The Two Younger Men Complete Collection

After the men left, she told Janice about what they’d uncovered.

“So you three believe that Bill is behind this?”

“We do,” Clay said.

Janice nodded. “It does certainly seem so.”

Izzy asked, “Do you know Paul Links?”

“I do. Paul and I worked together years ago on a project that nearly didn’t get off the ground because of him. He’s not someone I thought would ever rise in the ranks, but he did. Actually, I was shocked when Bill promoted him to the executive level. He made too many mistakes that I had to clean up.”

It was all making sense to Izzy about how this embezzling operation had been put together. Moody had promoted Links to Vice President, a man who either knew what was going on or was just a pawn. “What about Kenneth Mason and Alberto Gonzales? Do you know them?”

“I’ve never heard of Gonzales before, but I know Kenneth. He’s nothing like Links. Very smart and capable. His office is on this floor, but he’s on holiday in Greece until next week.”

Izzy wondered if that were true, especially since she’d heard Moody talking with him on the phone.

Clay stood. “Let’s go see his office, Janice.”

Mason’s office was pristine. Nothing was out of place. The room had a single window, a desk, and a couple of chairs. No art on the walls.

“How long has Mason worked out of this office?” she asked.

Janice turned on Mason’s computer. “Six years, I believe. Why?”

“Look how sparse this space is. There’s nothing personal here. No photos. No awards. Nothing. I would imagine either someone had just moved in or was getting ready to move out, wouldn’t you?”

“Like he was getting ready to run,” Jay added. “Bill and his cronies are cashing out before our birthday, Clay.”

The prompt for a password appeared on Mason’s screen.

Janice placed her hand into the biometric monitor by his computer. The sound of a chime alerted them that she was past the first set of security measures. Janice typed the GWI master password.

An e-mail from Gonzales to Mason popped up about the shipment from Tibury to the London warehouse.

“Oh my God, this is the proof we need.” Izzy scanned the e-mail quickly. There was no mention of Bill, only of a man Gonzales called el jefe.

The boss. Has to be Moody.

“Print it,” Jay said.

Janice nodded. When she hit the button, a buzzing came from the computer and the e-mail vanished and the screen went black.

Clay leaned forward. “What happened?”

“I don’t know.” Janice typed in the master password again and again. But the screen remained dark.

“My guess is that the embezzlers had a fail-safe set up in GWI’s systems,” Izzy said. “Someone knows we’re getting close. Too close for their comfort. What else can you tell us about Mason, Janice?”

“Not much. He’s middle-aged guy. Single. Has a slight Slavic accent. I believe he’s from Romania, but I’m not sure.” Janice brought out her mobile. “I think I have a picture of him at a company function. Yes. Here it is. He’s the guy behind Iris, whose birthday we were celebrating. Let me enlarge it on his face.”

Izzy looked at the screen. The man had dark eyes and thinning hair. “Is that a scar across his cheek?”

“It is. According to Mason, he got it on a hunting trip when he was a boy.”

“I wonder how much truth there is to that story.” Jay clearly was suspicious.

So am I. “Before we contact anyone, guys, I think we should go back to Dallas ourselves. I know you mentioned James, but until we know how deep this conspiracy goes we need to keep this between the four us. I don’t even want to tell Tom and Lyle. Our call is scheduled in a half hour from now. When we get back to the conference room, I’m going to send them an e-mail to delay our call until tomorrow.”