Game Theory--A Katerina Carter Fraud Legal Thriller

by Colleen Cross

  Even though she had expected it, the words still astonished her:

  Contact your poison control center and seek immediate medical attention if product is ingested, inhaled or contacts skin, eyes, or mucous membranes. May cause blindness.

  Ingestion may cause gastrointestinal distress including nausea, vomiting and stomach cramps, pallor, dizziness, fainting, seizures, mental confusion, delirium or death.

  Kat focused on the last word. She was running out of time. So was Harry.

  Chapter 62

  Kat ran the two blocks to Harry’s house in the rain. After the snowplow incident, she’d avoided driving Jace’s truck as much as possible. It gave her the creeps after such a targeted attack. She sprinted around the corner, relieved to see that Hillary’s black Porsche wasn’t parked out front. Neither was Harry’s Lincoln, or any other cars for that matter.

  She hoped she wasn’t too late. She cursed herself for leaving the pesticide at Harry’s place. A major misstep, since it was additional potential proof of what had poisoned Harry. What if it was gone? The receipt alone wasn’t enough evidence that someone was trying to harm him. Leaving the pesticide at Harry’s also meant ample supply for future poison doses. What had she been thinking?

  Hillary would be long gone by now, having already harvested Harry’s money, credit line, and everything else. Including his house, his last thing of value. And soon, possibly his life.

  Kat puzzled over why Hillary would take such an extreme step. She already had all his money and his house. What else was there?

  A split second later she realized there was something else. Harry had a life insurance policy. She tore down the driveway towards the garage. Hillary wasn’t going to get away with this. Not if she could help it.

  The freezing rain pelted down loud and hard, splattering mud up onto her running shoes. Kat shivered, wishing she’d worn something waterproof.

  She landed in a puddle and winced as cold water seeped into her shoes. They squished as she jogged the last few steps down the driveway to the padlocked garage door. She shoved her frozen fingers into her pocket and fished out the key. She fumbled with numb fingers, trying to work the rusty lock. Finally the sticky tumbler turned.

  She opened the garage and placed the padlock on the door latch. She sighed in relief when she spotted the pesticide bags still above the workbench, untouched. She hesitated, uncertain. Was this a crime scene? If so, was removing the bag tampering with the evidence? But she couldn’t leave it to be used again.

  The thundering rain increased in volume as she entered the garage, as if on cue. It drowned out her thoughts like a conductor’s crescendo. Kat glanced at the open door. It was black outside except for the cold sodium light of a streetlamp across the street. It glistened off the spikes of rain as they charged to the ground. She’d better hurry before she froze to death.

  Should she take the pesticides, or leave the bag here?

  In the end she decided to take it. Of course Hillary could simply buy another bag, but at least this way she had removed the poison source, and preserved the evidence. She pulled the bags down one by one and deposited them on the workbench.

  Evidence. She stared at her hands. She had touched the bag too.

  But the most important thing was to remove the poison. Maybe she could tie these particular bags to the Garden Heaven video footage. Lot numbers could be tied to dates, and so on. Of course, it all rested on her hunch about this pesticide. Nothing was proven yet.

  She regretted not driving over in the truck. The thought of lugging ten pounds of pesticides for two blocks wasn’t exactly appealing. She searched through Harry’s garage, looking in drawers and boxes for a plastic bag to protect the bag from the rain. The plastic would also preserve the fingerprints on the bag. Of course, that included her own.

  She bent down and searched through a pail of plastic bags.

  A shadow blocked the outside light and Kat turned towards the door.

  “What are you doing in here?” Hillary’s voice was unmistakable.

  Kat rose to her feet to face Hillary. She kicked herself for not realizing sooner that Hillary would be back for the poison. And to cover her tracks.

  “Answer me. Why are you here, Kat? This isn’t your house.” Hillary stood in the doorway, arms crossed. She wore jeans, boots, and a black pullover. “You don’t belong here.”

  “I—I’m just checking on something for Harry.” Kat shivered.

  Hillary scoffed as she entered the garage. “Checking on what? Harry doesn’t need anything. Certainly not from you.”

