Silver Justice

by Blake, Russell

  They did as instructed, and Seth took her through what they knew on the latest killing.

  “Another one with an SEC settlement,” Richard revealed. “Seven years ago. His brokerage was sanctioned for improperly segregating client accounts. Looks like they were co-mingling margin and cash accounts, which is a big no-no.”

  Silver cocked her head at him.

  “Okay. Put simply: with margin accounts, the broker is allowed to lend out any shares in them and collect a fee even though they aren’t his property. It’s a nice loophole so brokers can make money off assets that aren’t theirs.”

  Seth frowned. “I don’t understand. They can take their clients’ stock, lend it, make money off it, and they’re allowed to? Isn’t that the clients’ property? What other business operates like that?”

  “Yes. It’s in the fine print of every agreement in the industry. That’s one of the reasons all the discount brokers will execute a trade for next to nothing. The industry gave up making money off commissions a long time ago. Now, they want your account because if it’s a margin account, which most are, they can lend your shares out and collect fat loan fees, and not tell you.”

  “But who do they lend to?” Silver asked. “Who wants to borrow shares?”

  “Short sellers. The irony is that you own the shares of a company because you’re hoping the share price goes up, while your broker is lending your shares to short sellers who are trying to drive the price down.” Richard noticed the look on Silver’s face.

  “And that’s legal?” Seth demanded.

  “It is. But anyway, with cash accounts you aren’t allowed to do that. There’s supposed to be a wall between the margin accounts and the cash accounts. The theory that allows them to lend from margin accounts is that they’ve extended you credit and the shares are therefore their asset, to collateralize the credit. But with cash accounts, you own the assets and there is no credit, so they have no claim on your property. They’re just acting as custodians, holding your shares as a courtesy so you can trade more easily. Apparently our victim was playing fast and loose with the cash accounts too. Or at least that’s what the SEC contended. He settled with them, without admitting or denying guilt, of course.”

  “What is that now?” Silver remarked. “Three out of five victims with SEC actions?”

  “Yes, but for our purposes, that’s two out of five without. In terms of predictive value, I’m not sure it will help us figure out who will be next.”

  “Great.”

  “I know. It’s just information.”

  Seth’s face was a picture of indignation. “Didn’t I read somewhere about the ex-governor or someone doing exactly what you described with over a billion dollars of his brokerage’s money? The firm went BK and the money’s gone?”

  “That’s the general idea. But nobody has been prosecuted.”

  “You take over a billion dollars of someone else’s money, it’s gone, and nobody gets charged?”

  “Welcome to Wall Street.”

  They considered the ramifications in silence for a few seconds before Silver asked, “Does the latest victim have any connection to any of the other victims, Richard?”

  “We’re still digging, but it looks like there’s a link with the second and third victims – the hedge fund. This was one of the brokers that they used to process their trades.”

  “One?”

  “Hedge funds will often have a variety of brokers. Usually one prime broker – their main broker – but larger funds will have more than one prime broker, as well as secondary brokers. Depends on the fund and their trading strategy. In that hedge fund’s case it was largely short selling, or what they call short-biased.”

  “Meaning they made their money by stocks going down?” Seth tried.

  “You’re getting the hang of this. It’s more complicated than that, but yes, that’s essentially it. But there’s an even more ominous connection I’m still trying to get to the bottom of.”

  “What’s that?”

  “It looks like the latest victim could have been associated with some of the funds that come up when you look hard at the software guy’s partner. This broker handled several of the larger suspect investment funds that have been targeted for scrutiny because of terrorist ties.”

  “Really,” Silver said.

  “While it’s too soon to get all excited, my cronies back in Financial Crimes also flagged the broker as being rumored to be mob-connected. I’m trying to get more information on why that is, but if it’s correct, we have mob and terrorist money moving through him. I’m going to run all the brokers he has working for him to see if any of them have been sanctioned elsewhere. When you look at the mob on Wall Street, many of the same names keep popping up again and again. So it’s worth a check. I might get lucky. You never know.”

