1971 - An Ace Up My Sleeve Page 8

He looked at her thoughtfully, his bright blue eyes a little probing. "No regrets, Helga?"

  "Don't let's go into that." She finished her drink. She was not going to remember that it had been Archer who had arranged the marriage. She had put enough business his way to reward him. She was certainly not lifting the curtain on those exciting moments in his office when he used to lock the door and they had had those "quickies' on the settee. “ Let's eat... I'm starving." The dinner of finely cut smoked beef with pickled cucumbers followed by a pheasant was impeccable.

  While waiting for the dessert trolley, she said, "I didn't know you had other clients in Lugano, Jack."

  "A couple of old fossils." He grinned. "I have to see them about every eighteen months. I thought it would be a good idea – save you the trip too – if I came over and did our business and theirs at the same time. Feel like working after dinner?"

  She nodded. She had nothing else to do but to worry and brood so she welcomed having him for the rest of the evening.

  "I have all the papers in my suite," he went on. "Let's go up after coffee ... okay?"

  She hesitated. Was it wise to go to his room? Would eyebrows be raised? He saw her hesitation and immediately read her thoughts.

  They have a small boardroom here. Let's use that," he said. The table will make it easier to spread the papers on."

  She smiled at him, nodding. That was another thing she liked about Archer.

  He was highly perceptive, tactful and always had a solution.

  After the dessert, he said, "Meet me in the lobby in five minutes. We can have our coffee in the boardroom."

  Half an hour later, the table strewn with papers, the coffee pot empty, Archer paused to light a cigar.

  That about wraps it up, Helga," he said. "Not a very good six months, but these Euro–dollar bonds are sliding. Nothing to worry about. They'll come back. At least, they pay a hefty interest. The equities are down ... but the Dow Jones has been shot to hell. Still, it could be worse. Would you like me to explain about the losses to Herman or will you do it?"

  "I'll do it. He can't expect to win all the time. I'd like to look at the prices to compare them with last month's figures. How much are we down, Jack?" He regarded the glowing end of his cigar and lifted his heavy shoulders. "A damn sight less than most investors." She regarded him.

  "I'm not in the least interested in other investors, Jack. How much are we down?"

  "Oh ... around ten per cent. It'll pick up on the next half year."

  "Ten per cent!" She sat upright. "But that's about a two million dollar loss!" "Yes ... about that, but there's twenty million in the kitty." He smiled. "My two old fossils are in the hole for a thousand." He shook his head. "In comparison, they are worse off than Herman ... a lot worse off." "Let me see the stock list."

  He shrugged, opened his briefcase and took out a file.

  "Sure you want to run through all this? Could take couple of hours." He glanced at his watch. "You must be tired."

  "I'm all right' She took the file from him and put it on the table.

  "To save time, you might initial each page as you go. I've initialled my copy already." He handed her a gold Parker pen and then began to gather up the papers strewn on the table.

  Helga lit a cigarette, picked up the pen and began to go through the list of holdings. She had an excellent memory but there was such a mass of holdings she couldn't remember the exact price of each stock or bond as it had stood six months ago, but she remembered a number of them.

  Admittedly the prices of the bonds were down, but only by two or three points. She had been expecting something much more dramatic. She turned the pages, her eyes darting down the neatly typed columns of prices. Archer sat in an easy chair, watching her, his cigar burning evenly. "There's a page missing, Jack," she said finally. "No ... you have it all there." She looked up sharply.

  There's a page missing. There are at least four Eurobonds not listed: Mobile, Transalpine, National Financial, Chevron. There are equities missing too. Calcomp. Hobart." She paused to look at the list, then went on, "CBS." He smiled.

  "What a wonderful memory you have. It's really remarkable. Yes, they are missing. You slipped up on one: General Motors." She put down the stock list.

  "Then let me have the missing page ... what is this: a memory test?"

  "Do you think Herman would miss them from the list?" She frowned, staring at him.

  "Why, no. You know he never looks at all this. You check it ... I check it ... and that's it." She looked more closely at him. "What is all this about, Jack?" "Have you initialled the sheets?"

