Game Theory--A Katerina Carter Fraud Legal Thriller

by Colleen Cross

  Jace waved her off with his left hand. “It’s fine for now.”

  “Suit yourself.” Kat sat back down at her desk and typed World Institute into the search engine and pressed enter. The search results came back with a dozen entries aside from WI’s official website. She clicked on the first one. “Apparently they also hold an annual conference.”

  “I thought it was a secret organization.”

  “It is. No one knows what they discuss inside the conference, or even where it’s held. Just that they hold one every year.” For such a clandestine organization, she was surprised at how easy it was to find information online. Perhaps to inspire additional investors.

  “Who are the members? Investment types?”

  “No—that’s what’s interesting. It’s anyone and everyone. Business tycoons, philanthropists, royalty, future presidents, and even well-connected talk show hosts. People with money.”

  “Future presidents? How can they predict the next head of state before it happens?”

  “They don’t have to foresee the future,” Kat said. “They decide it. At least that’s what some people say.” She scrolled to the financial statement page. “See this? Total inflows last year were four hundred million. That meant Edgewater’s two hundred and twenty million via Research Analytics is more than half of all their cash inflows.”

  “Wow. Very influential. Who’s kicking in the rest?” Jace leaned forward.

  Kat frowned. Like a dog with a bone, he smelled a story. Still, Jace was the best at sniffing out secrets.

  “I don’t know. Can you check further to see who else is affiliated with them?” Kat’s quick investigation had found all sorts of conspiracy theories related to the World Institute. While the WI referred to itself as a think tank in the annual report, others were less complimentary. At best it was considered a secret society of global elites, the rich and powerful determining policy and law to suit their needs. At worst it was described as a global shadow government undermining national sovereignty by backing politicians friendly to big business.

  But she’d let Jace form his own opinions. No one was better at uncovering dirt. She just had to ensure he wasn’t sidetracked once he saw the story potential.

  “I’ll get right on it.” Jace leaned back in the leather armchair and stretched his long legs out in front of him. He pulled a laptop out of his briefcase and powered it up.

  Kat glanced at her inbox, where Harry’s bank statement caught her eye. It sat atop his checkbook and other statements. Another task she needed to tackle quickly. Whoever was behind his financial mess needed to be stopped, but she was quickly running out of time on Zachary’s deadline. She’d work Edgewater for another hour and then concentrate on Harry’s stuff. She needed to get his affairs straightened out tonight once and for all. She picked up the pile to deposit in her briefcase when one line jumped out at her. It was a monthly transfer to the same account as the recent loan.

  Jace shifted in his chair. He was silent, other than the odd tap on his keyboard.

  She turned back to Harry’s bank statement. Sure enough, regular monthly transfers had occurred for at least six months, as far back as Harry’s checkbook records went. But as far as she knew, he didn’t have another account at the same bank. She scribbled a note to ask Anita Boehmer.

  Thirty minutes later, Jace beckoned Kat over. “Kat, this is fascinating. I can’t believe I’ve never heard about the World Institute. Says they’re trying to start a new world order.”

  Kat scanned the article. The caption under the author’s photograph read Roger Landers, author of Currency Conspiracy and the New World Order.

  “We can uncover what’s behind the World Institute later,” Kat said. “Since we don’t have much time, let’s focus on how Edgewater’s payments end up there.”

  “The membership list is impressive,” Jace said. “I traced all the attendees since first meetings in 1954. That year, one hundred of the world’s elite met with the sole purpose of establishing one world government. In every year since then, about a hundred or so very powerful people have met to advance their cause.”

  “That’s a conspiracy theory if I ever heard one.” Kat realized her mistake too late. Jace was off on a tangent already.

  “There are a lot of interesting facts to back it up. For instance, the last three American presidents, the British prime minister, and the Canadian prime minister have all attended. Right before they were elected.”

  “They were voted in by the people, Jace. Democratically.” How could she get him back on track?

  “True,” Jace said. “Except who decided which people would be running in the first place?”

  “You think those nominations were fixed?”

  “Heavily influenced at the very least. Ninety-three percent of all the World Institute political attendees ended up in office a year or two later. That’s more than a coincidence. But how and why are they connected to the WI? I’d never even heard of the organization until now.”

  “What does this have to do with the money?”

  “Background, Kat—background. I’m guessing the only reason we haven’t heard of the WI before is because they don’t want us to. Of course a few journalists are writing a lot of the stuff I’m reading, but they’ve been dismissed as crackpots.”

  “Except you don’t think they’re crackpots.” Kat sighed.

  “There must be an element of truth to it. From what I can see, the WI is all very hush-hush. The meetings are closed to media. At least the regular media. A few high-profile journalists have been invited, but with the understanding that they are bound by secrecy. Break the silence and they won’t be invited back—or write a book like Landers and you’ll be completely shoved out. None of the more accommodating journalists have ever leaked anything. Not in over fifty years. Any journalist worth his salt would write a story on this.”

  “Yet no mainstream journalists have.” Kat turned more fully to him. “Pray, why is that?”

  “They’ve been silenced.” Jace raised his brows. “Paid off—or something worse.”