  Kat glanced at the workbench, glad she hadn’t already picked up the bag. At least Hillary wouldn’t know she was after the pesticide. “Why are you here, Hillary? It’s not your house either.”

  Hillary smirked but said nothing. Instead, she shook her plastic water bottle and stepped towards the workbench.

  “I don’t have time for your ridiculous accusations, Kat. I’ve got enough problems of my own without you harping at me.” Hillary glanced at her watch.

  “I’ll bet you do. Late for something? Or maybe things aren’t wrapping up as quickly as you hoped they would?”

  Hillary dropped her water bottle on the workbench, right beside the pesticide bag.

  Hillary wore gardening gloves. Had Hillary been wearing them when she administered the poison?

  Kat flashed back to the Garden Heaven video. Hillary had gloves then too. Were Kat’s fingerprints the only ones on the pesticide bag?

  She shuddered. Maybe she was just being paranoid. The garden center visit was the one anomaly that couldn’t be explained away. Hillary had never been a gardener. She certainly didn’t nurture and grow things. She killed them.

  “I think you should leave now,” Hillary said.

  “I’m not going anywhere.” Kat stood her ground.

  Hillary pointed a trigger finger at Kat and laughed. “I’ll give you thirty seconds to disappear. Or else.” She marched towards Kat, blocking the light from the open door.

  Kat felt all semblance of self-control vanish. Enough was enough. “How could you do this, Hillary?”

  “Do what?” Hillary flashed her whitened veneers. But her smile was cold.

  “You think I don’t know what you’re up to?” Kat didn’t mention the poison. “The credit cards, the bills? Your name on Harry’s house title? A new low, even for you. Are you so desperate that you have to steal an old man’s last hope for a comfortable life?”

  “How dare you accuse me of stealing! You should know. You stole my life.” Hillary backed against the workbench, in front of the pesticide bags.

  “What are you talking about?” Kat moved closer. “You’re responsible for your own life. Nothing I do changes that.”

  “He’s my father, Kat, not yours. I’m sick of you muscling in, getting half of everything. You have no right to anything.”

  “Half of what?”

  Hillary didn’t answer. She grabbed a screwdriver off Harry’s workbench and stabbed the pesticide bag. She ripped it open and lifted it above her head, releasing a dusting of powder. Then she charged Kat.

  Clouds of powder burst from the bag, enveloping Kat’s head and face. Kat gasped as it covered her face, neck and shoulders, invaded her nostrils and lungs. She dropped her head, and shielded her eyes with her arms. But it was too late. The powder was everywhere. It stuck to her wet clothes, covered her shoes and coated the garage floor. She gagged, inhaling the pesticide into her lungs. She flailed her arms and thrashed, momentarily blinded as the powder stung her eyes.

  Kat’s eyes burned as she slowly opened one. She rubbed her eyes and staggered forward. She had to flush the poison from her eyes, but the nearest sink was inside the house.

  “Everything here is mine. Is that clear?” Hillary turned and walked away, the half-empty bag in one hand.

  Then the door slammed and the padlock clicked.

  “Oh, and cuz—I’ll be sure and tell Dad you said goodbye.”

  Chapter 63 />
  Kat stumbled blindly towards the workbench and ran her hand across the surface. She let out a sigh when she touched Hillary’s water bottle. She squirted a drop onto her finger and tasted it to be sure. Plain water.

  Why had she given Hillary the benefit of the doubt? She should know by now that Hillary’s actions were meant to benefit one person only. Even if that meant betraying Kat, Harry, or anyone else.

  She held up the bottle and squirted the contents into one eye, then the other, flushing them until the burning stopped. She used the remaining water to rinse off her face as best she could. Her eyes still teared, but at least she could open them to see.

  All the Garden Heaven bags were gone.

  Kat pushed on the door, knowing it was futile. She had heard Hillary relock the padlock. How could Hillary just leave her here? Kat scanned the garage. She considered breaking the window when she realized there was another way out. The garage door opener.

