Freeman knew he was correct, even though he hated to throw his lot in with Freddie again. “Very well, Mr. Hagood, I agree, we will be allies once more. I expect you to do better for our cause this time, do not let me down.” Freddie bristled at the dig at his effectiveness, but let it pass. The Judge was pointing out the truth as he saw it. He could not know how much his blackmail cost Freddie. Only William knew the Judge’s blackmail had derailed a small fortune.
Freddie had an idea that he might be able to do even better than the large settlement he had been gifted and since lost. He needed one more person to secure them against a repeat of the first day. Freddie hoped as people revealed their secrets he would gain candidates for his alliance. He offered his hand, and they shook on their new deal. As they headed to the conference room, the Judge smiled for the first time since his earlier humiliation. The others may hate him, but he was back in with a chance at gaining a fortune. His plan had taken an unexpected twist, but he was back at the table and that was all that mattered.
$
There was silence in the conference room as the group waited for the others to return. Philip and Betty engaged in soft conversation that was inaudible except for an occasional tinkling laugh that Betty was unable to suppress. She seemed unburdened by the weight of the task to come and Bethany hated her for being so relaxed while she was sick from fear.
Bethany did not want to share her secret. She was shocked that her father might have discovered it. She had known his views and his Foundation actively reflected his personal beliefs. If her secret was ever revealed it would have caused her father a lot of problems, but that wasn’t the worst of it. Bethany knew in her heart that her secret was the reason her father never called for her as he lay dying.
$
Janice stepped from the bathroom, fully dressed and with perfect make-up. She stood tall and proud, and Dennis felt an old feeling stir in his chest as he looked at her. She was still a fine looking woman. “You look great, Jan. Really good.” She accepted the compliment with a smile even as her heart fluttered with nerves at what was to come.
She joined her husband, who offered his arm in a chivalrous gesture. “Thank you Dennis. Now let’s go and nail that bastard to the wall.” Dennis smiled, he couldn’t help it. His wife had suffered God knows what at the hands of Junior Thurwell, yet her focus was on Junior’s fortune and how much she could hurt him back.
Chapter Seventeen
William turned in his seat to see Freddie return to the conference room with Judge Freeman. Freeman did not look left or right, but quietly took his seat and folded his hands in front of him and stared into space.
Freddie was nonchalant and took his place between Camille and Bethany, effectively ending their conversation. He smiled at those that looked at him and noticed Dennis and his wife had yet to make it back. He was annoyed at having to wait, he was used to being the person everyone else waited for.
Philip returned to his conversation with Betty and ignored a disapproving look from his sister. Philip didn’t care that Bethany disliked Betty. She was unable to accept her father had been sexually active and blamed Betty, which Philip thought a ridiculous argument. Philip took his father’s virility as a good sign that he had good genes for a long sexual career.
He was asking what Betty might do when all this was over. He didn’t dwell on what they had to endure before sharing the fortune was discussed again. He would worry about that when it was his turn to tell his secret.
He was about to whisper something funny about his new French sister when the Elliots returned. He fell silent, interested to see what drama might unfold at the housekeeper’s return.
Janice appeared to be an entirely different woman to the one Dennis had carried out of the room. She was dressed in a fashionable suit, and her hair and make-up were immaculate. She possessed the air of a confident businesswoman, not the simple housekeeper he used to see in his father’s home.
Junior had waited eagerly for Janice’s return. His thoughts had been on nothing else since she’d spit on the Judge. He wanted, no, he needed her to look at him and acknowledge his power over her. When she appeared on Dennis’s arm and looked directly at him, anyone studying Junior’s face would have seen it transform from triumph to disappointment and, finally, deep anger.
His complexion turned the dark red hue that signaled danger to those that knew him well. Janice had met his eyes, just as he needed, but instead of submission and shame, he saw contempt. The slut even dared to look down her nose at him.
