Chapter 11
When Goldsmid returned it was in company with Mr Jenkins and again during business hours with a government motor vehicle.
They had come, advised Goldsmid, to see Mr Milner to advise him that his short selling, “‘Naked short selling’ it is now called” said Goldsmid, was to be closely monitored for any irregularities. There was concern in certain quarters that this form of stock market dealing was having an adverse impact on some companies and that it could lead to share price manipulation.
“In effect” Goldsmid told him “we would like to monitor your share transactions on a weekly basis.”
After some more fairly general discussion by which time Peter was confused and perplexed Jenkins asked to use the lavatory. While he was away Goldsmid whispered to Peter that this cover was necessary in order to explain his frequent communication with the possibly none too ethical Mr Milner. He would designate himself to visit Peter at least once a week in official time, and sometimes he would have Mr Jenkins with him.
“Of course” whispered Goldsmid, “I’ll come around after work fairly often as well but they’ll not know about those visits.”
“I take it the consortium is happy for me to work as we discussed in America?” said Peter.
“I’ll see you tonight, okay?” said Goldsmid to the sound of Jenkins returning.
“Yes” said Peter “that’s fine.”
Goldsmid asked Peter some further questions and then handed him back his passport along with that of Angelique.
“I’ll deliver Mr and Mrs Archer’s passports personally within a few days” he added.
“I didn’t realize we had taken Mr and Mrs Milner’s passport ” said Jenkins when they were back in the government vehicle and returning to their mid-city office.
“The day you were off with the flu, Wednesday last week I think it was, I made a visit to collect the passports of he and his brother and their wives” he said.
“Why?” asked Jenkins.
“I thought it might work to frighten them into some admission or other about their trading behaviour” replied Goldsmid.
After a while Jenkins, the junior officer, said that even if they had admitted anything with Goldsmid on his own there was no corroborating witness. Goldsmid responded by saying he hadn’t really thought of that, a rare slip but one he would watch in future.
That night Goldsmid was at the door of the apartment by 8 pm and slipped inside as Peter opened the door. Peter became aware that even he had shadows to be afraid of.
“Sorry about the little snap visit with Jenkins” he said. “He just kept at me to make another visit and keep the pressure up.”
“That could be seen as harassment” said Peter.
“I’ve pointed that out to him so I don’t expect a repeat in the near future” replied Goldsmid.
“So what about the consortium in the States? How does the land lie with them now?” said Peter.
“They are a very understanding lot. I might say that I worked particularly hard on your behalf and we arrived at what I think should be a satisfactory proposition” explained Goldsmid.
“So it’s still a proposition then?” said Peter.
“Let’s call it that for the present” said Goldsmid. “You can still have a 4 million dollar fee for services this year. They’ve decided not to ask you for an investment of this amount. So the fee is already in your bank account so to speak. You still get a bonus fifty percent of equity earnings pro- rata for your share of the joint venture. As your notional share will be 0.135 percent that means that you should receive about 18 million dollars this year. But remember, for this we own you 100 percent. There will be no extra curricular market activity in the way of short selling on your own behalf. Is that understood?”
“Is there a time limit on my contract with the consortium?” asked Peter.
“In the normal course of negotiations we would probably have arrived at a figure such as a five year agreement. So how does this sound to you?” asked Harry.
“Well, I’d like to have an option to withdraw somewhat earlier. I’m 63 years old now and would have preferred to finish with all this by the time I turn 65” said Peter, knowing that it was probably a futile gesture.
“I think they’d want your investment a little longer, Peter. Why don’t we say five years? If, say, your health were to seriously deteriorate before then we could reconsider the time-frame but I think we should make it a goal subject to health-related review” Harry advised.
Peter was well aware that he had pushed his luck as far as it would run. They had him. But the upside appeared to be that he had his freedom and would not spend the rest of his days in jail, so why not enjoy the ride? he thought.
“So my instructions will come from you I expect?” said Peter.
“No” Goldsmid replied, “they’ll come from George Rosenthahl” said Goldsmid.
“How will we communicate?” said Peter.
“Just give me the number of your prepaid telephone and I’ll forward it to him” said Goldsmid. “You’ll hear from George very soon.” Harry exuded confidence and was clearly in control of the situation. Peter felt he had never met anyone quite like him for knowing exactly what he was about. The formal exterior mirrored the unwavering steel grey eyes that Peter felt could penetrate even his innermost thoughts.
Goldsmid was as good as his word. The following morning about 9 o’clock the telephone rang and Peter found himself talking to George Rosenthahl.
“Welcome aboard, Peter” he oiled across the stratosphere. “We are very pleased to be commencing operations in your part of the world.”
“Well, you probably heard it was not entirely voluntary” said Peter, again wondering how far he could keep his morale from sagging to that of a galley slave.
“Yes” a more commanding voice responded, “but now that those matters are behind us let us work together like good friends should. You keep your end of the bargain and you will find us most helpful and supportive” Rosenthahl said, without having to state the obvious follow-up.
“I think I understand perfectly well” replied Peter for want of anything more encouraging.
“Good, good” the oil was back. “So now we are to send you on a little excursion” George enthused.
