[Katerina Carter 01.0] Exit Strategy

by Colleen Cross

  “Katerina.” It was more of a statement than a greeting.

  She jumped at the unfamiliar voice, startled. She hadn’t heard anyone come in behind her. It was the detective who had interviewed her at Takahashi’s house. What were the odds on that?

  Platt. The other detective must have passed him the note. It now dangled from his fingertips, no longer in its protective sleeve. Platt couldn’t be more than thirty, pretty young to make detective. She wondered what he had done to impress his superiors into promoting him so quickly.

  “Katerina?” he repeated. “Remember me?”

  Detective John Platt’s steely eyes darted around the room quickly, absorbing everything except Kat’s pointed glare.

  He crumpled the note in his hand, making sure Kat saw. Then he stuck the ball of paper in his pants pocket. Even in the semi-darkness, Kat got the message.

  Jace returned from outside, stopping midstride, surprised to see Platt. The two men stared at each other without saying anything. Platt had to be at least six-foot-four, judging by how he towered over Jace.

  Then Jace broke the silence.

  “You two know each other?”

  “Detective Platt is investigating the Takahashi murder.” Kat hadn’t told Jace everything about the murder scene. Like walking through the house, using the phone, and contaminating evidence. She didn’t plan to either. Maybe a big omission, but she didn’t need one more person to tell her how much she had screwed up. Cindy had berated her enough already.

  That was probably why Platt was here, notified when the other detective ran her name in the computer. Was she a suspect? Although polite, the police hadn’t been exactly friendly with her. At the very least, she had trespassed. At the worst, well, she didn’t want to think about that.

  “Mind if I take a quick look around?” Without waiting for an answer, Platt stepped back into the hallway and walked around the main floor. Jace and Kat’s eyes met as they followed him into the kitchen.

  Platt shone a light onto the table, which was currently doing double duty as an eating area and desk. Right now it was a mess, the table strewn with papers, her laptop, and a half full bowl of popcorn.

  “Um, detective, it happened at the front entrance. Don’t you want to focus there?”

  “Already had a look. The guys are working on it right now. Thought I’d do a perimeter check, make sure everything’s secure.” His stare pierced through Kat. “You can never be too careful.”

  Kat felt uneasy. Why dispatch four cops? Was it an excuse to search without a warrant? Something didn’t add up.

  Platt and his entourage finally left at midnight. Kat’s police involvement in the last week was more than she would have wished for in a lifetime. She felt like a suspected terrorist on a do-not-fly list.

  “Why is Platt so interested in you? Didn’t he talk to you already at Takahashi’s house?” Jace stood at the bedroom window, drawing the drapes shut.

  “I don’t know. I thought I answered all his questions.” Kat grabbed one of Jace’s T-shirts and went into the bathroom to change.

  “Something else is going on. He didn’t seem too interested in who might want to harm you. He’s more interested in scoping out the house than following up on the threat.”

  Kat emerged from the bathroom and sat on the edge of the bed, exhausted.

  “Jace, can’t you take anything at face value? Why does there always have to be an ulterior motive?” He didn’t need to know that her fingerprints were all over the crime scene.

  “Maybe it’s the journalist in me. I’ve learned that things are rarely as they appear on the surface. As important as Buddy was to you, this guy’s a bit too senior for a pet-death investigation.”

  “I know. And I don’t like how he traipsed through our place like he owned it.” As soon as Kat said it, she wished she hadn’t. Our place.

  “I’ve got a bad feeling about him, Kat. Watch yourself around him.”

  Jace pulled back the covers and climbed into bed.

  “Aren’t you getting under the covers?”

  “Isn’t there somewhere else to sleep?”

  “Not until we can get you another bed. Tomorrow.”

  Kat had left hers at her apartment. Somehow she figured if she didn’t move it, everything would go back to normal. Her landlord would un-evict her, and the zeros on her Visa bill would transfer over to her bank account. It hadn’t happened.

