He stared angrily at his subordinate for a moment before going on.
“I’m surprised and disappointed, Carl. You had to know that somebody would catch up with you sooner or later? How could you be so stupid?”
Not bothering to respond, Carl gazed through watery eyes at the five men standing before him and suddenly felt strangely calm. In the back of his mind, he had always known that the possibility of getting caught existed although he had vowed that it would never happen. And now, that time had come. Sadly, he realized that he would not get to retire, at least not the way he had planned.
He had told his wife to leave if he was not home by noon and prayed that she would follow his advice. At least she would get to use the money he had diverted to the Cayman account.
He turned towards the window to look outside for it was such a beautiful day. Spread out below him was the city, his home town. In the distance, he could see the St-Lawrence River and the greenery of the Boucherville Islands. He had expected to see this view for the last time today, albeit under different circumstances. He would remember this vision forever.
He thought again of his vow to never get caught and suddenly realized that there was one way out of this. It would not be easy but he had nothing to lose anymore and he had no intention of going to prison.
Turning back towards the office, he bent over to lean on his chair, his hands gripping both armrests firmly. He remained in this position for a moment, breathing deeply, as if to regain his composure. Then, in an instant, he raised the chair high above his head and hurled it at the glass wall which overlooked the city. As the glass shattered, he rushed towards the opening, following the chair’s trajectory and plummeting to his death, ten storeys below.
* * * *
By mid-afternoon, the frenzy of activity which had followed Carl’s death had somewhat subsided around CSS headquarters.
The reporters and T.V. crews had all hurried off to be the first to announce the earth-shattering news; the Vigilante was dead. None of their reports or articles however, would have the impact of that of Ron Henderson. His front page story in the morning’s Gazette would be accompanied by a close up color photo of Carl in mid-air.
Both reporters and the police had attempted to reach Carl’s wife but she was nowhere to be found. The Denvers’ charcoal Chevy Astro had been located, parked at Dorval International Airport, the stub on the dash indicating an arrival time of 12:29 p.m. However, Mrs. Denver’s name did not appear on the passenger lists of any flights having departed that day.
A preliminary search by the police of Carl’s Corvette had yielded a well used baseball bat hidden under a tarpaulin in the trunk. Stains on the bat would later prove to be blood, several types of which would be matched to that of a number of the Vigilante’s victims.
A search of the Denver home would not produce anything of interest but a detailed analysis of the activity records on Carl’s PC would eventually clearly support that the messages had in fact originated from him. It was an open and shut case. The Vigilante was dead.
* * * *
Chris slumped wearily in the chair behind his desk, exhausted by the day’s events and from lack of sleep. It was 3:27 and he would be going home soon. He just needed to accomplish one more task before leaving.
Flipping open his notepad, he keyed in a series of codes and quickly got to work. Several minutes later, he was done and ready to go.
He packed his briefcase and left his office, pausing only long enough to inform Sonia that he would take the next day off. He then headed for home and his charming spouse.
Chapter 34 - Friday, August 2, 1996
The clerk returned to his desk accompanied by George Fullerton, manager of the Royal Bank in Georgetown, Grand Cayman.
“We seem to have a bit of a problem, Mrs. Denver?” suggested Fullerton with a polite smile.
“I’ll say we do!” she snapped. “I want to withdraw $5,000 and this one says I can’t. Something about a $10,000 minimum balance requirement. What’s going on?”
“We do insist, Mrs. Denver, that our account holders maintain at least a $10,000 balance. That is where your account now stands.”
“There’s six million dollars in that account, mister,” she hissed. “All I need right now is five thousand.”
The smile having disappeared, Fullerton referred to a computer monitor nearby as he stiffly replied.
“Transfers of funds totalling $5,992,546.87 were made late yesterday afternoon. The proper identification codes were given, everything is in order. Might I suggest that you speak to your husband, Madam. In the meantime, if you require some money, you may close your account. Good-day, Mrs. Denver.”
* * * *
Across Canada, the administrators of a number of reputable charities were pleased to discover that generous donations from an anonymous donor had been made to their respective accounts.
Chapter 35 - Saturday, August 3, 1996
Accompanied by Cathy, his wife, Dave McCall pulled into the driveway of the luxurious Barry residence and examined the property in awe.
Like everything else about Chris, the man’s home was impressive. Surrounded by an ornamental wrought iron and concrete block fence, the property was a carefully planned masterpiece, with its beautifully manicured lawns, exotic flowers and decorative trees and shrubs. A miniature waterfall cascaded alongside the wide expanse of steps which lead to the main entrance of the house, a large modern structure of brick, aggregate and glass.
As they ascended the steps, Dave continued to feel somewhat uncomfortable with Chris’ invitation. If anything, he should have invited Chris to dinner, not the other way around. Without Barry’s help, the case might have never been solved.
“I shouldn’t have accepted,” Dave muttered as they reached the door.
“Stop being silly, Dave,” Cathy scolded. “You get along great with Chris and I’m sure we’ll have a wonderful time.”
“I guess,” her husband conceded as he rang the bell.
A moment later, the door opened and they were greeted by an extremely attractive woman.
‘Impressive wife,’ McCall thought, flashing his best grin.
“Hi,” she greeted them with a warm smile. “You must be Dave. It’s so nice to finally meet you, I’ve heard so much about you. Come on in. Chris is out back, lazing by the pool.”
“This is my wife, Cathy,” introduced Dave as they entered the foyer of the spacious home.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Cathy,” their host replied, extending a friendly hand. “I’m Cassandra Taylor, Chris’ wife. But you can call me Sandy. Everybody does.”
