"Two hundred years is a long time to be married."

 

(Excerpt Alma Introduction)

 

"What do we know about Hodge Endeavor?" he postulated.  “The company began in the early 20th Century, starting out as a Pharmaceutical company which branched into Medicine and Engineering.  It made its money with cutting-edge technology in the field of medicine and computer science.  After World War Two, the company began a Finance division which worked on the Stock Market, known as The Hodge Endeavor Shares and Stock Exchange.  They have never made a bad investment.  Numerous times over the centuries the company has been audited but it has always come out clean.  It's politically connected, it helped organise the ‘Apology Admission’ that was signed by all of the world’s governments.  It did it by sponsoring financial, medical and educational aid to the former Third World countries, putting them on par with the First World’s economies.”

            "Politically connected, da," she deflated.  "Imagine telling your Lieutenant that your chief suspect is centuries old, has human and canine DNA, is OO Positive which shouldn't exist in nature, and has false birth certificates created for him by the most powerful company in human history."

            "What if our Mr X, or we should call him Declan Sabre, has a passport?"

            Next, he headed back to his computer, sat down on his stool and returned to work.

            "What are you looking for?" she pondered, as she came over to look.

            "Da, I was right, he does have a passport," he spoke excitedly.  "Now let's see if he's visited Russia on the dates the recent murders were carried out."

            Julia looked over his shoulder as he pressed a button here or there on the touch-screen however, he couldn't find anything.

            "Declan Sabre does have a passport but he hasn't used it yet."  Griggori groaned.  "According to this, he's never left the country."

            Tiredly, he rubbed his face and Julia gave his shoulders a sympathetic rub.

            "Da, he hasn't used his new passport yet," she pointed out.  "But what if it's because it's new, like his latest driver's license?  What if we did a search on his previous passports under his previous incarnations?"

            "It wouldn't hold up in court," he shook his head.  "His Defence Attorney could argue that it's a different Declan Sabre with a different date of birth."

            "Who've all lived at the same address with the same woman?" she arched her eyebrows.  "Two hundred years is a long time to be married."