Doubleback: A Novel (17 page)

“Jesus! This just gets better and better. Chris Messenger creates a secret account. With fake names. And no money.” Ellie raised her palms. “Are you saying the bank is out three million dollars, and except for Chris Messenger—who’s dead—and the chairman of the bank—no one knows whose account it was or what happened to the money?”

“Ordinarily, it would be difficult to find that out. Maybe even impossible. Unless the chairman of the bank chose to reveal it.”

Georgia crossed her arms. “Which, given the situation, he has to do, doesn’t he?”

“I can’t speak for him.” Sechrest let out a small smile.

Georgia picked up on it. “Why are you smiling?”

“Well, remember what I said about leaving your fingerprints in the system?”

Georgia nodded.

“Well, after I discovered all this, I did a search on Chris Messenger’s ID number.”

Ellie’s eyes widened. “Clever.”

Sechrest’s smile broadened. “Turns out Chris Messenger was the clever one.”

“How so?” Georgia asked.

“A couple of days after the three million in cashiers’ checks went out, she put a hold on one of our customers’ accounts.”

“A hold?”

“Essentially, it freezes an account so it can’t go below a certain level until the hold is lifted. It was clearly an insurance policy. In case the overdraft wasn’t paid.”

“Gee...” Ellie said. “I’ll bet the hold was for three million dollars.”

Sechrest nodded. “Bingo.”

“So, whose account was the hold on?”

Sechrest looked around. Then she shivered. “It’s a company called Delton. Delton Security.”

Luke sat up as if a hot poker had been rammed up his butt.

chapter
20

D
elton Security began during Desert Storm by providing certain kinds of equipment and services to the military,” Luke said.

“What kind of equipment?” Georgia asked.

“Nothing exciting. I remember hearing about them when I was over there.”

“You were in the military?”

“I flew BUFFS for the Army.”

“BUFFs?”

“Big Ugly Fat Fellows. A B-52 Stratofortress. They carry cargo.”

Georgia wanted to ask more, but Luke cut her off. “Delton supplied tents, cooking equipment, portable galleys, stuff like that.” He paused. “But after 9-11, everything changed. Now they provide protective services for government functionaries in high-risk areas. Diplomatic security contracts, they call them. They have corporate contracts, too.”

“So, basically, they’re mercenaries?”

When Luke nodded, Ellie said, “Like Blackwater?”

“Similar. But Delton isn’t as big. Or well known.”

“Or infamous?”

“No, but they’re a major player.”

“Is there a Delton?” Georgia asked.

“Geoff Delton,” Luke replied. “They say his best friend was killed during Desert Storm because of faulty armor. Delton’s company didn’t supply it—they didn’t provide things like that back then—but he was supposedly torn up about it. He vowed never to let that happen again. To anyone.”

“What—is he some kind of bleeding heart?” Foreman asked.

“I always thought of him as a grown up Boy Scout,” Luke said. “You know, loyal to God and country and all that. Anyway, he took over the company from his father and rebuilt it. Daddy had ties to the Bush administration, and things percolated along nicely. Especially after 9-11.”

“You know the guy?” Georgia said.

Luke shook his head. “But his story is well known in military circles. And he’s local. From Iowa originally, I think. Now he lives near Chicago.”

“And Delton is a customer of Midwest National Bank?” Ellie asked.

Sechrest nodded.

“Well, that answers one question,” Foreman’s smile was ironic.

“What?” Georgia asked.

“The chairman of the bank gets a call from some former high-up in the last administration,” Foreman went on, “asking him to do Geoff Delton a favor. It’s a matter of national security. A contribution to the war on terrorism. How can Pattison refuse? He’d look un-American.”

Sechrest nodded energetically. “Plus, he knows Delton has the money to cover the checks one way or another.”

Georgia frowned.

“What’s the matter?”

“We don’t know why Messenger closed the account three weeks after the fact,” Foreman said.

“Careful,” Luke warned.

Foreman shot Luke an irritated look. “I get that there could be a perfectly legitimate reason, Luke. But an innocent little girl was kidnapped. Her mother closes the account while her daughter is a hostage. Then her daughter is released. At the very least the timing is suspicious.”

Luke kept his mouth shut.

“I hear you, Luke,” Georgia said. “But kidnapping wouldn’t be a stretch for these guys. Mercenaries are known to be ruthless.”

“But why?” Ellie said. “What would they be hiding—or trying to prove?”

