THE TAINTED TRUST (Volume 2 of The King Trilogy)

CHAPTER 65

         Toronto. Monday. April 16. Nine, A.M.

The years had been kind to Dan Turner. His hair had whitened, yet the thinning had mercifully stopped. He had retained the same commanding presence, still capable of inspiring confidence with his piercing stare, deep baritone voice and imposing profile. "This is an unexpected pleasure," he said, hoisting himself from his chair to greet Mike and Karen King.

"Good to see you again, Dan," Mike said, then shook Turner's hand.

Turner remained standing and focused on Karen, still every inch a stunning beauty. "It's been a long time, Karen. How have you been?" he asked. "You don't look a day older than the day you were married."

"I feel a lot older, but I appreciate the compliment."

Turner pointed to the windowed corner of his office which faced Lake Ontario, the islands, and the busy Gardiner Expressway. Opposing one another in front of the giant windows were twin sofas, covered in forest green velour and separated by a large and elegant nickel plated coffee table. "Let's sit over there," he suggested.

All three headed for the sofas.

"How has married life been?" Turner asked as he sat facing his clients.

"Wonderful," Mike replied.

"Beyond my wildest expectations," Karen said with a big grin.

"And the children. They are well?"

Karen nodded, then frowned. "We have a problem."

Silence.

"Phillip's part of the problem," Mike said, swallowing hard. "The trust is the other part... Karen and I have decided it's time we did something about it."

Turner leaned backward, hung one leg over the other and glared at his clients. "Obviously something's changed."

"Everything's changed," Mike answered.

"In round numbers, what's the current value of the trust?"

"Around six hundred million."

Turner raised his eyebrows, sharpening the numerous creases in his forehead. "Who's administering it?"

"A man named Louis Visconti. His office is in New York."

"Okay, now I know what we're dealing with. Tell me what's changed."

Mike leaned forward, his blue eyes showing intense concern. "Dan, you know how determined I was to keep that money. I'm still not sure why. I guess I just wanted to make a statement."

"You spoke in the past tense. Am I to assume you no longer want to keep it?" Turner asked.

Mike nodded. "I know Karen never really agreed with my obsession to keep it. She said all the right things, but it was obvious that it constantly reminded her of her husband. She was smart enough to know it would corrupt us...She was right. Fortunately, she was patient. It took a long time, but she finally penetrated my thick head."

"Then you want to dispose of the money in some way?" Turner asked.

Mike nodded. "We need to talk."

Turner chuckled and rolled his eyes. "It's a very unique problem, one I've never faced in my entire legal career. I suppose under the circumstances you would like the money to vanish into thin air, without a trace."

"Not exactly," Mike said, feeling slightly more relaxed. "We want to give it anonymously to the World Agricultural Foundation. It's one of the most efficient charities in the world."

"How do you plan to do it?"

"That's what we want to talk to you about."

Turner squinted at Mike. "Have you considered Golden National Oil? Need I remind you that Servito stole a substantial volume of gasoline from..."

"We don't need to hold a benefit for Golden National," Mike said, interrupting. "I'm sure it enjoyed complete recovery of the loss from its insurers. Besides, I don't want to complicate this thing any more than it is."

"Okay, it's obvious that you've given this a lot of thought. You'll need an intermediary and it's imperative that you have implicit trust in whoever you chose."

Mike winked at Turner. "We know only one individual who falls into that category."

"I hope you're not referring to me."

"None other."

Turner frowned. "I can't Mike. I'm flattered, but I can't do anything that could be construed as complicity in this flagrantly illegal financial adventure of yours. It's a world class scam and you know it. I'm already way over the line with this thing. I do, however, give your latest decision a standing ovation."

"Do you know anyone who would qualify?" Karen asked.

"I know lots of people who would, but you would have to think long and hard about trusting any of them with a six hundred million dollar secret."

Deflated, Mike and Karen exchanged morose expressions. "Isn't this beautiful?" Mike said. "We're sitting on over six hundred million and we can't even give it away."

"I'm sure if you look hard enough you'll find the right person," Turner offered. "The best advice I can give you is to find someone completely removed from the system, someone immune to, or unconstrained by the legal systems of Canada and the United States."

Karen jerked upright, as if bitten by an insect. "I know who we could use," she declared.

"Who?"

"Alfred Schnieder."

Mike smiled and blew her an approving kiss. "If he's still alive, he'd be perfect."

"Do you know where he is," Turner asked.

"He retired and moved to Zurich in nineteen eighty. I hope he's still there."

"Then give him a call, but be careful, Mike. You're dealing with an extremely dangerous quantity of money," Turner warned.