“Where to?” Peter found himself asking without wanting to.
“Japan actually” came the quick response.
“What’s happening there?” Peter said.
“Harry will tell you. He’ll be around to your place tonight. Good-bye Peter for the moment” and the phone line clicked off.
Peter made an immediate call to Harry at his office and when put straight through said he and Angelique were going out that night. Peter asked Harry what time would he be around and Harry said he’d call back, and in a half hour he was on his mobile from somewhere in traffic.
“I’m coming straight over” he said “got to iron out a few issues” and rang off.
When Harry arrived he was in a hurry. Angelique greeted him at the door and he stepped inside quickly and said that he hoped Peter was not far away. Peter came down the stairs to greet him and Harry pointed to the office as the quickest way to denote that the matter was urgent.
“Okay, I should have told you not to call me on my office number, ever. I’d also prefer it if you don’t call me during business hours. Here is my personal mobile number” said Harry, handing Peter a card with a handwritten mobile number on it. “I got your message about tonight” he continued, as if no response from Peter was needed. “While I’m here, the trip to Japan is so you can obtain and bring back some biological material. George is going to forward details of your contacts and what you will need to do to get your hands on the stuff. They were very impressed with your brother’s suggestion that the horse industry could do with a severe shock and that there would be substantial money to be made by selling down the listed totalizator agencies. That was what I was scheduled to tell you tonight but you rather preempted things by calling
me at the office.”
“When do I take this little trip?” asked Peter.
“George has you booked on a flight next Thursday. I’ve also put in a visitor visa application for you and that will be cleared by Tuesday. Your cover will be that you work for this company” he said, handing Peter a small wad of business cards inscribed with the name of a biological research enterprise based in the Hunter Valley but with Peter’s own mobile telephone and email as contact points. On the card it also listed an Australian University and Peter’s designation as Post-Doctoral Research fellow.
“There’s been a fair bit of planning so far” said Peter.
“You will find that George Rosenthahl is a very thorough person” responded Harry. “I will come around to your place on Tuesday evening and go over the fine details. We’ve taken the liberty of booking your administrative assistant on your flight in her unmarried name as it still appears on her passport, so that the trip is business-like but you will have separate hotel suites in Koriyama to avert any suspicion and of course these suites may not be conjoined or even adjacent. You will be expected do behave as business associates.”
Harry Goldsmid departed as soon as he conveyed the essential facts of the trip and Peter was left to break the news to Angelique that they were off to Japan the following week. Angelique said she was delighted and had always wanted to visit Mount Fuji. Peter said it was south of Tokyo whereas their destination was to the north of the city and that they might not have time to go south as well as accomplishing their task but he would do his best to see Mt Fuji with her.
On the Monday an air parcel courier delivered a Fedex package from an addressee in San Francisco. Peter signed for it at the door and when they opened it found a very detailed set of instructions from George Rosenthahl. They included a contact in Tokyo who would travel with them as their interpreter to Koriyama, north-east of Tokyo. He would also be a key player in introducing them to a company that specialized in dry storage of micro-biological agents for international research agencies.
Peter’s CV was included. As part of his work at the University School of Micro-Biological sciences he was involved in the DNA sequencing of the equine influenza virus for the purposes of foot-printing points of origin and changes in the organism around the world.
By the time Harry Goldsmid arrived for his meeting on Tuesday night Peter was pretty well keyed in to the task that lay ahead of him, but he had many questions for Harry.
However Harry started off first by apologizing for his brusqueness the previous Friday. He said he had to watch his underling David Jenkins who had become a little suspicious about his independent actions of late.
“He’s a great one for the concept of partnership at all times” said Harry “so sometimes I have a hard time finding a way to quickly disappear if I need to. That’s also why you don’t telephone me at work. Jenkins might pick up my phone and he’d be curious as to what was going on. Anyway, I see you have the stuff from George” he continued, looking at the materials piled on the coffee table.
“Yes, said Peter. “I’m certainly impressed with the work he has done to get this task under way.”
“Here’s your E-tickets for the flights, and your Japan visas that you will need to place inside your passport, loosely” said Harry, handing Peter the relevant items.
“How did you arrange the visas when you did not have the passports?” said Peter.
“Why do you think I took the passports in the first place?” said Harry. “I also had copies of your birth certificates and your recent marriage license.
“I thought those things could only be obtained by the individuals concerned” said Peter.
“You forget Peter that we’re an investigation agency. We can do anything” Harry replied, without emotion. Peter made a mental note to watch for the knife in the back should he ever decide to cross the man.
Angelique brought them coffee. Momentarily distracted, Harry asked rather condescendingly whether Mrs Milner had previously been to Japan.
“No” replied Angelique, “but I’ve always wanted to see Mount Fuji and the cherry blossoms. I hope we can get to do so while we are there. It should be cherry blossom time there as it’s the start of autumn here now and that means springtime in Japan.”
“I’m sure of it” said Harry before returning to his main task.
