Daniel Ganninger - Icarus Investigations 03 - Snow Cone (3 page)

-Chapter 4-

We spent the remainder of the day watching bad television programs, the kind that had no redeeming quality other than to make you feel depressed that you had spent the time watching.

“
What do you think of Nashville?” Galveston asked during a commercial.

“
It’s nice,” I answered.  “Why do you ask?”  Galveston moved into a sitting position on the edge of his bed.  “Uh-oh,” I thought. “What’s he up to?”

“
I want to run something past you, and before you respond with a no, let me lay out some facts.”

I
hesitated before speaking.  Things never went well when he started a conversation this way.  I knew it was fruitless to argue, so I gave in and answered, “Okay.”

“
I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about the business and our direction.  I feel we’ve hit a tipping point.”

“
Go on,” I said with trepidation.

“
You know, as well as I, our business in California is dead.  We can’t run an effective operation there since all the news articles came out.  How can we effectively investigate when people know who we are?  I think we have to make a change, and by change I mean location.”

“
I’m still listening.”  I couldn’t refute anything he had said.  Our business had been shattered since our popularity grew.  Too many people were wanting our services.  In any other business this would have been a godsend, for us it was a death sentence.  We were also on the radar of every government organization in the state. 

“
I like Nashville.  It has possibilities.  We can find work on entertainment cases, industry is growing, and we can access the east coast easily,” he explained.

I
couldn’t argue against any of his points.  Nashville would be prime investigative real estate, and the cost of doing business would be significantly lower.

“
What about Jane, and even Alex?” I inquired.

“
I don’t know, what about Jane?  Maybe you need to convince her of the idea.  If you go back to San Diego, you could help Dave with his divorce cases.  I know you don’t want to do that.”

“
And Alex?” I asked.

Galveston
set off with a laugh.  “Alex?  You know he’s not going anywhere.  We can fly him in when we need him, or he can do the work from the comfort of his pool patio.”

He
was right again.  Alex Judokowski, our resident computer expert, would never leave his cushy San Diego mansion.

“
Nashville, huh?” I was beginning to thaw on the idea.  Maybe it was because my brain had been fried from all the terrible T.V. we had watched during the day, but Galveston had made many valid points.  I didn’t have a preference on where we lived.  I loved the coast but never had enough time to enjoy it.  I would have more opportunities to retire someday here in Tennessee than I would in California.  My rational mind knew it was the best choice, but my feelings for Jane outweighed everything else.

“
I hear what you’re saying, and I—reluctantly agree.  If I can convince Jane, then maybe we could set up a satellite office.  We’ll continue with Dave running our office in San Diego.”

“
I knew you would come over to my line of thinking,” Galveston said with a smile.

“
Sorry to burst your bubble, but if Jane doesn’t agree with it, I’m not going with it.”

“
Don’t you worry. I have a plan for Jane.  I just hope it works,” Galveston smirked.

“
Whatever you say.” 

I
turned from Galveston and stared up at the ceiling.  We were moving to Nashville—with Jane’s blessing, of course. 

“
Maybe I could buy that farm I’ve always dreamed about,” I thought.  I could get a couple of horses, maybe a chicken or two, then hire someone to take care of them since I had no clue how to run a farm.  Jane and I could settle down in the hills, away from the bustle of the city.  It all seemed romantic and new.  I enjoyed the thought of change.  I just hated the thought of what it would take to make it happen.

-Chapter 5-

The alarm blared and woke us at 8:00 A.M.  Our meeting with Joseph Stanwick, the geologist at Vanderbilt, was set for 9:30.  I rolled out of bed and threw a nearby shoe at Galveston.

“
Get up.  Time to get moving,” I said rubbing my eyes.

“
But I was having…”

“
I don’t care who you were having.  Let’s get going.”

Galveston
grunted and pulled on his wrinkled pants while still in bed.  “I need some coffee.”

“
And probably a breath mint,” I shot back.

Galveston
only grunted again and tried to flatten his hair with his hand.

We had been in hotel rooms for over a month, and the hard beds and
equally hard sheets were getting old.  We both hoped this would be an easy case, but we knew never to think anything would be easy.

I grabbed a few stale pastries from the hotel’s continental breakfast as
Galveston slowly sipped his coffee.  We functioned poorly in the morning, and this one was no different.  I had to push Galveston toward the exit door and to our car so we would make the meeting on time.

We drove to
Vanderbilt University, which was in the southwestern part of Nashville.  The campus was beautiful.  The leaves of the trees lining the paths were turning color, and the Jeffersonian architecture of the Peabody College building stood as a gem sitting on a vast green lawn. 

I loved
college campuses.  They were a world inside a world, and I missed being involved in academia.  I had been a lecturer and Associate Professor in economics and finance at the University of Maryland, but a new job with the International Monetary Fund pulled me away.  That was years ago, and my life had taken a dramatic shift since then.

Galveston
and I strolled through the campus, trying not to look at the beautiful college women walking past.  We walked to the Science and Engineering building where the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences was located.

Professor Joseph Stanwick was sitting at his desk when I knocked on the door.

“Professor Stanwick?” I asked, just to make sure we had the right man.

“
Yes, hello,” he said as he got up from a desk cluttered with papers and books.  “You must be the two investigators from Icarus.”

“
That would be us,” Galveston answered.

“
It’s so nice to meet you,” Stanwick replied, shoving his hand at Galveston.  “I love your business name, Icarus.  I’m a fan of Greek mythology.”

“
It suits us,” I stated.  “I’m Roger Murphy, and this is Dan Galveston.”

He shook our hands again and had a bright smile on his face.

“Please, do sit down.”  He motioned for us to sit, but the office was so cluttered that there was no place for us to go.

