Chapter Three - Continued - Blog Date 052106

Cedar Rapids 18April05 -1900

Calhoun and Melanie were sitting at a booth on the far side of the main dining room. The restaurant was busy and would-be diners waited in groups at the bar, patio bar and in the billard room where the table had been covered for the evening. It was a somewhat older crowd than what one might expect at a place near a college campus, but it was too early in the evening for the kids and the long-term loyalty of Norm's customers was legendary. Both Frank and Melanie had spoken to friends at several different tables as they had made their way to their reserved booth. It was a comfortable and engaging setting.

Norm's wine cellar was somewhat lacking and they had settled on a 2003 merlot from Napa Valley. Since he had been over-served in the wine department last night at The Italian Cellar, a reserve bottle from Tuscany may not even have registered on Calhoun's palate. Napa Valley would be just fine. And as a bonus, at just $16, the average unit cost for his wine consumption for the weekend took a nice downward move on the curve.

"I was a little slow on the draw getting up this morning," said Calhoun. "I'm pretty sure that the last bottle that Donovan ordered last night could have been put to better use by some other folks. Our waitress could have done us all a favor by closing out the tab when we said that the prior bottle was the 'last round'."

"You guys always have trouble leaving The Cellar," replied Melanie. "Remember St. Patrick's Day last month? It was a good thing you called a cab that night."

Calhoun grimaced at that memory. Was there a pattern here? He enjoyed the wine and an occassional beer. And the company of good friends. Could it be done without alcohol? He had definitely been over the line in the past, but he had never thought it was a problem. He might have to think about that going forward. But not tonight.

They dined on standard fare at Norm's, iceberg lettuce salad, blackened catfish and baked potatos. Through dinner they had talked about her running, his biking and the possibility of each training for a triathalon later in the year. They joked about Donovan trying on suits under Holly's watchful eye, and discussed the proposed shopping mall for a tract of farmland not far from her home in McKelvey Heights. All of these were 'safe' topics and Calhoun made no attempt to bridge over to her history with Anthony Carmondii and Cyberware.

As they finished dinner, their waitress removed their plates from the table and Calhoun poured the last of the wine into their glasses. "Cheers," he said raising his glass toward Melanie in a toast. She raised her glass to meet his and echoed, "Cheers to you."

Cedar Rapids - 18April06 - 1740

Melanie felt at ease with Frank Calhoun. The atmosphere at Norm's had been perfect for the evening. The casual dress code. Seeing mutual friends in such an under-stated yet well-regarded locale. His seemingly genuine interest in her. She wanted to know more about him. She thought that maybe this might be the time to ask him about what inquiring minds want to know.

"So, Frank," said Melanie with a little twinkle in her eye, "Are you ever going to be able to tell me exactly what you do for a living? I know that you work for the IDCI, or whatever that acronym is. But really, what do you do there?"

Frank had not expected this direct approach. He had to be careful, but maybe this angle of the conversation could lead to something about Cyberware. He knew that she was trying to open his book a little, but he wanted to go that way himself.

"You have the acronym right. It stands for the Iowa Department of Criminal Investigation. In Iowa, everyone just calls it the DCI. But it's not like I haven't told you that before. And I'm sure Holly has given you that much information anyway. The DCI is the state's version of the FBI, the Federal Bureau of Investigation. They have juristiction on all criminal proceedings in the state of Iowa. Basically, they help out local law enforcement agencies, particularly when a crime involves more than one locality," explained Calhoun.

"My work was initially with the group that has oversight on the state's gambling venues, the race tracks and riverboats. History has it that crime tends to follow the gaming industry. There's just too much money to be made, and the operators of the casinos and tracks are heavily regulated. It was my job to make sure that the gaming houses followed the rules."

Calhoun then went on to say, "But that all changed about three years ago. After 9-11 and Enron, among other things, the DCI got involved with other state and Federal agencies in tracking money used for terrorist activities. I've been on loan to a Federal Department of Justice team for over two years now investigating money laundering and securities fraud. It's become even more complicated because of the internet and wireless communications. Sherlock Holmes would be lost today."

Melanie tried to see if anything that Calhoun had just said was truely new to her. She didn't think so. Men. They could talk for hours and not give up a dime. She decided to probe a little further. "Well, yes, Holly, or maybe even yourself, did tell me about most of that stuff. But how about that new Federal team that you are assigned to. Does it have a name? Do you get a handy spy-decoder ring? Do you get to meet James Bond?", Melanie teased.

Calhoun liked her sense of humor. He decided though that now was not the time to talk about his faux Ironman Triathalon wrist watch. "In a fit of literary genius, they decided to call my group the National Securities Task Force, the NSTF. And 'no' and 'no' to your other questions." Calhoun had still not offered up anything new to Melanie.

Melanie paused. She had been interviewed extensively at the time of the Cyberware IPO by both Federal and California securities agents. While she had not been an officer of the company, the trust's ownership of 50% of the stock had made her an interested party under state and Federal statutes. If Calhoun had been assigned to the NSTF for two or three years, he might even know the jerk from Washington who took nearly eight hours for her deposition.

"I had some exposure to security investigators in California at the time of the Cyberware IPO," Melanie offered, "And it wasn't that pleasant of an experience." She watched Calhoun for a reaction. He was stoic. "Do you ever get involved with anything like that? Would you actually know any of the agents who worked the Cyberware transaction?

Cedar Rapids 18April05 1755

Calhoun was now at the edge of the cliff. The big decision. He was unsure if he should just leap into the fray and face the enemy or take the course of less resistance and run for higher ground. But she really wasn't the enemy. And running would get him no closer to the secrets of Anthony Carmondii.

"Melanie," he said, "I've been participating in a deep investigation of Cyberware since last Fall. We think Anthony Carmondii may be structuring a securities scheme that will make Enron look like penny ante poker."

"And I need your help," said Calhoun.