Books by Claude Bouchard
Available for your Kindle at
Amazon.com ~ Amazon.co.uk
Vigilante
Book 1 of the Vigilante Series
Montreal . . . the long, hot summer of 1996. . . and in the dark of night, moving like a shadowy wraith, a vigilante prowls the city's streets. The targets of his bloody rampage: the worst of the worst. . . Murderers. Gangbangers. Rapists. Six months. Sixteen murders. The harried police are still without a clue . . . until the day they receive an email from the assassin himself. Lieutenant Dave McCall, head of Montreal's Special Homicide Task Force, needs help to crack the secrets of the killer's taunting message. He calls on an expert, Chris Barry, who runs a security firm specializing in computer communications. Together, McCall and Barry launch a grim quest to track down a man who preys on predators - an urgent quest to bring this remorseless killer to justice. But whose justice will prevail: theirs--or the vigilante's?
The Consultant
Book 2 of the Vigilante Series
The friendly takeover of CSS Inc. leaves computer executive Chris Barry unemployed, very wealthy and pleased with the situation. But the hiatus is short-lived. . . As a result of his involvement in the recent ‘Vigilante’ investigation, Barry is approached by Jonathan Addley and invited to join ‘Discreet Activities’, a government agency of the clandestine variety. Accepting,
he promptly takes on his first assignment under the guise of an IT consultant, to investigate possible links between a local import business and the murder of its MIS director. As he discovers the firm is being used to import narcotics, his cover is blown and things get personal, spurring him to show that murderers, drug lords, biker gangs and kidnappers are no match for. . . The Consultant. . .
Mind Games
Book 3 of the Vigilante Series
Montreal is plagued by a string of vicious sex slayings. . . Captain Dave McCall and his Special Homicide Task Force are in a frustrated frenzy as they try to bring an end to the savage butchery. . . Assisting officially is noted psychiatrist, Doctor Samuel Bowman and unofficially, computer genius and multi-millionaire, Chris Barry. . . With each passing day, McCall works his way closer to the truth. . . Unaware that they are heading deep into the deadly core of. . . Mind Games. . .
The Homeless Killer
Book 4 of the Vigilante Series
The homeless of Montreal are dying at the hand of 'Allan', a serial killer set on ridding the city of street people. . . As the killer taunts the police about the increasing body count, Captain Dave McCall calls on the services Jonathan Addley and Chris Barry, both operatives with the government's clandestine 'Discreet Activities' team. . . All while fighting the city's proposed by-law banning the homeless from downtown parks, philanthropist and activist, William Enright, joins the law-enforcement crusade to capture the assassin. . . But will the combined efforts of the law and old money be sufficient to stop the Homeless Killer?
6 Hours 42 Minutes
Book 5 of the Vigilante Series
Though most of them dabbled in a variety of criminal activities, they weren't experienced in this particular field and had never been involved in a job like this before. However, with proper planning, careful organization and the inside information available to them, they were certain that this bank heist would be a piece of cake. Ten minutes, in and out, was all it would take and they'd be sharing 2.5 million dollars. Nothing could go wrong as they had thought of everything. . .How could they possibly know that a new member of the board was visiting the bank that morning?How could they know that the new board member was Chris Barry?
Discreet Activities
Book 6 of the Vigilante Series
As a result of information gathered via electronic surveillance by intelligence agencies in the U.S. and Canada, a budding terrorist organization, the Army for Islam or AFI, is suspected of planning an attack, its target possibly NYC, Burlington, Vermont or even Canada's famed Montreal. . . When four foreign students from Pakistan with known ties to the AFI's Montreal cell arrive in the area on New Year's Eve, Discreet Activities' head, Jonathan Addley, along with Chris Barry and other DA consultants are more than willing to take on the additional workload. . . After two of the DA team members die violently in an AFI related suicide-bombing, the job becomes getting revenge on those responsible for this Holy War...
Femme Fatale
Book 7 of the Vigilante Series
Less than two years earlier, Leslie Robb, an accountant in her late twenties working for the Imperial National Bank, had seen her life-partner and co-worker, Gina, shot to death during a bank heist subsequently foiled in part by Chris Barry, millionaire and clandestine operative of the government's 'Discreet Activities'.Taken as a hostage along with Chris by the remaining robbers onto a helicopter secretly piloted by two 'DA' operatives, including 'DA' head, Jonathan Addley, Leslie had played an integral role in helping bring the offenders down. As a result, thanks to her sang froid, sense of moral justice and martial arts affinities, Leslie left the world of finance to fight crime as a member of the 'DA' team.Now, Leslie has a new partner in life, Dominique Petit, a Canadian/French dual citizen who suggests Leslie visit Paris with her while she is in the City of Lights on business. Less than twenty-four hours after Leslie arrives, Dominique and her sister, Corinne, disappear, turning Leslie's vacation into her own business trip of justice and revenge...
ASYLUM
As Managing Director of the “Montreal Hospital for the Criminally Insane”, Doctor Matthew Russell has always put his professional responsibilities ahead of all else. That is, until he one day realizes he is losing his wife, Cassidy, and his two children, Stuart and Jennifer. . . With only his family in mind, Russell takes an adventure-filled, impromptu vacation of indefinite duration, leaving all else behind and stopping at nothing to show how much he cares for his loved ones in an effort to win them back. But, will he succeed . . Or, will it prove to be all too late in the end?
Learn more about Claude Bouchard’s books
Visit http://www.claudebouchardbooks.com
Questions or comments?
Email at [email protected]
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