He wanted to slap her but then he noticed Dennis glaring at him. He felt a deep chill run down his spine. Dennis knew. There was hate in his eyes, and Junior had no doubt Dennis now knew all about last night. Junior’s anger bled away and left him with a sick feeling deep in his stomach. He was suddenly terribly afraid.
No woman had dared to tell a soul what happened after they had been alone with Junior. Sometimes their silence cost money, but most times shame and his veiled threats were enough. Now Dennis knew about him. Dennis was a slow thinker, but he was a big man. Junior could not allow Dennis to corner him. He’d need to stay around other people for safety. Junior was sweating and could not hold Janice’s gaze. He dropped his eyes in defeat as fear and rage battled for dominance in his heart.
Winnie Tremethick saw a flicker of fear in Janice’s eyes as she sat next to her. She was afraid of something or someone, but was putting on a decent show of being confident. Winnie reached out and patted Janice’s arm and offered a little smile made warmer by her kind eyes. Janice returned the smile, it was natural, but Winnie saw the effort required to make it. The old lady wondered what had so upset her, but now was not a suitable time for questions. She heard the lawyer call them to attention and turned to listen.
$
William was relieved that everyone was present, if not entirely happy or comfortable. “Since you are all here, it’s time to continue. Larry, I’ll run things until the sharing of secrets is complete, at which point you may Chair the group again. Let me be clear, there is no debate about what you must tell each other. I have a list from Mr. Thurwell that describes information each of you would prefer to remain secret, but that you must share.
“If you provide an accurate description of your secret, you may remain to negotiate your share in the fortune. If you obfuscate or try to misdirect the group, I will give you one final chance to correct the record. Failure to share the truth or refusal to participate is your choice but will cost you the opportunity to win Mr. Thurwell’s money.”
The lawyer looked in turn at each person until they acknowledged him. The heavy silence was punctuated only by an occasional pop from the fire that still burned robustly across the room. William was satisfied they all understood. “Is there anyone who prefers not to participate? If so, now is the time to leave. Once we begin, there will be no backing out.”
No one volunteered to leave. “Very well, then we can begin.” He looked up as he sensed a hand was raised, it belonged to Camille Jolivet. “Monsieur Bird. How do we decide who goes first?”
“The order will be random. I’ll write your names on pieces of paper and pick them out one at a time. If your name is called, you talk.” Camille gave a grimace, a one in twelve chance of going first wasn’t too bad. She hoped that she would not be the first to talk.
Larry MacLean interrupted. “Bill, how do we know it’ll be random? You could have a pre-arranged order and manipulate it, why don’t you let one of us draw the names?”
“Would that make you feel better, Larry? Is that what you are really worried about right now?” Bird snapped.
MacLean looked away, feeling foolish. He had felt he should say something to retain his authority with the group, but his question had been meaningless and Bird had made him look petty. He wished he’d kept his mouth shut. He mumbled an apology and tried to look like he hadn’t just acted like an ass.
Bird stared at Larry for a few long seconds to make a point about who was in charge, then opened
his notebook and tore out twelve strips of paper. He took his time, knowing all his guests watched his every move. He wrote a name in neat print on each piece of paper, taking the time to look directly at the person whose name he wrote, then folded the paper twice and dropped it into an empty water pitcher. He dropped the last name into the glass and saw each person trying to guess who might be unlucky enough to go first. William shook the glass pitcher to mix up the names and placed it in front of him. Twelve people simultaneously stopped breathing as Bird reached into the glass and picked one out. “Freddie Hagood. Freddie, you go first.”
Hagood shrugged. His face was expressionless, and his voice even. “So be it, I get to go first.” He sipped his water, refilled the glass and set it down again, giving it a quarter turn. He liked to be the center of attention and knew these moments would be his last as Johnston Thurwell’s legendary business rival. Freddie scanned the others’ faces. Some of them had worse things to share than him. One he knew about already. It was time to end many years of secrecy.
