Convergence

by Brian W Claspell

  Jenny responded in a near whisper. “I don’t care, you work for the agency and this thing at the bank needs done first.”

  “I am going to Ricardo’s meeting. Be there.” Jim said emphatically.

  “You better be at the bank.” Jenny responded. Jim just hung up on her.

  Frank looked at Jenny. “Where do you think he will go?”

  Jenny said, “Oh he will be at the bank. He better be at the bank.”

  Frank wasn’t so convinced. “Look, I will go to the Ricardo meeting and make sure it goes fine if Jim shows up there. You go to the bank.”

  “Trevor can handle things at the Ricardo sight.” Jenny pressed.

  Frank thought for a minute. “Without your guidance at the negotiation table he might get in trouble. It is probably best for Trevor and me both to be there. I will get Sr. Director Corso to meet you at the bank. That is primarily his operation anyway.”

  Jenny let Frank know that she was still convinced Jim would go to the bank, but Frank insisted that they account for any potential contingency.

  Monday

  Chicago

  Chapter 93 – Lake County

  Situated between Chicago and Milwaukee is the reasonably sized city of Waukegan with the Lake County Regional Airport nearby. It has a regional airport that many business travelers use to avoid the congestion of Chicago O’Hare. It is not known for elaborate meeting facilities, but tucked away in some of the buildings are prime locations for a quick in and out business meeting – never having to even leave the airport. If one knows who to talk to then a location can be arranged. Ricardo is familiar with those who could secure meeting rooms.

  The conference room was selected at the last minute so that it could be confidential. Ricardo brought breakfast, coffee and juice for the meeting. It was a long room with a single wide table down the middle. Chairs were on both sides. A single chair was at each end of the long table. The wall was decorated with pictures of various small engine aircraft and their owners. Each of these airplanes landed at least once at the airport.

  Ricardo sat near the head of the table but not in the end seat. While Ricardo waited, he read the local Chicago paper. A pilot walked in “Sorry, I didn’t realize this room was being used.” Ricardo motioned as if to say no big deal. The pilot promptly left. The pilot then entered a nearby office that had the blinds shut. Shutting the door behind him he took off his hat and said “Frank, I got the bug in place.”

  “Nice job Trevor.” Frank responded. There were only three scheduled flights before 9:00 AM. Frank was pretty sure they had narrowed down which flight was coming in to meet with Ricardo and Jim.

  A private jet registered to Seema Patel was scheduled to land at about 8:45 AM. Seema was from India but worked out of New York City acquiring artifacts from the Far East for use in the US east coast museums, such as the Smithsonian and the New York Museum of Natural History. Her business was completely legitimate. However, she often leveraged her father to get exhibits to tour the US. He lived right in the disputed territory between Pakistan and India. He had become wealthy over the years by playing each side of the dispute against each other. He used connections he made in this conflict to expand his business to other parts of the world.

  Trevor was thrilled at the prospect of making a connection with another world criminal. This plan was working better than he thought it might.

  Frank tuned the radio in the office into the tower intercom system and knew when the jet was landing. Ricardo waited for his son to bring Seema to the room. Ricky brought her in shortly after landing and it became a waiting game. The breakfast and juice helped pass the time. Seema was patient, but when 9:30 rolled around she began to question if Jim was going to show or not.

  Chapter 94 – The Warehouse

  Heidi and four other henchmen came to the warehouse almost immediately after the phone conversation the captain had with Yuri. They wanted to ensure that they controlled the situation. If she really had Jim, he needed taken alive and she knew that Yuri was among the most volatile and unpredictable people in the world. They took the time to sweep the room for bugs and to make sure all exits were secured and understood.

  Each of the help was strategically placed so that there were clear shots at the primary entrance and to the main part of the warehouse. This is where they would direct Yuri. All of the other potential entrances were chained and locked so that Yuri’s only choice was to come through the front door.

  The warehouse was huge. It was lit with fluorescent bulbs that were in various states of effectiveness. It was fairly dim throughout most of the warehouse. There were a number of conveyors and catwalks above the warehouse floor. A lot of the shelving was still in place. It still stored a number of old supplies, as if it were a dumping ground for a building that had been dismantled and stored in pieces in this warehouse. There were commodes, piping, door hardware, windows, and just about anything else you could imagine. It was a used parts version of a home improvement store.

  Amir arrived at 9:00 AM guarded by one more person. He would be placed in the center of the warehouse strapped in an explosive that would easily kill him and not hurt anyone else in the room. Once Amir arrived they waited.

  The phone that Heidi had with her rang at exactly 9:30 AM. She answered. “Yes, who am I speaking to?”

  “You are not the Captain.” Yuri said.

  “The Captain had other business to attend to this morning. He gave me his phone. I am in his place. I assume you are Yuri.” Heidi said as she stood next to Amir and a guard.

  “I am Yuri. You must be Heidi.” Yuri commented. “The captain didn’t come personally to get Jim?”

  “Like I said, he had another item of business.” Heidi responded.