“As you’ve worked out by now” he continued “the flight to Tokyo will arrive early on Friday morning. I’ve put in a phrase book so you might like to learn just a few words in Japanese to make things easier where you have any difficulties. In the main, however, you will find plenty of English speaking Japanese people to give you assistance. There is also in this package a small self-adhesive sticker for your suit jacket Peter. Keep it with you until you clear Terminal 7 at Tokyo with your luggage, then place it on your left lapel. Your guide will pick you up in a black Mercedez Benz 380 that will carry the same tag in the top left of the front windscreen.”
“ I assume that the guide knows our accommodation details” said Peter.
“Of course. He is a regular associate of our group, a Mr Tanaki Sanyo. He was educated in the United States and speaks excellent English. I have met him several times in San Francisco” said Harry.
“So how exactly do I get hold of the equine influenza virus?” asked Peter. “I’m assuming that I am to bring it back into the country?”
“Oh yes, you are correct. We need a freeze-dried sample that can be carried back through customs and quarantine undetected of course” replied Harry. “You will obtain the sample through normal scientific exchange processes, institution to institution if you know what I mean.”
“So do you have any thoughts on how we are to do this?” asked Peter.
“George has organized everything for you and all the instructions are there in the package he sent you. Once you obtain the material it is to go inside a metal tea service set that Mr Sanyo has prepared for the purpose. This will be a present you have purchased and you will have a receipt for it. The highly decorated pewter set contains a teapot, four cups and saucers, a sugar bowl a cream jug and a tea strainer. All will be exactly as purchased except that the deep bottom section of the teapot will have a locked-in threaded second segment to conceal your sample in a shallow hollow section in the base of the pot. From outside inspection the section will only be obvious to anyone who bothered to put a measuring tape inside and measure the internal depth of the pot and compare it to the external height of the pot. The actual difference will be less than 1.5 centimeters. The threaded connecting arrangement will be invisible to the naked eye even from a careful internal inspection. The airport x-ray examination will reveal only an empty pot as the internal compartment is also lined with powder coated lead that will diffuse and thereby prevent x-rays from revealing the cavity. In other words, it will seem solid to the x-ray machine. You are to place the sample inside the teapot and Mr Sanyo will assist you to close the concealed compartment. Then carry the ‘gift’ you have purchased as part of your hand luggage. When you fill in the customs declarations prior to arrival, include the item as a ‘gift’ and its value which will be approximately 150 Australian dollars equivalent. Pay any duties required as per normal practice and don’t appear overly concerned if it is pulled out by customs for close inspection. They will not find the closed compartment.”
A long silence followed, then Peter said:
“So I am to bluff my way into the disease control agency and just ask them for a sample of equine influenza virus?”
“George has prepared your introductory letters and business cards Dr McVie. You will take them a written request for supply of same in sufficient quantity to examine the DNA of the organism. This request has the signature and authority of the Dean of Science in your University as well as of its Ethics Committee. You will also have some colour photographs of the DNA spectrum of an Australian animal pathogen, Lisser virus, that you are going to exchange with the institution in Japan. This will allow you to get talking,
through your translator Mr Sanyo, with the chief veterinary science research personnel at the Suomitoma Institute for Pathological Research. You will explain how there appear to be, according to your own research, common DNA links between the two virus codes, and that you are endeavouring to find the protein that is most susceptible to natural immuno-responses in horses.”
“Do you really think I can do this?” asked Peter.
“Remember the price of failure” is all that Harry replied.
With that, Harry rose to go. Then he stopped and said:
“Forgive me for the forward way I demanded a Scotch last time I was here in this room. I sometimes just get the urge you know, like when there is something to celebrate.” With that, he pulled the bulky item Peter had noticed from his inside jacket, and placed on the table an unopened bottle of Ballantynes 12 year-old Scotch.
“My little contribution to the joint venture” he said expectantly, at which point Peter cracked the bottle and went for the whisky glasses.
“Here’s to a successful excursion” said Harry, raising the half filled glass. Peter raised his glass and drank although he was a little lost for a suitable toast to the occasion.
By the time Harry left he had had a refill of his glass and was feeling quite loquacious. Peter had asked him about the group’s plans for the virus, should they successfully get it back into the country and Harry had volunteered that there were altogether four listed companies that had a high level of dependence on the horse industry and that any disruption to the movement of horses would be catastrophic to their bottom line. It was the consortium’s intention to immediately commence selling down these companies and to keep doing so right up until they could release the live virus and instigate an outbreak of the horse-specific disease. The incubation period was, he said, a matter of ten days or so.
Peter and Angelique followed instructions all the way and were met in Terminal 7 in the Tokyo International by the ebullient Tanaki Sanyo.
“I’m very impressed with your curriculum vitae Dr McVie” he beamed. “I have made an appointment at the research institution for you tomorrow afternoon. We are now going to Koriyama and your hotel there. That will take us approximately two and a half hours.
Sanyo looked the part, wearing a chauffer uniform but as soon as they were clear of the terminal precinct he laughed and threw the uniform cap onto the empty seat beside himself, saying:
“I always wear a uniform when picking up foreign guests. People like to give way to uniforms, ha ha.”
