Page 11 of Bad Seed

He walked into the old two-story house that had once belonged to their great-aunt Ella Pope and headed for the kitchen, grabbed a bottle of beer from the fridge and then went upstairs. He took a quick sip of the beer as he started the bathwater, dumped in the bath salts, and then went back to his and Linette’s bedroom and stripped. His uniform was as muddy and bloody as he was, but a trip to the cleaners would fix that. He steppedinto the tub with his beer, sank down into the hot water, and closed his eyes.

***

A few days had passed since the raid on Wilhem Crossley’s warehouse and his son, Tipton, was on his way home from the airport. Wilhem had skipped going to the office today so he’d be home when Tip arrived.

A few minutes later, he heard a car pull up in front of the estate and looked out. It was Tipton, all bundled up against the cold, getting out of a cab. Wilhem went to the door to greet him. “Welcome home, Son.”

“Dad! Man it’s good to be home!” Tip said.

“And it’s good to have you home,” Wilhem said as he closed the door.

Tip dropped the luggage and gave his dad a big hug. “The trip was very successful. The Hong Kong market is booming, as is the one in Osaka. Oh…I also have some great reproduction pieces coming in from Greece.”

“Good, that’s good, but we have to talk,” Wilhem said.

“Sure thing,” Tip said, and then saw the frown on his dad’s face. “What’s wrong? Are you okay?”

“It’s not me; it’s something to do with the company. I’ll have Borders take your luggage up. Get comfortable, and then meet me in the library.”

Tip frowned. “This sounds serious.”

“About as serious as it gets,” Wilhem said. “Have you had breakfast?”

“Not yet.”

“I’ll ring Cook to bring some rolls and coffee to the library,” Wilhem said. Father and son parted company in the foyer, only to rejoin each other in the library a short while later.

Tip entered, poured himself some coffee, grabbed a sweet roll, and took a bite before moving to the blazing log in the fireplace.

“So, what’s up?” he said as he took his first bite.

Wilhem shoved his hands in his pockets and began to explain. The look on his son’s face went from shock, to disbelief, to anger.

“What the hell, Dad? How did this happen right under our noses? Oh my God. Are we in trouble, too? Do the feds believe we had anything to do with all that?”

“No, no,” Wilhem said. “I suspected something was off but couldn’t put my finger on it, so right after you left, I hired an auditor specializing in corporate crime who soon found the money trail, what had happened, and then where the money was actually going. We are the ones who turned all of this over to the authorities, so we’re in the clear.”

Tip was in shock. “It was someone within the corporation, wasn’t it? Had to be. How could they hide our money when—” He stopped. “Oh my God, it had to be someone in accounting to be able to juggle accounts like that. Am I right?”

Wilhem nodded. “It was Maury Paget. He agreed to testify for a lesser charge.”

“Where’s the justice in that?” Tip shouted. “He gets off easy for robbing us blind? How much money? How much have we lost?”

Wilhem sighed. “Millions.”

The shock on Tip’s face was evident. “Oh my God. Are we in trouble financially? I can sell Mother’s estate. She left it to me when she passed. We hardly ever use it.”

“No, no, Son. We’re not in that kind of trouble. We’re still comfortably solvent, but it was a big hit. Paget swears he’ll give up everything he knows, but not before he gets a deal from the justice department. And this does involve federal authorities, because the kidnapped women were being shipping out of the U.S. bound for foreign ports.”

Tip dropped the sweet roll in the trash. “I’m sick to my stomach,” he muttered. “Why didn’t you call? I would have come home.”

“The feds gave us a gag order. No mention of anything until after the raid, and even then, there was nothing you could have done. Nothing I could have done. Had it not been for Harley Banks, it would still be ongoing.”

“Who’s he?” Tip asked.

“The auditor, and he’s a she.”

“Oh. Right. So, where are we legally? Are we in limbo until the trial, or can we continue to do businessas usual? I ask because there will be shipments arriving within the month.”

---