  “Russian mob – like Masenkoff? Or Italian?” Silver asked.

  “Both.”

  “Every time we turn over a rock, this gets more complicated.”

  “That’s what keeps it interesting, right?” Richard observed.

  “And the shooter this morning looks like he was Russian mob…” Silver trailed off.

  Her head was swimming from all the information and the implications.

  If there was a pattern, other than that everyone appeared to get dirtier the harder they looked, she wasn’t seeing it.

  They continued to discuss the findings until the nurse came in, as promised, with a file full of forms and a bag with clothes in it. Monique had saved the day.

  While she was checking the relevant boxes and scribbling her signature, Richard offered to drive her wherever she needed to go after being discharged. She momentarily panicked at the thought of time having raced by, then confirmed it was actually only one o’clock – there was plenty of time to get Kennedy. Calculating, she decided she would make a call and tell Miriam the barest details of her ordeal and let her know she’d be dropping by early. If she didn’t have to work the rest of the afternoon, she might as well spend some quality time with her daughter.

  “I’ll take you up on your kind offer, Richard. I should be ready to get out of here shortly.”

  The nurse shook her head.

  “An hour?”

  The nurse nodded.

  “Take your time. I’m in no hurry,” Richard assured Silver, who couldn’t conceal her annoyance at the delay.

  “Okay. Now let me make a call and get dressed. Thanks, both of you, for coming.”

  Seth rose quickly from his chair. “No problem, boss. I’m headed back to the scene. Call if you need anything,” he said, waving as he opened the door.

  “Will do.”

  Chapter 12

  Surprisingly, the stitches didn’t hurt much – probably because the local anesthetic hadn’t completely worn off. The hospital had given her pain killers and warned her against aspirin for a week, which was fine – she preferred ibuprofen, anyway. She had no intention of taking the painkillers. Anything that would dull her reactions or thinking was out of the question.

  As Silver and Richard made their way from the hospital, she stopped and picked up a copy of the Herald from the sidewalk magazine vendor. The headline screamed about the previous night’s killing in huge letters. She quickly scanned the contents, then looked at Richard with simmering anger.

  “Did you see this?”

  “I don’t read the Herald. Sorry.”

  She shook the paper and then began reading aloud.

  “Blah blah blah, ‘Horrendous murder’ blah blah. Oh. Here it is: ‘A task force is being headed by Assistant Special Agent In Charge Silver Cassidy, whose name might ring bells following her work on the Turnpike killer a few years ago. Cassidy declined to comment to the Herald when contacted’. What a prick this guy is. I mean, really.”

  “What’s the big deal?”

  “I try to keep a low profile. Now every reporter, author and nervous politician in New York knows I’m running the task force, which means I’m going to get bombard
ed with calls. It’s not the end of the world, but it’s another annoyance I’d just as soon do without.”

  “I gotcha. Does it say anything else interesting?”

  “Not really. Just a rehash of the older cases. I wonder where this guy’s getting his info from, though? He connected this killing with the others awfully quickly. We haven’t issued a statement yet, have we?”

  Richard nodded. “We have, actually, but not in time for the Herald to go to press. I think one was issued late morning. NYPD contacts? Someone at the Bureau? Maybe the killer?”

  “You’d think they would have called us if that was the case. Then again, you never know. It’s worth asking about, but the problem is there’s a limit to what I can demand if they start in with saying that they got their information from a protected source. Freedom of the press and all.”

  “I’d still make the call.”

  Silver typed in a quick reminder for herself on her cell phone then slid it back into her purse.

  “Where are we off to? You have a chauffeur for the afternoon,” Richard announced cheerfully.

  She glanced at him, the sun glinting off highlights in his hair she hadn’t noticed before, and realized she was glad he was escorting her.

  She smiled for the first time in a few hours. “I hope you have a pillow for me to sit on.”

