joegoda | Nano Day 3 - Working Title: Cantata (Reply)

It was about 5 pm when something clicked for him. A random news article about Italy that scrolled across the screen combined with something he read about a standard takedown training maneuver, also in Italy, in one of the documents on his desk. Wells didn't believe in coincidences. "Sarah," he commanded, "What was that Italian article?"

Sarah was a specialized operating system. Voice activated, fuzzy logic optimized, Sarah could respond to a human command spoken in a dozen different ways and provide the same result. Of course, Sarah could just as easily respond to the same command in a dozen different ways. It was programmed to become familiar with its user to the point that vocal stresses and nuances of tonality were as integral as any of the words that were used. In essence, Sarah was one damn smart computer system, and had been with Wells since its birth.

Sarah's smooth voice replied promptly, "That article refers to the performance of the Italian Chamber Orchestra that will be playing at the Soverato hotel in Catanzaro, Italy on August twenty-third. It is unusual in that it will be donating part of it proceeds to shelters for the poor and indigent that live in the peninsula of Trieste. What makes this unusual is that Trieste has a very small population of poor and indigent, and they receive a stipend from the state."

"Interesting." Wells picked up the sheet that contained the reference to Catanzaro. There was a training op for the Shadows scheduled on the twenty-third of August, three weeks away. The document didn't reference any names, didn't include any pictures, and referred to it as a standard takedown, which was a direct reference to an assassination. The signature was a Director Hamilton, someone that Wells did not know personally, but had met in passing. Wells reached up and brushed at his left eyebrow. "Sarah, read the stat sheet on Director Hamilton to me, please."

"Director Hamilton," Sarah recited, "is the current director of the Shadow forces. He was hired on July fifteenth of this year. Prior to that, he served five years in the Shadow forces as a lead operations engineer. Prior to that, he served three years in the forces as a sniper. Prior to that...."

"That's enough. Thank you, Sarah." Wells played with is left eyebrow and pondered. It could be that this Hamilton was trying to make points with the upper order. It could be that he was testing the readiness of the Shadows. Being relatively new, he might just want to see what his men could do given an odd assignment. It's also possible that the training op was exactly as it was indicated to be, and was only a training op. It just didn't feel right, somehow.

"Sarah, who will be attending the performance? Do we have any information?"

"Herbert, are you looking for anything specific? Members of the orchestra or guests? Road crew or hotel staff?"

"Better give me everyone, Sarah."

Sarah ran down the list of everyone that she had listed. Some of the names Wells recognized, simply from having seen the Orchestra in person. There were a few new performers, but none that sent up a red flag. The hotel staff... it was possible that someone there had been targeted as a possible threat. He would have to do a closer check on the names. As Sarah read the guest list, two names stood out, and a chill rand down Wells' spine.

"Sarah," he said in a calm, though tight voice, "would you verify the names Laura and Kaylee Gianni?"

Sarah paused for a bare second. "Confirmed. Laura and Kaylee Gianni from the city of Villa Opicina, just north of Trieste."

"In what capacity are they there, Sarah?" he asked.

"They are listed as the founders of La Casa Orfanos di Trieste, an orphanage in the city of Trieste. Details of the orphanage are as follows; Created and built in 1998, funded from the Gianni's own Swiss bank account. There are currently fifty-six children housed in La Casa Orfanos, ranging in ages from oldest fifteen to youngest of one year. There are thirty-three boys and twenty-three girls, of which twenty-eight boys and eighteen girls are of Yugoslavian descent. The records indicate that the children from Yugoslavia are listed as the children of either rape or abuse or simple foundlings. The children from Italy are listed as having..."

"Enough, Sarah. Tell me about the Giannis."

"Laura and Kaylee Gianni are mother and daughter. Laura, the mother, is fifty-six years old, five feet three inches tall..."

Wells waved a hand of impatience. "Tell me about the daughter, Kaylee, Sarah."

"Kaylee Gianni is twenty-four years old born in 1982. She is five feet five inches tall, brown hair, brown eyes. She studied at Tuscia University in Viterbo, Italy. The majority of her studies centered on languages and economics. She is a recent graduate and carries a Masters of Economic Science degree and a Bachelors in Language Arts. Currently she has no emotional involvements outside her mother. There are indications that she may be involved in the Yugoslavian Underground as a courier."

"Indications?" Wells mused. "Sarah, is there any evidence that supports Kaylee Gianni is a courier for the Yugoslavian Underground?"

"There are coincidences that point to Kaylee Gianni as aiding both Serbian and Albanian refugees by finding them homes and jobs in Italy and Switzerland. There are coincidences that indicate she is assisting in the gathering of evidence against the NATO Peace Keeping Force in Kosovo. The evidence that is being gathered indicts some high-ranking officials in the trafficking of human slaves, primarily female. This alleged situation is one that has no official proof, of course."

"Of course." Wells nodded absently. Then, "Sarah, Kaylee is twenty-four?"

"Yes, Herbert."

"When was she born?" Wells asked.

"She was born June third, 1982. There is no father listed on the birth certificate."

"Huh. A Gemini." Wells considered what he had been told. There were some obvious parts of the puzzle here, and there were some that perhaps weren't so obvious. "Sarah, is there any indication that either of the Giannis are the target for the takedown?"

"No, Herbert. There may be some circumstantial evidence, but it is merely that. There is no solid indication that either of the Giannis are the target."

"Thank you, Sarah. Do me a favor, though? Keep searching for indications of who the target is. Something here just doesn't feel right. Background process it for me until tomorrow, and we'll speak about it again."

"All right." Sarah agreed. "I will background process searching for any correlation between the scheduled training operation and the appearance of the Italian Chamber Orchestra in Catanzaro. I will also background process references to either Laura or Kaylee Gianni in relation to the Yugoslavian Underground, and their connection to both the orchestra and the training operation."

"Excellent, Sarah." Wells turned back toward his table and the file folder. He moved the training operation document to a section that was little used. It was marked Pending.

"Herbert?" Sarah interrupted.

"Yes, Sarah?" Wells reached for the next document to review.

"Shall we password the background processing?"

"Yes, Sarah. An excellent idea." Wells considered for a moment, and then smiled slightly.

"The password, Sarah, is Cantata."