Harlequin's Shadow

Chapter 20: Whack-a-Mole

Neal's loft. September 8, 2005. Thursday morning.

"Why didn't you put her on speaker?" Mozzie moaned.

"Chantal's never met you," Neal said. "I didn't want to give her any reason to feel uneasy."

The previous day Neal had received a text message from Chantal that she'd spoken with Klaus's mother Luisa. Much as he would have loved to call her immediately, he was attending the first session of his seminar on Italian Baroque art, and Sherkov had barely warmed up. The news from Paris would have to wait. By the time the class ended, Chantal was in the middle of cooking for the evening crowd. She suggested he call her the next day. Early morning for him translated into post-lunch in Paris and she'd have time to talk.

Once Mozzie heard about the call, he insisted on being present. Afterward, they could share a cab for the ride to the Win-Win office to meet Peter and Henry.

Under any circumstances, coaxing Mozzie into the Federal Building was a Herculean chore. With Kramer likely to drop in, it was a non-starter. Henry's office was close to work and provided a convenient safe house for plotting.

"Your responses were disappointingly cryptic," Mozzie chided. "Why did you scribble the German word for violin on your notepad?"

"Because Geigner is the name of the family who lives in the house."

"They could be related to Bergmann! Isabelle said his wife was a violinist. She could have changed her name."

"The thought occurred to me, as well. Bergmann's wife reportedly died during the bombing of Munich. What if she instead assumed a new identity? Klaus's mother Luisa said she'd met the elder Mrs. Geigner. She passed away in the 1990s. Her son, Bernhard, now owns the chalet and uses it as a vacation house. He was very devoted to his mother. Perhaps he kept her belongings."

"Could Luisa describe the location?"

"It's along a mountain road several miles away from Oberammergau. The road is called Feuchtenrainweg. Luisa described the chalet. It's not far beyond a monastery. We shouldn't have any difficulty in locating it."

* * * * *

When Peter arrived at the Win-Win office, Neal, Radha, and Sofia were gathered around the pool table that dominated the central open space behind the reception area. It was a feature Neal never failed to point out. He refused to give up on his campaign to have one installed in the FBI bullpen.

"Neal's been demonstrating a trick," Sofia explained. "It's called the snake shot."

"Required training for the con," Neal said as he lined up the balls into a long winding curve. "When the first ball is struck with precisely the right amount of force and angle, it sets off a chain reaction, leading to the final ball dropping into a corner pocket."

"Where's Mozzie?" Peter asked, knowing better than to make a fool of himself by attempting to duplicate Neal's expertise.

"With Henry," Radha said. "Sofia and I'll work on the trick while you meet. By the time you come out, I bet we'll have mastered it."

By the way Sofia smiled, Peter suspected she'd already figured it out. Neal had commented she was a natural at billiards, leaving the others, Henry included, in the dust.

"Henry and Mozzie are in the Zen huddle room," Neal said, placing the final ball into position. "That's become the headquarters for Operation Barbarossa. It's kept locked when no one's around."

Peter shrugged. "Locks can be tampered with."

"Sure, but this is a Mozzie custom job, complete with a booby trap linked to a surveillance camera designed to catch any unauthorized use."