by Odeda Yaari
He placed the check back in the envelope and said, “I can’t accept this gift. I haven’t earned it. I was being presumptuous and arrogant, playing with money that wasn’t mine the way I did, and I have to face the consequences. I also don’t know where the talks between us are going to lead. Perhaps we’ll continue together, and perhaps it’ll go nowhere. In that case, I wouldn’t want to be in your debt.”
“Ron,” said Bob in a paternal tone of voice, “everything you say does make sense. Like I said, we expect nothing in return. We simply ask you to cherish your research, and that is certainly a normal thing to do. You can think of this as a scholarship or grant that will enable you to continue your research hassle-free. You know, being a bleeding heart doesn’t serve the main goal, which is what you should be thinking about ultimately.”
Ron looked hesitant. After a minute, he put the envelope into his pocket and thanked Bob. It was the thought of having to meet his father in a few hours that had decided it for him.
When this is all over, he thought, I’ll have the privilege of enough time and money to come clean and make things right.
***
Shortly after David left the office to go to the Hilton, Edo left to call Santo.“I tried to reach you all day yesterday,” he said in an apologetic, even somewhat groveling, tone. “I wanted to let you know about some very significant changes that are happening here.”
Santo smiled. He had told Edo nothing of the little pressure he had applied behind the scenes. Best for Edo not to realize just how long his reach was, so as not to frighten him too much.
“First of all, there was a letter earlier this week from the Ministry of Agriculture saying they are stopping their monthly installments to fund the company’s research. It might have something to do with all the cuts the government’s making due to the state of the economy. That was why I wanted to talk to you so urgently, because I felt it was the right time to make Ron and David an offer. But then something else happened.”
Santo tensed on the other end of the phone. He did not appreciate surprises, especially not the kind that would ruin his plans.“Apparently, some investor has arrived today, a representative of an American company. From what I was able to pick up, I think they’re meeting him today. That doesn’t mean they’re signing a deal, but I’m guessing they will sometime over the next few days. What do you want me to do?”Santo kept questioning Edo for a few more minutes, trying to extract more information from him that would help determine a course of action. In cases like this, he knew acting hastily could ruin everything. A direct action from Edo right now would blow his cover, and would cause Santo to lose his inside source.“Don’t worry, Edo. I need a few hours to think about this. Call me tomorrow morning. By then, try and find out if they already met with the guy.”
Santo did not like this. He was used to calling the shots and winning. With the Americans in the picture, this was now playing with the big boys. Games like this often required more than money. He urgently summoned his man in charge of international commerce to his office. At best, Edo would be able to provide information and data, but no more than that. After a few hours, an idea began to mature in his mind, but for it to be successful, he’d have to remove Edo as quickly as possible, so as not have him, naively, bring the whole grid down.
After hanging up, Edo decided not to return to the office. He was too tense. All he wanted was to put this whole thing behind him, to return to his family and start a new life. He felt stuck, neck deep, in this sordid business, and had no clue what to do. He stopped by another pay phone and called Sophie, but she didn’t pick up.
***
David walked across the hotel lobby and Ron stepped toward him, inviting him to join. He placed his arm on David’s shoulder in an unusual gesture of closeness, which signaled to David that everything was well and things were going their way. All the worries that had been filling his mind drifted away. The two of them approached the others, and with a proud tinge to his voice, Ron introduced Dana, then Bob and Yoni.
***
As they sat back in the comfortable lobby armchairs after finishing their coffees, Dana and Yoni said they had to leave.“You have important things to discuss, which we know nothing about anyway,” said Yoni. Then turned to Bob and said. “If it’s all right with you, I’ll come back this evening and take you out to dinner.”
“We’re on,” said Bob, shaking their hands and returning his attention to the two young men sitting before him.
“So far, so good,” said Yoni to Sophie as they moved out of the others’ earshot. “What worries me are the Colombians. Let’s call the office and see if they have anything new on Edo.”
Yoni listened intently to the report from the office, then hung up.“Well, he managed to get through to the Colombians but hasn’t been given any instructions yet. Looks like that Santo character is trying to plan a move and he’s supposed to give Edo further instructions tomorrow. We have to focus on Edo right now.”
“Speaking of Edo,” said Sophie, “he left me a message saying he wants to meet tonight. He sounded extremely anxious.”
Yoni dropped Sophie off at home and went on to the office. On days like this, he knew there was no point of him even going home. All the tension at work made him irritable and jumpy, and it would be best to spend some time going over paperwork after having been out of the office all day.
26
During that whole day, Judge Bar was tense and nervous. He asked not to be disturbed during his breaks between court sessions. He left his chambers early, which was quite uncharacteristic of him, and canceled all the appointments he had scheduled for that afternoon.Ron and David had said goodbye to Bob after about an hour’s conversation. They had a pleasant talk that revolved mainly around professional issues. Each side had shared with the other, in general lines and with caution, the progress they had made so far. Bob had tried not to come off as too eager. He had presented his company’s situation as much better than what was actually true. And Ron and David on their side had made it clear to Bob that any business negotiations would have to include the investors, or their representative. They had promised to bring it to the board as early as that evening.