  He slowed.

  “Relax, Richard. I’m kidding. It’s not that bad.”

  He resumed his pace. “You had me there for a second. But…I have to say – I don’t know how I’d be reacting if the same thing had happened to me this morning. I mean, Silver, come on. This is a big deal.”

  Silver nodded. He was right. But she needed time to process it all, and for that, she needed to be alone.

  “I know.”

  ~ ~ ~

  Miriam looked troubled when Silver walked through the daycare door. She approached Silver and wordlessly hugged her.

  “Hey. Let’s not act like we’re going to a funeral or anything, okay? It was just an incident. Nothing more. All part of the job.”

  Kennedy came running from the back. “Mommy,” she cried and threw her arms around Silver, causing her to wince. The anesthetic was wearing off.

  “Careful. You don’t want to break my hip.”

  “Are you all right? What happened?” Miriam asked.

  So much for downplaying things. Silver glanced at Kennedy and sighed.

  “We had a…a situation this morning. You’ll probably be hearing about it on the news before too long. A man attacked me in the parking garage, and I had to use my gun to stop him.”

  “Whoa. Did you shoot someone?” Kennedy asked in a voice laced with admiration.

  “I’m afraid so, sweetheart.”

  “Too cool.”

  Silver hesitated, wondering how much her daughter was trying to shock her and how much was genuine. “No, it’s not cool. I’m lucky I’ve had the training to defend myself. Many wouldn’t have been that fortunate.”

  “What exactly happened?” Miriam asked, prompting Silver to make an instantaneous decision.

  “I can’t talk about the details. I’m not allowed to. Sorry. Those are the rules after a shooting.”

  Both Miriam and Kennedy looked crestfallen.

  “But you’re okay, Mom?”

  She debated how much to share. “I hurt my butt. I’ll be sore for a few days, but that’s about it. So no spanking.”

  Kennedy giggled. Miriam gave her a look that said she wouldn’t push it, but that she didn’t believe it was that minor.

  Miriam sighed. “Well, you look like you’re in one piece. Thank God. That had to be a dreadful ordeal.”

  “I’ve had better mornings. But hey, it gave me a chance to play hooky for the afternoon, so it isn’t all bad. Listen, Miriam, thanks so much for taking care of Kennedy. I don’t mean to rush out of here, but I have to go. I’ve got someone waiting outside in a car…”

  “My pleasure, as always. See you tomorrow?”

  “First thing. Kennedy, would you please grab your stuff so we can get going?”

  Kennedy walked to the corner of the room and scooped up her bag. “Is Richard driving again? He’s cute.”

  “It’s not like that. And mind your manners, young lady.”

  “That means you think he’s cute, too!” Kennedy squealed.

  “Can’t you go back to being more goth, or whatever it is you’ve been lately? You’re kind of freaking me out with all this good humor.”

  Kennedy ignored her. “Does that mean he is driving again? Does he carry a gun too? Can I ask to see it?”

  Silver gave her a look that could have stopped a truck. She knew Kennedy was deliberately pushing it now, probably from all the accumulated stress of worrying about her mom. But still.

  “One wrong word out of you and you won’t have computer privileges for a week. I’m not kidding. So behave, or you’re going to regret it.”

  Kennedy affected a pout.

  Miriam smiled. “All right, you two. See you in the morning,” she said as mother and daughter began making their way to where Richard waited for them.

  ~ ~ ~

  The afternoon sped by uneventfully, with Silver fielding a few calls while at home, including a return call from Ben, who had agreed to contact Eric and break the news about the shooting so he wouldn’t hear about it on the news. She felt like she was chickening out, but Ben had agreed that it was a good idea to avoid speaking directly to him. Eric was the enemy now, and she couldn’t afford for a slip of the tongue to be used against her later.

  Ben had done the deed and had also asked Eric to refrain from contacting Silver, which was a huge relief. She didn’t need an inquisition, and Eric’s natural instinct was to strike whenever his adversary was weak.

