“So you could get millions of dollars coming into the bank from anywhere?”
“That’s right.”
“Is all of the money from one source or several gathered together into one lump sum?” Dutch asked.
“It was from a few third parties. In fact, the deposit came in under several names, which is good,” she added.
“Why is that?”
“Because if it came into our institution as a deposit from the ABC Brokerage Company, the FDIC would regard the company as the owner and only pay up to the insurance amount of $100,000 dollars. Oops, sorry—the Senate passed an amended bill that raised the government's guarantee on savings from $100,000 to $250,000.”
“But that amount wouldn’t cover the individuals within the lump sum?” Dutch asked.
“No, not if the money came in only as ABC Brokerage Company. As it is,—” she searched the page on the monitor screen, “—I see it came into our bank as, I’ll call the broker ABC, the ABC Brokerage Company as Custodian for several owners’ names, so each person will be reimbursed up to the maximum of insurance. Of course, if each had deposited more than the amount of the insurance, then they’re out of luck. They’d only be reimbursed for $250,000, which is the amount of the FDIC maximum.” She frowned.
“Makes me nervous about my retirement IRA invested in my own bank,” Dutch admitted.
“You don’t have to worry about your IRA. The FDIC passed a new rule in 2006. Since that time, retirement accounts have been covered up to $250,000. I don’t know if that also was increased recently.”
“Whew.” Dutch nodded with a grin as affirmation. “Glad my nest egg is safe.”
“Yes, it’s okay.” She stared at the notes on her desk.
“Do you know where the loan money went?” Dutch asked.
“Let me go onto my computer,” Patricia said and signed onto a special accounts page. She inserted the loan account number and pressed ENTER. It only took a few seconds for the information to be displayed. “They waited until the loan money was credited to their account, which was…let me see…three days later.”
“Is the money still in their account? If so, you could reclaim it based on fraud,” Dutch said hopefully.
The woman moved the cursor to another screen. “It’s gone.” She held a hand to her head, crestfallen. She looked over at Dutch with tears in her eyes.
“Where did it go? Does it tell you that?” Dutch asked her.
She wiped a tear away and went back to the monitor screen. “It went to an account named Valhalla Real Property Corp. It was incorporated in Nevis Island. I’ve heard of that place. It’s an island near Puerto Rico.” She was quiet as she clicked on another screen. “Then it was transferred to an offshore bank in the Bahamas.” Her hands shook as she turned back to face Dutch.
“Offshore again.” He closed his pad. “I suggest you advise your board of directors immediately plus tell the police department. You may need a security guard to protect you until this mess has been cleared up,” Dutch said seriously.
“Security guard?” She looked surprised. “Why can’t I get the police to protect me?”
“To the police this is just a bad investment deal,” Dutch answered. “Why should they protect you?”
“So I really do need a guard?” she asked.
“Yes. Unless you want to be number four on the hit parade. No pun intended,” Dutch told her.
“Do you think they’ll kill me, too?”
“Possibly. They’ll try. Look, Patricia, your board of directors should pay for the security guard so please make arrangements immediately.” He was solemn.
“Can you be my guard until I can hire one?”
“I can, but I’ll have to call a female friend to be with me. I don’t want a sexual harassment case against me.”
She blushed and nodded. “Okay.” She picked up the phone to make the call.
Dutch walked into the hallway and punched in Kate’s number on his cell phone.
Kate was about to close her store when the phone rang. It was Dutch. “Can you stay with me tonight?” he began.
“Why, Dutch. I didn’t think you cared,” she said with a laugh. “What are you saying?”
He told the whole story and ended up explaining that he needed her to accompany him to avoid a nasty situation.
“I can, but I have to go home and make sure Mum’s all right. Then I’ll pick up sleeping bags. We can take turns dozing,” she explained.
“Good thinking. One of us has to be awake all through the night. Who knows what these guys are capable of,” Dutch answered.
“Where shall I meet you? We’ll need to take my SUV because it’ll hold three of us and our gear.”
“Meet me in the supermarket parking lot where there’s lots of light. I don’t want my truck vandalized by these goons.”
“In about an hour, okay?” she asked.
“Deal.”
She settled her mum in for an evening of movies she’d rented earlier that day and had a neighbor, Maggie, come over to stay with her for the night. Kate didn’t want to leave her elderly mother alone, and Maggie enjoyed herself so much when she came over because, to her, it was like a mini vacation.
About an hour later, Kate was parked in the supermarket’s lot in her SUV loaded with sleeping bags, diet soda, apples and snacks. Dutch and Patricia transferred into her car, and they drove slowly over to the loan officer’s townhouse on the outskirts of town. Dutch took the door keys from her and quickly surveyed each room to determine whether the rooms were empty and not booby-trapped or had a nasty surprise lurking in the closets. He signaled to Kate and Patricia that it was clear and safe to come in.
Patricia took some frozen dinners out of the freezer and threw them in the microwave oven. Within minutes they were feasting on lasagna meals—not the most luxurious, but with some leftover cake afterwards, was filling.
Dutch made sure all of the blinds were closed and lights left on in the hallways—just in case they needed to see where they were walking. The evening went quickly. They talked about the case, watched television and then played cards.
