A Death in Vienna
Chapter One
VIENNA
The office is hard to find, and intentionally so.
Located near the end of a narrow, curving lane, in a
quarter of Vienna more renowned for its nightlife
than its tragic past, the entrance is marked only by a small brass
plaque bearing the inscription Wartime Claims and Inquiries. The
security system, installed by an obscure firm based in Tel Aviv,
is formidable and highly visible. A camera glowers menacingly
from above the door. No one is admitted without an appointment
and a letter of introduction. Visitors must pass through a
finely tuned magnetometer. Purses and briefcases are inspected
with unsmiling efficiency by one of two disarmingly pretty girls.
One is called Reveka, the other Sarah.
Once inside, the visitor is escorted along a claustrophobic corridor
lined with gunmetal-gray filing cabinets, then into a large
typically Viennese chamber with pale floors, a high ceiling, and
bookshelves bowed beneath the weight of countless volumes
and file folders. The donnish clutter is appealing, though some
are unnerved by the green-tinted bulletproof windows ov ... read full excerpt from: A Death in Vienna ebook