“You all know me. I own the largest network of business information sources in the world. If you have a business making more than a few million dollars a year, I know about it, and I will sell what I know to the highest bidder. It’s good business. It was so good that Johnston Thurwell and I competed hard to control it. We banged heads for a lot of years. I won some contracts, and he won others. But over time he won more as I lost more. By 1987, our firms had a lock on the market. Over 75% of all commercial business information came from one or other of us.”
Freddie took another sip of water. He had everyone’s complete attention. “At the end of the eighties, Johnston and I met in secret. We met in these woods, in fact. He’d bought this land, but the mansion hadn’t been built yet, there was just an old lodge that was barely standing. We came here, and we made a deal. He gave me a staggering sum of money and I gave him my business.
“We knew we’d never get regulatory approval, we controlled too much of the market. So we pretended to operate separately. We fixed prices and bullied customers into each other’s arms. At the end of each year, I took ten percent of HBN’s profit and stuffed it into an offshore account for Johnston. I put five percent into my own account, and we carried on, until now. I’m far wealthier than you know, and Johnston took twice what I did every year, for twenty years. And he had the rest of his empire making him money too.”
Freddie saw shock on the faces looking at him as they quickly re-evaluated their estimates of Thurwell’s fortune. Others were aghast at the deception of the two magnates. William, when he had read the secrets in the yellow envelope, had at last understood why he had never been invited to the Old Man’s private meetings with Freddie.
Junior turned deathly pale, he had trouble comprehending what he’d just heard. He realized with horror that the secret he would need to reveal was far worse than the one he’d thought he would be telling. It would be a mess when the family heard it.
Larry MacLean was the first person to recover his wits. “Do you mean to tell us that, for twenty years, you and Johnston colluded to manipulate the market? How? I mean, how did you pull it off?” Freddie grinned. He felt no pressure now his secret was out. He’d spend the rest of his days in jail if the news left this room, but that would mean someone else risking a secret being revealed. It was mutually assured destruction. “Larry, you’ve know Johnston most of your life. How come you never suspected your oldest friend was in cahoots with me?”
“You hate each other, everybody knows that.” MacLean’s reply was out of his mouth before he thought about it. Their bitter rivalry was no secret. Then, understanding came. “Oh my God. You two kept up the pretence of rivalry, of despising each other. None of it was real?” Freddie grinned as he enjoyed the disbelief on their faces. It underlined the success of the grand deception he and his dead friend maintained for decades.
Bethany was rocked to her core. She was the face of public relations for her father’s empire. She had issued vicious press releases about Hagood, even started rumor campaigns to cost him market share. She recalled leaving her father’s office with him raging in the background about the charlatan Freddie Hagood. But none of it had been real. The war between the two business giants had no losers except their unsuspecting customers. She was shocked. Her father had never once hinted at such a deal and had used her like a pawn. She had a hard time believing her father could be so cold toward her.
Then she remembered her own secret. She didn’t know how he had found out, but she had no doubt about the cause of the chill in their relationship in the last year and a half. Her head dropped, and she concentrated on breathing, she had to stay calm.
Hagood smiled. “So, William, did I forget anything?”
“No, Freddie, you laid it all out. You’ve met the requirement and may continue.” Freddie leaned back in his chair. He felt light-headed with the thrill of telling the secret he and his friend shared. That the world thought of them as bitter enemies had been a great source of amusement to them. They had joked together as they made up stories about each other to escalate their rivalry in the press.
When they met in public, they enjoyed a thrill at the crowds that gathered while they pretended to be barely polite to each other. That they became fabulously wealthy while they had so much fun was a bonus. Freddie never minded collecting only half of what Johnston did. The fortune Thurwell privately paid him for HBN was more than he could spend in a hundred luxurious lifetimes.
$
William mixed the eleven papers in the pitcher as his eleven guests held their breath. The lawyer carefully unfolded a slip of paper as people prayed it would not be their turn.
“Ms. Freah. It’s your turn. Betty, please share your secret.”