  She pressed it. A minute later she stood outside in the lane, gulping the fresh air and letting the rain wash the poison from her skin and clothes.

  She no longer had the pesticide bags she had come to collect as evidence. Hillary had taken care of that. Regardless, she should gather some powder to get tested. She headed back inside and grabbed an empty yogurt container from the stack Harry kept under the workbench. She scooped up as much as she could from the garage floor.

  She called Connor Whitehall but got no answer. She left a message with instructions on retrieving the sample and video from her house, along the location of her spare key. She had no time to wait for him. She had to get to the hospital before Hillary did.

  An hour later, Kat rushed down the hospital corridor, only to discover Hillary already there. She sat in a chair outside Harry’s room, wailing.

  Despite her wet clothes, Kat broke into a sweat. Had Hillary done it? Had she killed him? She froze outside Harry’s room. What could she do?

  At that instant Hillary looked up. If she was shocked at seeing Kat, she didn’t show it. “You don’t belong here.” She shooed Kat away with a manicured hand.

  Kat ignored her and ran into Harry’s room. A nurse glanced up at her as she entered. It was the same nurse who had been rude to her earlier. She held up her palm, motioning for Kat to stop.

  Kat’s heart stopped. Was she too late? She retreated outside to where Hillary sat, stone-faced.

  Hillary’s audience was gone, as were her tears. Her cheeks were dry and her makeup appeared no worse for wear. She knew better than to talk to Hillary, but she couldn’t help herself. “What did you do to him?”

  Hillary smiled. “What makes you think I did anything?”

  “I don’t think—I know, Hillary.”

  The nurse emerged from Harry’s room. She ignored Hillary’s sniffles and stared directly at Kat. “He’s worse.”

  “Huh?” Kat was shocked that the nurse was even speaking to her. Not only that, but her eyes belied concern. Why wasn’t she telling this to Hillary? “Worse how?”

  “He’s in shock. All his symptoms have returned, worse than ever. He’s ingested poison again.”

  Without me being here. Suddenly Kat realized why the nurse was sympathetic. She now knew Kat hadn’t done it. But did she realize that Hillary had?

  The nurse shifted her gaze to Hillary, whose sniffles had morphed into a wail.

  Hillary’s bawling sounded convincing, but her eyes gave her away. They darted between the nurse and Kat, hoping for a reaction.

  Hillary must have given Harry one final dose. One bigger than the rest. While the medical staff tried to save a life, Hillary was intent on taking one. And she had almost succeeded.

  Kat punched in Connor Whitehall’s number. By now she hoped he would have the Garden Heaven video footage, as well as the pesticide sample. If all went according to plan, Connor Whitehall was handing it over to the police at this very moment. The sample would match the toxins found in Harry’s blood test, and the authorities would be forced to take action.

  Hillary stood outside the room. She wailed, louder and louder, like a sole survivor of a disaster. Every few seconds she glanced around to check on her audience.

  Within a minute, the hallway was completely empty as all available medical staff had rushed into Harry’s room. Only Hillary and Kat remained outside, forbidden to go inside.

  Hillary’s crocodile tears disgusted Kat. Did she really think she could fool everyone?

  “Why’d you do it, Hillary?”

  “Do what?” A sly smile played on Hillary’s lips. “I have no idea what you’re talking about. Even if I did, you’ll never know. No one will.”

  “I do know. I’ve got proof.”

  Hillary raised her brows. “Really? What exactly?”

  “They know it’s you, Hillary. They know about the money and the poison.”

  “Who’s they?”

  “The doctors, the police. Blood tests have confirmed the poison, and the police have proof. It’s all on video. You at Garden Heaven, you poisoning the orange juice. You can’t get away with this.” Kat added the orange juice just to gauge Hillary’s reaction.

  “You’re bluffing.”

  “The police are on their way over right now.” Even if Connor had provided the footage to the police, she doubted they’d be this quick. But Hillary wouldn’t know that.

  “Say anything and I’ll make you sorry you ever lived,” Hillary whispered as she peered around the corner into Harry’s room.

