THE TAINTED TRUST (Volume 2 of The King Trilogy)

CHAPTER 96

         Monaco. September 21. 9:00 A.M.

A heavy rain had drenched the principality earlier that morning. The streets were still wet when Pierre Lambert eased his shiny black BMW to a stop in front of the Hotel de Paris. A young valet changed places with Lambert and whisked his car off to the parking area.

Lambert, a sharp featured dark haired man in his early forties, hurried into the hotel and proceeded directly to Kerri's suite. He knocked on the door, then fastened the middle button of the jacket to his dark blue suit and straightened his blue and yellow striped tie. He took a half a step backward when Kerri opened the door. "Hello," he said, offering a polite smile and forcing himself to ignore the swelling and cuts near her mouth. "...Are you Kerri Pyper?"

Kerri gave him a slow expressionless nod.

"I'm Pierre Lambert. Dan Turner has asked me to represent you."

"Hi. Please come in," Kerri said with a big smile, then opened the door wider. "You're early. I wasn't expecting you until noon."

"I'm sorry for that. I didn't expect to finish with the Monaco police so soon."

Kerri poured a black coffee for Lambert, then led him to the living room, anxious to hear what he had to say.

"This is good coffee," he said as he lifted the mug and took a second sip. "May I call you Kerri?"

"Only if I can call you Pierre."

"It's a deal," Lambert said, leaning back and appearing relaxed. "With considerable difficulty, I was able to convince the police to allow me to review the contents of Louis Visconti's briefcase. I want to discuss those with you shortly, but first I want to talk about what wasn't in the briefcase. Dan Turner told me you removed several items."

"Yes. A hundred thousand dollars in cash, some banking documents, share certificates, and a corporate seal."

"Where did you put those items?"

"In a safety deposit box."

"Are you confident the police are unaware that you are in possession of those items?"

"Yes."

"Do you think they suspect you've hidden something?"

"I don't know."

"When did you leave the hotel with them?"

"Between the time I killed Louis and when I contacted the police."

"How much time elapsed between those two events?"

"Less than two hours."

"Can we go to your safety deposit box? I'm not interested in the cash, but I want to see the banking documents as soon as possible. I'm sure you're aware of their potential importance."

Kerri removed the documents from her cotton bag and handed them to Lambert. "I assumed you'd want to see them, so I picked them up earlier this morning."

"Smart girl," Lambert quipped, then put on his spectacles and started to read. After no more than thirty seconds, he peered over the spectacles and smiled. "If the money is in the account specified here, you are an extremely wealthy woman."

"Why?"

"One of the items in the briefcase was an agreement, signed by both you and Louis Visconti. It contains a reciprocal survivorship clause entitling you to one hundred percent of everything he owns, in the event of his death. There were no other conditions." Lambert held up the banking documents. "These documents certify Louis Visconti's ownership of a numbered account in the Banco Privata Svissera."