Shrouded In Silence

10





Dr. Albert Stein muttered to himself and kept examining through his thick glasses the photographs scattered across his desk. "Most interesting." He held one photograph closer to the lamp. "Yes, indeed."

Klaus Burchel stood beside him with a camera, looking, watching, and saying nothing.

Stein held a magnifying glass over one picture, studying it more closely. "Most significant."

Burchel continued to look, making no comment.

"You took this picture directly across the street from the Santa Maria Church?" Stein asked. "Right?"

"Yes, sir."

"And the address on this piece of paper is the apartment the Townsends occupy?"

"Yes, sir."

Stein laid the magnifying glass aside and leaned back in his chair. "More than interesting. How did you find all these details so quickly?"

"Through the newspaper story. I went to the office of Il Messaggero and ran down some reporter named Mario Corsini. I told him I was a biblical scholar and wanted to chat with the Townsends. The man gave me their address without asking a question. I tried the same thing at the Santa Maria Church except that I told them I had an appointment with Jack Townsend at his apartment but lost the address. They wrote out the street location without hesitation. Not bad, huh?"

Stein nodded his head. "Indeed. I know quite well what Michelle Townsend looks like, and this is unquestionably her. Most interesting is that they have offices behind a Catholic church. Townsend must have worked out some agreement with the local fathers to obtain the space."

"I didn't make any inquiries," Klaus said.

Stein reached in his shirt pocket and pulled out a pack of cigarettes. Flipping a small golden lighter, he took a big drag. For a moment, he held the smoke in, then blew a puff overhead. Lost in thought, he tapped his fingers rapidly on his desk.

"You did exactly what I told you to do and nothing more," he said to Klaus. "This is what I always expect. If you had done anything else, someone might have identified you later. We couldn't have that. The newspaper only left a few clues about what the Townsends are up to, but I must learn much, much more."

"Yes, sir."

"Go buy some black pants, a black sweatshirt, and a face mask. I already have the electronic equipment you'll need. Pick up the clothing immediately. You will need to work tonight."

The young man scratched his head. "I'm not sure where you're going with this, but I'll get the clothes at once."

Stein tossed one hundred euros on the desk. "That ought to cover it. Get back here immediately."

Klaus grabbed the money. "At once, sir."



The absence of moonlight deepened the blackness of night, enveloping the ramshackle buildings standing up and down Via Vittorio Veneto. Santa Maria Church had locked its doors much earlier and the towering church had taken on an imposing appearance. Klaus Burchel stood across the street inside a narrow alley and watched the empty street for more than an hour. His relationship with Stein crossed his mind. As long as he remained the obedient servant, Stein humored him. Returning to the "yes, sirs," and "no, sirs," hadn't been easy, but in a couple of days Stein's more pleasant reactions signaled it was working. Stein paid on time, and the money was excellent. Klaus periodically craved a hit and thought about seeking out a snort or two. Of course, Stein could have someone watching him so he shelved the idea, although the desire still switched within him.

Black sweats and an old stocking cap made it impossible for him to be seen. Periodically, a taxi or small car rambled down the street, but by 3:00 a.m., no one was strolling down the sidewalk. The empty street proved that he could cross without observation.

Pulling his black coat collar up around his neck, Klaus darted across the pavement and into the shadows alongside of the church. For several minutes, he stood against the stone block wall and listened. The sounds of his running faded, and he heard nothing. No one seemed to be out at this late hour of the night. He waited another five minutes before pulling the black face mask out of his backpack. With a couple of quick jerks, he tugged the covering over his head. Klaus scooted silently along the side of the church until he reached the front door of the house behind the large edifice.

He had learned to pick a lock long ago and figured the advancing age of the house should make it easy to break in. As anticipated, he found the front door secured with a warded lock. The L-shaped warded intrusion tool he carried in his pocket made quick work of the security lock.

Stein had warned him that once he was inside the house, his work had to be done fast. Get in; get out; open and shut. Even though it was the middle of the night, there were no guarantees that a surprise visit couldn't happen. Quickly pulling the old MicroPower WM-1 transmitter from his backpack, he straightened the red and green wires before sliding under the closest desk and beginning to install the device into the telephone line. Once the transmitter had been hooked in, he took out the test receiver from the backpack to make sure the connections were secure. The tone and volume of sound were excellent.

Pulling the desk drawer out, he fastened the MicroPower unit against the inside of the back of the desk behind the last drawer where no one could see it. At that moment a cracking noise echoed from the adjacent dark room.

Klaus froze. The scraping sound came again. Crawling back out from under the desk, Klaus stood perfectly still and listened to make sure no night watchman was creeping around in the dark. Another faint sound reverberated from the same room. Klaus's heart pounded. Could he have stepped into a trap? It sounded like someone was waiting to ambush him from just a few feet away. Ducking beneath the desk, he pulled a small flashlight from his pocket. Taking the Smith & Wesson 459 pistol Stein had given him from his side pocket, he flipped off the safety and turned on the small narrow beam, aiming it at the black hole in front of him. A rat the size of a kitten stared back with its red eyes reflecting the light.

Behind the ugly creature, Klaus could see a long table in a conference room. Klaus cursed under his breath and started to throw the flashlight but thought better of the idea. The rodent blinked and scurried away. Satisfied that he was still secure, Klaus went back to work. After surveying the other desks, he concluded only one telephone line came in and went out of the office. With the bugging device in position, he could leave but knew the sending range of the device might be an issue. If the reception proved too limited, Stein would have to station him down the street with a recording device to pick up talking.

Carefully closing the front door and making sure it was locked, Burchel inched his way back down the cement walkway until he reached the edge of the shadows beyond which the street lights glowed. Once confident no one was watching, he pulled off the black mask and started his trek out of the neighborhood.