  But no one heard her except Kat. The medical staff were intent on their work.

  Hillary pulled a compact from her purse and flipped it open. She dabbed at her mascara with a tissue and glared at Kat. Gone were Hillary’s hysterics, switched off like they always did when her audience vanished.

  “Don’t leave town, Hillary. You’ve got some explaining to do.”

  Hillary stared back at her, dead calm. “Just try and stop me.”

  “I already have.”

  Hillary glared at Kat, hatred burning in her eyes. “I’ll get you for this.”

  “Too late for that.” Kat met Hillary’s stare, wondering why she had ever been afraid of her in the first place. She had also been blind to the fact that Hillary was incapable of caring for anyone but herself. With that realization, Hillary no longer held any power over her.

  Kat did belong, and she had a right to be here. No matter what Hillary said or thought.

  “Accuse me of anything, and I’ll make you sorry you did.” Hillary scowled at Kat.

  “The truth will come out, Hillary. It already has.”

  Hillary glanced towards Harry’s doorway and rolled her eyes. She paused momentarily, then turned on her heels and marched down the hall and through hospital ward’s double doors. Her heels echoed off the walls, followed by the ding of the elevator.

  If Kat ever saw her again, it would be too soon.

  Chapter 64

  Kat sat in Zachary’s office a few hours later, stunned by what Zachary had just told her.

  “You bet it all?” Kat’s mouth dropped open, astounded that Zachary would bet everything on one trade. “Why, Zachary?”

  Zachary stood in front of his computer terminal, his shirtsleeves rolled up. Coffee stained the front of his wrinkled shirt, and he looked like he hadn’t slept in days. For the first time, Kat felt better dressed than him.

  “I can get it all back, Kat.” He smiled. “My model works. I just need to prove that—”

  “Zachary, it’s too late. It doesn’t matter anymore whether your model works or not. Edgewater investors and the authorities need to know about Nathan’s Ponzi scheme. Now.”

  Zachary pointed at his trading screen. “They will, after I get the money back. Watch the screen. The Euro’s up, and I’ve already made back some of the losses. Almost a billion so far.” He pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and wiped his forehead. “A billion, Kat. I’ve got to ride this thing while it lasts.”

  The television droned on behind Zachary. The dollar was co
llapsing against the Euro. Dozens of harried-looking traders sat glued to their computer screens, the polar opposite of the scene playing out in front of her with Zachary.

  “It’s the investor’s money, Zachary. Cut your losses and get out while you can.”

  “That’s crazy. I make a hundred million for every ten basis points the Euro appreciates against the dollar. Why stop now?”

  A hundred basis points equaled one percent in trading terms. A billion dollars equaled half of Edgewater’s losses from Nathan’s fraud. “It can easily go the other way, Zachary. Let it go.”

  Gone was the naked panic etched on Zachary’s face when she told him about Nathan’s Ponzi. His expression had changed from vulnerable to smug.

  Kat stared at the graph on screen. The Euro’s trend line was green, already up one percent against the greenback today.

  “Sell it, Zachary. Get out while you’re ahead and report the fraud. The investors will understand that it was all Nathan and not you.”

  “Not yet.”

  “What if you lose what little is left? It’s a gamble you’re sure to lose.”

  “Don’t jinx me. It’s not a gamble at all. My bet is big enough to move the market by itself. Once it gains momentum, I’ll be back in the black within days, if not hours.”

  “You can’t be serious. After complaining about Nathan ruining Edgewater, you’re about to do the same.”

  Zachary snorted. “Rich people won’t understand a loss this big, Kat. They’ll be out for blood once they hear what Nathan did. They’ll assume he’s taking the fall for me too. Or that I’m a complete idiot, too stupid to notice a massive fraud right under my eyes. I’m either incompetent or a thief. Either way, I lose.”

  “With enough proof they’ll believe you.” Kat pointed to the screen. “Those profits aren’t locked in. They can easily swing the other way. Instead of a two billion loss, you could lose much more. Unload your position, Zachary, and face the music. You haven’t done anything wrong—yet.”