“Vaguely.”
“There are occasions when the interests of America are best served by providing aid to countries and certain organizations that don’t have popular support in the U.S.”
“What, like giving guns to Osama to fight the Russians?” he sneered.
“It’s a choice of the lesser of two evils. Goes on all the time.”
“So what’s that got to do with me?”
“We have money from very discreet sources, some of it private, but it needs to be ‘finessed’ before it can be deployed,” she said, sipping her wine.
“You mean laundered,” Bagger said.
She smiled coyly. “No, I mean finessed.”
“I’m still not getting the connection.”
“El Banco del Caribe. You know it?”
“Should I?”
Leo spoke up. “Isn’t that where you park some of your casino cash? They specialize in disappearing money, for a price. No taxes.”
Bagger had half risen from his seat.
Annabelle said, “It’s part of our job to know things like that,” she said. “Don’t take it personally. You’re not the only one we have a file on.”
Bagger sat back down and eyed her spiky hair. “You don’t look like a spy.”
“Well, that’s sort of the point, isn’t it?” she said amiably, rising and pouring herself another glass of wine.
“Look, how do I know you’re legit? I call anybody, they never heard of you. Where does that leave me?”
“Money talks and bullshit walks,” she said, sitting back down.
“Meaning what exactly?”
“Meaning call your money guy in here.”
Bagger looked at her suspiciously for a moment and then picked up the phone.
The man appeared a minute later. “Yes, sir?”
Annabelle took a slip of paper out of her pocket and handed it to him. “Pull this account up on your computer. It’s at El Banco del Caribe. That’s a onetime password along with the account number. And come back and tell Mr. Bagger the balance in that account.”
The man looked at Bagger, who nodded. The man left and returned a few minutes later.
“Well?” Bagger said impatiently.
“Three million twelve thousand dollars and sixteen cents, sir.”
Bagger stared at Annabelle, the new respect clear in his gaze. He waved his money guy gone. After the door had shut, he said, “Okay, you’ve got my attention.”
“To further allay people’s concerns, we usually do a trial run or runs, as the case may be.”
“You mentioned that. How does it work?”
“You park money at El Banco for two days in an account of our designation; you collect the ‘interest,’ and then the money is put back into your account at your home bank.”
“How much money are we talking?”
“A million is typical. The money you wire down gets ‘mingled’ with other funds. After two days you walk away with a hundred grand in profit. You can do it every two days if you want.”
“Mingled? Don’t you mean
She raised her glass. “You learn fast.”
Yet Bagger was scowling. “You want me to put a million bucks of my money in an account of
Annabelle sat down next to him and gently touched his arm. “I tell you what, Jerry, I can call you Jerry, can’t I?”
“I’ll let it slide for now.”
“For the two days your money is hanging out there, my associate and I will stay here at your hotel, with your boys watching us night and day. If your money doesn’t come back into your account with interest just like I’m telling you, we’re all yours. And I don’t know about you, but public servant or not, I like my life way too much to give it up for a bunch of money that I’ll never even see.”
He looked her up and down, shook his head, rose and walked over to the window and looked out through the bulletproof glass. “This has got to be the craziest damn thing I’ve ever heard. And I’m a nutcase for even listening to it.”
“It’s not crazy when you look at the world today. Things have to be done to protect this country, action that is not always completely legal or popular. If the American people knew what really went on?” She shrugged. “But that’s not my field task. My job is to make sure the money gets to where it needs to go. In exchange for your help, you get paid an extraordinary premium, it’s that simple.”
