Copyright 2014 Varun Vashist
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This is a work of fiction and Author's imagination. Any resemblance to any person or event or locales is purely coincidental
Table of Content
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Afterword
Other Books by the Author
Chapter 1
“Do you expect a federal inquiry in this?”
“Is the whole rise of Cooper Industries based on lies?”
Jeremy tried to push the reporters and make way for Chris.
“Is this the tip of the iceberg? Is this the beginning of the end for Cooper industries?” another reporter asked.
“No comments,” Chris said and looked at Jeremy.
“No more questions. Get aside,” Jeremy shouted.
They entered quickly in the car and left as the press was trying to chase them. Chris was nearly in tears. Within a day, he had fallen from heaven to earth.
Kiara Davenport kept looking at Special Agent-in charge Carlson, who had called her on the pretext of something important, but seemingly forgot about her presence.
"Shall I come later?" she asked while looking at her watch. It had been fifteen minutes since she came.
Carlson removed the papers he was reading and looked at her. "This will take a minute."
Kiara nodded and tried to find out what he was reading. It had been a few months since she had been given any significant case and she hoped Carlson had something meatier for her this time. Papers that Carlson was reading looked like pulled out of a diary; uneven torn edges showing that it was done in haste. There was another confidential file lying on the table near the computer. Kiara tilted her head and took a peek inside the folder. She could see the clips binding a bunch of papers.
Carlson removed the papers and looked straight at her. Kiara came back to her position at once and gave him a smile. Carlson ignored it.
"Did you hear about that?" He pointed at the television that was set on mute and was running the coverage of Cooper Industries.
"I am not that much into business news, Sir," she said casually. "But, I had to watch the news in the last fifteen minutes. So… yes."
Carlson shook his head. "That's your problem Kiara. You can achieve so much only if you could rein in your attitude."
"I am trying," she responded immediately without an iota of indignity.
Carlson shook his head again and heaved a sigh. "Anyway, the Cooper Industries rise and fall have been equally phenomenal. They were nowhere in the picture five years ago and then suddenly they became a billion dollar company within a year and now their shares have tanked within a day to such level that has not happened to anyone in the last twenty five years."
"But, apparently, there is no evidence of any wrong doings; only the allegations, "Kiara said and pointed at the ticker running below the coverage, "And, that too only from one newspaper."
"That' what the news says, but I feel.. I mean the federal agencies feel there is something more than what meets the eye." Carlson walked near the television.
"How so?" She asked, still trying to peek through the papers.
Carlson turned around. "Cooper Industries started as an electronic device manufacturer. Within a year, they captured twenty percent of the market. Everything was going fine when suddenly last year, they made a switch to chemical industry; a move that nobody could understand till they won a billion dollar government contract. That too within three months."
"Such a huge contract without any prior experience. That is indeed fishy," Kiara responded.
"And it does not end just here. This year, the chemical business contributed sixty percent of their total revenue and that too when they did not even start the real work till six months back. And, the only thing they have done in those six months is ecologically destroying Lake Blue Leaf."
"And, the government has no issues with it?" Kiara inquired further.
"They played another card to save their asses," Carlson replied and walked near the table. He opened the package and took the report out.
"Restoration plan for Lake Blue Leaf," Kiara read as Carlson handed it over to her.
"To diffuse the tension; they constituted a committee to propose the restoration of the lake and rehabilitation of the people living in the surrounding area. They were four steps ahead of everyone. They fabricated a report that exonerated them of doing anything wrong. Instead the report says that the locals have been polluting the lake." Carlson looked at her, "You know who heads that committee?"
"Who?" Kiara asked.
"Richard Johnson,"
Kiara turned towards the television that had Richard's picture being displayed continuously.
"But, Richard's paper is the one that is carrying the news about their wrongdoings," she said with surprise. "So, he got the information while working with them and now he is blackmailing them with it."
"Don't jump to conclusions so fast," Carlson warned, "No one knows what information he has. So far he has only said that he has something related to the way they had started their business. Whether he has any proofs or not; nobody knows."
"May be some rivals are behind this,"
"Maybe. We don't know yet," Carlson said, shaking his head, "There was news of Morgan.. the head of Morgan Investments offering them Ten billion for their business. But, the Cooper's had rejected the bid strongly even though it was fifty percent above their market value."
Kiara nodded and picked the report. "Who prepared this report?" she asked while shuffling the pages.
"This is what Richard's team was working on and that's where I would like you to look," Carlson said and sat down.
Kiara looked at him and then at the report. Carlson understood her confusion.