“Bear in mind that at the time the account was closed,” Sechrest said, “nobody knew it was Delton’s.”

“Except for Chris. And the chairman,” Georgia said.

Sechrest nodded. “But as far as the books were concerned, it was an account with a fake name, fake address, fake everything. All we knew was that it had paid out three cashiers’ checks.”

“Are we talking money laundering?” Georgia asked. “Or embezzlement?”

“I’m not sure yet,” Sechrest said.

“And what about Arthur Emerlich? “Georgia asked. “Wouldn’t he have known that Delton was behind the cashiers’ checks?”

“I don’t know that, either. I was going to brief him on the whole thing, but he died before I could.”

“And what about Pattison?” Foreman asked. “He knew Chris opened the secret account for Delton. Did he know she closed it, too?”

“If he didn’t then, he does now,” Sechrest said. “My guess is he’s pretty unhappy about the situation. First, he authorizes a hefty overdraft on a secret account. Then the account is suddenly closed, two of his officers are dead, and he’s out three million dollars.”

“But they’ll get it back, won’t they?” Georgia asked. “I mean, isn’t that why Chris put a hold on their other accounts?”

“That’s true,” Sandy said. “But it’s embarrassing. And Pattison is in the middle of it. I’d be surprised if he doesn’t suddenly ‘retire.’”

“Hold on a minute,” Foreman said. “We’re forgetting something.”

“What?” Georgia asked.

“Three million is a lot of money, but it’s not as if a company like Delton doesn’t deal with large sums every day. Whether it’s for supplies, salaries, training facilities, three million can’t be all that much to them. The question is what was so special about
this
three million.” She turned to Sechrest. “How can we find out who the cashiers’ checks went to?”

“Ellie,” Luke cut in sternly. “Don’t mess with these people.” He turned to Georgia. “What does this have to do with Molly Messenger, anyway? You’re supposed to be protecting her. How does tracking down missing cashiers’ checks fit in?”

Georgia was quiet for a moment. Early in her career, she’d found the corpse of a little girl named Sharron White. Sharron’s uncle had raped her, strangled her, and tossed her body in the Skokie Lagoons. By the time she and Matt found her, the body had decomposed so much she was almost unrecognizable. Still Georgia could tell she’d only been about ten.

Now, she leaned forward. “Molly Messenger was kidnapped. Her mother was killed. Her life has become one big fucking tragedy. She’ll never be the same. If that happened because some assholes wanted to launder or steal three million dollars, I want to nail them.”

Nobody spoke.

“So, how can we find out where the money went?” Foreman asked Sechrest. “Aside from getting someone to go online—which you say would leave a trail?”

“Well, there is one possibility,” Sechrest volunteered. “The teller department keeps a log of all the cashiers’ checks issued by the bank.”

Ellie’s eyebrows widened. “A paper log?”

Sechrest nodded. “But I don’t know how long they keep them. Maybe a few months.”

“Where would they be?” Georgia asked.

“In a locked drawer somewhere.”

“Sounds promising.” Georgia turned to Ellie. “In the meantime we need to keep Sandy safe until things calm down.”

A knowing look passed between Ellie and Luke.

“I already called him,” Luke said quietly.

“Called who?” Georgia asked, alarmed. “Who else knows we’re here? You shouldn’t have—”

“Calm down. It’s Jimmy Saclarides.” Ellie answered. “He’s the Chief of Police in Lake Geneva.

“Shit! The last thing I need are more cops on this thing.”

“Jimmy happens to be a close friend of Luke’s,” Ellie went on calmly. “He has ways of getting things done.”

“And keeping people alive,” Luke added.

•   •   •

Sechrest went to bed a few minutes later, but Georgia, fortified with a can of Red Bull, paced the kitchen while Ellie cleaned up.

“I think Luke has a point,” Ellie said. “Have you considered just dropping the case?”

“Of course,” Georgia said.

“But you can’t.”

Georgia didn’t answer.

“I know you’re concerned about Molly, but her father—from what Susan says—is taking good care of her. Isn’t that enough?”

Georgia shrugged.

Foreman dried her hands on a towel. “How much do you know about companies like Blackwater and Delton?”

“Only what I read and see in the news.”

“So you know Blackwater killed a bunch of innocent people in Iraq—”

“In Bahgdad, wasn’t it?”

“Right, and that’s only what we know about. Some people think they averaged four to five shootings a week.”

“I wouldn’t be surprised.”

