Chromosome 6 by Robin Cook. Chapter 16-2

so.’

‘Yeah, let me do that,’ Mark said.

Lou was about to hang up when he heard Mark yell his name.

‘I just thought of something else,’ Mark said. ‘There’s an organization

called Central Flow Management with offices in both Paris and Brussels.

They’re the ones who provide the slot times for takeoffs and landings.

They handle all of Europe except for Austria and Slovenia. Who knows why

those countries aren’t involved? So, if N69SU came from anyplace other

than Austria or Slovenia, their flight plan should be on file.’

‘Do you know anybody in that organization?’ Lou asked.

‘No, but I know somebody who does,’ Mark said. ‘Let me see if I can find

out for you.’

‘Hey, I appreciate it,’ Lou said.

‘No problem,’ Mark said.

Lou hung up the phone and then drummed his pencil on the surface of his

scarred and battle-worn gray-metal desk. There were innumerable burn

marks where he’d left smoldering cigarette butts. He was thinking about

Alpha Aviation and wondering how to run down the organization.

First, he tried telephone information in Reno. There was no listing for

Alpha Aviation. Lou wasn’t surprised. Next, he called the Reno police

department. He explained who he was and asked to be connected to his

equivalent, the head of Homicide. His name was Paul Hersey.

After a few minutes of friendly banter, Lou gave Paul a thumbnail sketch

of the Franconi case. Then he asked about Alpha Aviation.

‘Never heard of them,’ Paul said.

‘The FAA said it was out of Reno, Nevada,’ Lou said.

‘That’s because Nevada’s an easy state to incorporate in,’ Paul

explained. ‘And here in Reno we’ve got a slew of high-priced law firms

who spend their time doing nothing else.’

‘What’s your suggestion about getting the lowdown on the organization?’

Lou asked.

‘Call the Office of the Nevada Secretary of State in Carson City,’ Paul

said. ‘If Alpha Aviation is incorporated in Nevada, it will be on public

record. Want us to call for you?’

‘I’ll call,’ Lou said. ‘At this point, I’m not even sure what I want to

know.’

‘We can at least give you the number,’ Paul said. He went off the line

for a moment, and Lou could hear him bark an order to an underling. A

moment later, he was back and gave Lou the telephone number. Then he

added: ‘They should be helpful, but if you have any trouble, call me

back. And if you need any assistance in Carson City for whatever reason

call Todd Arronson. He’s head of Homicide down there, and he’s a good

guy.’

A few minutes later Lou was on the line with the Office of the Nevada

Secretary of State. An operator connected him to a clerk, who couldn’t

have been nicer or more cooperative. Her name was Brenda Whitehall.

Lou explained that he was interested to find out all he could about

Alpha Aviation out of Reno, Nevada.

‘Just a moment, please,’ Brenda said. Lou could hear the woman typing

the name onto a keyboard. ‘Okay, here it is,’ she added. ‘Hang on and

let me pull the folder.’

Lou lifted his feet up onto his desk and leaned back in his chair. He

felt an almost irresistible urge to light up, but he fought it.

‘I’m back,’ Brenda said. Lou could hear the rustle of papers. ‘Now what

is it that you want to know?’

‘What do you have?’ Lou asked.

‘I have the Articles of Incorporation,’ Brenda said. There was a short

period of silence while she read, then she added: ‘It’s a limited

partnership and the general partner is Alpha Management.’

‘What does that mean in plain English?’ Lou asked. ‘I’m not a lawyer or

a businessman.’

‘It simply means that Alpha Management is the corporation that runs the

limited partnership,’ Brenda said patiently.

‘Does it have any people’s names?’ Lou asked.

‘Of course,’ Brenda said. ‘The Articles of Incorporation have to have

the names and addresses of the directors, the registered agent for

service of process, and the officers of the corporation.’

‘That sounds encouraging,’ Lou said. ‘Could you give them to me?’

Lou could hear the sound of rustling papers.

‘Hmmmm,’ Brenda commented. ‘Actually, in this instance there’s only one

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