  Jace patted the bed beside him.

  “C’mon, you’re tired. I promise to be good if you are.”

  “I’ll try.” She was too tired to protest, so she blew out the candles and got in the other side. Tina settled in at her feet, seemingly oblivious to Buddy’s absence. Within five minutes, Jace’s breathing deepened and she could tell he was already asleep.

  As Kat lay in the dark, she thought about Liberty’s board meeting tomorrow. The board was dominated by Nick Racine, who clearly wanted to fire Kat, and until recently, by Alex Braithwaite. The rest of the board usually followed their lead.

  The board expected a progress report on her initial findings over the last couple of days, but there was very little to show for her work so far. Her investigation uncovered more questions than answers. Not what the board wanted to hear. It also brought her a few days closer to Nick’s Friday deadline, and gave Nick more justification to fire her.

  She had to come up with something for tomorrow, but what?

  Tracing the money to Lebanon wasn’t good enough, as she hadn’t made any progress in getting it back and had no leads. The production data was another story. Something was definitely going on, but sharing it with the board without further proof and a solution wasn’t wise. The evidence might even implicate one of the board members. And what if Jace was right about the threat being connected to Liberty?

  Still no trace of Bryant, but that worried Kat less. They would find him eventually. As long as she focused on the money trail, he would be there at the end.

  Yet nagging doubts tugged at Kat. Who killed Alex Braithwaite and why? Was it related to Takahashi’s murder? And who killed Takahashi? Covering up falsified mine production was a strong motive to kill a former chief geologist who might talk. Whoever murdered him or conspired to murder him could be in the boardroom.

  19

  Carter & Associates was a beehive of activity this morning. The Liberty board meeting was in less than two hours, and Kat was busy making some last-minute finishing touches on her presentation for the board progress update. Harry was helping Kat with a storyboard on the timeline of the doctored production.

  She planned to show the correlation between increased production and stock price. Increased diamond prices over the last year would have also affected the stock price, so she adjusted that out of her analysis. After assuming the same volume at last year’s diamond prices, then removing an equivalent amount of the share price increase, the share price was still eighty percent higher. That could only be attributed to the new mine at Mystic Lake. So if that mine were bogus, investors would likely react similarly, but by selling the stock this time.

  How would the board react? They needed to be aware of and take action on any fraudulent activity occurring under their watch. On the other hand, their compensation was based on the stock price. And she didn’t know who was behind the fraud yet. Yet it had to be tied to Bryant’s theft, and maybe even Braithwaite’s and Takahashi’s murders. It was too much of a coincidence not to be.

  Until she could prove who was doing it, it might be best to wait. But Nick’s Friday deadline loomed, and she had nothing else to go on. The board members had a vested interest in anything that drove up the share price. And some, like Nick Racine, also had the access to manipulate production.

  She was mulling this over when Jace burst in, soaking wet from the rain outside.

  “Breaking news!” A trail of drip marks appeared in Jace’s wake as he dumped his briefcase on Kat’s office chair.

  “Kat, I think we’ve got the Lebanese connection! This just came
in on Reuters.” Jace dropped the paper on her desk.

  The type was smudged from the rain, but Bancroft Richardson jumped out at her from the headline.

  Bancroft Richardson implicated in Terrorist Money Laundering Probe

  “Five billion, right? It matches your bank transfers. It’s got to be related to Liberty.”

  “It could be. But how can we be sure it’s the same money? Just because there aren’t a lot of large Lebanese Canadian currency transfers doesn’t mean the two are connected. We can’t prove it.”

  “As a matter of fact, I think we can. The Lebanese banking authorities provided details. The Lebanese bank account was opened with funds transferred in from the Caymans. So far, all the details fit, including the amount—five billion, give or take a few thousand dollars. Read the rest of the story, Kat.”

  Kat picked up the newspaper and scanned the story.