Foreman turned around. “And do you know that some weapons that belonged to Blackwater ended up with Kurdish rebels in Northern Iraq? And that they found Blackwater guns in New Orleans? And that the government, except for Iraq, hasn’t done a damn thing about any of it?”

Georgia kept her mouth shut.

Foreman must have mistaken her silence for acquiescence. “When you outsource your military to private contractors, you give up a lot of power. Companies like Blackwater—and Delton— think they can get away with almost anything. It’s pretty damn scary. You don’t go up against these people. You—”

“Ellie, stop.” Georgia threw up a hand. “I didn’t say I was going up against them. But that’s beside the point. Neither of us were in Iraq. We don’t know what it was like. You’re talking about a fucking war zone.” She stopped pacing. “Look... even here on the North Shore, you have no idea what people are gonna do. Take a car bust in Hubbard Woods, for example. Penny ante stuff, right?”

Foreman cocked her head.

“As a cop, you still have to wonder whether the guy in the car has a weapon. And if so, what kind? A knife? A gun? What caliber? How many magazines? There’s no way to tell, so you prepare for the worst. And if you see something—even a flash of something from the corner of your eye—well, it’s either you or them.” Her jaw tightened. “Shit happens. It’s not fair to judge. Even mercenaries.”

Foreman rubbed her hand across her chin. “There’s a big difference. As a cop, you’re accountable for what you do on that bust. Blackwater isn’t. They’re not subject to military law because they’re private. But they claim they’re not subject to civilian law either, because they’re part of the military. So basically you have a bunch of guys who do whatever they want. Or whatever’s the most lucrative. And the government is subsidizing them.”

Georgia stared at Foreman. She couldn’t believe how different they were. “Chaos is unacceptable. These guys are trying to restore order.”

“But at what cost?”

Georgia was rattled. She crossed her arms. “Look. I don’t keep up with what’s going on in the world like you. But I do know that when there’s a threat, large or small, somebody’s got to protect people. Get rid of the bad guys.”

“What happens if the protectors turn out to be the bad guys?”

Georgia’s nerves were stretched raw. She hadn’t counted on having to defend her beliefs to Foreman, who’d led a privileged life. Sometimes the woman seemed to enjoy arguing for the sake of it. Fortunately, their conversation was cut off by Luke, who hurried out of his office waving some paper. “Hey... I was just searching online.”

Georgia spun around.

“They’re saying that companies like Blackwater are pretty much done with Iraq.”

“Why am I not surprised?” Foreman said dryly.

“According to the articles, they see domestic issues as their next challenge.”

“Good. Now they can wreak havoc in our part of the world.”

Luke leveled a hard look at Foreman.

She held up her hands. “Sorry.”

“Here’s the interesting part,” Luke went on. “Geoff Delton lives in Barrington. He built a big mansion he calls the ‘Fortress’ because of all the security systems on it.”

Ellie and Georgia exchanged glances.

“And get this,” Luke went on. “Delton has two training camps. One’s in California, but one’s actually in Illinois.”

“Where?” Georgia asked.

“Downstate. North of Funks Grove and Shirley.”

Ellie gasped.

“What?”

“I know exactly where it is.” She explained how she and Mac had driven past the fenced off land while shooting a video on ethanol. “I thought it was a military base.” Her eyes got a faraway look.

“Don’t even think about it, Ellie.” Luke warned.

Ellie went over to Luke and brushed her fingers against his cheek. “Don’t worry, love. I have no intention of getting involved.”

Luke pulled her fingers down to stroke his neck, and they shared an intimate smile. Then Luke turned to Georgia “And don’t you try to be a hero, either. A live coward is better than a dead hero.”

Georgia met his cool gaze with one of her own.

•   •   •

Later as she drifted off to an exhausted sleep, she thought about the way Luke and Foreman had touched each other. Maybe it wasn’t a good idea to spend so much time with the two of them. It reminded her of what she was missing.

chapter
21

D
awn broke with a watery sunshine that leaked through a pale layer of clouds. Georgia stood at the bedroom window, gazing out at the green lawn, blue lake, and flowers in red, orange, and yellow. Nothing horrible could happen in such a beautiful place, she thought. Then she recalled that horrible things had happened here. Luke Sutton’s sister had been killed—accidentally some said; purposefully, said others—by his brother, and it had been covered up by their father. The brother was serving a life sentence. The father, also in prison for life, had passed away last year. She turned away from the view. That would teach her to get too comfortable in rich peoples’ homes.