"See, the government is mulling over a check on the financial irregularities by Cooper Industries. But, before they do that they want us to check them for human rights violations at Blue leaf lake area," Carlson explained further, but it raised more questions in Kiara's mind.
"Hmm… Government is delaying check on their finances as this will open a can of worms for them also, isn't it?" she said thoughtfully, trying to understand the real intention behind all this activity.
Carlson nodded his head reluctantly, "See, that's what I fear for you. You should only do what you are ordered to do. They want a solid ground to save their skin. That can be done if they have enough proof against them. And, that's what you need to bring from Blue leaf."
"So that they could blackmail Cooper Industries from keeping them out of the investigation," she mused.
"Do what you are told to do. Don't stray from your target," he urged again, knowing beforehand that it was not going to make any impact on her.
As expected, Kiara smirked back. Her smile angered Carlson further.
"Don't go beyond what you are ordered to do. Go to Blue leaf and check for any irregularities. Collect as much data as possible and bring it back. It is as simple as that," he said firmly and looked into her eyes, "Is that understood?"
Kiara nodded in the affirmative. Carlson's eyes were burning and he meant business. She did not want
to lose the case by making fun of him. There were lots of thoughts coming to her mind that could put fuel to fire, but, she knew how to stop them. She made a fist and pressed her hands firmly, trying not to say anything.
As Carlson turned around, she took a deep breath.
"When do I start?" she asked as softly as she could.
Carlson looked at her, "You will report there tomorrow."
Before Kiara could say anything, he opened the drawer and took out a badge.
"You are going as a reporter…I mean a student of journalism who has got an assignment on human rights. Read the report that I have given you before you reach there. It has everything that will help you slip into the role,"
"But, my face in this badge looks…"she was about to make some snide remark but stopped at the right moment.
Carlson looked at her and pleaded. "Please don't do anything beyond your orders."
She nodded in affirmation, "I told you. I am working on it."
He nodded back, "You will be reporting to Special Agent in Charge Ralph Harrison. He will assign a partner to you."
Kiara always hated having a partner. She had certain unorthodox ways of working that never went well with most of her partners. Thought of another partner made her wince. However, that was not a choice that she could make.
"That would be all. Best of luck," Carlson said and opened the door. He was too eager to get her off his back. Kiara on the other hand had no other option.
"Thank you, Sir," she nodded and headed out the door.
As she was about to turn towards her desk, she looked at the file. She checked all the papers, but found something amiss. She turned immediately and pushed the door of Carlson cabin.
"What now?" he asked in exasperation.
"Sir, there were some other pages in this report… from someone's diary," she said while screening through Carlson's table.
"They are not for this case," he replied tersely and went back to his work.
Kiara thought for a moment and looked at the table one more time. The pages that Carlson was reading were not there any longer. She knew something was definitely amiss, but there was no point arguing.
"Oh.. All right," she replied and left at once. Carlson looked at the door and shook his head. He knew giving a case to Kiara needed twice the energy; one part to handle the case and another to handle her.
Kiara buried herself in the chair and removed her shoes. She just wanted to relax for a minute before she could make up her mind to leave New York once again. She clasped her hands behind her head and closed her eyes. In the eight years of service, she had been sent undercover five times. And, every time she was informed that she had to leave New York for a month. By now, she knew the time frame was just on papers or may be a ploy to make her take the assignment. Like, in her first assignment, she had to get away for a whole year. Every time, she would leave all the cases that she was about to solve. Others will take the credit of her work and since she was undercover; she could not boast about the cases that she solved during that time. Only Carlson and his bosses knew about that. They would just appreciate it in close rooms and then move on.
Since she was always on the move, she was not able to settle down in New York. She could not make friends or any other acquaintances. Her whole life revolved around the cases. This loneliness further added to her aggression.
The second thing that bothered her more was getting too involved in the cases. Initially, she had thought that with experience she will become indifferent to it. But, it was easier said than done. She had to fake her identity; earn the trust of the locals and then use that trust for her motive. One day, she would vanish out of their lives, leaving behind several hurt souls.
Anyhow, that was her life now.
The only good thing was that she felt doing something important. Being in the field gave her a new thrill. She could be out of line and take decisions that her bosses won't allow in normal circumstances and blame the situation for that. When someone is pointing a gun at you, you don't call your boss for the next move, she would argue.
She had developed several enemies within the organization because of that. Even Carlson was not fond of her attitude, but, he knew she was one of his most competent agents. Though reluctantly, he had always given her the most important assignments.
