jg.thepartner-第25部分

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stylish　horn…rimmed　glasses。　He　had　flown　in；　he　explained　to　Graham　Dunlap；　to　personally　monitor　the　receiving　and　transferring　of　the　money　because　the　firm　and　the　client　were　quite　nervous　about　the　transaction。　That　was　certainly　not　unusual　in　Dunlap's　view；　and　he　was　happy　to　oblige。　He　was　sacked　a　week　later　and　returned　to　London。
　〃So　we　went　to　Biloxi；　and　spent　a　month　there　looking　for　clues；〃　Stephano　continued。
　〃And　you　found　the　law　offices　to　be　wired？〃
　〃We　did。　For　obvious　reasons；　we　were　immediately　suspicious　of　Mr。　Lanigan；　and　our　task　was　twofold：　first；　to　find　him　and　the　money；　and；　second；　to　determine　how　he　had　pulled　the　heist。　The　remaining　partners　granted　us　access　to　their　offices　for　one　weekend；　and　our　technical　people　picked　the　place　apart。　It　was；　as　you　say；　infested。　We　found　bugs　in　every　phone；　in　every　office；　under　every　desk；　in　the　hallways；　even　in　the　men's　rest　room　on　the　first　floor。　There　was　one　exception。　The　office　of　Charles　Bogan　was　pletely　clean。　He　was　fastidious　about　locking　it。　The　bugs　were　high　in　quality；　twenty…two　in　all。　Their　signals　were　gathered　by　a　hub　we　found　hidden　in　a　storage　file　box　in　the　attic；　in　a　spot　no　one　had　touched　in　years。〃
　Underbill　listened　but　didn't　hear。　This　was；　after　all；　being　recorded　on　video；　and　his　superiors　could　study　it　later。　He　was　quite　familiar　with　these　preliminaries。　He　pulled　out　a　technical　summary　which　analyzed；　in　four　dense　paragraphs；　the　bugging　scheme　installed　by　Patrick。　The　microphones　were　state　of　the　art…tiny；　powerful；　costly；　and　manufactured　by　a　reputable　firm　in　Malaysia。　Illegal　to　buy　or　possess　in　the　United　States；　they　could　be　purchased　with　relative　ease　in　any　European　city。　Patrick　and　Trudy　had　spent　New　Year's　in　Rome；　five　weeks　before　his　death。
　The　hub　found　in　the　attic　storage　box　had　impressed　even　the　FBI　experts。　It　was　less　than　three　months　old　when　Stephano　found　it；　and　the　FBI　reluctantly　admitted　it　was　at　least　a　year　ahead　of　their　latest　wizardry。　Made　in　Hungary；　it　could　receive　signals　from　all　twenty…two　bugs　hidden　in　the　offices　below；　keep　them　separate；　then　transmit　them；　one　at　a　time　or　all　at　once；　to　a　satellite　dish　nearby。
　〃Did　you　determine　where　the　signals　were　being　relayed　to？〃　Underbill　asked。　It　was　a　fair　question　because　the　FBI　certainly　didn't　know。
　〃No。　It　has　a　range　of　three　miles；　in　all　directions；　so　it　would　be　impossible　to　tell。〃
　〃Any　ideas？〃
　〃Yes；　a　very　good　one。　I　doubt　Lanigan　was　foolish　enough　to　set　up　a　receiving　dish　anywhere　within　three　miles　of　downtown　Biloxi。　He　would　have　to　rent　space；　hide　the　dish；　spend　lots　of　time　there　monitoring　hours　of　conversations。　He　has　proven　to　be　quite　methodical。　I've　always　suspected　he　used　a　boat。　It　would　be　much　simpler　and　safer。　The　office　is　only　six　hundred　yards　from　the　beach。　There　are　a　lot　of　boats　in　the　Gulf。　A　man　could　drop　anchor　two　miles　out　and　never　speak　to　another　soul。〃
　〃Did　he　own　a　boat？〃
　〃We　couldn't　find　one。〃
　〃Any　evidence　he　used　a　boat？〃
　〃Maybe。〃　Stephano　paused　here　because　he　was　now　entering　territory　unknown　to　the　FBI。
　The　pause　quickly　irritated　Underbill。　〃This　is　not　a　cross…examination；　Mr。　Stephano。〃
