“And how did you come to be acquainted with Bianchi?” Eggers asked.
“Why? Have you never met him?”
“Many times, since he came to us about the foundation. Well, he sort of came to us. I got a call from somebody who’d gotten a call from somebody who’d gotten a call. Apparently, Bianchi is very sensitive about being rebuffed because of his family’s reputation. He always feels out situations before presenting himself. Saves embarrassment on both sides, I guess.”
“Yes, he does seem to be a cautious fellow.”
“Finally, he came into the office, and we set up the foundation for him, with his daughter as its president. Tell you the truth, I was very impressed with him. With his daughter, too,” Eggers said, wiggling his eyebrows.
“Yes, she’s quite something, isn’t she?”
“We’ve got a couple of associates down at the firm who would do Mob hits on the side just to sniff her underwear.”
“She comes into the office a lot?”
“The foundation’s offices are one floor up from us. We got them the space.”
“And what sort of giving does the foundation do?”
Eggers put down his fork. “This goes no further, right?”
“Right.”
“I mean, Bianchi is a bear about discretion, and he’s not the sort of guy you want to cross.”
“I will be the soul of discretion.”
“They do arts grants. He’s supporting a dozen young painters. Also, the foundation owns his art collection, and they lend to museums. Mostly old masters.”
“What’s the organization’s name?”
“The Briarwood Foundation.”
“I’ve seen that name on public television, as a sponsor of various stuff.”
“They do that, too. Basically, they give to whatever interests the old man. Okay, your turn. How did you meet Bianchi?”
“He’s Dino Bacchetti’s father-in-law.”
“What?”
“I kid you not. The older daughter; they’ve been married, seven, eight years.”
Eggers shook his head. “Now I’ve heard everything.”
“And that goes no further.”
“As you wish.”
They finished their coffee, and Eggers looked at his watch. “I’ve got a deposition; gotta go.”
“Thanks for coming over here.”
“Not at all. When do we get to see the Connecticut place?”
“Give me some time to get it sorted out. By the way…” Stone wrote some numbers on his card and handed it to Eggers. “Here are the phone and fax numbers. They should be working by tomorrow night, but keep them to yourself for the time being.”
“Okay, see you soon.” They shook hands, and Eggers left.