18f44de3c41a3c8943c05e9ff1c1336f

ôYes, we do,ö said Odelia sternly. ôA crime was committed, Max. DonÆt you want to catch the people who are behind it?ö

ôWhatÆs the point?ö I argued. ôTheyÆre probably in Russia or China or North Korea, like all those hackers always seem to be. And since nobody can touch them, or bring them to justice, it all seems so utterly pointless, wouldnÆt you say?ö

ôNo, I would not,ö said Odelia. ôWe have plenty of homegrown hackers, and if we can find out who they are, itÆs going to make a huge difference.ö

I grudgingly admitted she might have a point, and dragged myself up from my couch.

ôYouÆre like Nero Wolfe, Max,ö said Dooley as we followed Odelia out.

ôHow so?ö I asked. As far as I know I donÆt have a strange predilection for orchids.

ôNero Wolfe is very choosy about which case he takes on, and so are you.ö

ôOur time is precious, Dooley,ö I said. ôAnd so we have to be selective.ö And also, I hadnÆt slept well last night. It seemed as if a lot of negative energy was buzzing through the air, centered around these horrendous dating sites. Harriet and Brutus had argued about Jack the sparrow, Tex and Marge about the doctorÆs presence on the site, and even Odelia and Chase had spent all night exchanging words that are not conducive to an atmosphere of peace and good will.

The offices of Valina Fawn were nice enough, dominated as they were by an orange-and-pink color scheme. I spotted a foosball table in the lounge, a ball bath and even a row of old-fashioned pinball machines. Clearly Valina held to the view shared by most Silicon Valley start-ups that to attract competent personnel, you have to treat them like five-year-olds.

Valina herself looked distraught, though she tried to hide it by plastering a big smile on her face when we walked into her office. She offered us herbal tea, or a special blend of coffee, or even organic lemonade, and Odelia opted for the latter. For us cats ValinaÆs assistant brought in a dish of purified water, which was nice and cool to our tongues.

Once weÆd taken a seat in a corner of ValinaÆs office, seated on orange chairs with bright yellow cushions, a man joined us who she introduced as Norwell Kulhanek.

ôIs heàö Dooley began.

ôEmma KulhanekÆs husband,ö I said.

Norwell was a compact man with a serious face and thick-framed, square glasses. He was clutching his phone as if it was a lifeline, and looked as reluctant to be there as I was.

ôI donÆt have a lot of time,ö he said. ôThe site needs my attention, as you can imagine.ö

ôOf course,ö said Odelia. ôAnd IÆm very grateful you wanted to sit down for this interview.ö

ôNorwell isnÆt just my business partner,ö said Valina, ôheÆs also the siteÆs main programmer.ö

ôOh, so maybe you could tell us how these hackers managed to get access to your clientsÆ data so easily,ö said Odelia, settling in with her organic lemonade and her tablet on her lap, stylus poised to take notes.

Norwell shot Odelia a look of extreme censure.ôItÆs a complicated topic, IÆm afraid. Very technical.ö

ôI donÆt mind,ö said Odelia. ôAnd IÆm sure theGazetteÆs readers would like to know.ö

And so for the next fifteen minutes Norwell expounded on the kind of topic that would send just about anyone who isnÆt an absolute computer nerd into a coma. I have to admit I tuned out after the first five minutes of his lengthy expos?. I confess IÆm not much of a computer person, especially when you get down into the nitty-gritty of the thing.

ôAre you sleeping, Max?ö asked Dooley finally.

ôPretty much,ö I admitted.

ôItÆs not going to be a very interesting interview, is it?ö

ôNot so much.ö

ôI thought Odelia was going to cover the human interest angle, but instead sheÆll have to write an article that might be a better fit forPC Magazine than theGazette.ö

And since I had the impression Norwell was only getting started, we wandered out into the corridor, to sniff up some of that local color that is so important for any journalist worth their salt, and in the meantime try and wrangle us some kibble in the process.

I mean, if the company hotshots donÆt mind bringing in ball baths and foosball tables, why not pets, too? I once read a story about a retirement home that keeps a goat on site. It has proven very enjoyable for the residents, as they get to pet said goat, and even feed it. Unfortunately it didnÆt take us long to discover a markeddearth of pets on the premises.

And weÆd just concluded our investigation by taking a long hard look at the cafeteria when Valina and Norwell came breezing in. Ostensibly for a refill, but in actual fact Norwell seemed eager to dispense with a few home truths.

ôIÆm sorry, Valina, but if anyone is going down for this, it wonÆt be me!ö

ôNobody is going down,ö said Valina as she fiddled with the coffee machine. It was one of those machines you need a college degree to operate, with plenty of nobs and levers.

ôThe only reason I agreed to do the interview is because my lawyers want me to appear cooperative, but if it wasnÆt for that, IÆd have been out of here already!ö