　〃I　know。　We　talked　to　every　charter　outfit　along　the　Coast；　from　Destin　to　New　Orleans；　and　found　only　one　possible　suspect。　A　small　pany　in　Orange　Beach；　Alabama；　leased　a　thirty…two…foot　sailboat　to　a　man　on　February　11；　1992；　the　day　Lanigan　was　buried。　Their　rate　was　a　thousand　dollars　a　month。　This　guy　offered　twice　that　if　the　transaction　could　be　done　in　cash　with　nothing　in　writing。　They　figured　he　was　a　doper；　and　said　no　way。　The　guy　then　offered　a　five…thousand…dollar　deposit；　plus　two　thousand　a　month　for　two　months。　Business　was　slow。　The　boat　was　insured　against　theft。　They　took　a　chance。〃
　Underbill　listened　without　blinking。　He　took　no　notes。　〃Did　you　show　them　a　picture？〃
　〃Yeah。　Said　it　could've　been　Patrick。　But　the　beard　was　gone；　the　hair　was　dark；　baseball　cap；　eyeglasses；　overweight。　This　was　before　he　discovered　Ultra　Slim…Fast。　Anyway；　the　guy　couldn't　make　a　positive　ID。〃
　〃What　name　did　he　use？〃
　〃Randy　Austin。　Had　a　Georgia　driver's　license。　And　he　refused　to　provide　more　identification。　He　was　offering　cash；　remember；　five　thousand。　The　guy　would've　sold　it　to　him　for　twenty。〃
　〃What　happened　to　the　boat？〃
　〃They　got　it　back；　eventually。　The　guy　said　he　got　real　suspicious　because　Randy　didn't　seem　to　know　much　about　sailboats。　He　asked　questions；　fished　around。　Randy　said　he　was　in　the　process　of　drifting　south　after　a　bad　marriage　in　Atlanta；　tired　of　the　rat　race；　lots　of　money；　that　routine。　Used　to　sail　a　lot；　and　now　wanted　to　float　down　to　the　Keys　and　practice　his　skills　along　the　way。　Said　he'd　always　keep　the　shore　in　sight。　It　was　a　nice　story；　and　the　guy　felt　somewhat　better；　but　he　was　still　suspicious。　Next　day；　Randy　appeared　from　nowhere；　no　car；　no　cab；　as　if　he　had　walked　or　hitchhiked　somehow　to　the　dock；　and；　after　a　lot　of　preliminaries；　he　left　with　the　boat。　It　had　a　big　diesel　engine　of　some　sort　and　it　would　cruise　at　eight　knots；　regardless　of　the　wind。　He　disappeared；　going　east；　and　the　owner　had　nothing　else　to　do；　so　he　eased　down　the　Coast；　stopped　at　a　couple　of　favorite　bars　along　the　way；　and　managed　to　keep　an　eye　on　Randy；　who　was　a　quarter　of　a　mile　out　and　doing　a　decent　job　of　handling　the　boat。　He　docked　it　at　a　marina　at　Perdido　Bay；　and　left　in　a　rented　Taurus　with　Alabama　registration。　This　went　on　for　a　couple　of　days。　Our　guy　kept　an　eye　on　the　boat。　Randy　played　with　it；　a　mile　out　at　first；　then　he　ventured　farther。　On　the　third　or　fourth　day；　Randy　took　it　west；　toward　Mobile　and　Biloxi；　and　was　gone　for　three　days。
　〃He　came　back；　then　left；　going　west　again。　Never　east　or　south；　in　the　direction　of　the　Keys。　The　guy　stopped　worrying　about　his　boat　because　Randy　stayed　close　to　home。　He　would　leave　for　a　week　at　a　time；　but　he　always　came　back。〃
　〃And　you　think　it　was　Patrick？〃
　〃I　do。　I'm　convinced　of　it。　Makes　perfect　sense　to　me。　He　was　isolated　on　the　boat。　He　could　go　for　days　without　speaking　to　another　person。　He　could　gather　his　intelligence　from　a　hundred　different　spots　along　the　Biloxi…Gulfport　shore。　Plus；　the　boat　was　a　perfect　place　to　starve　himself。〃
　〃What　happened　to　it？〃
　〃Randy　left　it　at　the　dock；　and　simply　vanished　without　a　word。　The　owner　got　his　boat　back；　plus　the　five　grand。〃
　〃Did　you　examine　the　boat？〃
　〃With　a　microscope。　Nothing。　The　guy　said　the　boat　had　never　been　so　clean。〃
　〃When　did　he　disappear？〃
　〃The　guy　wasn't　certain　because　he　stopped　checking　on　the　boat　every　day。　He　found　it　at　the　dock　on　March　30；　four　days　after　the　money　was　stolen。　We　talked　to　a　kid　who　was　on　duty　at　the　dock；　and；　to　the　best　of　his　recollection；　Randy　docked　on　either　March　24　or　March　25；　and　was　never　seen　again。　So　the　dates　match　up　perfect。〃
