“Company,” he replied, his gaze remaining on the numbers.
“How long have you been employed here?” Kiley asked.
“Ten years.”
“Good place to work, I take it.”
Kiley received a sharp nod in response but that was all.
“Do you know how long the company has been based in the U.S.?” Evan asked.
“No.” Clearly he was a man of few words.
On the fourth floor, he walked to glass double doors at the far side of a small lobby and swiped a card down a wall-mounted reader. The door popped open, and a tall regal-looking man dressed in a black pinstripe suit, white shirt, gold tie, and gleaming patent-leather shoes strode confidently toward them. His skin was brown, his hair the blackest obsidian. He was fit and stood around Evan’s six-foot-two height. He held out his hand, his nails manicured, and gave Evan a tight smile. “You must be Agent Bowers. I’m Ormazd Malouf.”
Evan shook hands, not surprised to find the man’s skin softinstead of callused like his dockworkers. “Thank you for meeting us on such short notice.”
A bushy eyebrow rose. “I’m afraid you made it sound like I didn’t have a choice.”
Evan waited for Malouf to introduce himself to Kiley. He gave her a crisp but indifferent nod.
His obvious dismissal made Evan mad. “This is Special Agent Kiley Dawson with the FBI. She’s the lead agent on this investigation and will be directing our interview.”
Kiley had to look up at Malouf, but his height didn’t seem to bother her as she shoved out her hand and confidently met his gaze, giving him no choice other than to shake her hand or appear rude.
He pumped her hand only once and then spun. “Follow me.”
She looked at Evan and rolled her eyes. He nodded his agreement. The man had been painfully condescending, perhaps a holdover from his culture. In today’s business world, surely he ran into professional women and didn’t alienate them this way too. Or maybe he did or even refused to deal with women.
He stepped into an office facing the curved portion of the building. One wall was filled with glass-and-chrome bookshelves holding ancient artifacts, sculptures, old and likely rare books. Another wall held gilded-framed photos of Malouf with men in flowing robes, celebrities, and politicians. For a Tacoma-based shipper, this man seemed well connected.
“Sit,” he commanded as he pointed at a glass-topped conference table with the company logo etched into the center.
Kiley nodded at the logo as she sat in one of the white leather chairs. “What’s the significance of the lion?”
A flash of annoyance tightened Malouf’s expression before he cleared it. “My father founded our company in Iraq under Nuri as-Said’s rule. My father was a huge supporter of the ruler’s largely pro-Western policy. When he was assassinated, and his supreme government overthrown, my father moved tothe United States and changed the company name, using the lion from the Iraqi coat of arms as a symbol of his support.” Malouf sat and folded his hands on the table. He focused on Evan. “Now, what can I help you with?”
Evan nodded at Kiley and waited for her to begin the questioning.
“We’re interested in learning more about a specific container your company shipped. It originated in India and has been sitting in the Port of Tacoma for four days.” She took a paper from her jacket pocket and slid it across the table to him. “This is the shipping manifest.”
He didn’t even glance at the page. “I’m afraid I can’t be bothered with the details of a single container. Icanrefer you to a clerk tomorrow who I will authorize to share additional details.”
Evan saw Kiley’s shoulders rise a hair. Just enough to tell him she was getting mad. After their conversation in the car about her getting upset with Gadsden, he knew she would work hard to control her emotions.
“You’ll have to bother yourself with the details of this particular container,” she said, her voice so calm it felt lethal. “It’s not optional.”
He sniffed in a breath and cast her a disdainful look. “Really, I have no idea on how to even look the shipment up in our system.”
“Then I suggest you get someone in here who can show you.” Kiley didn’t move a muscle. She didn’t have to. Her pointed tone did all the heavy lifting for her. “Unless of course you’d like to take a trip to our local office where we can delve into your reasons for not cooperating.”
“One moment.” His whole body was tight with anger, but his tone was saccharine. He rose and strode from the room.
Kiley let out a pent-up breath. “Do you think his problem is with me or he’s got something to hide?”
“Hard to tell.”
“Then let’s find out. You go ahead and handle the questioning when he returns.”