  “Okay, we can do business. First you need to remove the bomb strapped around Amir. Then you need to take off your blue blazer, I want to see what type of weapon you are carrying.” Yuri explained.

  Heidi motioned to the guard with her and he quickly radioed to the others that Yuri must be in the building.

  Chapter 95 – The Bank

  Jim walked in the bank front entrance at precisely 9:30 AM. Jenny and Director Corso were waiting in the lobby. Jenny said. “I told Frank he would come here first.”

  Jim looked at them. “Let’s get this done. I am sure that I just ticked Ricardo off and that will not make Frank very happy.”

  Jenny introduced Director Corso and the other agent that was standing there with him before they went back to the conference room. The banking transaction could have taken place nearly anywhere; it just felt better to actually do it in a bank, even if it was a bank that had nothing to do with the actual money and assets that were in play.

  A video conference line was open between the banking office in the US and the small Swiss bank in Zurich. Director Corso asked the banker in Switzerland if there was someone there representing Jim in person. Director Corso arranged for one of his operatives to be present. He already knew that the operative was there, they had been trading messages for the last thirty minutes. Hans, the Swiss banker, confirmed his presence. Then Hans said, “For a transaction of this size, we will need verification of identity.”

  “Of course,” Jim responded.

  Hans observed as the nurse carefully took a hair sample and then a blood sample. Both were put into a machine to analyze. The results were put onto a memory stick and then sent to Hans over the internet from the bank’s computer. Jim also provided the primary account information and the password. He was able to do this over an encrypted connection. Once verified, the transaction was ready to begin. The nurse was excused. The local banker insisted on being present for the transaction. He did not want the appearance of anything shady going on in his bank.

  Hans began. “Jim Conrad, are you sure you want to proceed?” He asked wanting to make sure that he understood the consequences.

  Jim nodded and then said, “Yes. Let’s get this done.”

  Hans pulled up the portfolio screen with the summa
ry. Remembering the interaction from a few days ago, he quickly switched the currency to US dollars. The amount was just shy of $92 billion dollars. “Looks like we lost a bit” Jim said.

  The local Chicago banker’s mouth just dropped to the floor. This was much more than he ever thought possible for one investor. It certainly made Jim one of the richest men in the world.

  Hans looked disappointed. “The markets fluctuate. It is a temporary setback I assure you.”

  Jim was not really concerned about a few hundred million when they were talking about billions, he was actually just joking. However, he realized it might not be the best thing to joke about with a banker who takes great pride in his work. “Hans, my quick calculations say you lost considerably less than the market as a percentage. I think you have done fine.”

  Hans looked relived. “Thank you Jim. This is your total portfolio. You understand that these assets are in multiple bank accounts and investments around the world. Your primary account just gives you one place to manage these assets. But this primary account does control total ownership of these assets.”

  “I understand. If I transfer the primary account to Mr. Corso here, then he controls all of the assets associated with that account.” Jim explained back to Hans just so there was no confusion.

  Hans replied. “You are correct. Would you like to drill down into the portfolio and see the relationships?”

  Jim looked at Director Corso. Director Corso indicated that would not be necessary. He told Jim that the amount seemed about right and that they should proceed with the transaction. Jim spoke to Hans. “I think we are fine. Bring up the primary account like we discussed.”

  Hans went to the account. He looked at the video monitor and said. “I need to know what account to transfer ownership to.”

  Director Corso pulled out a piece of paper that had a routing number and an account number on it and the words “Friends of the World Charity Fund” and handed it to Jim. Corso then said quietly to Jenny, “We have to put the money someplace where others can access it.”

  Jim typed the information into the screen with the title of the charity. Hans looked at the people on the video screen and then glanced at the man next to him. “Jim, I am doing this because you have requested it. It is your account. Are you sure you really want to do this?”

  Jim hit enter. He was prompted again for a password to confirm the transaction. A message popped up on the screen. “Your account and all associated accounts have been successfully transferred. Your balance is $0.”

  Hans concluded. “The transaction is completed exactly as requested. The account and all of its associated accounts has been moved to the ‘Friends of the World Charity Fund’. We are sorry to see this part of our portfolio go.”

  Director Corso received a message from his operative at the Swiss bank that it all looked fine. “Thanks for your help Hans.”

  Hans just said. “We hope to have future business with you Mr. Conrad.” The conference call was ended and the room was vacated.

  Jim asked for a ride to the hotel from the director because he had taken a taxi to the bank. Director Corso agreed. It fit better with his plan anyway. As he got in the SUV he received a text from Frank. “Something is wrong at the warehouse. On my way.” The director instinctively asked Jenny to drive. Jim sat in the back with the other agent. The director sat in the front sit next to Jenny.

  The director asked Jenny to drive to a warehouse in town. He put an address into the GPS device so she would have directions. Jenny glanced over at the director and asked. “Why don’t we just take Jim back to his hotel?”

  “There is a colleague in trouble we are going to help. I believe Yuri is involved.” Director Corso responded.