Peter was already conscious that he would find the next few days tiresome in the presence of this man. Nevertheless he was also only too aware that the entire task rested with Tanaki Sanyo so he would do nothing to upset plans over which he already knew he had so little control. It was an entirely new experience and he was beginning to dread the next five years.
The drive north followed a freeway from which they gained an ozone-hazed view of one of the largest metropolitan sprawls on earth. The freeway was not vastly different to freeways in any major city yet there was more sound. Motor vehicles sounded their horns with much less provocation than in most cities, and at times apparently without any provocation whatsoever. Angelique sat beside Peter taking in the views, such as they were, because all too frequently the highway fell between barriers and sidings that entirely eclipsed any view.
Eventually the urban area began to give way to strings of houses looking more like leftovers from village life in medieval times although it was impossible to ignore the encroachment of high rise and concrete and steel all around. But there were some fields and crops with people still working them, so Angelique supposed some people had managed to resist progress here and there. Mainly however, the glimpses of rural life coincided with wetlands and low-lying river flats that were probably unsuited to modern buildings.
After a short facilities break and cup of hot green tea at a service centre road house, the car was refilled with high octane fuel and they were on their way again.
“About one hour more” Tanaki said, despite the trip having already taken almost two hours.
When they were clearly in countryside and travelling at a comfortable speed in heavy traffic, Peter asked Tanaki how he should ask about the sample of equine influenza virus he was seeking.
“First, bow and then hold out your hands with the business card face up and writing towards your host” he instructed. Peter knew little of the protocol for Japan but he was suddenly recalling details from somewhere that this was what was expected.
“You must be seen as suppliant” said Tanaki. “You come in peace and you want a favour from the Institution” he continued. “I will be with you as your interpreter but you must do the asking for such a sample.”
“So what if they speak little English?” was Peter’s question.
“They mostly speak some English” he said “greeting in Japanese first, with ...” and he said the Japanese words for ‘How do you do?’ which Peter began immediately to practice.
“If they all speak English why do I need an interpreter?” said Peter.
“They are not skilled at negotiation in English. They prefer to negotiate in Japanese and have an interpreter explain in simple terms what it is they are saying” Tanaki replied.
“So they lack confidence with English?” said Peter.
“Yes, confidence” echoed Tanaki.
“So how should I open the discussion said Peter. Should I come right to the point of my visit or delay that?” he said.
“No, they’ll want to show you round their facility first and gauge your understanding of things before going into a meeting where you can put your request.”
Peter now became extremely worried. All he had ever known of microbes was that they were all bad. He had very little idea of what a laboratory was all about and even less capacity to discuss the storing of germs let alone the DNA side of things.
“You must act the role” said Tanaki.
“Fly by the seat of your pants” added Angelique, quite unnecessarily Peter felt.
When they reached their hotel, true to Harry’s warning there were bookings for all three in separate rooms. Fortunately however, all were double rooms and Peter and Angelique were on the same floor and separated by just two other rooms.
As soon as he was able Peter opened his laptop and ‘googled’ the word ‘microbe’. Thousand of articles presented themselves and away he went trying to get into the language. Surprisingly, he found much of the territory was not really so unfamiliar. He just had to take hold of key words, key concepts and store them for what he hoped would be appropriate places to slip them into the conversation. He spent the evening becoming increasingly knowledgeable at least in a superficial way and went to sleep with the language of the field ringing in his head as though next day was the grand finale to all his years at school.
Angelique said that she could slip in a few distractions if he needed at any point because she intended to stay by his side during the visit. Peter thought that might well be a useful thing so he agreed and said that he would be only too happy for her to divert the conversation at any appropriate point.
When the visitors arrived at the Institution the security at the gate consulted a computer screen and located their names. They were then asked for identification such as passports, which they had thoughtfully kept on their personages and when details had been recorded and the fake passports returned the driver was given instructions as to where to park. The door through which they were to enter the Institute was numbered and they were directed to door number four.
As they entered the door to the main building another security check involved each stating their name and then each being handed an ID card with attachment clip on which their names were already printed. Angelique found the experience quite new and made a few whispered comments that caused Peter eventually to tell her quietly to act more casually. You are quite used to this, he cautioned.
They were then led by a white-coated individual to
wards a corridor from which Peter wondered if they’d emerge so calmly. Along the corridor was a meeting room and they were led inside and asked to wait a few moments. On the walls were beautiful works of art except they were, Peter realized, enlargements of nature’s wonders; the world of microbes.
A few moments later a bespectacled scientist in a white coat entered the room and bowed low to all present, then to each in turn again as Tanaki stated their names one by one. He then held out a card to Peter whom he must have recognized as likely to be the Dr McVei who had been expected at the Institute. Peter reciprocated by holding his card forward and delivering it to Professor Yeido. The mood then relaxed and Yeido came around their side of the table and shook hands warmly with each in turn saying:
“You are most welcome here and we are honoured to have you visit us.”
“We are most honoured to be able to visit your Institution” said Peter “I have read much about it over the years. You have developed some very important ways of preserving viral material and bacillus for long term study of the DNA transformation processes.”
Peter held his breath and awaited a response. It came in Japanese. The sweat poured out of Peter’s neck, hands and face but he remained calm.
