White Collar Blackmail

  “You don’t sound confident.”

  “I’m not. Max Lustig has as much union influence as us, and Lou Gerrard could be playing you off against him. Keep your wits about you, Harry. It’s not as straightforward as Gerrard is making out,” Becker said, putting the phone back in its cradle. He was disappointed. He was a thousand miles away from the action but still knew more about was going on than O’Brien.

  Chapter 13

  Todd had no idea why Elliot had bought his debt but in some ways he was relieved. The guys who’d broken into his apartment had told him not to worry, and he was no longer concerned about his legs being broken. He knew he wouldn’t have to wait long before being contacted by Elliot.

  His cell phone rang at 6:30 on Tuesday morning and he slid his hand out from under the blankets. “Hello.”

  “Good morning, Todd. It’s Jack. We need to meet today.”

  “Where?”

  “If it’s convenient for you at your apartment tonight.”

  “I don’t know what time I’ll be working to,” Todd said.

  “That’s not a problem. I’ll just let myself in. I’ll have coffee and watch some television while I’m waiting.” Elliot laughed.

  “Listen, I might owe you a lot of money, but I don’t want you or your thugs breaking into my apartment. I’ll meet with you at a café or coffee shop.”

  “That’s no good. Our conversation has to be private. I’ve got a suite at the Hyatt on East 42nd Street just down the road from your office. Phone me when you’re leaving tonight and I’ll buy you dinner.”

  “No thanks. I’ll get my own dinner.”

  “What? Those greasy hamburgers you live on? Todd, unless you can come up with my money, we’re gonna be working together for a long time. You can do it the hard way or the easy way. It’s up to you.”

  “I’ll see you tonight,” Todd said, hitting the end button.

  Phillip Cromwell was elated. At his insistence, the firm had made a large donation to the mayor’s reelection campaign. A donation that Lechte had strenuously but unsuccessfully opposed. Now it was starting to pay off. The mayor’s office had called to ask Cromwell to accept the position of honorary auditor of The Disabled Children’s Fund, a charity set up and overseen by the mayor’s wife. Fees were unimportant as this was a highly sought after prestigious appointment that would lead to more lucrative work in the future. Cromwell and his wife had also been invited to a fundraising dinner at the St. Regis on Friday night. It promised to be a glittering event and Cromwell was looking forward to mixing with the who’s who of New York. With luck, he might even win some important, new clients. Not the rough and tumble nouveau rich clients that Doug Lechte had won, like Max Lustig and his ilk. Lustig might be a billionaire, but he was crude and crass. The clients Cromwell would win would be old money and not only rich but genteel. He saw it as a wonderful opportunity to bury the nonsense that Lechte was the firm’s rainmaker and the only partner who could win influential, new clients.

  At 8:30 P.M. Todd strode across the foyer of the Hyatt to the elevators. He was apprehensive about what Elliot might want. Elliot opened the door, and Todd entered a suite that contained a large leather sofa, a marble coffee table, and an inbuilt bar and television. At the other end of the room, there was a dining table surrounded by half a dozen chairs. Elliot was wearing a white T-shirt and jeans. His bicep danced when he pointed to a chair. “Take a seat.”

  “Where’s your wife?” Todd asked.

  “What are you talking about?”

  “You know the wife who was gonna kill you after your losing bet.”

  “Oh, that one.” Elliot smirked. “It was bullshit. I’m not married, but it seemed convenient to be at the time. I’m gonna order a steak. Do you want one?”

  “I’ve eaten.”

  “Yeah, and I’ve got a wife. Come on, you must be starving. I promise I won’t add it to your debt.”

  “No, thanks.”

  “Have it your way. Stand up, I need to pat you down before we talk. I hope for your sake that you’re not stupid enough to be wearing a wire.”

  As Elliot frisked him, Todd said, “You’ve been watching too many gangster movies. I’m not wearing a wire. Why would I? I don’t like being threatened.”

  “And I don’t like threatening you. All you’ve got to do is what I tell you, and we’ll get on fine,” Elliot said, putting the assignment of debt in front of Todd. “You remember this?”

