Uncontrolled Spin: The Power and Danger of Spin ("Un"missable Series Book 1) (24 page)

Bonnie looks suspicious, then answers. “They are cousins. Hugo has the political power and connections. Ricardo is a player and needs Hugo to help him build his real estate development and management company, so they work closely together.”

Jay considers for a moment and then decides he will test the waters. “Would you be shocked if I told you Mark backed the environmental practices Hugo employed in Brazil, in order to maximize the gold delivered to Global Metal Refining?”

Bonnie’s eyes widen and she says angrily, “Yes, I would! How dare you try to disparage the good names of my husband and Global Metal Refining!”

Jay holds up his hands in surrender and says, “I apologize. Do you know of any business associate who had any reason to want Mark dead?”

A single tear leaks from Bonnie’s eye, but her voice remains strong when she says, “No. He was a great and decent man, who was loved by many, disliked by few, and respected by all.”

Mather pauses, taking in the emotion on her face and regrets the next question he has to ask. “I see. So the person who would benefit the most from Mark’s death would be you, then?”

Bonnie gasps, sitting upright with her hand on her chest, and looks Agent Mather in the eyes. “I don’t like what you are insinuating. If you have grounds to arrest me, then do so now. Otherwise, you can go fuck yourself, because this interview is over!”

Agent Mather sits back, barely refraining from sighing. “You are free to leave at any time,” he replies evenly, watching her closely.

Bonnie stands up, walks out the door of the interview room and up to the front desk, and demands to speak with Dominic Hughes immediately.

The receptionist says, “I will see if he’s in. Who can I tell him requires his assistance?”

Bonnie replies, “You can tell him that Mrs. Stevens would like to speak with him. If he doesn’t have the time, I’ll have my pilot fly me to Washington D.C. to speak with the director, instead. Is that clear?”

The receptionist represses a sigh and says, “Yes, ma’am. Quite clear.”

Dominic Hughes comes out into the waiting area and escorts the still distressed Bonnie back to his office. When Bonnie begins ranting about her interview, Dominic stops her.

“Mrs. Stevens, Agent Mather has also filled me in on what happened. If you will wait just a minute, I’ll have him present in this meeting as well.” He steps out of the room for a moment and returns with Agent Mather, who walks up to Bonnie.

“I apologize for the way our conversation ended, but please allow me a few minutes to explain—” he begins.

Bonnie interrupts, “There is no explanation for your accusatory, rude, and disgusting interrogation!”

Hughes says, “Excuse me, ma’am, but yes, there is an explanation. Please, allow Agent Mather the opportunity to explain, and if you are still not satisfied, I’ll handle your complaint personally.” Bonnie considers for a moment and then nods grudgingly.

Agent Mather takes a breath. “My last question was designed to elicit a reaction from you, Mrs. Stevens. The reaction you displayed is that of an innocent person being wrongfully accused of a very serious crime. Had you not been offended by my insinuation, it would have caused me to look further into you as a person of interest. However, based upon what others have told me about your marriage and your reaction to the ‘accusatory, rude, and disgusting’ question, it is apparent you loved Mark very much. As such, I have eliminated you as a possible suspect in Mark’s murder.”

Bonnie glares at him, but her expression slowly clears and she sighs. “Well, I suppose a thank you is in order, but that’s a pretty crappy thing to do to someone.”

Hughes says, “Yes, unfortunately it is, but it is still one of the most effective in our experience.”

Agent Mather smiles ruefully. “The others will be finishing up their interviews shortly. Can I buy you a cup of coffee to apologize?”

Bonnie replies, “A shot of tequila would be much better, but since you’re still on duty, a cup of coffee will do. I’d love one.”

Jessica’s interview is rather uneventful. She is questioned about Mark and Bonnie’s marriage, her friendship with Bonnie, and her working relationship with Sean. Jessica explains that Bonnie and Mark referred her to Mr. Green for marketing services for her company. She talks about how she disliked Sean when she met him and how it came about that his firm is now representing her.

“Without Mark and Bonnie, I seriously doubt SGM would have ever taken my company on as a business client, simply because we’re small potatoes compared to SGM’s other clients,” she says. “I have a lot to thank them for, and they have always been wonderful people.”

The agent asks, “And how do you know Hugo and Ricardo Montes? What is their connection to Juan Zamora?”

Jessica looks puzzled at how the FBI would know about her connection to Mr. Zamora, but figures they probably know a lot of strange stuff. “Well, I met each of them through Mr. Green. He located a factory that he thought my company might look at as a possible expansion site. I was performing due diligence for Beauty Boutique Clothing, and each of the individuals mentioned was involved, to some degree, in that due diligence,” she replies.

The agent asks for examples of their involvement.

Jessica explains, “Ricardo owns and manages the factory. Hugo, in an effort to help Ricardo land a long-term tenant, opened the communication channels into the government, through Juan. As a favor to Juan, I suggested that while I was in Brazil, I could have one of my designs custom-made for his wife. She loves the fact that she owns the first Beauty Boutique design manufactured in Brazil. It was just good marketing. I believe it will shorten and minimize the cost of expedited approvals, thus allowing me to open the factory for production in three or four months.”

The agent raises his eyebrow at the questionable business practice of bribing the Brazilian government, but is convinced that Jessica has no knowledge surrounding Mark’s murder and concludes his interview with her.

Jessica meets up with Agent Mather and Bonnie at the Starbucks coffee shop in the lobby of the federal building.

