I look forward to spending time with you. In the event that is not possible, you will be contacted. Mutual family will fill in the gaps…
Well, then, that's all for now. I hope we talk soon.
That last week passed. The guard brought the Saville Row hand tailored suit to Simon's room. He changed and went to the Warden's office.
'Glad to see you go, Simon.' The Warden handed Simon a large manila envelope. It contained the discharge papers and a bundle of cash left by the solicitor. 'I wish you the best of luck. Honest, I truly mean that.'
'Thanks Warden.'
The Warden reached into his pocket and handed Simon the keys to his car.
Simon walked out the front door of Spring Hill Prison. There waiting in the drive was his Morgan.
Simon opened the car door.
Sat down.
Inserted the key.
Started the ignition.
The car exploded.
Fini
'I have 90 million dollars, do I hear 100 million…'
'Darling, who was that man?' Kelly returned just as LaVache was leaving.
'Jean Pierre.'
Until this point, the record for a work of art sold at auction was a little more than $250 million. It was for Paul Cezanne's 'The Card Players'. And, this was just last year. For 'Mother and Child', ostensibly by Johannes Vermeer, the hammer fell at $263 million dollars. As we say in the antiques business, not a bad day's pay.
We got into the car and headed across town to Penn Station.
'Couple of questions Mister I-Just-Pulled-Off-One-Of-The-Biggest-Scams-In-History.' Kelly smirked. She was clearly amused, a reaction that would have been out of character six months ago.
'Sure, if you'll answer one of my mine first,' I said as I wiggled my eyebrows and tapped my cigar.
'Shoot.'
'Well, to put it bluntly, aren't you upset to be involved in one of the biggest scams in history?'
'To be honest, I should have been. As a matter of fact, until recently it would have been a major problem. It would have torn us apart. But, since that kidnapping fiasco, you coming to my rescue, Uncle Moe doing whatever it was that he did, well, let's say that the whole thing taken in its entirety changed my world view.'
'Good enough. Your turn.'
'Just a couple of sticking points. One, the cops, and I mean all the cops from Philly all the up to the feds and even Interpol, saw Doo Wop's prototype at the gallery. Don't you think that they would be even a little bit suspicious when #37 turns up at a major art auction? Wouldn't they put two and two together?'
'Okay and your other sticking point.'
'How are you going to legitimately get the money to Millie and her kids? That type of thing is sure to get noticed.'
Wow! That is one bright girl. Or should I say woman.
'Simple. We do what all good magicians do. A little misdirection. You're absolutely right. There had to be some logical reason for Anthony to be able to copy a painting that was not known to exist.
'Once again, Connor thought ahead. When the provenance was being prepared his team fabricated some vintage photos with 'Mother and Child' on prominent display. One such photo was discovered in Anthony's studio. It was accompanied by a letter and canceled envelope from France. The descendent of the man that originally purchased the painting commissioned Doo Wop to make a copy fearing that the original would never be returned.'
Kelly was awestruck. 'You've got to be kidding. This is like being privy to a Mission Impossible plan. So, who's the descendent?'
'Connor's aunt. His father's sister married into a prominent French Jewish family. Prior to the war they had amassed a fortune in the department store business and real estate. The fact is that they did ship valuable art to England before fleeing France, that some of their possessions were on loan to British institutions until after the war and that not everything made it to Great Britain. Some of their valuables were confiscated by the Nazis as war plunder.'
'And, let me guess. The Vatican returned the painting to Connor's aunt who in turn consigned it to auction.'
'Correct.'
'Okay, last part. How to get the money from the aunt to Millie?'
'To be perfectly honest I don't know, nor do I think I would understand, the fine points of transferring the money. But, this is what I do know. Connor's father, well, our father, was some sort of genius when it came to laundering money. According to Elisabeth, that's Connor's mother, dear old dad once cleaned a billion dollars for the Russian mob. And, according to legend, in a record amount of time. I imagine that my brother may have picked up a thing or two from father.'
I reached over and pulled four rolls of quarters from the glove compartment. Kelly and I got out of the car, broke open the rolls of quarters and fed them into the New York Times vending machine on 7th Avenue. I pulled the two remaining papers out of the box leaving it empty. Kelly took an envelope from her purse, addressed to 'Newspaper Vendor' and taped it to the inside wall.
The envelope contained a note that read as follows:
Dear Mr. New York Times Vendor,
A short while ago I found myself in your fair city stripped of all possessions and money. I 'borrowed' the newspapers from your box and sold them. In turn, I used the proceeds to finance an antique buying spree.
I have just placed forty dollars into the box. To compensate you for your trouble, included are two box seat tickets to a Yankee's game next week. If you prefer the Mets, feel free to call me.
I am in your debt. As you may have surmised, I am an antiques dealer. If there is any way that I can be of assistance in the future, do not hesitate to call me.
Sincerely yours,
As which point I signed the note and included my contact information.
Kelly put her arms around my neck, stood on her toes, gave a quick kiss and said, 'That was awfully sweet Picker.'
'Yeah, I guess so.'
'Let's go home.'