The thought brought her back to the assignment at hand. She opened her eyes and shuffled through the report. There was nothing much, just some numbers and a few project plans. She could not understand why Carlson wanted her to read it. She closed it and put it back into the folder. While pushing it inside the folder she chanced upon the names written on it.
"Created by Sarah Edward & Kevin Jones under the supervision of Mr. Richard Johnson and Mr. Thomas Wilson"
Thomas's name made her stop for a moment. Aren't Richard and Thomas from rival publications?
"This case is much deeper than I thought," she murmured, "This is going to be fun."
She looked at the folder one more time and then at her watch. If she had to leave tomorrow, she had to make a few arrangements. With that thought, she shut down her laptop and started collecting stuff that she would need while she was gone.
Kiara entered her one room apartment and looked around, "Well, we had a good run."
Every time she was sent to a mission, she had to leave the apartment. She never knew when she would return and the department was unwilling to pay rent in her absence.
She put the packet of frozen dinners in the freezer and looked at the clock. It was half past seven. Her flight left at nine in the morning. After many days, she had some time to herself. She took a beer and jumped on the couch. She turned on the television that was still running the news of Cooper Industries meltdown. The news brought some questions to her mind. She sighed; no me time for you, Kiara. She finished the beer and turned off the television.
She moved to her computer and started looking up for Cooper Industries.
'Cooper Industries was started by William Cooper and his son Chris Cooper. Chris was a child prodigy who invented the smallest integrated circuit chip that helped to start Cooper Industries. Within the first year of inception, the company made to the Top ten companies to look out for list and within three years it captured fifty percent of the market leaving behind the competition.'
"Well, that is some growth," Kiara muttered and clicked on the Portfolio tab and scrolled down.
'Cooper Chemicals- established 2012; won a billion dollar government project in the third quarter of the financial year. The first fully integrated chemical plant was set up in the outskirts of Kingston and has been operational since March 2013. It was awarded the Movers and shakers award for 2013-14.'
She clicked on other tabs, but there was nothing significant to draw her attention. She closed the window and thought of checking out the website for the Washington Chronicle; Richard's paper.
'Tomorrow's paper will carry the excerpts of the proof supporting the allegations made today. All those who are speculating that this was a move from us to defame Cooper Industries at the behest of their competitors will come to know the truth - Richard Johnson.'
"Richard does mean business," she reckoned.
She shuffled through other websites tracking the developments and every website had Richard's comments on the front page.
While Kiara was preparing for her assignment, Cooper Industries was burning under the heat of the scandal.
Richard's threats were not baseless and were well planned too, as shown by the timing. The financial results had helped the stocks to soar, but the mere mention of the wrongdoings had made them fall by ten percent within a day. The entire media was abuzz with the news of Cooper Industries going bankrupt.
Chris was sitting in William's cabin while William was on a call. Sweat drops were glistening on his forehead and his face was becoming paler as the call was progressing. Chris was looking at him impatiently. After five minutes, the call got disconnected. William threw the phone on the couch and walked ne
ar Chris.
"He is not willing to take it back," William hung his head down in defeat.
Chris looked at him with anger, "That bastard. What is he saying now?"
"He is saying that we have made a huge mistake by ignoring his threats," William said anxiously, "He is going to publish written proof tomorrow."
"He does not have anything on us," Chris said, though not with much confidence.
"Well, he knew we would say that. He has sent a package to me to convince us of his threats." William said as he gulped a full glass of water in one sip.
Chris looked a little worried for the first time. "What could it be?"
"I don't have any idea. He has already hurt our business. Any proof against us, however small it may be, will bring us to our knees," William said in a frail voice.
Suddenly, Jeremy; William's trusted man stormed into the cabin. “Sir, Richard has sent this package."
William took it with trembling hands. Chris and Jeremy looked at it with bated breath as William opened it layer by layer. As soon as he opened it completely, his face turned pale. He gave it to Chris and fell on the nearby chair.
Chris took out the papers from the package, "These….These are photocopies of my personal diary. How did they…?"Chris was quivering with fear. Words were not coming out of his mouth.
"I always told you, not to write down everything," William said with frustration, "There are other ways of overcoming loneliness. We are finished now because of you."
Chris could not say anything. He stood there motionless.
"What are we going to do now?" Jeremy asked while taking the pages from Chris.
"We don't have much choice," William looked at both of them, "If this gets published, no one will pay a dime for Cooper Industries. Either we make a deal with Morgan or go bankrupt."
"We could make a deal with Richard," Jeremy said while waiting for the nightmare to end.
"He won't do it. I tried that already." William said while staring at the opposite wall that had a huge painting of Cooper Industries logo, "Morgan has played his cards carefully."
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