“Oh, I do. Because you have her caught in your net. So by all means let’s move fast. Tell me what else you’re doing other than depending on my wife. You wouldn’t be able to stand in the background any more than I would. You’d go straight to find the scientist who could have created the DNA evidence. Gideon said he knew you’d been investigating, but no details.” His lips twisted. “He said you were a very secretive man. Imagine that.”
“Wouldn’t it only be practical to wait for Eve to give us some evidence of proof?”
“But that’s not your style. I’m surprised you didn’t ask for the money to pay off Hadfeld in the beginning. Politics in the director’s office?”
Novak nodded. “The U.N. was being difficult. And I’d already been accused of being something of a fanatic about Varak.” His lips tightened. “But Jill wouldn’t wait. She went for it herself. Which ended with her going after Eve.”
“Big mistake,” Joe said. “I still haven’t decided what I’m going to do about that. But I do know that if that reconstruction is not Varak, I’m not going to stand around and wait for politicians to decide what to do. I’ve got to be ready. So go back to the DNA evidence. Who do you believe to be responsible?”
Novak gazed speculatively at him. “No questions about the possibility of even being able to defeat the mighty DNA? What do you know about falsifying DNA evidence?”
“Enough,” Joe said curtly. “I had a murder case two years ago in which I was positive I knew who the murderer was but couldn’t prove it. I knew that Richard Sander had killed his wife. But the DNA blood evidence seemed infallible. So I assumed that it was a big lie and went out to prove it.”
“And you did it? Interesting. How?”
“Followed the money. I traced a bank draft from Sander to Tel Aviv to a dummy company. Then, when I started digging, I found out that one of the scientists, Sol Goldfarb, who had set up the company, had previously worked for an Israeli think tank that created a way of proving whether or not DNA evidence had been falsified.” He shrugged. “And if you know how to prove that, then it’s the next step to be able to create a better way to do it yourself.”
“And did you get your killer convicted?”
“No, I had an extradition problem getting Goldfarb out of Israel. But I’m still watching him. I’ll do it someday.” His expression became more serious. “And then I’ll hang them both out to dry.”
“I’m sure you will,” Novak said. “And Israel did do some groundbreaking work in that direction. You must have learned a lot while you were trying to gather in Goldfarb. But I don’t think that the person who falsified the DNA on Varak is in Israel. I’m betting on Egypt.”
“Why?”
“Because Yusef Dobran is the most talented scientist I’ve ever run across in that line of work. His execution is nearly foolproof. He’s also the most expensive, and it would take big money to hire him. He’s got money to burn these days, and he can afford to be picky. Besides, anyone undertaking a replication of Varak’s DNA would think twice about doing it. Not only would it be dangerous because of the consequences of being caught, but the first thing Varak would do is eliminate the witnesses.”
“Then why would Dobran do it?”
“I have no idea. Fear? Blackmail? A staggering amount of money that he just couldn’t refuse? We’ll have to find out.”
“If he’s still alive.”
Novak nodded. “He’s alive. He’s rich enough to be able to afford excellent protection and lives in an exclusive area just outside Cairo, with a bevy of bodyguards.” He paused. “But everyone has an Achilles heel. He has an assistant, Hassan Sebak, who’s willing to cooperate for the right price.”
“And he’s already told you Dobran did the job?”
“No, he’s very cautious. But he did tell us that Dobran had recently done a very big job. For a price, he’s willing to find a way to bypass Dobran’s guards and get me in to see him. After that, it’s up to me to find out if he did the job and who hired him.” He paused. “Or up to you, Quinn.”
“You’d rather risk my neck than your own?”
“Any day of the week.” He smiled faintly. “But I realize it’s your decision. We’ll play it your way. My highest priority is keeping Eve working, and I’ll do that any