Romeo’s features softened, and he stood and retrieved the ashtray. As he sat back down and offered the ashtray, he said to Nic, “I kind of like this kid. Maybe I can get him to come over to the dark side.”

“You would like him. You’re both jackholes,” Nic said. “Now, what do you know about GoBox and Loria?”

Romeo leaned back in his chair, which creaked under his weight. Burke noticed a worn spot in the leather where Romeo was now leaning his head. He started calculating the variables necessary to determine the chair’s age based upon style and wear, factoring and estimating the number of hours a man like Romeo would be reclined in such a chair and the oily grooming products that Romeo seemed to prefer.

“I don’t have anything concrete for you,” Romeo said.

Nic rolled his eyes. “You keep your ears to the ground. What have you heard? Even if it’s just bar bragging or hearsay.”

“None of this ever comes back to me. Off the record and such. You got that, officer?”

“Of course. I may be a cop, but I’m not a rat.”

“That remains to be seen.”

“I thought you had a ‘thing’ in a half hour. Stop wasting my damn time.”

Romeo pursed his lips and, after a few seconds, said, “Like you said, nothing but grumblings. But let’s start with facts. The Loria family sold off all their other businesses, both legal and illegal, to start up GoBox.”

“That seems pretty stupid, putting all their eggs into one basket.”

“Like I always told you: diversification is key. Not that you ever listened to me. Anyway, that’s a verifiable fact. I also know that they were being bankrolled by a third party.”

“A private company?” Burke asked. “Another crime syndicate?”

“That’s where the rumors come in. From what I’ve heard, the Lorias were approached by the CIA to form some kind of partnership.”

“Why would the CIA want to start GoBox? To hide dirty money?” Nic asked.

Romeo shrugged. “I’ve heard that it’s deeper than that. You’ve heard that the CIA has ‘black sites’ scattered across the country.”

“If you believe what you see on TV.”

“It’s also supposed to tie in somehow to black sites.”

“So they’re detaining people at GoBox locations?” Burke said.

“Maybe, but the word is that it’s actually a bit darker and more illegal. We’re talking research and development. Weapons. Chemical and biological.”

Nic laughed. “Sounds like a conspiracy theory. The same kind of thing posted on the Internet by guys living in bunkers and paranoid schizophrenics. The CIA could never get away with something like that.”

“Right. Like the CIA doesn’t finance rebels and coups and assassinations. And they’re not in bed with the cartels bankrolling clandestine operations with drug money.”

Nic shook his head. “I don’t buy it. There’s Senate oversight and checks and balances in place.”

“Don’t be naïve, kid. I’m not saying the President and Congress and even the higher-ups at the agency are involved. But who knows. And here’s the thing, you have these big government bureaucracies and layers within layers and rabbit holes so deep that the light of day never reaches them. Government’s made up of people. People can be greedy and stupid and evil. Maybe it’s some kind of splinter group coloring outside the lines. I don’t know, but what’s what I’ve heard.”