Read Online Geneva Connection, The by Martin Bodenham - Free Book Online
Authors: Martin Bodenham
Tags: Literature & Fiction, Thrillers, Mystery; Thriller & Suspense, Thrillers & Suspense, Financial
Ads: Link
organization expands. You’ve seen the growth in deposits for yourself.”
“The growth has been impressive. We had only two hundred branches when I joined two years back. Now look at us.”
“Believe me, depositing the cash is just the start of our work. We need intelligent and loyal people like you to help us preserve the money we’ve worked so hard to make.”
“What would my new work involve?”
“You’ll be helping me transfer funds to our various investment managers around the world. But more importantly, we must monitor their investment performance, and you will be part of that process.”
“Vital work.”
“There’s nothing more important than this. It’s the final stage of converting our cash into legitimate assets. Jivaro himself takes an active interest in this area of our work. You will have many opportunities to impress him.”
“It would be an honor to work at head office.” Vargas began to absorb the consequences of his unexpected promotion. He’d be joining the inner circle. Not yet one of the fifteen lieutenants reporting directly to Jivaro, but just one step below. If his old police colleagues could see him now.
“Then it is settled. I’ll make the arrangements.”
“What will happen to my position at Corolla?”
“You’ll be a hard man to replace.”
“I have a few suggestions.”
“We can discuss that later.”
Chapter 11
F OR T HE F IRST T IME in his life, Kent did not know what to say. He felt the weight of his partners’ hopes that he’d come up with a plan. He’d always been the one to work out a clever way through difficult situations facing the firm. It was one of the things his partners valued in his leadership. No matter what the problem, Kent would always find a solution. But, this one time, he struggled to see a way out; he hadn’t been here before. He felt like a champion boxer having just received his first knockout punch and now he was on the ropes.
“Doug Wright is going to go ballistic when he hears the news,” said Kirkland, breaking the silence in the conference room. “He terminated his discussions with the other firm the moment he signed our offer letter today. He’s bound to sue.”
Kent stood up to leave. “At the moment, I don’t give a shit about that clown. We’ll deal with Henderson Wright tomorrow. First, we need to assess what this means for us and how we’re going to move on from here. Let’s all sleep on it and meet up at eight tomorrow morning. Cancel any appointments you have.”
He needed time to think this through on his own. There had to be a way forward. Maybe, there could be something rescued out of the bankruptcy process. He wanted to sleep on things before making any snap decisions. The other partners stayed seated, staring at the images on the silent TV like blinded rabbits.
“There’ll be a way through this,” Kent said as he left the boardroom.
On the drive home, he was quiet as he contemplated the reality of losing his firm. A decade’s work down the drain, and a lifetime’s reputation torn to shreds. He might just have accepted this if CBC’s investment performance had been poor, but it was one of the best in the industry. He couldn’t accept the injustice of it all. What made it worse was losing CBC’s investment firepower just when the recession was throwing off great buying opportunities. That morning, he had a large checkbook and an increasing choice of attractive investment deals in the middle of a recession—a buyer’s paradise. He’d never be able to create these ideal conditions again. Grampian had ruined a once-in-a-lifetime situation. Had he been wrong to rely so heavily on them for investment capital? Should he have spent more time on the fundraising road for the third fund and spread the commitments across a wider group of institutional investors? It was too late now, anyway. He couldn’t change that.
“How serious is this, John?” Sarah asked, breaking into his thoughts.
“It
“The growth has been impressive. We had only two hundred branches when I joined two years back. Now look at us.”
“Believe me, depositing the cash is just the start of our work. We need intelligent and loyal people like you to help us preserve the money we’ve worked so hard to make.”
“What would my new work involve?”
“You’ll be helping me transfer funds to our various investment managers around the world. But more importantly, we must monitor their investment performance, and you will be part of that process.”
“Vital work.”
“There’s nothing more important than this. It’s the final stage of converting our cash into legitimate assets. Jivaro himself takes an active interest in this area of our work. You will have many opportunities to impress him.”
“It would be an honor to work at head office.” Vargas began to absorb the consequences of his unexpected promotion. He’d be joining the inner circle. Not yet one of the fifteen lieutenants reporting directly to Jivaro, but just one step below. If his old police colleagues could see him now.
“Then it is settled. I’ll make the arrangements.”
“What will happen to my position at Corolla?”
“You’ll be a hard man to replace.”
“I have a few suggestions.”
“We can discuss that later.”
Chapter 11
F OR T HE F IRST T IME in his life, Kent did not know what to say. He felt the weight of his partners’ hopes that he’d come up with a plan. He’d always been the one to work out a clever way through difficult situations facing the firm. It was one of the things his partners valued in his leadership. No matter what the problem, Kent would always find a solution. But, this one time, he struggled to see a way out; he hadn’t been here before. He felt like a champion boxer having just received his first knockout punch and now he was on the ropes.
“Doug Wright is going to go ballistic when he hears the news,” said Kirkland, breaking the silence in the conference room. “He terminated his discussions with the other firm the moment he signed our offer letter today. He’s bound to sue.”
Kent stood up to leave. “At the moment, I don’t give a shit about that clown. We’ll deal with Henderson Wright tomorrow. First, we need to assess what this means for us and how we’re going to move on from here. Let’s all sleep on it and meet up at eight tomorrow morning. Cancel any appointments you have.”
He needed time to think this through on his own. There had to be a way forward. Maybe, there could be something rescued out of the bankruptcy process. He wanted to sleep on things before making any snap decisions. The other partners stayed seated, staring at the images on the silent TV like blinded rabbits.
“There’ll be a way through this,” Kent said as he left the boardroom.
On the drive home, he was quiet as he contemplated the reality of losing his firm. A decade’s work down the drain, and a lifetime’s reputation torn to shreds. He might just have accepted this if CBC’s investment performance had been poor, but it was one of the best in the industry. He couldn’t accept the injustice of it all. What made it worse was losing CBC’s investment firepower just when the recession was throwing off great buying opportunities. That morning, he had a large checkbook and an increasing choice of attractive investment deals in the middle of a recession—a buyer’s paradise. He’d never be able to create these ideal conditions again. Grampian had ruined a once-in-a-lifetime situation. Had he been wrong to rely so heavily on them for investment capital? Should he have spent more time on the fundraising road for the third fund and spread the commitments across a wider group of institutional investors? It was too late now, anyway. He couldn’t change that.
“How serious is this, John?” Sarah asked, breaking into his thoughts.
“It
Similar Books
