As Kim explained it, she imagined those cartoons where the character is struck with a brilliant idea and a light bulb appears over their head. Her light bulb glowed bright as she explained to Nathan how she could be of help. It involved him giving her a hiatus from her daily activities as Director of the Creative Resource Services part of FACR, and assigning her to the case. The only reason he had even been able to discuss any of this with her was because she already held a top secret clearance.
Some government clients of FACR were top secret facilities. Her clearance, which had been initiated when she accepted the position of Director of her division, allowed her access to those facilities in order to determine their basic needs. Generally, that was the only time she became personally involved in a project at the outset. As she explained it to Nathan, that made her the perfect undercover person. No one would suspect a thing. To all intents and purposes her job was to assess furniture needs for the proposed new facility.
Kim surprised me to the point I was practically speechless. I have to admit I had wondered how my friend Nathan could have selected her for the assignment in the first place. I couldn’t imagine him volunteering her services for what could be very dangerous.
Now I got it. Like us, Kim loved her life but somewhere in the back of her mind was that thirst for the rush we got the first time we caught the bad guys. And, by the way, without the million dollars we each received as whistleblowers that time, none of us would have the life we currently enjoyed. Some people live vicariously through TV shows and movies. We experienced it once in real life, and couldn’t resist the temptation to do it again.
Nathan probably had a hard time convincing Homeland Security to give us the temporary clearances so we could attempt what they had been unable to. Everything considered, it was really outrageous if you thought about it. Completely outside the box. But, he is top dog at Justice, so in the end here we were. On our way to a meeting that could bring down a significant player in the Fashion District money laundering scheme.
This was a different experience than catching embezzlers—these were dangerous people connected with drug cartels. We filled the car with nervous chatter. Should we have gotten out while we could?
I hate doubts, and to tell the truth as we headed to East LA I seriously questioned whether we could pull this off. Why had Nathan listened to Kim? She was usually the conservative one of our group. In some ways, a typical accountant. Whatever possessed her to convince Nathan to support her going undercover? And, Kate. Would we even be here if Marjory hadn’t been murdered? Lots of questions, and no real answers.
Kim carried an attaché case filled to capacity with money provided by Homeland Security—stacks of one hundred dollar bills seized from successful drug money raids. Although it was nowhere near the amount our claimed business dealings would involve, the money would go a long way toward establishing good faith. As our spokesperson, Kate had to literally put the money on the table to set up the promise of much more along with corresponding product orders that would legitimatize the exchange of dollars for pesos.
If we were successful, the deal called for all of this crummy Chinese merchandise to be shipped to our Mexican warehouse. The Mexican buyers were actually part of the whole network, and would cheerfully pay in pesos with everyone taking their cuts off the top. Quality and origin didn’t matter to them.
However, it was imperative that Kate made it clear this whole transaction would only happen after we met the head honcho. No honcho, no deal.
The receptionist showed us into the Gorilla Sportswear conference room. It was far nicer than I expected, with a few features I hadn’t expected. Twelve black leather executive chairs with the colorful Gorilla raising barbells logo embroidered across the back surrounded a beautiful cherrywood conference table. There were no windows. The walls were upholstered in fabric that looked like suede with what appeared to be a light padding behind the fabric. The door was solid wood. The first thought that flashed through my mind was that the room was soundproof. Perfect. Just what we needed if things got rough. No one could see us or hear us with the door closed. I rationalized that my mind must be running away with me. Gotta stop watching those murder and mystery shows.
This was nothing more than a business meeting, plain and simple. Okay, so the heads of these three manufacturing companies were knee-deep in illegal money laundering and the main guy was so elusive apparently no one outside of the operating partners in the schemes knew who he or she was. Right then I wanted to go home more than anything and sit on my patio with Maxi and Minnie quacking at my feet demanding breadcrumbs. With a situation like this, it’s pretty hard to convince yourself that everything is okay.
I glanced over at Kim and Kate. If you didn’t know Kate, she looked quite at ease, but I saw the firm set to her mouth and the stone cold gaze of her emerald eyes. She was nervous. Kim, on the other hand, appeared totally relaxed and in charge of herself. How did she do that?
The door opened. Mahood Vashti entered the room followed by Vito Laganga and Greg Clark.
They settled into chairs across from us, leaving the two chairs at the head and foot of the table vacant. Mahood Vashti spoke first.
“We are anxious to see what you have to present to us. As you know, ours is a, uh, shall we say specialized situation. We have done a cursory check of your company, spoken to a few associates in our field, and everything seems to be in order.”
His eyelock with Kate was met with her cold emerald gaze. Boy she was good. Not one hint of emotion as her look challenged him. She directed that stone cold gaze to the other two men. “Just so we understand each other, gentlemen, this is intended to be the first of many such deals. We agree to order your merchandise for which we will pay in cash—U.S. dollars, of course. And, yes, we are aware that the quality we see in your showrooms is not the quality that will be delivered, but who cares.”
The surprised looks on their faces gave away the fact that they didn’t think we knew about the substitution of merchandise. The cost difference was worth a hefty bonus to them.