Betty Freah sighed. This was a chore, but nothing to be feared. She took a quick look at the faces focused on her, skipping quickly past Bethany’s. “I already shared my secret, sort of, in our introductions. But I understand why I have to do it again. The simple fact is Johnston paid me to have sex with him. He was my only client for over ten years. I also run a small operation with some girls of my own. I like the term escort, but if you prefer whore or prostitute, I can live with it. I stopped worrying about other people’s labels a long time ago.
“That’s all there is. It’s no real secret. I had sex with a rich man who paid me well in return. I refuse to share intimate details, and I hope you won’t try to make me.” She looked pleadingly at the lawyer who shook his head. “That won’t be necessary, Betty. You can proceed to the next session, thank you.”
Betty sat with her hands folded in her lap as she endured everyone’s scrutiny. No one spoke to her, some of the men looked at Betty with interest, but she was used to that. The women looked down their noses at her, with the exception of Winnie, but Betty was used to that. There were no questions so William dipped his hand into the glass and stirred the papers before he picked out the third name.
$
“Larry. Larry MacLean, it’s your turn.”
MacLean was relaxed. The people he might have wanted to keep his secret from already knew it and the others did not matter. He drew a deep breath. “I’m broke. My family is flat broke. Johnston has been supporting me for several years. My brother, who we trusted to manage the family trust, went rogue and stole or lost all our wealth. I turned to my oldest friend for help. I’m not sure how that might be used against him, or me, but there it is. Larry MacLean is heir to no fortune and needed his best friend’s charity to sustain his lifestyle.”
He leaned back in his seat and watched the reactions. The family showed no surprise, they already knew about his family trouble. Freddie chuckled quietly which made Larry angry, but no one else cared. Most of the people were too consumed with dread for when their own time in the spotlight came to worry about Larry’s minor revelation.
He looked at the lawyer. “Did I miss anything, Bill?”
William looked at MacLean and shook his head. “Actually Larry, while that was a
n interesting story, it is not the secret Mr. Thurwell required you to share.”
The color drained from MacLean’s face. “What do you mean, not the right secret? There are no other secrets.” Larry’s mind reeled. He did have another secret, but he never suspected his friend knew about it. Surely, he could not have found out? Larry’s heart raced and fear gripped his stomach as he tried to think of another secret, any secret, that was not the awful truth.
“One more chance, Larry, or I’ll take you out of the group immediately.” Bird’s voice was flat, there was no room for negotiation, his required task was quite clear. Larry tried to stall. “I… I… Might I take a moment? I need to think.”
Junior snapped. “Get on with it Larry, time’s ticking away, just get on with it. How bad can it be?” Larry looked at his friend’s eldest son and swallowed hard, it was quite a lot worse than Junior suspected.
Bird warned him again, but Larry hardly heard him through his rising panic. “Larry, start talking or you’re out.” MacLean tried to calm himself and took a deep breath. “Fine. I’ll do it.”
“Damned right you’ll do it MacLean. If I did it, you damned well can too.” Larry shot a venomous look at Hagood’s gloating face and clasped his hands in front of him. “I committed an indiscretion in my past. It was not a small indiscretion by any means, and I wronged my oldest friend in committing it.”
William frowned and interrupted. “Larry, speak up so everyone can hear you, or get kicked out, I’m serious.”
MacLean nodded and looked at Bird with an unspoken appeal in his eyes but was met with an uncompromising stare. Larry started over, raising his voice so everyone could hear. “In 1968 I began an affair with Julie, Johnston’s first wife and Junior’s mother. I persuaded her to leave him and she did but after their divorce, I lost interest in her and moved on. I didn’t know Johnston ever found out.”
He drew a breath to continue, but Junior was on his feet, his face deep red and his mouth flecked with spittle. “You prick MacLean. You… you cheap fuck.” Junior was so angry words failed him. Larry looked into his eyes and saw pure rage beneath the surface. “I’m sorry, Junior. Truly sorry.”
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