Kimo held her breath, praying it was good news, not more of the bad stuff.
“Kimo, you’ll be happy to know I was able to recover your files from your online storage site.”
She let her breath out in a woosh. “Really?”
“Really,” he said. “Not only that, but I also found the photo of the container that you uploaded and was able to locate an identification number.”
“Were you able to trace it to the company that owned it?” Rex asked.
“I was,” Swede said. “It’s owned by Holte Maritime Group, a shipping corporation operating out of the west coast of the US with a corporate headquarters on Oahu.”
Rex frowned. “Marcus Holte is the owner.”
Kimo glanced across at him. “You know him?”
“I know of him. He and my father were business associates. At least, they were when I was younger. They attended some of the same events. Galas, charity auctions, state functions.”
“I looked him up,” Swede said. “He’s highly regarded in the industry and seems to run a clean operation, following all the maritime laws and has a pretty healthy philanthropic reputation.”
“Were you able to tap into their cargo manifests to locate that particular shipping container?” Hawk asked.
“I was,” Swede said. “It’s supposed to be on a ship enroute to Hong Kong. I tracked the ship it was supposed to be on. The route originated from the Port of San Francisco, with a stop in Kaumalapau on Lanai three days ago, then on to Hong Kong, which it should reach in fifteen or twenty days. The ship would have offloaded or taken on more cargo on the west side of Lanai and wouldn’t have passed between Lanai and Maui or anywhere close to Maalaea Bay.”
“Which means that container was offloaded at the port in Lanai,” Rex said. “But by whom and onto what?”
“The cargo manifest didn’t show the container as having been offloaded. It’s supposed to be on that ship to Hong Kong.”
“Heading toward the storm that’s supposed to hit Hawaii two days from now,” Hawk said, “where they could legitimately say the container was lost at sea.”
“Did you find out who managed the offloading of the containers on Lanai?” Hawk asked.
“Yes,” Swede said. “Again, Holte Maritime Group.”
“We need to talk to Marcus Holte,” Hawk said.
“I tried to set up a meeting with Mr. Holte,” Swede said, “but he didn’t have anything available until next week.”
“That’s too late,” Kimo said. “Alana might not have that kind of time left.”
“Swede, see what you can find about Holte’s whereabouts. Maybe we can crash one of his meetings,” Hawk said. “I’ll send someone to Lanai to poke around the harbor and ask questions of the stevedores who unload the ships.”
Kimo’s head spun with what they’d just learned. Only one thing was clear. “Knowing who owns the container isn’t necessarily leading us to Alana.”
“Not yet,” Swede said. “We have to find the people responsible for offloading that container. If it’s not Holte’s operation, who stepped in to reroute it? Whoever that is will be in charge of the thugs who came after you and Alana.”
“Like I said,” Hawk continued, “I’ll send someone to the harbor on Lanai to ask around.”
“Is it possible to track the smaller vessels that might’ve shown up in the harbor at the same time as the ship carrying Holte’s container?” Rex asked.
“I’m working on that,” Swede said. “Based on the Harbor Master’s records, there were a number of smaller vessels owned by various individuals and corporations. I’ll be sorting through them to look for any connections between them and the Holte Maritime Group.”
“In the meantime, Kimo, we still need your camera,” Hawk said. “It’s the only proof that people were inside that container.”
Rex met Kimo’s gaze and responded for them with, “We’ll be out there this evening.”
“I hope you find your camera,” Swede said. “It might be the only way to help those people find justice.”
“Right back atcha,” Kimo said. “We need the connection between the Holte’s container ship and whoever received it. Those people have to be the ones who have Alana.”