  "No, and I'm not going to until I get the missing page."

  He stared at his cigar for a long moment, frowning slightly, then he looked up, staring at her, his pale blue eyes hard. "You're not getting that, darling."

  She leaned back in her chair. "Why not?"

  "Because they don't exist anymore."

  She felt suddenly cold and a little sick. She had been in the jungle of finance long enough to sense what he was trying to tell her. "All right, Jack ... explain."

  "One of those things, I'm afraid," he said and lifted his shoulders. "That Australian nickel thing ... I went into it heavily ... the bubble burst... and that's it." "You went into it heavily ... what do you mean ?" He made an impatient movement which he checked immediately.

  "Oh, come on, Helga! There was a great chance ... a chance of a lifetime! I got in on the ground floor at $10 ... imagine! I held on too long ... it happens. I could have got out at $120, but I just couldn't resist hanging on. I swore I'd get out at $150 and I would have done. Then they found there was no nickel and ... that was that." "But where did the money come from?"

  "Where do you think? I sold these missing bonds and stocks. Now look, Helga, Herman needn't know about this. You know he never checks anything. He's far too busy. You initial all this stuff and he accepts it. I'm asking you to help me out of a hole. After all he's worth around sixty million ... he'll never miss two, will he?"

  "You sold bonds and stocks?" Helga sat forward and stared at him. "But you couldn't have! We have joint signatures on the account! What are you talking about?"

  Again he regarded the burning end of his cigar, then he looked at her, then away.

  "I always did say, Helga, you had rather an unformed signature."

  She couldn't believe what she was hearing. "Are you drunk?"

  "I wouldn't mind being drunk." He smiled his charming, sincere smile. "I'm sorry ... I admit it's a mess, but messes do happen." "Are you telling me you forged my signature?"

  He hesitated and for a moment, his heavy face darkened.

  "Sounds hellish, doesn't it? But that's what I did."

  "You must be out of your mind!"

  He lifted his hands.

  "I suppose I was then, but it looked so certain. I could have cleaned up three million."

  She put her hands to her eyes. She couldn't bear to look at him. There was a long, heavy silence, then he broke it by saying, "I'm sorry. It seemed so certain."

  She snatched her hand away and her eyes snapped as she said furiously. "All weak, stupid, greedy, dishonest fools say that! Don't give me that crap! You've broken a trust! Worse ... you've proved yourself a thief and a forger!" He flinched.

  "Yes ... I deserve that."

  "How could you, Jack! How could you have done such a thing?"

  He stubbed out his cigar. "A mad moment ... don't you have mad moments?"

  She felt her heart skip a beat.

  "We're not talking about me. We're talking about you." "Yes ... what are you going to do?"

  "What is there to do? I must tell Herman. There is nothing else I can do. I won't be party to this. You have done it and you must take the consequences. I'll try to persuade Herman to accept what has happened ... I'll do that." "Herman is an unforgiving, ruthless sonofabitch," Archer said quietly. "He's sure to prosecute. Look, Helga, for old times' sake, won't you give me a hand? After all we were lovers ... I did fix y
our marriage ... don't you feel you owe me something?"

  "No, and you know it! You wanted me married to Herman to be sure of his account!"

  "Just try leaning over backwards a little. Look, suppose you tell him I suggested investing in Australian nickel. You agreed. The stock began to rise so we plunged two million into it. Suppose you tell him we were gambling on his behalf. Do you think he would buy that?"

  She hesitated. She realized she couldn't send this man to prison: even now the memory of those 'quickies' was too strong. Yes, she thought she could convince Herman this had been a bad speculation that hadn't come off. She would be contrite and promise him it would never happen again. He was certain to give her a tongue lashing but if she ate enough humble pie he would still leave her in control of his affairs, but only if she got rid of Archer. She would have to do that. From now on she would have to deal with some firm like Spencer, Grove & Manly, stuffy people, but highly respectable and their integrity unquestionable. She could no longer work with Archer. She could no longer trust him. She lit a cigarette in the effort to steady her nerves.

