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weeks and hope to get my license then.”
    “What do you know about the body you’ve found?”
    “Not too much,” said Ofer.
    Alush raised his eyebrows. “Tell me, did you just happen to come here, or were you about to meet with someone you know?” he asked, keeping both eyebrows at the center of his forehead.
    “He’s an Israeli who’s been living in… as far as I know, in London for the past few years. His name is Jacob Rodety. He came here to serve as an expert witness for some businesses a client of my law firm owns.”
    “What businesses and what client?”
    “International commerce. The client is Yitzhak Brick. One of the firm’s most important clients,” answered Ofer.
    “How many times did you meet with him?” hissed Alush.
    “Only once.” He decided to skip the memories from his father’s funeral and mourning period.
    “When?” Alush continued to question him.
    “Last night. I took him out to show him around Tel Aviv after all the years he’d spent abroad.”
    “What’s your area of specialty?” Alush changed the subject.
    “Trade law. Contracts, companies, that sort of stuff.”
    “You prefer the commercial to the criminal, eh? Too frightened to get your hands dirty in the juices of life?” Alush finally smiled a bit.
    “Not exactly. I’m just not so sure I’m fit for this type of job,” explained Ofer with a feeble voice. A rage bubbled up inside him. This police officer was toying with him as if he were in the middle of a job interview. What did he know about the law? The commercial field didn’t have enough “juices of life”? And anyway, I don’t owe him any explanations , he thought.
    “Why did he come to Israel?” Alush changed the subject once more.
    Ofer was happy Alush dropped the subject of why he didn’t want to get his hands dirty in the juices of life. He wasn’t too hasty in his reply “He came for business. As an expert. Brick’s company is participating in a large privatization tender for a factory Rodety used to manage. Viromedical. Rodety is an expert in the field and came to help with the preparations for the tender. Last evening, I was asked to take him out, and today I came to take him for a meeting in the office.”
    “And… what happened?”
    “He wasn’t waiting for me in the lobby. I called the room and he didn’t answer, so I came up here and the chambermaid opened the door for me. Then we both found the body…just like that…I later saw someone passing quickly by the room and peeking inside. He wore a dark coat. I don’t know if it’s related. I ran after him but couldn’t catch up. I went back to the room and the chambermaid was gone.”
    “I don’t get it. What chambermaid?” asked Alush.
    “The chambermaid who works on this floor. I think her name is Natalia.”
    “How do you know her name?”
    “It was on the name tag she wore on her chest.”
    “Can you think of anyone who might have killed him?” asked Alush.
    “I haven’t a clue. Maybe he just died,” answered Ofer.
    “You really are a novice. You seriously believe that such a man came especially from London to die here in the Holy Land in a room that looks like this?” He marked the disorder in the room with a wide motion of his arm. “We’ll look into it, and trust me, in the end, we’ll know if he killed himself or if someone else gave him a hand.”
    “You’re right. The truth is, I have no idea. You do your job any way you think it should be done.”
    “Wait here please, I’ll be right back,” said Alush and headed out of the room with an agitated gait. A few minutes later, he returned to the room, even jumpier than before. “Listen, kid. Are you sure you went into the room with the chambermaid?” he asked sternly.
    “Of course. You can ask her.”
    “Thanks for the advice,” he hummed. “I already looked for her. She’s gone. It’s now seven o’clock. According to the hotel’s time clock, she finished work at four o’clock in the afternoon.