Kate continued. “Don’t look so shocked, gentlemen. We also do our homework. Not only that but you found us because you need us, not the other way around. Fortunately, we both know the same trusted colleague.”
I struggled to keep a straight face and not give one of my damn giggles. Trusted colleague? A drug-dealing member of the Cartel willing to sell them out to save his own skin? The introduction and validation was our good fortune, but it certainly wouldn’t be theirs.
38
FOR ABOUT FIFTEEN MINUTES we discussed in detail how everything would work. The three men took turns giving us engaging smiles and asking questions for which they should already have had the answers. Vashti kept glancing at the contemporary clock on the wall.
“Keep calm,” I told myself. “We’re almost there.”
Finally the time came for Kate to place her attaché case on the table and open the lid. I had no doubt the stacks of hundreds inside would convince them we were on the up-and-up. If everything went according to plan the sight of the money would trigger a meeting with whoever was at the top. Things couldn’t have gone better.
That is until Vashti picked up a few of the stacks and fanned through them. He said, “I have a little surprise for you. There is no need to wait until tomorrow. Mr. Monnigan will be attending this meeting, after all.”
Surprise? Shock was more like it, and it got worse.
The door opened. A good-looking man with a full head of steel gray hair strode in, stopped dead in his tracks and pointed at me. His good looks turned to a mask of surprise mixed with disgust.
“You!” he bellowed.
My mouth fell open, but I found myself unable to utter a word.
The man I’d known as Jonathan Reid for so many years yanked me out of my chair and spun me around to face the other three. His fingers dug into my shoulder muscles so hard pain shot up the side of my neck and down my spine. I was unable to move in any direction.
Kate stood up and demanded, “What is the meaning of this? Mr. Monnigan please release my partner. This deal is teetering on the brink of becoming history right now. What you are doing is unthinkable.”
Through the pain I managed to grunt out, “N-not Monnigan. R-Re-Reid,” but had no idea if they understood what I meant.
Jonathan Reid turned to his three partners, his voice filled with venom. “Gentlemen, I don’t know who you think this woman is, but her name is not Cameron Wolf. It’s Cameron Harsen and she is the CEO of an advertising firm. I don’t know the other two, but I’d wager a bet they aren’t who they represent themselves to be either.
Laganga said, “Easy, Ken. I don’t understand. Their company checked out, that case is filled with money and we are all set to make a huge deal. Maybe she just looks like someone you’ve come across in the past. In all due respect, Sir, please calm down.”
Then all Hell broke loose.
I realized these men had no idea the person they knew as Kenneth Monnigan had a dual identity. I later found out that was only part of the entire awful truth. Of course I knew he was involved in other businesses, but Kenneth Monnigan—the notorious Ghost who had managed to evade authorities? The man who was possibly behind the murder of Marjory Newfield? My God. What had we gotten into?
We didn’t have to wait long to find out.
“Wait a minute,” Jonathan Reid said. “I know who these other two are. You’ve been had. The redhead owns a company called FraudBusters and I’m not sure about the other one. I just know her face. These three made national news a few years ago when they brought down an embezzlement scheme. This is all some kind of a setup, and now I’ve stepped into it thanks to you three!”
Vito Laganga got up from his seat and loomed over Kate and Kim as though daring them to try to get up or get out. This was one situation where our black belts would not help us one bit. My two friends sat there like stone statues, realizing they were no match for the four men in the room. We were trapped.
“Listen, Vito,” the man they knew as Monnigan boomed, “go out to the factory and get something to tie these women up with. They aren’t going anywhere. I need some time to figure out what to do with them.”
His gaze swung to the clock on the wall. “Quarter to five. Your employees go home at five and we can figure out how to get out of this mess after they’re gone. I never planned to show up today, but it’s a damn good thing I decided to after you called.”
The third man, Greg Clark, paced back and forth at one end of the room. He muttered under his breath, “Dammit. I knew I shouldn’t have gotten involved. Now what?”
My mind was racing like a car in the last lap at the Indie 500. There had to be some way out of this. I couldn’t stand Jonathan Reid, but I’d never in a thousand years have suspected him of something like this. One of the things that really scared me was the realization he was not just an advertising man with interests in other businesses. He was a hardened criminal in bed with the Rojas Cartel, capable of violence and probably murder. I wondered how long he had been on the other side of the law.
Laganga came back with several lengths of fabric and first bound my wrists and ankles, then moved to Kate and Kim. Not at all the way we planned it. We sat there immobilized with no idea of what would happen once the employees went home. In the meantime, after making sure we were securely bound, Vito Laganga went back out into the factory so everything would appear normal. With the door closed, not a sound could be heard from what was now our prison. The best I could hope for was that we would make it out alive.
“So, you think you’re really clever, Cami,” Reid snarled. “Baby, you’ve got a lot to learn. Unfortunately, I don’t think you and your friends are going to have that luxury. Now that you know who I am, everything has changed.”
It looked like Kate couldn’t stop herself from blurting out, “It was you, wasn’t it? You’re the one who had that poor Marjory Newfield murdered. If only she hadn’t remembered your name, if that really is your name. Who are you—Kenneth Monnigan? Jonathan Reid?”