Then Sanyo spoke to him in English:
“Professor Yeido did not follow too well what you said so he has suggested you communicate with me and I will translate his Japanese back to English. Peter’s sigh of relief was almost audible and he smiled in apology at the professor spreading his hands a little as a helpful gesture.
“Tell the good professor that we’re impressed with the manner of storing microbial material so that the DNA sequences are preserved after many years” Peter replied, looking helpfully towards Yeido.
Tanaki Sanjo must have done a good job because in a moment a broad smile crossed Yeido’s face and they were old friends. He nodded and beamed a second time then in Japanese suggested what was obvious: a tour of their facility.
They proceeded down a corridor into the centre of the building and then turned right into a wide laboratory area where there were rows of what looked like huge storage cabinets and adjacent workbenches with all the equipment of modern bio-medical laboratories. There were scientists at work at some of the desk portals and others working on or around bench areas further into the laboratory. There was also a background hum that suggested it might be some sort of cooling system and that there were in fact large refrigeration units here as well. The noise prevented much conversation but they adjourned into an enclosure designed to be more noise proof and then Yeido proceeded to explain the core of the Institution.
Many of the people here, he said through Tanaki, are graduate research scientists on doctoral work or related projects. This is really not a primary research institution he seemed to be saying, but is designed to store and record the various strains of microbe that affect both animal and human organisms. Their main research effort had culminated in methods for storing microbes so they could be retained for many years and reactivated should the need arise in any laboratory anywhere in the world.
Angelique found herself wanting to ask whether this was really a germ warfare institution but she knew that this might be an unwarranted distraction. Yeido went on to say that they had the earliest forms known of bird flu from the 1919 epidemic, and they had many strains of poliomyelitis, smallpox, yellow fever, typhus, plague, cholera, ubola, HIV and many more as well as animal microbial materials including many examples of variants of the H5N1 bird flu, swine fever virus and horse flu virus, bee viruses and microbes thought to be progenitors or vectors for other diseases.
Peter said to Tanaki: “Please tell the Professor we are especially interested in the preservation of the equine influenza virus.”
“Are you doing some special research on this virus?” asked the Professor, again through Tanaki but Peter saw there was at least some understanding of the English exchange with the interpreter, so he was careful to keep things fairly straight forward.
“Yes, Professor” he said, looking directly at the professor, “we have never had this equine influenza in Australia but we are mindful that with all the international transport of horses today for major racing events such as our Melbourne Cup Carnival, we are going to get an outbreak at some time or other. What we think we want to do is take some live virus and develop some Australia-specific antiviral strains for stockpiling so we are not caught with an outbreak whereby we have no defences against the organism.”
Tanaki did a fairly good job of translating this much and Yeido thought for a moment than said, via the translation:
“Yes, I understand what you propose to do. We have a method for transporting the viral material in a freeze-dried form. We seal it in metal foil and extract the air from this foil package, replacing the air with nitrogen gas. This way we can keep the virus viable for up to five years.”
“How would we reconstitute the virus for laboratory work once it was back in Australia?” asked Peter.
“Once the foil package is no longer sealed the nitrogen will escape, being replaced by normal atmospheric gases. You then have perhaps only one week before the virus would be no longer alive unless it had found a suitable survival and reproductive vector, in this case a horse, where it could happily reproduce, of course” replied the Professor.
“But we could keep the virus in the laboratory as long as we fed it some horse blood also? Queried Peter.
“Yes” replied Yeido, “you could do so but you would be wise to extract a new set of the virus within about two days of its release into the blood because otherwise it would rapidly weaken and become unviable.”
Tanaki looked at Peter as though he had what he came for. Peter took the cue:
“So if we were to request your Institute prepare a sample of the virus for the Australian research effort, could you supply us with such a sample? We would of course be willing to pay for the sample.”
“We would not wish to have payment” Yeido said. “In these matters we consider the joint research task is paramount. Of course we would like to have access to any research outcomes concerning the efficacy of what you are developing for the Australian market. There may be reciprocal relevance to Japan, even if just a prior inoculation of any horses likely to go to Australia to win your major horse races.” The last was accompanied by a laugh.
“We are delighted at this offer” said Peter. “I expect it would take some time to prepare a sample?”
“How long are you in Koriyama?” he said. Peter was stumped; too long and they’d have a long wait; too short and the sample might not be ready. He stumbled around and then Angelique saved the day. She looked at Tanaki and said:
“Tell him we could come back after we visit Mount Fuji if needed.”
Yeido realized they were uncertain but it did not cross his mind there might have been any other issues with which they were contending.
“I could have it made up tomorrow morning” he said.
“That would be wonderful Professor” said Peter, trying hard to focus on the remainder of the visit that day. “Perhaps also we could present you with an image of our Lisser virus that we have in Australian flying foxes” at which Peter pulled from his satchel the colorful image that Harry had supplied. The Professor appeared impressed and pleased to receive what really appeared more a work of art than one of great scientific merit. “May we also see some more of your facility today?” he added.
“Yes, well” said Yeido in English, followed by some Japanese to Tanaki, who then said that the Professor had just excused himself to arrange the preparation of the equine influenza sample for their pickup the next morning.
