-Interlude: The Meeting-
Once the young pair and their dog disappeared into the crowd, Barnone reentered the Saveloy, well aware of what his fellow cohorts most likely had to say.
"She caught us completely off guard." stated one of the women present in that surveillance room.
"I'll say. She practically saw through that case." remarked another.
"In my defense." Barnone stated, having heard the conversation as soon as he entered. "I had no idea she'd show up here that particular evening."
"Her surname was 'Layton', was it?" asked one of the other men. "I'll see if there's any connection between her and Professor Layton."
"She claims to be his kid," said Barnone. "Though I can't say there's much family resemblance."
There was a brief silence, as that same man searched online for any results.
"Here it is," he said. "He's stated to have three children, including a daughter named Katrielle." He clicked on an image. "This is her, if I recall correctly?"
"Yup." Barnone nodded in confirmation. "I read in that one article awhile back, she's hopin' ta find her father."
"We can't let her pursue that."
"I know."
"But how to go about it?" asked a third man. "Her brother is a policeman, no?"
"And a genius in his line of work, at that."
"Didn't he get seriously injured a few years back, though?"
The man on the computer looked into answering that question. "Yes. He's also still working there in spite of his corruption."
"She seems to have other connections in the police force." Barnone added, recalling her friendly -albeit one sided- conversation with Emiliana. "So let's not go there until we have absolutely no other choice."
"What do you suggest, then, Phineas?"
Barnone pondered that question for a minute. What would be the better alternative?