  “Yeah, I do. It’s an assignment of my debt to Genesis Nominees. Who’s Genesis Nominees and where do you fit in? How do I know you’ve got anything to do with Genesis?”

  “Here’s the deal, smartass. We bought your debt on a full recourse basis. That means we can hand it back to Ronny anytime we want. The people he hires to collect debts use baseball bats. If you continue to be a dickhead, you’re gonna end up in a hospital, if you’re lucky. The question you have to answer is, do you want to deal with Ronny’s people or me?”

  “Let’s get to why I’m here. What do you want? Why did you buy the debt?”

  “We want to help you,” Elliot said, taking a bottle of mineral water from the fridge. “Want one?”

  “No. Can you just get on with it?”

  “Temper, temper, Todd. I want you to answer a few of my questions first. Your father’s New York’s finest neurosurgeon and by all accounts is worth a fortune. Why don’t you just borrow the money from him?”

  “Leave my family out of this. It’s none of their business.”

  “That just halved my questions. Let’s cut to the chase. Your firm audits some of the largest companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange and NASDAQ.”

  “Yes,” Todd said, looking puzzled.

  “And they report their results every three months.”

  “Yes.”

  “And your firm knows those results a day or two prior to their release to the market.”

  “Oh, fuck,” Todd said. “You’re kidding. No, I won’t do it.”

  “I haven’t asked you to do anything yet. Settle down.”

  “You’re going to ask me to leak the results to you before their release to the market. Then you’re either going to buy or short the stock. No, I’m not doing it. If I get caught, they’ll lock me up and throw the key away.”

  “It’s a victimless crime. We’re not going to buy or sell the stock. We’ll buy derivatives offshore, and the SEC will be none the wiser. We’ll make a couple of small killings, and then you’re off the hook. Your debt’s extinguished and no one need ever know. What could be fairer than that?”

  “Victimless? When there are information leaks, it brings the whole integrity of the financial markets into question. That’s why the penalties are so severe,” Todd shouted.

  “You’re the last person who should be delivering a sermon about integrity. Let’s face it. You’re a two-bit gambler who lost half a million of someone else’s money. How much integrity do you think you have?”

  “It makes no difference. I can’t help you. I couldn’t even if I wanted to. We audit maybe fifty listed companies in North America but only thirty out of New York. There are five other audit managers besides me. I can’t access their files.”

  “Yeah, I know that and a little more. Montgomery Hastings & Pierce’s New York office audits thirty-two listed companies, and I can tell you who they are and which manager audits them. We employ former big four accountants and know exactly what you can access. We’ll settle for the information on two companies. Virtex Software and Philco Laboratories. It should be easy. Your colleague, Vanessa Hodge, audits both of them.”

  Todd grimaced. Elliot had done his homework. The two stocks were incredibly volatile and sensitive to financial information. Anyone who had pre-release financial information on these companies could make some serious money. “I won’t do it, and you can’t force me to! You must think I’m stupid. If I did it, you’d have a hold over me for the rest on my life.”

  “Two companies, Todd. That’s all we’re asking. M
y boss is a man of his word. Do it and you’ll never hear from us again. I promise.”

  “Who is this boss? When can I meet him? I want to hear him say that if I do it, you pricks will never trouble me again.”

  “Forget it. You aren’t meeting him. Not ever. You deal with me.”

  “Then there’s nothing to think about. I’m not doing it.”

  There was a knock on the door and a room service waiter entered wheeling a trolley. Elliot tipped him generously and removed the silver cloche covering the plate. The smell of steak and vegetables wafted around the room. Todd felt sick with hunger. “You’re hungry,” Elliot said. “I’m happy to share.”

  “I told you I’m not hungry.”

  “Have it your way,” Elliot said, picking up the T-bone in his hands and taking a huge bite.

  “I will.”

  With his mouth half-full and his fingers dripping with oil, Elliot said, “So you’re happy for me to front up to your father. I’ll tell him that his little weasel of a son lost half a mil gambling and can’t pay. Or would you prefer it if I went to your mother? You know there’s an old wives tale about redheads being fiery and courageous. You sure destroy that tale.”