  A local broker is under investigation after failing to report numerous wire transfers totaling approximately five billion dollars. The funds were transferred from a Lebanese bank and deposited into the account of Opal Holdings, a Bancroft Richardson client account. Under anti-money laundering laws, financial institutions are required to report large or suspicious transactions. According to confidential sources, numerous small deposits were made to circumvent the anti-money laundering reporting thresholds.

  The deposits were discovered only after Lebanese authorities notified Canadian securities officials. The large volume of transactions triggered an investigation into a recently opened Credit Libanais account, the Lebanese source of the transfers. The Bancroft Richardson client account has been frozen pending the outcome of the joint investigation by Canadian and Lebanese officials.

  It only took a minute to see what Jace was getting at.

  “It does sound promising. If we can match the account numbers, it might check out.” Kat felt elation at the discovery, but also disappointment. If it hadn’t been for Jace, she might have never made the connection. Despite the good news, she felt like a bit of a failure. Why couldn’t she have figured it out on her own?

  Harry appeared in Kat’s office doorway, attracted by the commotion.

  “There’s one thing I don’t understand,” she said. “The Lebanese bank secrecy laws. Why did they disclose—”

  “According to Credit Libanais, the Lebanese bank, and the Lebanese police, they were suspicious about the transaction volumes and launched an investigation. That turned up a link to terrorism, which allows them to sidestep Lebanon’s bank secrecy laws. That’s why they were able to release the information to the authorities here. As long as they can prove the money is linked to terrorism, the Lebanese bank secrecy rules don’t apply.

  “When the money then turned up in a Bancroft Richardson brokerage account, the Canadian authorities got involved. That’s where it sits right now. They’re questioning the broker and asking why he didn’t report the suspicious transactions.”

  “Did you say Bancroft Richardson? That’s where I have my account.” Harry was incredulous. “I wonder if it’s my broker. Probably not. My broker’s a dud. Never takes my calls and has no time for me. What’s his name?”

  “Frank Moretti. Word is that he’s their top broker.”

  “That’s him! That’s my guy.” Harry made a beeline for Kat’s computer and logged onto his Bancroft Richardson account. “I guess he’s too busy with the high rollers to worry about little old me.”

  He took a deep breath inward as he stared at the screen. “Wait a sec. This is different from the statement I showed you a couple of days ago. It says I have four hundred thousand shares of Liberty. Four hundred thousand!”

  Harry pointed at the screen.

  “That can’t possibly be right. And something else is wrong. It shows here that I sold another one hundred thousand shares short. There’s got to be a mistake. I don’t short stock, Kat. I don’t even really understand how it works.”

  The three of them gathered around the computer and stared. It was completely different than the statement he had shown Kat earlier in the week.

  Kat thought for a moment before speaking.

  “I’ll bet there are all kinds of account discrepancies in Moretti’s client accounts. And I think I know why.”

  “Because he’s a bad bookkeeper?” Harry wasn’t following yet.

  “No. He’s trying to pump up the stock. He would have bought shares for himself first before buying for you or his other clients. It’s called front running. Then he’ll sell his first, make a tidy profit, then sell yours and his other clients’ last. By that time those shares will be worth a lot less, since there will be more selling than buying going on.”

  “I never gave him permission to invest without telling me. Can he really do that?”

  Kat didn’t answer.

  “This is great for my story,” Jace said. “Not only is Liberty falsifying its mining results, but there’s a stock manipulation angle as well.”

  “It might be great for your story, Jace, but it’s a disaster for me. Now I’m in even more hot water with Elsie. She’s going to kill me. I don’t have that kind of money. What am I going to do?” Harry looked sick with panic.

  “Tough break, Harry. Maybe the stock will rebound. It could still work out okay. Guys, I’ve got to go. I’ve got a story to write.” Jace grabbed his jacket and was already halfway down the hall.

  Kat dropped her papers and ran after him.

