mandates set by the federal government.  Most were such unpopular ideas that they never found footing, but now everything was different.  The explosions in Africa and South America, the rising cost of energy worldwide, and the scare of “climate change” would force people to reevaluate their energy consumption.

Chase answered the last of the questions
from the group, and the moderator took the stage again, thanking him for his words.  Chase walked off the stage and stood alone off to the side, a look of confidence on his face.  A large burly man approached Chase, spoke to him, and then backed away as Chase exchanged words with the moderator.  May got up, straightened his sport coat, and walked directly toward Chase. 

“
Mr. Chase,” May said coming up behind him.  Chase turned around, but not before May felt a hand on his shoulder.

“
No more questions.  Mr. Chase needs to leave the hotel,” the large man said to May as Chase looked on

“
I don’t think so,” May said to the large man as he showed him his badge politely.  The man slowly took his hand off May’s shoulder.

“
It’s okay Campbell, bring the car around,” Chase told the man.  Campbell complied and left the room, leaving Chase and May alone.

“
Mr. Chase, Special Agent David May,” he said, showing Chase his badge.  “I just need to ask you a few questions.” 

Chase didn’t flinch or even act surprised.
  “Of course, what can I do for you?”

“
I just need to ask you about Dr. Blout.  We are doing a follow-up on his accident because we’ve had some inquiry about foul play.  You knew Dr. Blout well?” 

Again, Chase didn’t show emotion at the question.
  “Yes, good friends, it’s just tragic what happened.”

“
I agree.  Was there anyone who Dr. Blout had an altercation with?”

“
No, never.  Why?  Do you have some information about him?  What a terrible accident he had.”

“
We’re just doing some questioning of people he knew.  He was the head of the Consortium?”

“
Yes, he helped me start the company.  He was a good man and was doing some excellent research.  I hope you don’t think there was more to his accident than what was in the paper.”

“
No, not really,” May lied.  “We’re actually trying to get some background on another case, another man you know, a Dr. Edward Sloan.”

“
Yes, Dr. Sloan, is he safe?  He disappeared a few weeks ago and we’ve been trying to find out what happened.”

“
I’m afraid not.  He was found dead in San Diego, shot at close range.”

“
Oh, no,” Chase exclaimed.  “Do you know who did it?”

“
No.  That’s why I’m here to see if there is any connection to him and Dr. Blout.”

“
That’s just terrible.  What kind of people would do such a thing,” Chase said.

“
I don’t know, but were looking into it.”  May thought for a second and abruptly stopped his questioning.  “If you or your people have any other information, it would be greatly appreciated by the Bureau,” May said, noting Chase’s demeanor.

“
Yes, of course.”

“
You can reach me at this number,” May told him, handing him a business card.

“
Thank you Agent May.  I’ll let you know if we come up with anything,” Chase told him.

“
Have a good day sir.” May turned and made his way to the exit.  He had more questions he had intended to ask, but stopped short.  Chase was cool and calm, and showed little emotion to the news.  May’s years of experience told him Chase knew much more than he was telling and he decided not to press further.  May was afraid of frightening Chase away.  He was just too polished, and knew what to say, and not to say.  May knew Chase was holding out information.

May dialed his phone as he got in the hotel lobby. 

“Get Dr. Blout’s car out of the impound lot, and do a full investigative search for peculiarities, and use discretion,” he said into the phone.    

May
realized Galveston had been right about Chase.  He needed to find out more information about this new suspect, but needed Chase to think he was off the hook.  May still had no hard evidence of Chase’s involvement and was beginning to get heat about the investigation from his superiors.  Something bigger than he imagined was brewing, and May didn’t have much time to figure it out.