  “Stay away from my family. Stay away from them.”

  “The mouse that roared.” Elliot grinned. “What are you going to do to me if I approach your family?”

  Todd leaped to his feet and opened the fridge and grabbed a bottle of mineral water. He gulped it down, wiping the drops from his chin. “You’re a real bastard, aren’t you?”

  “You still don’t get it, do you? I’m good cop. Ronny Conroy’s bad cop. If I hadn’t bought your debt, you’d already be in a hospital with your legs and arms broken. Not to say anything about how your head would look. I rescued you. All I’m asking in return is a little favor.”

  “Liar! You saw an opportunity where for a small outlay you could reap millions. You couldn’t care less about me.”

  “You call half a mil a small outlay? And don’t forget, it’s increasing at ten percent a month. How are you ever gonna pay?”

  “That’s bullshit! I never agreed to that. It’s outrageous. No court will ever enforce an interest rate like that.”

  Elliot leaned forward, flexing his muscles and began to wring his hands. He sneered. “You still don’t get it, do you? We don’t use the courts to collect our debts. I could have you killed for five thousand and your worthless body would never be found. Think about it, Todd. You’re worth five thousand, and if something happens to you, I’ll hand the debt back to Ronny. He’ll give me back my cash, and that’ll be that.”

  Todd picked up the empty bottle of water and sucked the last few drops from it. He folded his arms and stuck his jaw out. “I won’t do it. If you approach my family you won’t have to worry about the five thousand, I’ll take my life.”

  Elliot burst out laughing. “I was waiting for you to come up with that bullshit. It’s easy to say and fucking hard to do. Some say that you’ve got to have guts to do it. That’s bullshit! It’s the coward’s way out. You’re lots of things, Todd, but you wouldn’t be sitting here if you were a coward. So let’s just put that down as your first lie and move on.”

  Todd closed his eyes and massaged his temples. He could feel pressure on every part of his body. “I want to meet your boss.”

  “No way. It isn’t gonna happen.”

  “Have it your way then, but for the last time, I won’t do it.”

  “Okay, you won’t do it.” Elliot smiled with lifeless eyes. “How are you going to pay us?”

  “I don’t know. I need to think about it. I need time.”

  “I’m not an unreasonable man. You’ve got seven days to come up with the money. Oh, and don’t try and run. You’re being watched around the clock,” Elliot said as he got to his feet. “It was nice of you to visit, Todd. I sure hope you can come up with our money.”

  “I bet you do,” Todd said, ignoring Elliot’s extended hand.

  Within two minutes of Todd leaving, Elliot was on the phone to Dermott Becker. “It went exactly as we thought. He point blank refused to help, but he’ll come around. He wants to meet you.”

  “That worked out well. What did you tell him?”

  “I said it’s not going to happen. It made him more determined. The next time he asks, I’ll weaken.”

  “Perfect. Well done. How sure are you that he’ll come through?” Becker asked.

  “I’m certain. He was all bluster and bravado, but he’ll cave in. The poor little bastard was starving but refused to eat with me. The kid’s got grit. I like that.’

  “Just so long as he doesn’t have too much grit, Jack. It’s the sweetest of sweet scams, but it’s all reliant on him. Did you tell him that after he’s given us the information he’s off the hook?”

  “Of course.”

  “Did he believe you?”

  “That’s why he wants to meet you. He wants to hear it from you.”

  “Fool! We’ll own him for the rest of his life. Keep on top of him, Jack. If you can pull this off, you’re going to earn yourself a big bonus.”

  It was late on Saturday afternoon, and Vanessa Hodge was, as per usual, the last one left in the office. She was anxious to finish the assignment she was working on and finally have a Sunday to herself. It was dark when Vanessa left the office, and she hoped she wasn’t wasting her weekends for nothing. A few minutes later she was on a bus to her studio apartment in West Village. Three people got on after her, none of whom were conspicuous, especially not the slim, graying man in his early forties. When she got off the bus, the man followed her, never getting closer than fifty yards. He watched as she entered an old three story building. Five minutes later the man entered the foyer and immediately went to the mailboxes. Many tenants had their names printed on their boxes including Vanessa Hodge.