  "All right, I'll persuade Herman to buy it," she said quietly.

  "But I am going to tell him to move the account to Spencer, Grove & Manly. I can't work with you in the future. You understand that?"

  "You really think Herman will buy it?" Archer sat forward, relief on his face. "I said so, didn't I?"

  "Then why close the account, Helga? There's no need to. If you're sure he'll buy it we are back on square A."

  She regarded him as if he were a stranger.

  "As soon as Herman arrives I will have a letter for him to asking you to transfer all his holdings and files to Spencer, Grove & Manly." She picked up the list of securities and got to her feet "I don't ever want to see you again," and she walked to the door. "Helga."

  She paused and turned. He was lighting another cigar.

  "Well?"

  "Is that your last word?"

  "Yes," and she reached for the door handle.

  "Don't run away," he said, a bite in his voice. "We still have things to talk about." He paused, staring at her. "How did you find Larry? He's quite a character, isn't he?"

  The Dean of the School of Law where Helga had taken her doctorate had said among many other things that there was a time to bluff and a time to be intelligent enough to know when not to bluff.

  Helga had accepted this wisdom during her Law years. When she had bluffed, she had bluffed with a finesse of an expert poker player but when the situation was such she always accepted the inevitable.

  The fibre of steel in her would not allow Archer to see the shock his words had on her. Her face expressionless, she turned around, came away from the door and sat down.

  "What else is there to talk about?" and even she was surprised how steady her voice sounded.

  He regarded her and genuine admiration showed in his eyes.

  "I always thought you had guts, Helga, and now I know it for sure. You took that sucker punch like a champion."

  "What else is there to talk about?" she repeated woodenly.

  "Me and you." He leaned back in the armchair and drew on his cigar. "You see, Helga, I can't let the account get away from me. You don't imagine I would forge your signature and take all that money from Herman unless I was in a desperate fix? I've not only lost Herman's money, but I have lost my own. Things are bad at the office. The fact is so many of the old fossils have died recently, so many accounts have come to a grinding halt since the new US. tax laws that we're scarcely ticking over. Herman's account is about the one thing that keeps us solvent."

  "You should have thought of that before you turned thief and forger," Helga said harshly.

  "I had no alternative. I was in too deep. It was either sink or swim ... I'm not the sinking type." "That I can believe."

  "The fact is I don't intend to lose the account. You and I are going to continue in partnership, and I'll tell you for why. We are both cheats: I am a thief and forger and you are a whore. Neither of us would get any mercy from Herman. If he found us out, we wouldn't survive. You would lose sixty million dollars and I'd go to jail. That's why we are going to remain partners." She sat very still. "What are you threatening me with?" she asked.

  He studied her, then nodded his approval. He reached for his briefcase, opened it and took out an envelope.

  "This," he said and flicked the envelope on to the table. It skidded across and landed in her lap.

  Her hands, still steady, took the envelope and lifted the flap. She drew out a glossy photographic print that was still a little damp. She studied it, keeping her expression under control although she felt as if ice water was running down her back.

  In the photograph, she was lying on her bed, naked, and exposed, her hand on Larry's trouser zip, while he appeared to be tearing off his jacket. In spite of her control, she felt the blood draining out of her face. She returned the print to the envelope and put the envelope on the table

  "Thief, forger ... and now blackmailer," she said unsteadily. "At last, I'm getting to know you."

  He smiled: a thin smile, but a smile.

  "I've already called myself all those names, Helga. I have now got beyond shame. I'm just not going to sink, and I have persuaded myself the end justifies any means. After all, you yourself are no saint, are you?" "How did you get this photograph?"

  "Do you really want to know?" He sank lower in his chair. "It was a long term operation and a technical achievement. A week ago I went to the villa ... you remember I have a key ... and I concealed a camera in one of the window recesses. The camera was focused on the bed. I had an electrician with me. He worked on the sun lamp switch by the bed. Larry had only to touch the switch to set off the camera shutter, the flash light and trip the fuses. It was quite a performance."