Turning to Angelique while they waited for the Professor to return, Peter mouthed a couple of words: ‘candy’, ‘baby’ then thought better of further comment and waited the next five or so minutes in feigned indifferent silence, almost holding his breath.
When Yeido returned to the laboratory he told them that a sample was in preparation and that th
ey should come to the Reception area in the morning to take delivery of it. He then ushered them back to the corridor and along to another laboratory that had a completely different appearance to the first. Here were rows of small benches with analytical equipment and cabinets of biomedical paraphernalia alongside each desk. There were machines of every type for things such as electro-magnetism, electron microscopes, ionic analysers, micro cameras and so on.
“Ask the professor what happens in this laboratory” said Peter to Tanaki.
Through Tanaki the Professor replied that it was here that infectious disease samples were brought for analysis. Right now, there are no suspicious outbreaks in Japan but some years we have many different influenza viruses, and other infectious outbreaks that may mean we have scientists working almost every bench here” he said proudly.
“So you have the capacity to handle an outbreak like H5N1?” said Peter, voicing the current most likely event in a range of very real pathogenic scenarios that might have been mentioned.
“We hope so” said the Professor.
“Do you keep H5N1 virus material here?” said Peter.
“Yes we do” was the reply. “We are working on anti-viral protection as well as trying to anticipate mutations that pose the greatest threats” said the Professor.
Peter then drew in his breath and deliberately switched subjects:
“In Australia we have developed a method of growing Pacific and Atlantic salmon species in sea cages” he said. “They are closely confined and we think they could become susceptible to diseases that are prevalent in the northern oceans of the world. Do you have any salmon pathogens among the work you do?” asked Peter, certain that he would be making a return visit to this helpful institution.
“Yes, there are known diseases in salmon that are farmed in sea cages in Japan. We hold the known pathogens here for anti-viral work. We also have some amoebic diseases and some bacterial problems that we work on here as well” said Yeido.
“When my current work on equine influenza is completed I plan to commence work on salmon and sea trout disease” said Peter, in a matter of fact monotone.
“You will be most welcome to return and you will find we can be helpful in this regard as well” Yeido responded.
Another hour went by and Peter indicated that they had probably achieved an adequate understanding of the Institute and that he was very grateful for the assistance that Professor Yeido had rendered to the cause of combating diseases such as equine influenza.
The professor took them back down the labyrinth of corridors to the entrance foyer, explained to the receptionist that there would be a revisit the next day to pick up a package that would be at reception and asked for a pass for the following day that they could show at the security check point near the entrance to the establishment.
There was a formal bow and handshake all around and the professor was gone. They had not even had to show him the fake letter from the Australian university that Peter had expected might be their trump card.
They returned to their hotel and once Tanaki had been thanked for the day with a good Japanese beer and late lunch he was given the rest of the day off and they arranged for his return by 8 the following morning.
“Thanks administrative assistant. You did a good job bailing me out there at the Institute” said Peter to Angelique.
“I think you did most of it unaided. You were brilliant” replied Angelique. “This whole thing could turn out to be a lot of fun.”
“Yes, if you don’t mind the consequences” said Peter.
“Not getting cold feet are we?” said Angelique.
“No, but I am wondering just what we’ve got ourselves into for the next five years” Peter replied.
“Okay, but for now remember I want a trip to Mount Fuji, and I haven’t seen any cherry blossom yet. I also would like to go to one of the main Shinto shrines, I’m told they’re absolutely beautiful.”
“We’ll get Tanaki to take us around a bit before we fly home” said Peter.
The pick-up the next morning went according to plan. As expected the virus was contained within a hermetically sealed foil envelope, the exterior of which also had been sprayed with an adhesive liquid plastic for additional protection.
Peter explained to Tanaki that they wished to make a trip to climb Mount Fuji and asked if he could also take them to a Shinto shrine as well as showing them some cherry trees in blossom.
“All that is very easy to do” said Tanaki. “First we will go to Mount Fuji today, stay there tonight and climb the mountain tomorrow. It will take about 8 or 9 hours to do the climb and many people do it at night so they can see the sunrise. You will need some extra clothing but we will organize that when we are there. Then we can also visit a Shinto shrine near the base of the mountain. With regard to cherry blossom I am not so certain. We are still a bit too early. Maybe some will be out already” he continued, “so we’ll see.”
Tanaki went on to say that after they have visited Mount Fuji he would bring the tea set ‘gift’ to their hotel room in Tokyo where the sample would become to all intents invisible to probing x-rays and sniffer dogs and so forth.
The slopes of Mount Fuji were still covered with snow but a light rail took them so close to the top that they were able to walk to the summit in a little over four hours. They did a daylight climb as Peter said he’d prefer his bed for the night. There was also a Shinto Shrine not far from the base of the mountain and this was regarded as one of the best in Japan. The cherry blossom was not yet in sufficient bloom to fulfill the goal that Angelique had set herself for the trip but Peter pointed out that they were bound to be coming back at a future date.