It wasn’t until they had left the hotel that Ron had told David about his talk with his father.“I guess the minister of agriculture filled him in on our funds being cut. He was mad that we didn’t inform him as soon as it happened. I’m meeting him tonight and hopefully will be able to placate him with this good news. I’ll call you later.”
On his way to the famous Italian restaurant his father had chosen, Ron stopped by the bank to deposit his check. His heart felt lighter as he arrived to meet his dad. He stood firm with a smile on his face, radiating confidence. The appropriate response soon followed.
“Ron, I’m sorry for the way I spoke this morning. I had a rough night after the talk with Abraham and I was very troubled. I did not consider that you two were probably just as troubled by this whole thing, and I suppose I should have been more trusting. Let’s put this behind us and see what you can tell me.”
Ron was astounded by his father’s welcome and even more so by his apology. Never before had he known his father to apologize or own up to a mistake. He never thought the confidence that had built up inside him and radiated outward would have such an effect on his surroundings.“Dad, this company is a huge corporation that deals with food supplements. If they become our sponsors, we’ll not only be able to complete the research, we’ll also be valuable,” he said enthusiastically, carried on the waves of his newfound confidence. “With their help, our development will actually be able to make a real difference. This was always our dream. The invention itself was never the point; the change it can bring about was.”
“Look, Ron, I believe that if a serious representative from APC came here to meet with you just like that, they’re probably in serious trouble.” His father tried to stop him from getting overexcited. “We can’t give in too easily, and we can’t show them we’re that
eager. It’s important that we do this carefully. I suggest you leave the business negotiations to us, given how emotionally involved you and David are. I’ll call all the partners and ask for power of attorney to represent the group to the Americans. You can be certain we will protect your interests as well as ours. And you know these types of contracts are my forte,” he said, with a tinge of smugness now back in his voice.“Once I have the partners’ consent, I’ll call Bob and set up a meeting.” He paused, seemingly mulling over sharing some more information that troubled him with Ron. “You know that the minister of agriculture spoke to me last night. He wanted to consult with me. I won’t go into the details of our conversation just now, but I can tell you it wasn’t a deep sense of commitment to your project that made him come see me; it was concern for his own back. It is my understanding that the Colombians were the ones who gave the order to shut down your funding, although I still don’t know why. He had his own reasons to obey. I also don’t know where they got their information or how they managed to pull strings all the way here, but I can assure you that I will use all my contacts to get to the bottom of this. In the meantime, you and David stay safe and keep doing what you’re so good at—working. I’ll handle the rest.”
If he had only dared, Ron would have gone up to his father and given him a hug. For a moment, he didn’t even care about the project. He forgot about the big American company that wanted to buy them, and about everything else that was happening. He already had his true achievement.
When he phoned David, he spoke with a relaxed tone of voice. He told him in general what his father had said, and promised to go into more detail when they met the following morning at the office.
It wasn’t until he was in the shower, letting the hot water wash away the day’s turmoil, that Ron truly let himself relish the talk with his father. He remembered how loving and respectful he had been, how seriously he had regarded him, how much faith he’d had in him. It was the best feeling he’d had in a long time. When he ran over the details of the conversation in his head, he tried to remember something his father had said, something odd that should have troubled him, but he couldn’t remember what it was. He decided to let it go for the time being. He had every reason to feel good, and that was exactly what he intended to do.
Before turning in, he decided to call Dana. All the frantic rushing and drama that had happened made him forget about her part in this whole thing. After all, it was thanks to her that it all came to be. It was Dana who made him feel courageous, who gave him a sense of dignity and worth, who had stood by him when he’d been down after his casino adventure, and who had thrown him the lifeline that he desperately needed.
“Dana,” he said fondly as she picked up, “I really love you.”
Sophie didn’t know how to respond. She remained silent and listened while Ron continued.“You don’t know how much I appreciate everything you’ve done for me. And I mean everything. Not just businesswise. I’m not sure if you feel the same way about me as I do about you.” Before she could respond to his declaration of love, he went on. “But that’s totally fine. At least you’ve proven to me that you’re a loyal friend and that I have someone I can count on when things get rough. You’ve managed to teach me a valuable life lesson.”
Sophie let Ron finish what he had to say. For a moment, she let herself put aside her cover story and just be a real person, a real friend. She knew what Ron was talking about and knew the day would soon come when she would be able to sit down with him without any masks, without any pretenses, and still be a supportive and loyal friend. Sophie could hear the hope in his voice, which was worth so much more than the money to be had once the deal was completed.“I’m really happy for you, Ron. I’m glad I met you and I hope to always be your friend. I don’t know what’s going to happen between us later on, but sometimes, you know, a friend is worth much more than a lover.” Dana paused for a moment and thought. The mission still wasn’t over. Then she added in a huskier voice, “But for now, I hope I have your permission to enjoy both worlds.”
