Swimming to Catalina (Stone Barrington 4)

“I’ll explain the circumstances before I ask you to say anything.”

“All right, but remember, no testifying, and no public knowledge of my involvement.”

“I’ll aim for that,” Stone said.

Hank Cable showed up with his IRS friend on time; the man didn’t look at all the way he had imagined. He was tall, fiftyish, gray at the temples, and looked more like the stereotype of a judge.

“Stone, this is John Rubens,” Cable said. “He heads the investigations division of the IRS in Southern California.”

The two men shook hands, then Rick Grant arrived and was introduced. Shortly a waiter showed up with the lobster salad lunch Stone had ordered for them all, and with two bottles of a very good California chardonnay. Lunch was served on Stone’s private terrace. They ate, they drank the wine, then coffee was served.

“Well, gentlemen, it’s time to tell you why I’m buying you such a good lunch,” Stone said.

“Please do,” Rubens replied. “And thank you for the lunch.”

“I have as a client a person who may be a very important witness in a very big prosecution,” Stone said.

“For what crime?” Rubens asked.

“Tax evasion, for a start, to the tune of maybe hundreds of millions of dollars.”

“I like the sound of that,” the IRS man said.

Cable spoke up. “I can only assume we’re talking about the people we’ve been talking about all along.”

Rubens broke in. “You’ve been talking all along? How long?”

“Only a few days,” Cable replied.

“And tax evasion came into it only this morning.”

“All right, proceed,” Rubens said.

“My client can’t conclusively make your cases for you, but I believe he can be invaluable.”

“And what does your client want in all this?” Rubens asked.

“A number of things, of course, and all in the gift of you gentlemen.”

“Go on.”

“Immunity, for a start; complete and total.”

“Immunity for what?”

“My client has been naive; he has been sucked into an investment scheme by prominent businessmen which has turned out to be, shall we say, extra-legal?”

“And how much has your client lost?” Rubens asked.

“Nothing, as of the moment; in fact, he has made large profits, which he allowed these businessmen to reinvest for him.”

“Would this involve offshore bank accounts, tax evasion, and the like?” Rubens asked.

“On a monumental scale.”

“And is your client’s involvement monu

mental?”