“Both will be represented,” replied Butler. He added, “It will be a very comprehensive briefing.”
“Good,” said Brodie. “And after it’s over we will need access to the crime scene.”
“I’m sure that can be arranged.”
“By who?”
“By the BKA. The Federal Police, who are running this investigation. They have control of the crime scene and custody of all evidence.”
Taylor said to Brodie, “We’ll put in a request with the BKA officer at the briefing.”
“Actually,” said Butler, “we can handle that for you.” He added, “Though we have no investigative authority, we have a lot of experience coordinating with German law enforcement.”
Brodie said, “And we have a lot of experience investigating homicides.”
“I’m sure you do. But this homicide is politically sensitive. We all needto keep open lines of communication here and be clear on our needs and requirements. To that end, I want you to relay any requests you have pertaining to this investigation to me directly.”
Brodie took that to mean,Don’t do anything without clearing it with the FBI.
He replied, “We will keep all lines of communication open. I will let you know about all of my and Maggie’s needs.”
Butler flashed another smile, this one not so convincing. “Good.”
They entered the front lobby, a modestly sized room with mostly glass walls. The eastern-facing wall offered a view of a large interior courtyard dotted with trees and benches, and the western wall faced the street and the edge of the Tiergarten. There was another hallway entrance at the far end of the lobby that, based on Brodie’s experience in American embassies, led to the front entrance and the security desk.
Butler led them to a cluster of leather club chairs near a polished flagstone wall. “Make yourselves comfortable and I’ll let you know when we’re ready for you.”
Taylor said, “Thank you, Jason.”
Butler looked at Taylor and smiled as he said, “You’re most welcome.” He walked off quickly.
Brodie and Taylor sat in facing chairs. Brodie watched Butler as he trotted across the lobby, then disappeared from view. He pictured the guy taking a secret elevator up to the NSA listening station where he could spy on everyone in the lobby. Brodie eyed a potted fern next to his chair and pushed aside one of the leaves.
“What are you doing?”
“Sweeping for bugs.”
“Maybe I shouldn’t have told you about that. You’re paranoid enough.”
“What did you think of Agent Butler? Please communicate in hand signals only.”
“He was fine. As for you, I think you still have some things to learn about making friends and influencing people.”
“I don’t need more friends.”
“How about allies?”
“Jason Butler is not our ally. He is an FBI agent and a bureaucraticroadblock between us and the German Federal Police, the BKA, who are actually running this investigation. And the BKA, in turn, is another roadblock. You understand this intuitively, which is why you got us hotel rooms away from this place with views overlooking the crime scene.”
“That’s not exactly what I was thinking—”
“Listen, Maggie. Humans are clannish by nature. We divide ourselves by nation, race, religion, sports teams, and beer brands. You and I are part of a large and powerful clan called the U.S. military, and that little twerp is not.”
“Don’t be the kind of soldier who has contempt for civilians. It’s unbecoming.”
“My point is that the FBI is its own clan too, and they are looking at this thing the way Feds do—hung up on jurisdiction and procedure. And that’s fine, they’re basically diplomats here and that’s part of their job. They have to live and work in this country every day, and they can’t burn bridges that they’ll need again when the next case comes along. We are outsiders. And we have a different job and different motivations. Harry Vance was one of us.”
Taylor looked Brodie in the eyes. “You’re hungry for a fight. But you ought to wait until someone actually fucks with you before starting one.”