  She drew in a long, slow breath, trying to control her rising fury.

  "You mean you hired an electrician to make this blackmail trap?" He lifted his hands.

  "My dear girl, you don't imagine I'm clever enough to do a job like that? But don't worry. He was very well paid. He just thought I was eccentric ... you know the Swiss." "And you got someone to process the photograph?"

  "Now, come, Helga, I'm not stupid. I hired a dark room of a local photographic store. I did the processing myself. I'm rather good with a camera."

  She sat for a long moment absorbing what he had told her, then she said, "And Larry?"

  "He's quite a character, isn't he?" Archer drew on his cigar and stared up at the ceiling. "I knew for certain I would have trouble with you. When the money went down the drain, I knew I had to find a means of controlling your first impulse to rush to Herman and tell him what had happened. I also knew Herman would prosecute. Everyone has a weakness that can be exploited in one way or another. We have known each other now for some ten years. I know your weakness." He looked at her. "You have been married to an impotent cripple for four years ... a little more. You will inherit sixty million dollars so long as you behave yourself but I was certain you weren't living like a nun. I decided to bait a hook for you. Frankly, Helga, with any other woman I wouldn't have attempted it: the trouble, the money spent, the rushing here and there would have been too long odds, but with you, I felt it was worth a try. I knew you were arriving in Hamburg to pick up the car. Two days before you arrived I flew to Hamburg and began to look around. I wanted to find a virile, presentable young man without scruples. Not an impossible task in Hamburg where the dregs of the world come together. I found Larry. In the Reeperbahn, if you look hard enough, you are certain to find someone to do anything no matter how disreputable so long as the money is right." He paused, then went on. "Larry was trying to persuade a young whore to take him home for nothing. She slapped his face and spat at him. I followed him into the street and we got talking. He asked me for money. He has beguiling warmth, hasn't he? I am a man and you are a woman. I saw through this hick act of his whereas you fell for it as I was sun would. I told him I had a job for him. We we
nt to a bar and I told him I wanted him to seduce an attractive woman so I could blackmail her. I offered him one thousand dollars to do the job. I felt quite safe telling him this. I was unknown to him: a man who had picked him up in the street. If he refused, then I could walk out and leave him, but, of course, he didn't refuse." He leaned forward to tap his ash into the ashtray. "I wasn't sure where you would stay the night in Hamburg, but I knew you were seeing Schultz on business in Bonn and I knew where you always stayed there. I hired a car and drove Larry to Bonn. The more I talked with him, the more I was convinced that you would fall for him; but I wasn't absolutely certain, and I had to be certain. So as a second line of attack, I dreamed up this passport gimmick. In any case, Larry had to have a new passport. He had deserted from the Army and had got mixed up in some riot. The German police and the U.S. Army police were hunting for him. I felt, if played on your generosity, you would fix him up. It was all a gamble, of course, but I knew you well enough to make the odds acceptable. Before I left Bonn I bugged your car. There is a new electronic eavesdropper on the market now that is fantastically efficient. The bug is the size of a thimble and has an impressive range. I then pointed you out to Larry as you arrived at the Konigshof hotel. Once I knew Larry had made contact with you and when he told me you wanted to take him to Switzerland, I knew you had swallowed the bait. It remained to be seen if the hook caught hold. I knew your hour of departure and I went on ahead. I was about a half a kilometre ahead of you all the time and I overheard your conversation. I speeded up and called on Friedlander who Larry had told me about. It was easy to bribe him. He promised that his assistant would take photographs of you and Larry when you arrived at his apartment. I have a good photograph of you passing Friedlander three thousand francs. Herman might well ask you why you paid such a sum unless the boy involved, was your lover. Not a strong card, but something. I really pinned my hopes on you taking Larry to the villa. I was driving ahead of you when you left Basle and I heard you telling Larry you wanted him to see your home. I knew my gamble had come off." He smiled. "Larry nearly broke my ear drums with his whoop of triumph. He had assured me you would take him to your home and I had betted him another five hundred dollars he wouldn't pull it off."