  “Or, maybe there’s nothing to write about.”

  “Maybe—maybe not. Don’t kid yourself, Kat. This is a big story. There’s a reason we haven’t heard of it until now. These are some of the richest, most powerful people in the world. They control banks, governments, and even countries. Their objective is to consolidate power even more. The European Union? That was the first step. They’ve got plans for an Asian union and a North American one next.”

  Jace pointed to the World Institute Annual Report on Kat’s computer screen. “Their mandate is one world currency. Edgewater is one of the biggest global currency traders.”

  “That doesn’t make sense to me,” Kat said. “Fewer currencies ruin Edgewater’s business. They would have nothing to trade.”

  She turned back to her computer screen. “At any rate, we don’t necessarily need to know Nathan’s reasons for diverting the money. Just proof he embezzled the money.”

  “Don’t you want to know the motive behind the crime?”

  “Sure, it’s interesting, but we don’t have time, Jace. I need to wrap this up by Zachary’s Monday deadline.”

  It was as if Jace hadn’t heard a word. “Perfect example—the European Union. What happened after that? The Euro. One currency.”

  “So what?”

  “That’s just the start, Kat. What if the credit crisis happened on purpose?”

  “You mean, like someone planned it?”

  “Exactly. What if currency was worthless? What would you do?”

  “I’d keep my money in a stronger currency. Or, if that wasn’t enough, in something like gold or diamonds. So would everybody else. But why would anyone orchestrate a currency devaluation? It hurts everybody.”

  “Not everybody—only the people who don’t see it coming.”

  “Sounds just like every other conspiracy theory I’ve heard of,” Kat said. “And it has nothing to do with Edgewater and Zachary’s as
signment.”

  “That’s where you’re wrong, Kat. Regardless of Zachary’s low opinion of his father, Nathan Barron is a well-respected currency expert. What if the goal were to switch to one world currency? How would you get people—or governments—to do that?”

  “You’d have to make it worthless,” Kat said. “Then everyone wants out of the weak currency. They’d exchange it for a safer, more stable currency.”

  “Exactly. Devalue the dollar, the pound, the yen. Everyone panics, and voilà, you offer one global currency to get them out of the mess they’re in. On your terms, of course.”

  “Where do you get this stuff, Jace? You’re completely off the wall.”

  “I don’t think so. Look at these lists.” Jace handed Kat a printout of the attendees for each conference. Every year was like a Billboard Top 100. Except it wasn’t the year’s hit songs. It was the year’s heavy hitters—the richest, most powerful, most influential people in the world, for every year going back to 1954.

  “The queen of The Netherlands? She’s a philanthropist. The World Institute is a think tank. Nothing strange about that.” Kat skimmed the list. Heavy hitters all right, but nothing that indicated sinister motives.

  “She controls one of the biggest oil companies in the world,” Jace said. “It’s more than an interest in humanity. It’s a concentration of power.”

  “Even if you’re right, how exactly does this relate back to Nathan Barron and Edgewater?” Kat felt herself being pulled in.

  “There’s money to be made, Kat. If you happen to know a currency is about to fall, you can profit from that knowledge.”

  “Meaning speculate on it? As in Edgewater’s trades?”

  “Exactly,” Jace said. “That’s why we have to expand the scope to include the World Institute. We know Research Analytics plays a major role in Nathan’s fraud. At the very least, we should investigate Research Analytics’ relationship with the World Institute.”

  “No, Jace. We only need to provide background on the World Institute and show the money going there. Anything beyond that is out of scope.”

  “Why? Aside from the fact the money Nathan’s contributing isn’t actually his, there must be a reason he contributes secretly in the first place. Wouldn’t Zachary want to know that Nathan’s funded an organization that undermines their business?”

  Kat sighed. “Fine, as long as Zachary agrees.” She was already certain Zachary would be onside with anything that exposed Nathan’s wrongdoings. “Just keep it focused.”

  “We need to go to that conference.”

  “Jace, no.” Kat held up her arms to protest. “I don’t mind helping you with a story, but we’re getting sidetracked. We don’t need to go to the conference.”

  “But I think it’s in a few days. At least it appears that way, given the information you found in Barron’s email and calendar. It’s held somewhere different every year, usually in a resort just outside of a large city. Last year it was at a Swiss resort, the year before, just outside of New York.”

  Kat tapped her forehead in realization. “Nathan’s trip to Geneva this time last year.” She remembered it from his calendar.

  “Exactly. The meeting takes place at the same time every year. I’ll bet if you go back a year before that you’ll find a New York trip too.”

  “My fees don’t include international travel, Jace. If you want to go on your own dime, fine. Where is it being held this year?”

  “I’m not sure. The secrecy extends to not even telling attendees until the last minute. Don’t want a bunch of journalists snooping around.” Jace smiled. “But those are the best places—obviously they’ve got something to hide.”

  Chapter 19

  Kat still couldn’t get Jace off the subject an hour later.

  It was already noon, and Kat wasn’t any further ahead. She stared at the diagram on her office whiteboard, trying to make sense of the money flows and how they connected to Edgewater.

  Jace, however, had become an expert in World Institute affairs.