  Chapter 96 – Back in the Warehouse

  Heidi kept looking around the building trying to discover where Yuri might be located. She slowly removed her blue blazer and revealing a holster with a gun under the left arm. Then she walked over to Amir and removed the explosives from his body placing them at his feet. If exploded, it would not kill him but would likely cripple him. She wanted to do what Yuri asked but did not want to give up her superior position. Then, not using the phone she asked, “Where is Jim?”

  Yuri spoke quietly into the phone. She did not want to give up her position if she didn’t have to. Through the scope in her rifle, she could see that Heidi was holding a trigger switch for the bomb in one hand and the phone in the other hand. She knew where the trigger switch was but that didn’t give her an answer as to how to avoid the bomb going off. Her main goal was to take out Heidi. It didn’t matter to her if the rest of them lived or died. She wanted Amir alive if she could get that, but that was not even necessary at this point. Two shots would give her position away.

  Heidi repeated impatiently and this time in the phone. “Where is Jim?” Her scanning the room had narrowed the best locations for Yuri down to about four. She was hoping that her operatives would be drawing the same conclusions by this time.

  “Not until Amir is safe.” Yuri responded. “Take your hand off of the trigger and move the bomb away from his feet.

  “I can’t do that until I know you have Jim.” Heidi responded.

  Yuri opted to use her first shot. The guard next to Amir fell first to his knees and then flat faced onto the floor. The shot helped Heidi narrow Yuri’s position to two likely locations. She knew that if Yuri were alone, other than Jim, then Yuri was now in trouble. The other operatives would be narrowing in their shots to those locations and perhaps even moving in physically to that location. “The next shot is aimed at you Heidi.”

  “Amir will either die or be seriously injured if you do that.” Heidi said now focusing in on the specific areas where Yuri was likely to be.

  “Amir betrayed me. I only want him alive so that I can personally kill him. But maybe shooting you is a better two for one deal.” Yuri countered.

  Heidi understood that if Yuri wanted a two for one deal, the show would be over already. But she also understood that conditions change and Yuri may opt for that condition sooner. Time was not on Yuri’s side and she seriously doubted if Jim was at the warehouse. “Where is Jim?”

  Yuri had given enough time for everything else to get into motion and simply said. “Jim is not here. I am here to kill you.”

  With that, Heidi began to move back behind metal shelving unit. Amir started to run for the exit and was shot by one of the operatives. Yuri took advantage of the opportunity and shot at Heidi just as the explosives went off. The shot missed Heidi and revealed Yuri’s location on scaffolding above the catwalk in front of Heidi. Heidi sent a quick text to Frank that she was in trouble and he had better get there as soon as he can.

  Yuri was now exposed and knew that she needed to move or she would be trapped. She was in a great position and could hold it for days if nothing changed. However, she could not cover additional people coming into the warehouse through the front door. Hence, she was certain that things would change. There was a roof exit that was her last resort and she was in a position to get to that with little damage to herself.

  She knew the layout and about where each of the four operatives started. She had made her way into the building a few hours before they arrived the night before and observed their sweep of the building and their positioning. She could easily take out one of the operatives but that would cut out her only viable exit through the roof. However, she would also have Heidi pinned in a way that she could not get out. She opted for the move down to the catwalk and onto the top of an office area that had a cement block barrier built up.

  On the way to her safe zone, she took a clean shot hitting the operative squarely in the head. Then she was on top of the small office area. Heidi tried to come around the shelf and Yuri placed a shot that nearly hit her. It was a message that Heidi got clearly. The remaining three operatives spent the next several minutes trying to flank and out maneuver Yuri. This was fruitless. They would not be able to get to her and she would not be able t
o get out.

  Chapter 97 – Convergence

  Director Corso insisted that Jenny stay out in the SUV to keep Jim safe. Jenny objected and said that she should be able to come in the Warehouse with Corso. The director would not allow it so she sat in the driver’s seat. Jim climbed into the front seat while Corso and the operative with him went into the warehouse. Once Corso was gone, Jenny sent a text to Trevor and told him to get down to the warehouse as soon as possible.

  Yuri could see the daylight come through as the front door opened. Heidi was relieved. With additional help, she might be able to get a better position or angle on Yuri and might be able to take her out. Heidi could make out two figures walking into the door. One of the three remaining operatives radioed Heidi and said it was Corso. This was great news.

  Heidi shouted the location of Yuri to Corso. He spoke back. “Stephanie, you lied. Jim made it to the bank today and completed the transaction. We didn’t need you after all.”

  Yuri responded back. “He slipped through my hands. But I now know who is responsible for the death of my parents.”

  “You figured out that it was Amir.” Corso responded. The other operative had already made his way to attempt to flank Yuri. Corso had moved to a secure but more central location in the warehouse.

  Yuri was not sure what to think. “I know it is you and Heidi and Frank. I also believe that the agent I killed in Paris was also involved. And so was my real father.”

  “You think you have learned a lot, but you don’t really know anything.” Corso yelled back to Yuri.

  Again the door to the warehouse opened. Heidi could see two more figures come into the warehouse. The voice radioed to Heidi that it was Jenny and Jim. Corso continued. “But you didn’t know it was Amir who planned the actual murder.”