They returned to Tokyo and to a high rise hotel near the Ginza. Now that the potential for problems arising from them being married was behind them, they checked into a room with a large sitting area in addition to the double bed and Tanaki carried their luggage to the room, uniform cap back in place.
Once inside, the three of them set about preparing the concealed section of the pewter teapot. Tanaki placed the pot on the floor and took out a rubber suction disk attached to a short wooden handle. He inserted the suction cup into the teapot and pushed firmly to obtain a good seal. He then grasped the wooden handle firmly and twisted in an anti-clockwise direction whereupon the inner floor of the teapot unwound on a fine thread and was lifted clear.
“Now” he said “place the package in its metal foil container here” indicating with his index finger the bottom of the teapot. Peter placed it there and Tanaki made certain there were no corners contacting the threaded area at the edge of the base. He then reversed the procedure with the threaded metal plate turning down gently until it was tight and otherwise indistinguishable from the floor of the teapot. He picked up the teapot and shook it gently for any sound but there was none. The foil package was clearly wedged solid against the upper and lower floor of the teapot and together with the powder coated lead lining there was virtually no way that the item in the teapot could be detected.
Tanaki told them the time he would pick them up and deliver them back to terminal 7 and he was gone. The following morning was free time as their flight was not until late in the evening so Angelique asked Peter to visit the Ginza as it was nearby.
They did a fair amount of walking that morning but both found the crowds rather intimidating. There just seemed nowhere that was reasonably free of other people. The walk along streets was often more a surge as the crowd was packed at times and attempts to find clear space proved futile.
The return to Australia on the Qantas flight was incident free and the aircraft touched down at Mascot at about 7 am the following morning. Customs and quarantine precautions seemed in recent times to have been stepped up and Peter was only too aware of the little item in his hand luggage, but after answering the relevant questions both on his form and at the check through desk he was waved through like most of the rest of the passengers. The tea set was opened and looked at by customs but
the stated value of $150 was regarded as too small to bother with duty and they were through.
A taxi ride from the airport brought them to Point Piper shortly after 8 am and Peter was certain that they’d at least have the day together and alone. At approximately 8.30 the phone rang and it was George Rosenthahl.
“Have a nice trip Peter?”
“Yes, thanks George” he replied and successful too.
“So you got what you went over for?” he continued.
“The visit to Mount Fuji was great and we got to a Shinto Shrine so we did everything we really wanted to do” responded Peter.
“And the medicine has arrived safely?”
“Yes, thanks to your careful planning George” replied Peter.
“Good. Harry will be around this evening. Don’t go out” and the phone line was dead.
“They don’t waste any time do they” said Angelique a little petulantly.
“No, but that’s what we are getting paid for” Peter responded, and put a tired arm around her. “I think I’ll catch up on some sleep. How about you?” he said.
“Me too” said Angelique and that was where they spent most of the day.
In the evening Harry called by to pick up the special luggage. He told them that Tanaki had kept him informed of progress and he’d known all the time exactly where they were and how the plan was developing. He also said that the relevant stocks had been short sold, and that all was in readiness for the little adventure to the Hunter Valley.
“How do you propose to get the equine influenza going?” asked Peter.
“Well, first we have to activate it in a compatible solution containing horse blood” said Harry. “That part is easy. We are going to the holding boxes at Randwick tomorrow and we’ll have a little syringe to extract the needed fluid. You and I will pose as random dope inspectors and simply take samples whether owners are cooperative or not. Then we go back to our mutual laboratory friend whom you used when you hit ‘To Your Health’” said Harry.
“When did you find out about my laboratory friend?” said Peter.
“We’ve known since you pulled that first little biological incident, what almost four years ago now. But he’s only just found out that he is cooperating with a larger party now” said Harry, quite certain of his position. “So he will manufacture the serum from the freeze-dried germ matter.”
“How long will that take, Harry?” said Peter.
“Should be ready inside the week” said Harry.
“ So then we head into the real horse country up in the Hunter Valley?” asked Peter.
“Exactly” said Harry. “We are veterinary professionals doing random dope sampling. It might just happen that while unobserved we add a little extra to several horses throughout the region” he said without any emotion.
Within a week the serum had been readied and checked for viability by the ‘laboratory contact’ Peter had first used. Harry expected Peter to join him, although Angelique was able to escape the trip by feigning a migraine.
The trip to the Hunter Valley was relatively routine.
“It’s amazing what a white coat does to many people” said Harry after the first horse had been successfully inoculated. “You just roll up, tell them who you are and they acquiesce without so much as a murmur” he said, driving slowly along the narrow country road leading to yet more small holdings and white fences and colourful banks of jump rails for equestrian training.
“What would you do if someone asked you for identification?” said Peter.
“I have suitable identification on me” said Harry “but I seriously doubt whether anyone will challenge us. Remember even in Japan you were not asked for the well prepared letter of introduction at the Research Institute. We’ll keep that for another day.”
Harry was right, and over a radius of some twenty kilometers the serum had been surreptitiously injected into no less than eight horses by the time the day was over.
The drive back to Point Piper was uneventful and Harry dropped Peter off saying he should get a good night’s sleep. Sleep was the last thing Peter was thinking of but after contemplating calling his older brother he decided against that and went for a quiet session with the new bottle of whisky that Harry had brought a few days earlier.