  “Jace, wait! You can’t write this! Most definitely not the part about the doctored production. Not yet. It will tip off whoever’s behind all the manipulation. I need to find out what it means first. I need more time before you do a story on it.”

  “Sorry, Kat. I can’t wait any longer. This is huge. Moretti’s share price manipulation must be related to the faked production. If I don’t break it, someone else will.”

  “But I still have to catch the Liberty insider that’s salting the mine production. How am I going to do that when you put Liberty under the spotlight like this? Please, Jace. The bogus production is off limits until I have more details. We’re the only ones who know about it right now.” That settled it. No discussion of Mystic Lake with the board. She would have to figure out something else to put in the presentation.

  “Okay, Kat. But I’ll only hold off till tomorrow. My editor’s on my case. It’s been awhile since I had a good story, and only a matter of time before every other reporter in town knows about this.”

  Jace raced out of the office, almost colliding with Detective Platt. He glanced back at Platt with a look of distaste but continued out the door.

  Kat groaned inwardly. This unexpected visit was the last thing she needed. She wanted to forget yesterday, at least until after the Liberty board meeting. Jace was right. A second detective visit was definitely above and beyond the call of duty for Buddy.

  Platt got straight to the point.

  “Katerina, we need to talk. You still haven’t given me a reason for being at Ken Takahashi’s house the other night. What were you doing there?”

  “Detective Platt. I’d like to talk more with you, but I’ve got a meeting in a half hour. Can I call you this afternoon?”

  Platt sat down in one of the reception chairs and picked up a magazine off the table. Kat did a slow burn as he leafed through it.

  “It’s in your best interest to talk to me, Katerina. Sooner is better,” Platt pursed his thin lips into a stern line.

  “Why? Am I a suspect?”

  “Let’s just say you’re a person of interest. You’re not being honest with me about your reasons for being at Takahashi’s house. I want to know why. What are you hiding?”

  “I’m not hiding anything. You think I was involved in his murder?”

  Platt said nothing. Instead he put his feet on the table, obviously trying to irritate her. It worked.

  “You can’t be serious!” Kat was dumbfounded. “I went for a visit, and when he didn’t answer, I went inside to investigate. Is it a crime to be worried
about a person’s welfare?”

  “Well, I can’t rule you out. Your fingerprints and shoe prints are all over the crime scene. And no evidence of anyone else’s DNA. That makes you number one on the suspect list. Unless you prove otherwise.”

  Kat felt a dark sense of foreboding. He was serious. Apparently she was in a big whack of trouble.

  “Detective, what would be my motive? What would I gain by killing Takahashi? He happened to be my only reliable source of information about the missing CFO and the money. Now I’ve got nothing.”

  Platt stood up.

  “Fine. We can talk later. Just don’t leave town. Don’t go anywhere without telling me first.”

  “This is crazy. You have two people murdered with ties to the same company, and you’re telling me you don’t have any other suspects? There are plenty of people who would benefit from their murders. And I’m not one of them!”

  “That remains to be determined.”

  “Really, detective? First of all, I didn’t even know these people until a week ago. I was hired by Liberty to recover some stolen money. That’s probably the motive right there. Someone was trying to silence Ken.”

  ”Like I said, don’t go anywhere. I’ll be watching you.” Platt turned and exited the office without a second glance. Harry peered cautiously around the corner from inside Kat’s office as the door slammed shut.

  “Kat, what on earth is going on here? Why are the police after you? Are you in trouble?”

  Kat filled in Harry about her discovery at Takahashi’s house.

  “You think it’s related to Liberty? I don’t know, Kat. This Liberty case might not be worth the money. Sounds like you’re messing with some scary people.”

  Kat checked the time. The board meeting was in twenty minutes.

  20

  Kat felt the tension the minute she entered Susan’s office. Susan and Nick sat opposite each other at the conference table, like face-off adversaries in a high-stakes hockey game.