  Chapter 14

  The transport strike in the southern states was now in its fourth day and national news. Manufacturers’ factories and warehouses were overflowing, fruit and vegetables were rotting, milk supplies were at a standstill, retailers were running out of stock and supermarkets had been rushed, and their shelves were empty. Irate callers swamped talkback radio demanding the drivers return to work. Others said that Webb Transport should be stripped of its contracts. However, the vast majority wanted other transport companies to come in and get goods moving again, even if only as in interim measure.

  There were three reasons this wouldn’t happen. The drivers didn’t want to be labelled as scabs, the transport companies didn’t want to be blackballed by the unions, and the thousands of tractors and trailers needed to get goods moving again were not available. Transport Employees Union boss, Lou Gerrard, blitzed radio and television stations castigating Webb Transport’s management for their bloody-mindedness and intransigence. For their part, the management of Webb described the TEU as a rogue union defying court orders. After being asked why his large fleet couldn’t help, Max Lustig said, “We have great relationships with our drivers and the TEU. We don’t intend to do anything that might jeopardize those relationships.”

  Dermott Becker watched the saga unfolding on television from his study in the Hamptons. A few more days and Webb wouldn’t be worth buying. If that was the case, O’Brien would have to move fast to buy Webb’s tractors and trailers instead. Whoever owned the equipment would win the contracts. Becker was nervous mainly because of Max Lustig’s presence in Alabama. He was a tough, wily bastard, and Becker didn’t fancy O’Brien’s chances against him. Under normal circumstances, a few well-directed threats would drive other interested parties away but that tactic would never work with Lustig. He’d just return fire with more brutal threats and wouldn’t hesitate to carry them out. The answer was simple. Lou Gerrard had to come through in the next twenty-four hours. He had ten million reasons to do so. Becker’s real concern was that Lustig was paying Gerrard more to break Webb and that he’d already done a deal to buy the equipment.

  Becker was about to
turn the television off when the newsreader said, “We have breaking news from Castlebrough Penitentiary. Convicted murderer and mob boss Frankie Arturo has been charged with the murder of career criminal and fellow inmate Alexei Petracca. Arturo allegedly repeatedly smashed Petracca’s head into the concrete floor.”

  It had been ten days since Devlin Cooper was picked up, and he hadn’t heard a word from the thugs. He’d hardly slept during that time, and when Karen had called him at home, he’d been short with her. Nor had he given her the number of his new cell phone. He’d had a dreadful game against the Twenty-Niners. Three of his passes were deflected, and he’d been sacked twice. The commentators and newspapers had accused him of being asleep and suggested he was spending too much time in nightclubs.

  When the dedicated cell phone finally rang, Cooper thought he would puke. It was the same voice. “You had a poor game on Saturday.”

  “What did you expect?”

  “We didn’t expect anything but your poor form was opportune. We want a repeat performance but even worse against the Pirates this Saturday.”

  “Do you know anything about the game? That won’t guarantee a Pirates win. They have the worst offense in the NFL, and we have the best defense. The probability is that they won’t score,” Cooper said.

  “Oh, they’ll score all right. I can guarantee it.”

  Cooper took a deep breath. That could mean only one thing. One or more players on defense were also being blackmailed or bribed. “And what happens if I say no?”

  “You know the answer, and if you double cross us, we’ll make sure that every member of yours and Coach Deacon’s families get copies of the CD.”

  Cooper hung his head. He’d known that it would come to this. “And you’re going to keep blackmailing me, aren’t you?”

  “Yeah, get used to it, Devlin. We own you. Don’t worry, though, we’re not going to ask ya frequently. We’re talking maybe one game a season. We know that it’s not unusual for a quarterback to have one bad game a season. If ya last seventeen seasons, we’re looking at about the same number of games. The last thing we want is for you to get caught.”