Australia had not previously experienced an outbreak of equine influenza so when the first horses became ill and displayed the symptoms of coughing and running nostrils it triggered alarm bells but nobody really believed the virus had reached the isolated continent. Routine testing soon revealed the culprit however and the consequences spread like a tsunami across the country.
The blame was immediately directed towards the nation’s quarantine and inspection service and then to the arrival in the country of racehorses from places where the disease was known. These included some European countries as well as Japan.
The consequences for the horse racing industry were catastrophic. Horse movement in and out of the affected area was absolutely prohibited but so was movement of any horse across any state boundary. This meant that horse racing was to come to a virtual standstill until the epidemic could be contained and the virus eliminated.
In the consortium office in San Francisco, all eyes were glued to the stock market prices for the four entities most affected by the ban on horse racing. The share prices sank in unison. Falls of thirty percent happened within a few days.
New outbreaks of the influenza occurred daily. The virus is easily capable of covering tens of kilometers down wind from an infection site and this was what it was doing. Horse transport came to a complete standstill with many people and their animals stranded thousands of miles from home pastures.
In San Francisco George Rosenthahl gave the nod to his group to start buying back the enormous number of shares they had shorted on these betting related entities. They were to buy back during the epidemic but not before the affected securities had seen their values cut by upwards of forty-five percent.
Just as Peter and Jim before him had found, there was limited overlap with the Australian market during the week and they found themselves working the computer screens on many days well after close of normal business time. They did not need to work especially fast however as it was obvious from the spread of the disease that the industry in Australia was not well prepared for this particular microbe.
The relevant vaccine was available in other countries but it takes a few weeks to manufacture in quantities and the lack of immunity among the horses of Australia hastened both the spread and the severity of the outbreak. The damage to the horse industry was estimated at over one billion dollars. The nation’s quarantine service was attributed as negligent and the long-term consequence was that Australia lost its global equine influenza free status.
The small coterie of stock market manipulators in San Francisco repurchased all their sold down stock well before the influenza epidemic had run its course and were well on the way to their next project by the time the epidemic was contained and normal horse racing recommenced. Total gains on the short sold stock amounted to over seventy-four million dollars after taxes and costs.
George Rosenthahl was very happy with the outcome and asked Harry Goldstein to pass on his congratulations to Peter.
When Harry called at the Point Piper apartment after work one evening he realized that it had been three weeks since their last contact. He was greeted at the door by Peter who said that he hoped Harry and the consortium were happy with the train wreck that had happened to horse racing in Australia.
“I didn’t know you were a racing man, Peter” said Harry, airily.
“No, I’m not” said Peter, “but I have been thinking of the cost-benefit ratio of our last little episode.”
Harry seated himself in the lounge as though they were old friends and then he passed on the congratulations of their mutual American friend.
“George said to say they were very pleased with the result” he said. “The consortium earned about twenty-nine million dolla
rs from the enterprise. He also said that your first quarterly dividend of one million dollars has been paid into your account with George Kuidel, and that Kuidel has paid the US tax component on your behalf. There is also an advance on your bonus of another three million dollars. You can withdraw the funds any time you wish.”
Peter replied that he was pleased with the result but also having difficulty with how he could explain the movement of funds into his international account when he wasn’t trading shares.
“I’ve worked out the answer Peter” said Harry. “Put it down as building consultancy fees. You are a master builder and you have been involved in design work on your last trips to California. The funds are now tax paid and you should have no tax implications when the money is transferred back to Australia.”
“Thanks Harry” said Peter, aware of his level of discomfort with this too glib operative, but unable to come up with any alternative feasible solution to his problem.
Peter might also have known that Harry did not waste trips. Here they were having a form of ‘debrief’ from one fairly challenging exploit and Harry was about to expound on the next project.
“I expect you’re going to tell me what’s on the drawing boards for the consortium, Harry” he said in anticipation.
“Perhaps we could discuss it over a wee drop of that malt you have?” said Harry, sensing the dislike that lay just beneath the surface of his host.
Peter poured the whisky and they were joined by Angelique who had been enjoying a spa bath at the far end of the apartment.
“Harry has just explained that our first pay cheque is on its way from America” said Peter. Angelique looked at him quizzically.
“It should be about four million dollars” he said.
Angelique looked at Harry and said: “I hope they pay you well also Mr Goldsmid?”
Harry replied that the consortium members were all very well paid, and Peter realized that Harry’s share would also be close to three million dollars for the single enterprise. In fact, it was almost five million dollars. Peter felt little warmth for his unwanted guest so he pressed on:
“So are you going to tell us what the next little task is Harry?”
“Yes” he replied. “we’re going to target a major supermarket chain.”
“In Australia?” asked Peter.
“Can you think of a good reason why not?” Harry replied.
“But they’re all over the country” said Peter. “A problem in one locality will be absorbed by all the other enterprises.”
“It’s because they’re so widespread that we can bring them undone” replied Harry. “We’re going to sabotage their enterprise by striking all around the country.”