Patricia managed to reach the bank’s board members who said they would get together away from the office that night and meet her with Dutch and Kate in the morning at the bank.
All three were exhausted by eleven o’clock. Patricia said goodnight and retired to her bedroom. Kate took the first shift of sleeping for two hours. Dutch sat on a hard kitchen chair to make sure he didn’t fall asleep while he watched a movie on TV.
Every fifteen minutes he’d make the rounds in the apartment, checking all locks on doors and windows and peeking out of the blinds at the street to determine whether the place was being watched. He was glad there were no problems during the first watch.
After two hours, he woke Kate up and gave her instructions on what to watch out for and then immediately fell asleep. Kate walked around and did what Dutch had told her do. Everything seemed normal.
Chapter Twenty
Kate says: Please hang photos and art work at eye level of an average person. One should not have to look up at a display.
It went that way all night. Two hours on and two hours off. Dawn slowly crept over the horizon. Kate ached all over from sleeping on the couch. Thank the Lord. It was the longest damned night in my life. It was too early to wake up Patricia, so she jumped into the shower and put on clean clothes. The warm water felt like pure ecstasy. She was ready for another day and she prayed it would be peaceful. She couldn’t take another day like those in the past few weeks with three murders and now guarding a fourth possible victim.
Kate put on the coffee pot and pulled a box of cold cereal out of the kitchen cabinet. She checked the refrigerator. Plenty of milk so there shouldn’t be a shortage. Patricia was stirring and in the shower. They would leave for the bank in about forty-five minutes.
Meanwhile, Dutch rolled up the sleeping bags and packed the duffel bags with the stuff they’d brought along. They’d all go
to the car together to prevent one of them being held as a hostage by someone lurking in the bushes.
Everyone was ready to leave for the bank and Dutch led the way out of the townhouse followed by Patricia with Kate taking up the rear. They had Patricia get into the vehicle first, and then Dutch loaded the equipment into the rear. They were soon on the way to the other side of town. Luckily, no problems had arisen during the night. Who knows what might have happened to Patricia if they hadn’t been with her? Dutch thought.
“I want to thank you both for taking care of me last night,” Patricia said, leaning forward from the rear seat. “I slept like a baby. I was terrified and wouldn’t have been able to sleep if I was alone.”
“I’ll send the board our bill,” Dutch said grimly. “I hope they have a security guard set up for you because I have other work to do. I can’t watch you after this morning.”
“The board chairman said they’d have someone for me today.”
“Good.” They arrived at the bank’s parking lot. Dutch drove and looked for a spot close to the building. He found one and pulled into it and put the car in park. They got out of the SUV and gathered on the driver’s side. Patricia winced as she leaned against the vehicle.
Dutch grabbed her arm. “Are you okay?” She nodded. “Then listen to me. I want you to walk to the main entrance and stay between the two of us.”
“I need to get some stuff out of my car first,” she argued.
“What on earth do you need so urgently?” Dutch said, annoyed.
“A comfortable pair of shoes. These stilettos are killing me.”
“You should have put on better shoes this morning. You had a chance when you were home.”
“I know. I didn’t think of it then.”
“Which one is your car?”
“Over there,” she said, pointing across the near-empty lot. It was still early—too early for most employees to be at work. “But wait. I have a new toy—let me show you.” She rummaged around in her handbag and pulled out a small remote key. “It’s an automatic start for cold mornings—I love it.” She pressed a button. The engine appeared to turn over with a splutter and then, with a loud blast the vehicle exploded. The whole car was engulfed in flames. Pieces of the car’s body flew up into the air and landed, crashing all over the lot. The three of them ducked behind Kate’s SUV to avoid the flying metal. Flames licked at the cars parked next to it, causing the safety glass in those cars to burst and splatter shards around the area.
People came running out of the buildings around the lot, and in the distance they heard sirens as the fire department rushed to the site. Someone had already called 911. A police car slid to a stop next to the three of them. Dutch waved at the sergeant who shook his head as he got out of his patrol car. “Why is it that disaster follows you?” he asked.
“Just lucky, I guess,” Dutch answered. “Now you’re here, help me get these women into the bank building.”
Kate and Patricia walked in front of the two men. Approaching the building, Dutch and the cop moved ahead and pushed open the double entrance doors. Patricia stepped through the doors and immediately crumpled into a heap on the marble foyer floor. She’d fainted. Bank employees surrounded them as they questioned Kate as to what had happened to the car in the parking lot.
“Seems like it was a welcome sign from an irate customer,” Kate said sarcastically.
Patricia fluttered open her eyes. An ambulance followed the fire truck into the lot. One of the employees flagged them down to attend to the woman in the foyer. The attendants put their emergency first-aid kit next to Patricia, who was now covered in a blanket, and her head rested on a sofa cushion. One of the technicians took her blood pressure. “A little high,” he told her, “but within the normal range. Heart rate is high so we’ll stay with you and take it again in a few minutes. Give you time to calm down a little.”
The fire department soon had the car fire under control. One end of the parking lot was getting filled up with curious employees reporting to work. The police kept the other half closed for the investigation.