“You do.”
“Thank you, sweetie. It’s getting late. We’ll talk soon. In the meantime, do me a favor—stay safe.”
Ron put down the phone and got ready for bed. Tonight, he thought, after so many sleepless nights, he was finally going to enjoy a good night’s sleep.
Ron lay in bed. His eyes closed peacefully, but Dana’s last words to him kept echoing in his head. “Stay safe.” For a moment, he thought to brush them aside, a mere expression of concern between friends, but then he remembered that his father had said the same thing. “You and David stay safe.”
He opened his eyes and was suddenly wide awake and alert. All sorts of things Dana had said to him throughout their acquaintance swarmed around in his head. “You’ll be exposed to terrible threats… I don’t think such powerful individuals will go about their day… Crime organizations have long arms…” And then, all at once, it hit him. Edo! He had come to them out of the blue, he had known exactly what they were doing, and he had agreed to work for such a small salary with the excuse of valuing the company’s vision and familial atmosphere. How could they have been so naive and just taken him on without even checking first? Why hadn’t they questioned him even in the slightest about what he’d done? What did they even know about his life? About people he might be involved with? Had he even left a permanent address? He could crack the code to the vault, steal the patent, and disappear the next day without leaving a trace.
Cold sweat washed over Ron. It was too late to call his father or David. He tossed and turned in bed for a few hours, but couldn’t bring himself to wait till morning. At four a.m., he headed for the office.
***
“Ron! What are you doing here? What’s happened? Are you out of your mind?” David woke him up. “Yesterday you sounded so cheerful and now you look like you’ve been run over by a train. What’s all this mess? I’ll go and make us some coffee, you go wash your face. It looks like we have things we need to talk about.”Ron was startled awake, trying to make sense of where he was. It felt like he had laid his head on the desk just for a moment, but he must have fallen asleep. He looked around him. The desk was littered with papers, worksheets, and formulas.
A few minutes later, they were both holding steaming cups of coffee.
“What are you doing here on a Saturday?” Ron asked David.
“Me? I got a boost of energy after yesterday and just felt I had to work. Why are you here? Did you spend the night in your office? Are you crazy?”
“I couldn’t sleep. There were too many thoughts running through my head. All of a sudden, there were these things that came back to me and made an alarm go off in my mind. I may be getting a bit paranoid, but I want to know what you think.”David looked at him quizzically, and Ron repeated to him the things his father and Dana had said.
“Do you get what’s happening here? I think Dana was referring to big drug lords, people who will not allow us to complete our invention so as not to damage their business. They stand to lose billions of dollars a year. They even reached our minister of agriculture. They got him to cut our funding, in the hopes that would stop us, and I’m not sure they’ll leave it at that, especially if they find out we can continue the work with the American money coming in.”
“I think you’re too on edge. Maybe you’ve seen one too many conspiracy movies,” said David. “How would they even have all that information about us?”
“I have a theory. I admit it’s a little bit out there, but give it some serious thought and you’ll see it makes sense, because I’m completely confused.”
“Yes, I’ve noticed that. You need a good sleep to think straight again.”
Ron ignored him and went on. “Edo’s family comes from Colombia. He went to university with us and, although we tried to hide our work back then, he could have figured out our general direction. Now, think about it—Edo was in South America and from there came straight to our offices, with some made-
up story we easily fell for. We never tried to question him thoroughly, to dig a little deeper, and really we don’t know him at all. We know nothing about him, apart from his professional capabilities. What if he’s the one who sold us out to the Colombians?”
Ron finally managed to win David’s attention.
“If I put together all the information you’ve just given me, it seems to amount to a coherent continuum,” said David in his calculated, scientific way. “On the other hand, it could all be just a coincidence that made you jump to these conclusions. In the meantime, I think we just need to be a bit more careful and alert. Let’s see where things head. If we do sign with the Americans, we won’t be a target anymore.”
Ron’s cell phone rang.
“Ron, where are you?”
“Hey, Dad. I’m at the office with David.”
“On a Saturday? Never mind. Listen, I’ve spoken with all the partners. They gave me power of attorney to represent them in the negotiations, and I’ve made plans to meet Bob this afternoon. I’ll tell you how it went tonight. In fact, why don’t you bring David with you to dinner at our house?”
To Ron’s delight, his father was sounding just as he had the day before. He passed on the invitation to David, who happily accepted. David too could sense a sudden change of atmosphere. All of a sudden, he was part of the family.
27
As he had been asked to do the day before, Edo called Santo. He did not have much news to add and was amazed to hear Santo’s laconic announcement.“Get your things and come back. You’ve done what I asked successfully. Right now, we don’t care about the deal in Israel anymore and I don’t need you there. You can be of much more use here. Once you get here, you will of course get the money you have been promised.”