He looked a bit surprised. “Too bad that dame decided to check into more than she’d been hired to do. See, I never enter into anything unless I have someone inside to act as my eyes. It is amazing what a bank clerk will do for some extra money, so I got reports on everything she was doing. But, I never guessed she had seen my name before.”
Cruelty edged his half-laugh as he walked over to Kate and grabbed her shoulders. That man apparently loved the tactic of digging into someone’s shoulders to cause extreme pain. I understood why Kate said what she did. After all, what did she have to lose at this point?
“You’re right,” she said.”She did recognize your name, or at least she recognized the name Kenneth Monnigan. Her memories were not good. I know she was auditing the bank that you and a group of underlings were trying to buy to make money laundering even easier, because she contacted me in confidence after seeing my website. With all the information in place, it’s easy to see why you wanted a bank. Trust me, you are under investigation. By the way, Marjory was very thorough. She made records of everything she found.”
My old boss looked like he was ready to explode. “BITCH! Tell me what you have and why. Tell me now.”
Kate just smiled at him. “Why should I? It looks like you plan to kill us anyway.”
39
KILL US? OH, KATE. Why did you say that? Knowing Kate, she probably said it because it was obvious he had murder on his mind.
This was the time to think logically. Reid knew who I was now, which was not good. He also knew that what had seemed like serendipity—a middleman company with good resources contacting them after their best sources were arrested—was nothing but a setup. Still, we put up such a good front, I’m positive the three men did think we were on the up-and-up.
Would this be my epitaph—She was almost able to pull off a sting? I saw the determination in Kate’s eyes and the fear in Kim’s. Clearly we were on the same wavelength, but something in Kate’s look gave me the courage to speak up. Maybe I could at least make him nervous. Taunt him. Attack his ego. Buy some time. Like Kate said, they planned to kill us anyway. Why not shake it up?
I tried very hard to keep any sign of trembling out of my voice. “Oh, Jonathan. I never figured you for anything like this. I thought you were just a pompous narcissist with a taste for living high, beautiful women and a modicum of actual talent in the advertising business. Of course, I knew you had other businesses while your poor partner dedicated his whole life to your partnership, even if he was an ass, but I never suspected you were a crook. And, for him to die the way he did. Just sitting at the desk he sat at for twenty years, while you became a secret powerhouse in laundering dirty drug money? No wonder you’re so wealthy.”
A slow, self-satisfied smile crossed his face. “Well, Cameron, since we have a few more minutes until this place clears out and they lock it up, I’ll play your game. It actually amuses me. You really had my associates fooled, you know. They thought you three were the real deal. I will admit it was a surprise to find out you were part of the charade.”
I felt like Kate’s thoughts were echoing in my head. I knew it was because she has always been the strongest, so most likely I wanted whatever she was thinking to be true. The words keep him talking repeated over and over in my mind. I was determined to do exactly that. Appeal to his ego. Make him feel we were overwhelmed by his power and cunning.
At five minutes to five the door to the conference room yawned opened.
“Okay,” Vito Laganga said. “A few more minutes and they’ll shut down the machinery. Takes them about ten minutes to clear out so I can lock up. Meanwhile, have fun with our guests.”
He walked over to Kate and gave her a smart rap on the side of her head. “Think you’re so smart, do you Sweetheart? Well, you’ve messed with the wrong group this time.”
Kate’s head fell forward and then snapped back when he grabbed a handful of her hair. “The—wrong—g
roup!” he repeated. “I gotta go out there and make sure all of my workers clear out on time.”
He left, slamming the door behind him.
Less than fifteen minutes. All I could think about was how devastated Nathan would be for allowing Kim to get involved in this. And, Milt. Oh, my dear sweet Milt who was always concerned for my safety and comfort. Jonathan Reid couldn’t get away with killing the three of us. He just couldn’t. I had all kinds of great things ahead of me, Kate was going to get a movie deal and Kim had everything she ever dreamed about. I couldn’t think of anything else to do. I’m not religious, but at that moment I think I found God. At least, I prayed to him to let us get out of this.
Kim spoke in a shaky voice. “You are a very clever man, to have kept your other identity such a secret from those who knew you for years. Cami assumed you were taking out your anger on her because she converted so many of your accounts into her clients. I suspect losing is not something you can tolerate, even if it is in what now appears to be one of your minor business interests.”
“You’re damn right I don’t take well to losing. That stupid partner of mine refused to believe she could do it when she came back to town and opened her agency. Look what it got him.” He shot me a look filled with daggers. “You’re one smart cookie, Cameron Harsen. If you weren’t so honest, I could have used you in some of my other businesses. Even thought about it after Tyler let you go, but you wound up working for the prison system of all things. Not exactly something that was a good match for my business ventures.”
He threw back his head and gave a nasty laugh.
I said through clenched teeth, “Jonathan, I wouldn’t have worked for you if you were the last opportunity on earth. I didn’t like you back then, and in fact I’ve never liked you. You have the top hand now, but my greatest pleasure would have been to bring you down. Good God. Kenneth Monnigan, master conman, money launderer and crook. How many other identities do you have?”
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