Meanwhile, the bank’s board members, looking nervous, had gathered in a corner of the foyer. One fiddled with his tie while another one adjusted the zipper on his pants and belt. A couple of the executives tapped their toes. Dutch approached them.
“Now you can see why this woman needs protection,” he said to the men.
“Please don’t treat us as though we’re imbeciles. We understand that this is a serious situation,” one elderly member said. “We have a personal protection person arriving any moment.”
“My partner and I worked as security guards over Patricia last night, so I’ll be forwarding my billing statement to the board and expect payment immediately.” He was pissed at their attitudes. They’d slept in comfy beds all night while he and Kate had next to no rest. He walked away a short distance then turned back to them. “Don’t allow Ms. Blake to leave this building without having someone with her,” he warned them. “As you can see, these are not amateurs we’re dealing with.”
Just then, the police lieutenant walked through the doors, followed by a muscle-bound man who had security man or bouncer written all over him. Dutch approached the officer. “Hi, I guess you heard about the explosion,” he stated. “Thank goodness Ms. Blake here had a remote car starter. We were several feet away. Just lucky.”
“Yes, it was sheer luck that you avoided being blown up with the car. Like I’ve said before, wherever you go, death seems to follow.”
Dutch ignored that remark. “Kate and I stayed with her—that’s the loan officer on the floor—last night. We have to get home and begin working on our investigation.”
“You promised to meet with me this morning,” the lieutenant reminded him.
“Oh, yes. I’d forgotten for a minute. Just give us an hour or so and we’ll meet you at your office.” Dutch looked back at Kate who was leaning over Patricia.
The woman’s heart rate had slowed to a more normal pace and the medical technicians were packing up their bags ready to leave. Patricia refused to be taken to the hospital, and Kate helped pull her up from the floor. She held onto Kate’s arm for support. “Thanks again,” she said.
“You’re welcome. Dutch and I have to leave now, and it looks like your body guard is here.” Kate pointed to the large man standing with the board members.
A flatbed truck pulled into the parking lot as they were preparing to leave. They watched as the cooled-down, burned-out car was finessed out of the parking spot onto the truck. The police sergeant was giving hand directions to the driver as the crane lifted the hulk.
“Going to forensics now,” Dutch said to Kate. He was in the driver’s seat of her vehicle. He leaned over and kissed Kate firmly. “Thanks for our night together.”
She smacked him and laughed as he put the SUV into drive. “Home, James,” she said. “And don’t spare the horses.”
“You English have the strangest sayings.”
Chapter Twenty-One
Kate says: If you have two or three gallon cans of specially mixed paint but they don’t exactly match, no need to panic. Pour both cans of paint into a larger container and mix them together. Just divide in two and pour the now uniform-colored paint back into the gallon cans. The paint is exactly the same in both containers.
They met later that morning with the police lieutenant to go through the details of what they’d discovered. Dutch handed him a photocopy of the original list of the banks discovered on the legal pad.
“I’m astonished,” the policeman said. “But I’m pleased we now have a clue as to the identity of the banks involved.”
“I’ve only been to three banks so far and two of three loan officers were shot in the head. The third one would have been blown to bits if she didn’t have a remote car starter,” Dutch said. He couldn’t help but be upset. “What are you going to do for the other loan officers after your detectives have interviewed them? They’ll all need protection.” Dut
ch stood and began pacing.
“Relax, Dutch,” the policeman said. “Try to calm down. We’ll come up with a plan. Such as meeting with the loan officers at night in a secret location so the gang, mob, or whoever they are, won’t see them being interviewed. They won’t know we have the information and hopefully they’ll leave the bank officers alone.”
“It may work, but I think the scammers will be one step in front of you and will knock off all of the loan officers they’ve contacted.”
“You must realize though, the police weren’t involved in this case until the murders happened. I know you told me about the scam weeks ago, but we couldn’t do a thing not knowing if the realtor was merely a blowhard—showing off. We don’t have a ‘bunko’ squad to run down the scammers, and bank fraud is not our bailiwick,” the lieutenant said.
“True. But getting back to the other loan people at the remaining banks on the list, I don’t care what bank board asked me to look into their loan officer, I’m staying away from them because as soon as I’m in the picture, they get knocked off,” Dutch added. “Someone’s definitely watching me. It’s becoming a nightmare.”
“And I’m scared to death they’ll kill Dutch—or me,” Kate said. “My mum is terrified too. I have to get a neighbor to stay with her when I’m gone.”
“I believe you,” the lieutenant said. “Her fear’s understandable.”
“I’m glad you’re aware of the situation.”
“Let’s get going on the details,” Dutch said, impatient. “Can we go into the room with the blackboard? Or should I say, whiteboard? It’ll make more sense when written down.”
“Follow me. And by the way, we took the film from the security camera on the parking lot at the bank. We may get lucky with a license plate on screen.”
“Great. But these guys are professionals so it may be difficult to see a plate number. As you know, they usually change or blur them,” Dutch said. “On the other hand, they have to make a slip-up soon.”
Fleeced in Stonington Page 10