“
Sorry, sorry,” he said, pushing stacks of books onto the ground.

I noticed that Professor Stanwick was a bit nervous.  It was understandable since he had
probably never talked to a pair of private eyes.  Not that we were that intimidating.  I was just glad he didn’t respond with, “what?  You guys are it?”

The Professor must
have been in his early fifties.  He had a good touch of gray in his hair but was in good shape for a man of his age.  The jeans he wore were slightly tattered, and his Polo shirt was wrinkled.  He didn’t appear stuffy or full of himself like many of the professors I had known. 

Galveston
and I sat down on a pair of well-worn, wooden chairs, and Stanwick returned to his desk.  He leaned forward eagerly, waiting for something.

“
Professor…” I started.

“
Please, call me Joe.  My students even call me Joe.”

“
Okay, Joe.  What can we do for you?”

“
Well, I talked to Bill, and he said you guys did an amazing job.  We go back many years.  I once was one of his clients.”

“
You don’t say,” Galveston chimed in.

“
Yes, I used to be a singer-songwriter.  I gave it up when I couldn’t pay the bills.”  Joe let out a laugh.  “That was over thirty years ago.  Bill was great and set me on the right path.  We’ve been friends ever since.”

“
It’s a tough business, I bet,” I said to him.

“
Real tough—and cutthroat.  Sometimes you just didn’t know who your friends were.  I decided to go back to school and get a real job.”  Joe laughed at himself again.  “Anyway, I have a dicey sort of problem here.  As I told Mr. Galveston, I’ve been having some trouble with my research.  I don’t know where to begin.” 

“
It’s okay, Joe.  We’ll guide you along,” Galveston assured him.

“
Alright.  Well, my work focuses on hydrology and sedimentology.  Hydrology, for your information, studies the distribution and movement of water over the earth, and sedimentology is the study of how rocks, sand, and mud have been deposited.”  Joe paused.  “I haven’t lost you yet, have I?” 

“
Don’t worry, Joe.  We’re here,” I responded politely, even though in a few more seconds my eyes would have glazed over.

“
I’ve been researching the movement of the ice sheets in Greenland for years, probably twenty or so.  I study the rocks around the ice sheets, and I’ve been taking samples from the area.”

“
Greenland?  It’s not very green,” Galveston said with a hint of interest.

“
No, not very green, but the rim of the country is lined with some interesting geological features.  It may not sound too exciting, but I’m trying to determine what is truly underneath the ice sheets.  It’s debated whether there are three islands under the ice or a huge canyon.  No one is exactly sure.  I feel this information could help us determine how ice and water interact under and around the ice sheet.  It could allow scientists to figure out how the ice affects water levels.”

“
Interesting,” I lied, and I felt bad about it.  I didn’t come for a lesson in geology; a subject I almost failed in high school.  But I understood it mattered to Joe, and I respected that.

“
All of that information is neither here nor there.  I’ve had problems the last two times I’ve gone to Greenland,” Joe said, shaking his head.  “This last time just destroyed an entire research opportunity.”

“
What happened?” I inquired, my interest now rising.

“
I’m not sure why it happened, but I was chased out of my research area.”

“
By who?” Galveston asked.

“
I don’t know.  I started doing my regular work—testing soil samples, taking ice core samples—then all of a sudden I get approached by a group of men.  They had uniforms and handguns but no indication of where they were from.  Greenland is in the Kingdom of Denmark, and these men were not Danish.  There is a U.S. Air Force base nearby, but they weren’t from there.  They told me to leave immediately because the area was off-limits.”

“
They didn’t tell you who they were?” I asked.

“
No, and I didn’t wait for an answer.  I was there with my research assistant, and these men didn’t want to talk.  I tried to go back a few days later and was threatened again.  They told me I would be arrested by the Danish government if I entered the area.  I tried to argue my way through, but then they got aggressive and started to point their guns at me.  I wasn’t about to test them, either.  I tried to get answers in the capitol, Nuuk, but they just looked at me like I was crazy.  I still have pieces of my equipment sitting up there.”

“
Did you try to get more answers when you got back to the States?” I interrogated him.

“
Yes, but everyone thought I was crazy.  The Danish government said I had permission in that area, and if I had further problems to contact them.  But this is Greenland.  The police are spread out so much; it’s hardly a concern for them.”

“
What would you like us to do?” Galveston questioned.

“
I would like some support.  For one, I would like to know who these men are, and two, I would like to not get shot trying to continue my research.  Above all else, I want some answers.”

“
It’s very weird,” I started.  “It’s not like there’s gold under the ice, right?”

Joe
smiled, “No, no gold, just more and more ice.” 

“
Well, we’ll need to discuss the case between us.  How would you pay for our help?”  It was a question I never liked to ask right away, but I was curious how a geologist was going to fund our assistance.

“
I have some additional grant money that I planned to use.  I’ll lose it anyway if I don’t finish my research.  I can put you down as part of the research team and pay you a salary.”

“
Very good.  We’ll discuss the case and get back to you,” I assured him.

“
Thank you.  I hope you can help me.  This is my life.  It may not seem interesting to you, but I don’t want to lose something I’ve spent twenty years working on.”

“
We completely understand, Joe.  We’ll let you know.”

Galveston
and I shook Joe’s hand and left the office.  It was an interesting case, and for now, seemed like an easy score.

“
We may not have to leave Nashville for this one,” Galveston said as we walked down a path outside the building.

“
I hope you’re right.  Going to Greenland was never on my bucket list.”

“
See, I told you it would be easy.  Find out who these guys are in Greenland and get Joe back to his research.  How hard could it be?”

Sometimes
Galveston was more than wrong.