‘Imagine that I have several boxes,’ he began. ‘Each is made of glass, so we can see through it, and in each box there is an event. In each box we have placed a moment of history. But to consider these moments in their proper order, we must suspend the boxes in air so we can see each in relationship to the others. Only then can we have a true understanding of what has happened and why. Only then can we see what lies behind each event. Only then will we understand everything. If there is something significant we don’t know, it will become obvious in its absence.
‘So, let us begin with the first box, the one we see most clearly. In it we will put what you have learned, Kazuo, so you must tell us what you know, not what you think.
‘What we know is that a consortium of several petroleum companies was formed. It was conceived by General Alexander Hooker, who was president of Intercon Oil. During the three or four years Hooker was negotiating this deal, the heads of all of these companies either died of heart attacks or were killed in accidents. This includes Shichi Tomoro, the head of the Japanese combine San-San, which has just become a new member of AMRAN. An experimental oil rig was also sabotaged in Alaskan waters.’
‘Excuse me,’ Eliza said, ‘the same thing happened with the Aquila Milena, the car Marza was driving when he was killed. We don’t know why yet. And the Aquila Motor Works is now part of AMRAN, and the consortium is financing work on the car.’
‘Don’t forget the guy in Hawaii,’ said the Magician.
‘Yes ,“ said O’Hara. ‘A man was apparently murdered for some pictures that were taken aboard the oil rig. But all they wanted to do was destroy the film.’
Kimura, like a mime describing a story with his hands, hung invisible glass boxes in the air each time they brought up a new point. ‘It is important to remember in what order these things occurred. The dates do not matter so much as the order,’ he said.
‘Another element in the sequence is Red Bridges,’ Eliza went on. ‘He was a salvage man in Japan right after the war. He went from that to shipbuilding and then became involved in developing a large underwater living environment. It was designed by the scuba scientist Kaginakas. Both he and Bridges later died of heart attacks. The dish, as it was called, has since been completed and taken to... somewhere.’
‘He was also involved in refitting old Liberty ships, turning them into tankers,’ the Magician said.
‘And we learned yesterday that Bridges was part of San-San, which is now part of the consortium,’ Eliza added.
More boxes in the air. Kimura leaned back, concentrating on the imaginary complex he was building. ‘A question: Is there any doubt in your minds that these corporation people who died were actually killed by the mad one with the umbrella?’
O’Hara, Eliza and the Magician all shook their heads.
‘The accidental deaths were probably executed by someone other than Danilov,’ O’Hara said. ‘Falmouth, maybe, or a Frenchman named Le Croix, who is also a faceless one, although his reputation as a sadist is well documented. But the heart attacks were caused by Danilov, there is no question.’
‘And why has AMRAN been singled out as a victim of this terrorist you call Chameleon?’ Okari said.
‘Extortion,’ said O’Hara. ‘AMRAN refused to play ball.’
‘Play ball?’ Okari asked.
‘A beikoku no expression,’ Kimura explained. ‘It means they would not cooperate.’
‘There is another box we left out,’ Eliza said. ‘The oil consultant, Lavander. He had worked for all of these companies during the past year or so, including San-San, and he was murdered too, after they went to a lot of trouble to free him from a terrorist kidnapping in South America.’
‘Do you think there was a connection between the two terrorist groups, those who kidnapped Lavander and those who freed him?’ Kimura asked.
‘No,’ said O’Hara. ‘I think it was a genuine fluke. But it apparently scared one of these oil companies. They sent a man to test Lavander, and Lavander failed. He had become a security risk to someone.’
‘We recovered a ledger of his,’ Eliza said. ‘It contains highly confidential figures from all of the AMRAN oil companies, as well as others he worked for. The figures could be very damaging if they got out.’
‘Why?’ Kimura asked.
‘Because they prove that the companies have lied to the public about the amount of oil they have in reserve.’
‘And why would they do that?’
‘To control the price of oil,’ O’Hara said. ‘The profit margins are staggering — four, five hundred percent a year. The public thinks it’s because there’s a shortage of oil, when actually there’s a surplus.’
‘I see. Go on’
‘There was also a notation about something called Midas,’ O’Hara said. ‘And Danilov mentioned Midas to me. He said, “Midas is lost.”
‘And Midas is another question for which there is no obvious answer at this point,’ said Kimura. ‘So, now we have six questions unanswered. First, why was the man killed in Hawaii? Second, where was this dish of Bridges’ taken and what is it for? Third, what is Midas? Fourth, why was this man Lavander assassinated? Fifth, why was the oil rig sabotaged?
And finally, why was the Italian car blown up? Is that correct?’
‘Right,’ said O’Hara.
‘Is there anything else?’
‘Yes,’ said O’Hara, ‘what was Tony Falmouth doing here?’
‘Perhaps the most revealing question of all,’ said Kimura. ‘But we will hold it for a few more minutes. Do you still believe Chameleon is alive, Kazuo?’
‘I’m looking at him,’ O’Hara said.
‘And the Chameleon you seek was a Japanese agent in World War II, correct?’
O’Hara nodded. Kimura looked at Okari and asked, ‘Does this look like a man who served in World War II?’
O’Hara laughed. ‘No,’ he said.
‘We can assume, then, that they are two different Chameleons?’
O’Hara nodded.
‘So, we now have many boxes to peer through. But before we go any further, let us deal with this anger that is between you two.’
‘I didn’t come here to kill anyone,’ O’Hara said to Okari. ‘I came to find the truth.’
‘And what is the truth?’ Kimura demanded.
‘That Chameleon is a monster who destroys without feeling, who kills for profit.’
‘My son, you have been chasing a name, not a person. You have both been tricked.’
‘Tricked? By whom?’
‘The eikoku-jin outside, the dead one. He tricked you, Kazuo, into believing that Okari was your enemy. And you, Okari, were tricked into believing O’ Hara had come to kill you. You both chose to believe what was obvious, and yet you both know that the truth often hides behind lies.’
‘Then what—’
‘Tell me again, O’Hara, what was your purpose in pursuing Chameleon?’
‘To destroy him with the truth.’
‘And you, Okari?’
‘They have sent killers after me before Why should this one be different?’
‘Because Kazuo is not one of them. You both have the same objective. You both seek to destroy the same evil and yet you have permitted that evil to turn you into enemies.’
‘And Falmouth?’ O’Hara said.
‘An instrument. He follows you to Chameleon and kills both of you.’
‘How do you know that?’
‘Because I listen with my brain, not my heart. Why else? You yourself have admitted to me that the eikoku-jin told you Chameleon was the head of these mercenary terrorists. It was he who sent you on the journey because he was not good enough to find Chameleon himself. For what other reason would he follow you?’