  “Where exactly is Nathan Barron?” Jace asked. “That might give us a clue where to search next.”

  “I don’t know. His calendar showed the flight to London yesterday. But Zachary checked with his secretary and confirmed he wasn’t on it. He is out of town, though.”

  “Where is he?”

  “Don’t know. His secretary didn’t know either. At least that’s what she told Zachary. And Zachary hasn’t seen him in almost a week.”

  “Do you think he made a run for it?”

  “Doubt it.” Kat remembered the trophies in Nathan’s office. His ego was too big to leave them behind. “He’s been doing this for more than a decade. I’m sure he has no idea we’re investigating him. It’s just business as usual as far as he’s concerned.”

  “Suppose that’s true, and also assume he’s a member of the World Institute. He must be, since he’s diverting all this money to them. That means he’ll be attending the conference.”

  “Maybe that’s what was taking place in London,” Kat said.

  “When was the ticket booked?”

  Kat pulled out a copy of Nathan’s flight ticket. “It was issued six months ago. Why does that matter?”

  “Can’t be for the World Institute. They arrange everything at the last minute—a month or two before the actual conference. To keep the location secret. But it’s always held this time of year. I think he’s not going to London because he has something more important. The World Institute annual conference.”

  “Assuming he is, how do we find out where?” Kat asked.

  “There’s another way to view this. Hand me the conference list.” Jace grabbed a handful of pushpins. “If I’m searching for someone in the back country, I start with his last known whereabouts. That gives me a pattern to define our search area. Then it’s a process of elimination.”

  “This isn’t a search and rescue mission.”

  “No, but the same principles apply.”

  An hour later they stood in Kat’s spare office downtown, staring at the wall in front of her treadmill. It was the only space available to pin up the map Jace had bought from the dollar store.

  Pushpins marked the location of all fifty-something conferences to date. They were concentrated in Europe, but there were plenty on the east coast of the U.S. and Canada. Blue pins marked conferences that had taken place in the last ten years, yellow for the decade before, and so on.

  The map resembled a budget version of something you’d find in the war room at the Pentagon.

  “Interesting concept,” Kat said. “But how will this help us find the location?”

  “I’m guessing it’s like the Olympics. You don’t choose the same continent or country over and over again. To be fair to everyone.”

  “That rules out Europe.”

  “North America seems a bit sparse,” Jace said.

  True. There were only seven pins, all in eastern North America.

  “They’re always held at exclusive resorts under heavy security—armed guards, soldiers, secret service, police,” Jace added.

  “Makes sense. Somewhere they can secure the perimeter.”

  “And clear the surrounding areas of residents and visitors.”

  “Really?” Kat arched her eyebrows in surprise. “They go to that extent?”

  They stood in silence and studied the map. While the places and players had changed through the years, those controlling the strings behind the scenes hadn’t. Changes in government, civil wars, and even democracy hadn’t altered the real power structure. The play was the same, just a different cast of actors on stage. Some things never really changed at all.

  Chapter 20

  Kat stared at Jace’s map. Its clusters and webs reminded her of neural pathways and the dementia overtaking Harry’s brain. Plaques and tangles breaking through his last lines of defense, smothering synapses and trapping memories. Battle lines were redrawn daily as dementia encroached further into his mind and body.r />
  Harry slammed a file cabinet in the outer office and muttered something unintelligible.

  Kat jumped.

  “What’s wrong with you?” Jace asked. “Didn’t you hear me?”

  Kat met his eyes and couldn’t answer. Her lower lip trembled.

  “Why are you staring at me like that?”

  Kat burst into tears. “Harry’s got Alzheimer’s.”

  Jace didn’t hesitate. He pulled her close, holding her against his chest as the tears flowed down her cheeks. “So, now the diagnosis is official.”

  “You don’t seem surprised.”

  Jace pulled back to meet Kat’s eyes. He stroked her cheek. “C’mon, Kat. We both know what’s been happening to him. His delusions and accidents. It’s more than just forgetfulness. But why didn’t you talk to me?” He pulled her towards him. “You knew before—at the doctor’s office?”

  “Yes.” She didn’t mention the first appointment. Her tears soaked his shirt as she burrowed her face into his chest.

  “But you kept it from me? Why?”

  How could she tell him why? Tell him she was afraid he would leave her? He would be insulted at the suggestion. But her father left. Maybe Jace would too.

  “I was waiting for the right time.”

  “The right time was the minute you knew, Kat. You didn’t want to tell me—you know how that makes me feel?” Jace turned away, a hurt expression in his eyes.

  “I didn’t know what to say.” He was right of course, but she was scared.

  Jace pulled her close and kissed her. “Kat, I love you. I have a right to know. You just can’t leave me out of things like this.”

  “I know, but talking about it—it just scares me. It makes it too real. I can’t deal with it right now.” Kat willed herself to stop crying. Crying never solved anything.

  ”Your mom had Alzheimer’s.”

  She nodded as tears streamed down her face.

  There—he’d said for her, out loud. She was just fourteen when her mom died and she’d moved in with the Dentons. Uncle Harry and Aunt Elsie. And Hillary.