  Silver had Kennedy helping her make dinner, selecting the vegetables for their salad and setting the table. Kennedy had been remarkably meek all day, so when she turned to Silver with worry in her eyes, Silver knew that she would need to be careful how she handled the questions that were coming.

  “Did you kill the man you shot today, Mom?”

  Silver stopped chopping. “Yes, honey, I’m afraid I did. It was self-defense. There was no other way to stop him from hurting me.”

  Kennedy nodded, as if understanding that and finding it reasonable. “Why was he trying to hurt you?”

  A great question.

  “We aren’t sure, sweetheart. We think it has something to do with my job. He was a criminal, and it could be that I somehow made him angry.”

  “But don’t police do that every day? Criminals don’t come after police for doing their job.”

  “No, ordinarily they don’t. That’s why nobody is sure what this is all about.”

  “Are you safe now?”

  “Yes, honey, I believe I am. The FBI has protection in place. Nobody can hurt us.”

  Silver could see where this was going. She was going to have a kid who couldn’t get to sleep because of nightmares of bad guys trying to get them.

  “Then why couldn’t they protect you this morning?”

  “Because nobody knew this man was going to try to attack me.”

  She instantly saw the hole in the logic of her response.

  “But then couldn’t they also be missing someone else who wants to attack you?”

  Silver put down the knife and wiped her hands on a towel and walked around the counter to face Kennedy. She sat down at the dining room table, put her hands on Kennedy’s shoulders and looked straight into her eyes.

  “Your mom is an ass kicker, Kennedy. This guy tried to get me, and I took him down. That’s what I do for a living – I take down bad guys. I’m very good at it. It’s extremely rare for anyone to attack an FBI agent for that reason. It’s almost guaranteed failure. So this man was either crazy, or desperate, or stupid, because if you mess with me, you lose. Do you understand? Nothing in life is completely safe, but coming for me is about the most unsafe thing I can think of.”

  A tra
ce of a smile played around the corners of Kennedy’s lips.

  “Having said that, it’s not pleasant to shoot someone, or to be shot at, and it’s even worse to kill someone. I wish I hadn’t had to do it. But sometimes you have to do things you don’t like, and this morning was one of those times.”

  “And how’s your butt feeling? The wound?”

  “It hurts a little. But I wouldn’t call it a wound. More like a scratch. A bullet ricocheted and creased my bottom. It was nothing. Really. A few stitches…”

  Kennedy regarded her skeptically.

  “Do I seem wounded to you?”

  “You’ve been walking funny, and the clown pants you’re wearing are sort of strange-looking,” Kennedy deadpanned.

  Shit. She’d completely forgotten about the pants she had on.

  “It’s really nothing. And these are very fashionable right now.”

  Kennedy rolled her eyes. “Sure, Mom. I can’t wait to get my own pair of big mama pants. Hey, can I see the wound?”

  Silver stood and returned to preparing the salad. “If you’re good, after dinner. But all it’s going to look like is some stitches and some bruising. It’s probably ugly.”

  “Okay. That will give us something to do besides watching TV. Now can we talk about Richard? Is he cute, or what?”

  Silver shook her head. Another road she was not going down tonight. “No, we cannot talk about the agents I work with like they’re pieces of meat.”

  “Is he single?”

  “Why? Isn’t he kind of old for you?” Silver asked innocently.

  “Is he?”

  Silver sighed. She’d raised a pit bull.

  Kennedy cocked one eyebrow. “Come on, Mom. Is he single or not?”

  “I suppose so.”

  “Girlfriend?”

  “Kennedy. Seriously. Are you just trying to get under my skin? Haven’t I had a hard enough day as it is?”

  Kennedy grinned. “Sorry for asking. It says online that you should establish your romantic interest in a firm yet relaxed manner. Men can get confused with mixed signals.”

  Great. Now she was getting dating advice from her ten-year-old.