Agent Mather welcomes her, then explains, “Sean’s interview was expected to be the longest of the three, due to the close working relationship he and Mark shared over the years. They should be done soon though.”

The three of them decide to continue in conversation until Sean’s interview concludes.

Most of Sean’s interview is benign, until he is questioned about the struggles Global Metal Refining was experiencing with Diablo Mining, Inc. Sean immediately realizes this could get very difficult because of his smuggling U.S. currency past Brazilian customs in order to buy Hugo Montes’ cooperation. He tries to explain.

“Well, I devised a strategy to shift the environmental blame off of Global Metal Refining and onto Diablo Mining as it pertained to Mother Earth Cooperative. Diablo Mining had technically not violated any Brazilian laws, even though all parties knew international best practices were ignored in order to maximize the gold yield for both Diablo Mining and Global Metal Refining,” he says, hedging around how he managed a compromise.

The agent presses. “Why would Mr. Montes agree to such a one-sided arrangement?”

Sean’s response is plausible. “Because Diablo Mining is a small company in comparison to Global Metal Refining, and if they wanted further contracts with Mark, they had to agree to this arrangement or find themselves losing future contract bids and therefore business.”

The agent raises his eyebrows and says, “So, just to confirm, you blackmailed them into acquiescing?”

Sean gives the agent a wry smile and replies, “That’s a bit harsh. We simply persuaded them to accept our terms. It’s called business.”

The agent snorts. “Spin it however you want to, Mr. Green. Mr. Montes didn’t really have a choice, did he?”

Sean almost chuckles. “Of course he did, agent. One always has a choice. Fortunately for me, in this case, most people are greedy. When you control the dollars, you control the terms. Mark Stevens taught me that simple fact and I’ll never forget it.”

The agent scoffs. “Bullshit. The two of you extorted your terms out of Diablo Mining.”

Sean presses his fingertips together, feeling a bit frustrated. “It’s all a matter of perspective, isn’t it? What is your name again, by the way?”

“Bill Parks,” the agent replies. He ponders his next question before asking, “So, Sean, who would want Mark dead? Consider your answer carefully, because this same person may want to kill you next.”

Sean tries not to act disturbed, but he is actually shocked about the idea. It isn’t anything he ever considered, and frankly, he is unsettled by the possible ramifications of the question. The agent notes his distress, but is quiet.

Sean thinks for a moment with several names rattling around in his head, then responds, “I have absolutely no idea who would ever want Mark dead.”

Bill sits quietly for what seems like an hour, his piercing eyes locked onto Sean’s. When he breaks the silence he says, “Really? Let me see if I can think of a few possibilities for you to consider then. How about Bonnie or Wendy Stevens? Hugo or Ricardo Montes? What about Juan Zamora? Or any one of the members of the Mother Earth Cooperative? Hell, it could even be you.”

Sean meets Parks’ gaze and says coldly, “You don’t think much of me, do you? What the hell is your problem? Besides, what would be my reason, or Bonnie’s, or Wendy’s, to kill Mark?”

Agent Parks says, “I could think of a billion reasons.”

“Well then, maybe you killed him. See how ridiculous that sounds?” Sean counters, annoyed. “What about the others who didn’t inherit any money from Mark’s estate?”

“Oh, you mean those other individuals whom you and Stevens have controlled and extorted from to make more money?”

Sean, actually angry now because of Agent Parks’ juvenile antics, decides to play along just a bit more. “Agent Parks, do you know what I think? I think the FBI hasn’t a fucking clue who shot Mark, and every one of you are grasping at straws, hoping to find the proverbial needle in the haystack.” Parks laughs out loud but there’s an edge to it, and Sean decides to piss him off some more. “Oh and, Bill, I forgot to explain that ‘proverbial’ means customary, or well-known. Am I free to leave, or do you have more sophomoric theories you would like to espouse?”

Agent Parks sits back in his chair yet again. “You are free to leave at this time, but we very well may wish to discuss matters further with you later.”

Sean pats his heart and says, “I cherish the thought.” He stands up and walks out of the room. “Where are the others?” he asks the receptionist, and is directed downstairs to meet them in the coffee shop.

The minute Bonnie sees Sean coming; she knows things didn’t go well. Sean walks up to her, Jess, and Agent Mather at their table and says, “I don’t know about you, but I’m getting on the jet and getting the fuck out of this podunk, redneck town. You two can join me or you can stay, but the jet leaves as soon as I get to the airport.” With that, he turns on his heel and heads for the door. Bonnie and Jessica share a moment of confusion, then grab their purses, leave money and a tip at the table with Agent Mather, and hurry after Sean.

When they get into the car, Jessica asks, “What the hell was that all about?”

Sean replies, “I’m just tired of all the bullshit today.”

For the rest of the trip, he doesn’t say a word. He drinks scotch after scotch until they land in San Francisco. Jessica makes Sean give her his car keys and drives them all back to Bonnie’s house. When they arrive, Wendy is waiting for them, reading a book. Sean walks unsteadily past her without acknowledgement, heading straight to his bedroom.

Wendy is about to say something to his back when Jessica touches her arm and murmurs, “Let him go. We’ll talk about everything in the morning. Apparently his interview wasn’t very cordial.” Jessica goes to Sean’s room, knocks on the door, and peeks inside. Sean is sitting at his computer, shirtless.

She clears her throat. “Hey, are you okay? Do you want to talk about it?”

Sean looks at her over the top of his computer screen, sigh, then says, “Not tonight. I’m just pissed, and now pretty drunk. We can all talk in the morning, okay?”