Page 23 of The Amsterdam Enigma (The Continental Capers of Melody Chesterton #3)
“ G ood afternoon,” Alessandro replied, holding out a hand in greeting. “Yes, I am Alessandro Marchetti of Fratelli Marchetti. , and this is my secretary, Miss Smith.”
The man took the proffered hand enthusiastically. “Ah, yes, yes. Cornelis Van Rhijn,” he said. “As I mentioned to whoever called earlier, I handle most of the overseas accounts. Why don’t you follow me? We can chat, and then I can give you a tour of our facilities.”
Van Rhijn ushered them through a narrow passage flanked by burlap sacks and lacquered tea chests. The floorboards creaked as they entered a cramped office. A large map of the East Indies dominated one wall, marked with faded pins and curling edges.
Van Rhijn gestured for them to sit. “You mentioned an interest in our Ceylon stock. But… forgive me, did you say you were also looking into logistics?”
Melody nodded with the air of an efficient professional, “Our firm prefers to handle our own freight coordination. We’ve had…
inconsistencies before. Crates mis-marked.
Delivery discrepancies. In fact, this is the reason we are searching for a new, more reliable business to work with.
We prefer to understand how our partners ship. ”
Van Rhijn studied them intently. “Can I take it you have been working with someone in Amsterdam already and have concerns?”
Alessandro modulated his tone to sound concerned but also wary.
“Meneer Van Rhijn, I would prefer not to speak of other importers in Amsterdam. I do not think it my place to tarnish the reputation of others. Suffice it to say, I have been unhappy and am searching for a new company to partner with. Under my father, Fratelli Marchetti. was a minor concern in Milan. Since my dearly departed father left this earth six months ago, I have been working to streamline operations in order to expand throughout Italy.”
“I am sorry for your loss, Signor Marchetti. Of course, I respect your discretion and can assure you that, whatever you may have experienced with other importers, Huis Jansen prides itself on both its efficiency and its scrupulous honesty.”
Melody chimed in, “While we are not prepared to give names, we can say that some concerns Marchetti Brothers have related to underweight shipments, confused manifest numbers, and, sometimes, inconsistent invoice totals.” Even as she said this, Melody worried she was being too assertive in the conversation.
Was it believable that a Miss Smith, secretary, would speak up in this manner?
If he thought anything of this, Van Rhijn didn’t express it in his manner. Instead, he spoke directly to Melody as he addressed her concerns. “I can assure you, Miss Smith, that Huis Jansen will never engage in such practices.”
“Excellent, Meneer Van Rhijn. Huis Jansen seems to be just the kind of business that Marchetti Brothers can partner with for the kind of expansion I have in mind,” Alessandro explained, rubbing his hands together as if genuinely delighted at the mercantile opportunity before him.
“Do you have a sense of how much you are hoping to expand the business in the coming year?”
“Indeed. I see a growing interest in more exotic flavours in Italy’s major cities.
The expansion of our railways will facilitate the domestic movement of goods, and I believe there has never been a better time to import the wares of the East Indies.
What I am hoping to find is a business in Amsterdam to partner with in the truest sense of the word. ”
The look of avaricious pleasure on Van Rhijn’s face made it evident that they had enticed the man sufficiently. Now, Melody felt comfortable making the request she and Alessandro had discussed. He had felt it would be better coming from a woman; it would seem less aggressive, or so he hoped.
“Meneer Van Rhijn, as Signor Marchetti says, we are looking not merely for an alternative company to work with now, but for a true partner for a future that we hope will greatly benefit both companies. To this end, we would like to request evidence that we are not stepping into a similar situation to the one we are hoping to leave.”
A thoughtful look came over Van Rhijn’s face. “What evidence is that, Miss Smith?”
“We would like time to review your books to assure ourselves of both the competency and integrity of Huis Jansen.”
“That is quite an irregular request, Miss Smith. We don’t typically open our books to outside parties. Indeed, we have never been asked to do so.” Then, addressing Alessandro, Van Rhijn continued, “Signor Marchetti, would you share the ledgers of your business with total strangers?”
It was a fair enough question, and Alessandro acknowledged it as such.
“While I have no reason to question that you are who you say you are,” Van Rhijn explained, “I cannot ignore the possibility that you are working for one of my competitors and have less than honest intentions.”
Were they at an impasse? Melody couldn’t blame the man for refusing their rather impertinent request; there wasn’t even anything suspicious about his refusal to show them his accounts. If anything, it would have been odd if Van Rhijn had conceded immediately.
During their brief conversation on the walk from the tavern, Alessandro had explained that he didn’t expect to find evidence of the suspect shipments in the Huis Jansen books; quite the opposite, he was hoping not to find the crates in the encrypted manifest referenced, as this would provide proof of questionable practices.
It was this kind of proof that they might take to the Dutch officials.
Then, just as Melody was worried that this ruse had been for nothing, Van Rhijn continued, “However, you have given me no reason to suppose you are anything less than who you say you are. You both have a very honest air about you.” Did they?
Melody wondered. “While I cannot give you access to all our accounts, obviously, I feel comfortable sharing some examples which I hope will satisfy you as to the competency of our record keeping.”
While this was good news, Melody hoped Alessandro had more of an idea of what records should look like than she did.
Of course, he ran a significant international business, so she assumed he knew something about bookkeeping.
However, how different might the records kept by an importer be from those of a newspaper?
She assumed there wouldn’t be much overlap.
Melody took comfort in the belief that Alessandro would never have suggested this plan if he didn’t feel confident that he would have some idea of what he was looking at if they succeeded.
Minutes later, they were ensconced in the small office with a pile of ledgers before them.
While Van Rhijn had stated he wasn’t comfortable making all the Huis Jansen accounts available, he certainly seemed willing to share a great deal.
Perhaps the promise of significant business from Marchetti eventually, he left them alone. As far as Melody could see, Alessandro seemed to know what he was doing as he scanned page after page in the ledgers.
Finally, he closed the books and sat back. “I think I have seen all I need to,” he said. Melody had no expectations that he would elaborate further until they were well away from Huis Jansen, and so merely nodded.
They left the office and returned to where they had originally found Cornelis Van Rhijn. He stood at the back of the large room, counting inventory.
When he heard them enter, Van Rhijn turned. “I hope you found everything satisfactory.”
“Indeed. Your bookkeeping is exemplary. I feel confident that Huis Jansen is everything that Marchetti I am sure they account for and track everything. They are both very methodical and organised people.”
He paused. “I need to go back at night and search that office.”
Whether Alessandro realised he had said “I” rather than “we”, Melody caught it. She would not allow him to use her as a prop when it was convenient and then cast her aside when there was actual espionage work to be done.
Instead of challenging Alessandro directly on his statement, Melody replied, “Why do we not see what Matthew has discovered and then assess what we should do next?” She placed heavy emphasis on the word “we.” Because they were walking side by side, Melody couldn’t see Alessandro’s reaction, but she thought she caught a sigh.