Or would Mr. Levinski actually want me to destroy evidence? I still knew very little about this strange man at my side asking me carefully guarded yet pointed questions.
Reacting to my tense silence, Mr. Levinski elaborated. “I wish to determine if the improper transfers were inserted upstream or downstream of your tap, Mr. Raymond. My bank has a log of all the messages received, but I am not privy to the corresponding logs at Bendix of St. Louis. Furthermore, if the improper transfers were inserted into the data stream after the messages left Bendix, it would be interesting to know if those messages appear in your logs.”
OK. This was a very reasonable request, and an interesting avenue to pursue. I told him that I was unsure of the extent of the data I had, but that I would investigate this question and report back to him. After that he asked a couple more minor questions, but it became clear that he had accomplished his goal for this meeting. He wanted to establish the flow of messages into his bank; he hoped to determine the source of each message. It was becoming clear that at least some of the messages did not originate from the purported source. Little more was said and the meeting concluded shortly afterwards. We agreed to remain in touch and went our separate ways. I stood by the water and watched him as he walked away. The darkness over the water was caused by the storm clouds that were rolling in from the west and was deceptive. It was still only about 7:00. Once the rain began to fall, the humidity would certainly drop, but for the time being it remained uncomfortably hot. I was especially aware of the muggy heat as I watched Mr. Levinski walk away — he seemed so affected by the humidity. After he was swallowed up by the darkness I turned and walked briskly to the bus-stop so as not to be caught in the rain.