　〃What　happened　to　the　rental　car？〃
　〃We　tracked　it　down　later。　It　was　rented　from　the
　Avis　desk　at　the　Mobile　Regional　Airport　on　Monday　morning；　February　10；　about　ten　hours　after　the　fire　was　put　out。　Rented　by　a　man　with　no　beard；　cleanshaven；　short　dark　hair；　horn…rimmed　glasses；　wearing　a　coat　and　tie　and　claiming　he　just　stepped　off　a　muter　flight　from　Atlanta。　We　showed　pictures　to　the　clerk　on　duty；　and　she　made　a　very　tentative　ID　of　Patrick　Lanigan。　Evidently；　he　used　the　same　Georgia　driver's　license。　He　used　a　phony　Visa　Card；　one　with　the　name　of　Randy　Austin　and　a　number　he　stole　from　a　legitimate　account　in　Decatur；　Georgia。　Said　he　was　a　self…employed　real　estate　developer　in　town　to　look　at　land　for　a　casino。　So　he　had　no　pany　name　to　put　on　the　form。　He　wanted　the　car　for　a　week。　Avis　never　saw　him　again。　Didn't　see　the　car　for　fourteen　months。〃
　〃Why　wouldn't　he　return　the　car？〃　Underbill　asked；　musing。
　〃Simple。　When　he　rented　it；　his　death　had　just　happened；　and　had　not　been　reported。　But　the　next　day；　his　face　was　on　the　front　page　of　both　the　Biloxi　and　Mobile　papers。　He　probably　figured　it　was　too　risky　to　take　the　car　back。　They　found　it　later　in　Montgomery；　wrecked　and　stolen。〃
　〃Where　did　Patrick　go？〃
　〃My　guess　is　that　he　left　the　Orange　Beach　area　on　March　24　or　25。　He　assumed　the　identity　of　Doug　Vitrano；　his　former　partner。　We　learned　that　on　the　twenty…fifth　he　flew　from　Montgomery　to　Atlanta；　then　first　class　to　Miami；　then　first　class　to　Nassau。　All　tickets　were　in　the　name　of　Doug　Vitrano；　and　he　used　the　passport　when　he　left　Miami　and　again　when　he　entered　the　Bahamas。　The　flight　arrived　in　Nassau　at　eight…thirty　on　the　morning　of　the　twenty…sixth；　and　he　was　at　the　bank　when　it　opened　at　nine。　He　presented　the　passport　and　other　papers　to　Graham　Dun…lap。　He　diverted　the　money；　said　good…bye；　caught　a　flight　to　New　York；　and　landed　at　La　Guardia　at　2：30　P。M。　At　that　point；　he　ditched　the　Vitrano　papers　and　found　some　others。　We　lost　him。〃
　WHEN　THE　BIDDING　got　to　fifty　thousand　dollars；　Trudy　said　yes。　The　show　was　〃Inside　Journal；〃　a　slash…and…burn　tabloid　with　solid　ratings　and；　apparently；　lots　of　cash。　They　set　up　lights　and　covered　windows　and　ran　wires　throughout　the　den。　The　〃journalist〃　was　Nancy　de　Angelo；　flown　straight　in　from　LA。　with　her　own　band　of　hairdressers　and　makeup　artists。
　Not　to　be　outdone；　Trudy　spent　two　hours　in　front　of　the　mirror；　and　looked　absolutely　glorious　when　she　appeared。　Nancy　said　she　looked　too　good。　She　was　supposed　to　be　wounded；　hurt；　broke；　besieged；　handcuffed　by　the　court；　angry　at　what　her　husband　had　done　to　her　and　her　daughter。　She　retreated　in　tears　and　Lance　had　to　console　her　for　half　an　hour。　She　looked　almost　as　good　when　she　returned　in　jeans　and　a　cotton　pullover。
　Ashley　Nicole　was　used　as　a　prop。　She　sat　close　to　her　mother　on　the　sofa。　〃Look　real　sad　now；〃　Nancy　told　her　as　the　technicians　checked　the　lights。　〃We　need　tears　from　you；〃　she　said　to　Trudy。　〃Genuine　tears。〃
　They　chatted　for　an　hour　about　all　the　horrible　things　Patrick　was　doing　to　them。　Trudy　cried　when　she　recalled　the　funeral。　They　had　a　picture　of　the　shoe　found　at　the　site。　She　suffered　through　the　months　and　years　afterward。　No；　she　had　not　remarried。