Once a Killer (32 page)

“Once I find them, I’ll take care of the filing myself.”

“It’s too late for that. Yesterday, you told me Hoffman had been seen only once at Grannis’s offices. That wasn’t true, was it?”

Crouten wriggled in the chair. “There may have been a couple of other times, but nothing significant. Nothing worth mentioning, anyway.”

“Is that right? What about the sighting in Brooklyn?”

“Yeah, there was one—”

“What about the car outside the warehouse on Sullivan Street traced back to a Grannis-owned company? You’re telling me these are not significant? What else did you learn from Towers that you’re not sharing with me?”

Crouten licked his lips. “Look, I met with Towers, and it was clear he and Hoffman are innocent. At least, that was my judgment.”

“That meeting’s not even recorded on the file.”

“I can’t explain that, but I can assure you nothing material came from it.”

“Then how would you characterize the call from Grannis on Hoffman’s cell phone?”

Crouten’s face turned red, and he stared at the top of the desk. “I’m still convinced there’s nothing going on.”

Caravini shook his head. “There’s all this compelling evidence right under your nose, and you still say there’s nothing going on. What’s wrong with you, man? Are you taking some sort of medication?”

Crouten’s jawbone was grinding slowly. “I thought—”

“I don’t give a damn what you think any longer. As of this morning, this investigation has been reopened. I’m going to handle it myself.”

“It’ll be a waste of time.”

“That’s for me to decide.”

“Look, if you’re going to keep the investigation open anyway, I might as well head it up since I have all the background detail.”

“You’re going nowhere near the case. I’m moving you off my team.”

Crouten swallowed. “Where to?”

“I haven’t decided yet. For now, I want you to remain in this building, where I can keep an eye on you. If you need to leave the building, you come and see me first. Got that?”

“Is that really necessary?”

“I’m going to have a word with Washington. I want you moved back there as soon as I can arrange it. Maybe accounting or human resources; something that calls for much less judgment, because you’ve demonstrated you don’t have any.”

“But I can—”

“I don’t want to hear it. You’re not cut out for fieldwork.”

“I know I’ve let you down, Fab. I hold my hands up. I screwed up on this one.”

“You did more than that.”

“I don’t understand.”

“You lied to me, and there’s nothing I detest more than liars.” Caravini pointed to the door. “Now get out of my office.”

After Crouten left, Caravini pulled together a team and briefed them on the newly reopened investigation into the Grannis Hedge Fund and its connections with Dudek, Collins, & Hamilton and any other market players. None of the team had ever worked with Crouten, except Kaminski, whom Caravini thought he could trust. Besides, Kaminski would provide continuity and would be able to fill in the gaps left on the file. Caravini stressed the importance of this investigation to the reputation of the department and assured them that any and all resources would be made available to get quick results. This was going to be a biggie. It was so important that he was going to take personal charge of the case. The press was watching, and another high-profile success, right after the Parmadin convictions, would serve as a huge lesson to those on Wall Street who thought they could manipulate the system and make illicit profits. Of course, what he failed to mention was that another head on the plate now would do wonders for his mayoral campaign, too.

Strutting back from the meeting room, Caravini thought about the evidence he had on Grannis and Hoffman. While there was certainly enough to warrant an ongoing investigation, where Crouten had been right was that, so far, there was nothing to prove inside information was actually being passed to Grannis. It was all circumstantial at this time. They needed more hard proof.

If Grannis had links to Dudek’s, then it was fair to assume his connections went wider, reaching into other professional services firms. It was likely his reach extended to the major accounting firms and investment banks, too. Maybe, as Crouten had once said, Grannis was the real trophy target in this investigation. Bring him down, and you capture a lot more people in the net with him. Imagine the publicity that would be generated if he could indict partners and directors from a number of the city’s leading institutions and advisory firms.

As he returned to his desk, the idea entered his head. There was already sufficient dirt on Hoffman to embarrass him, perhaps even ruin his career. If he could lean on Hoffman hard enough, maybe he could get the evidence he needed to bring down Grannis and, with him, all the other criminal scum in his network. Yes, Hoffman was the way to crack this case, and the best way to start putting pressure on him was through his boss, Art Jenks.

Chapter 43

A
LTHOUGH
H
E
D
IDN’T
S
HOW
I
T
when he walked in, Caravini was impressed by the spacious corner office occupied by the senior partner at Dudek, Collins, & Hamilton LLP. When he made mayor, he, too, would have an office just like this, something commensurate with his true status. Unlike most of the Manhattan power brokers whose offices he’d visited, he didn’t despise Jenks the trappings of his success. Jenks had come up the hard way, like him, starting from a humble beginning and reaching his position through hard work, ambition, and intelligence.

While he’d known Jenks for almost ten years, this was the first time he’d met him at Dudek’s headquarters. Most of their previous encounters had been at conferences and social functions around the city. But this meeting was different. Once Caravini had mentioned he had something sensitive to discuss, Jenks had invited him into the inner sanctum, where privacy would be guaranteed.

Jenks was in his early sixties, perma-tanned and with a swept-back silver mane that made no attempt to hide his receding hairline. Affable and impeccably polite, he’d charmed his way to the top of the tree at Dudek’s. To clients, he was a magnet, bringing in work from Fortune 500 companies and government departments with an apparent ease that infuriated the firm’s competitors.

Caravini clocked the million dollar view over Times Square as he took one of the sofas next to the south-facing window. Jenks sat on the other sofa while one of his two personal assistants brought in their drinks on a silver tray. She poured Caravini’s Earl Grey tea into a porcelain cup and then did the same for Jenks. In truth, Caravini would have preferred a coffee, but he’d copied Jenks’s choice of beverage, not wanting to appear uncultured. If this is what the elite drank, then he’d develop a taste for it, too.

“What was it you needed to see me about?” Jenks asked when his assistant had left the room. “You sounded a little concerned when you called.”

Caravini took one sip of the tea and winced before returning his cup and saucer to the table. Clasping his hands together, he said, “It’s a delicate matter, one I thought was better handled face to face.” He paused and then: “It concerns one of our investigations.”

“We’d be delighted to assist. The firm has a lot of experience in—”

Caravini raised his hand. He had to stop Jenks from going into auto-pilot with his sales pitch. “I’m sorry, Art, but this is not about Dudek’s. At least, it’s not about how you can help us in a professional capacity.”

The semi-permanent smile morphed into a slight frown. “Oh, I’m sorry. I misunderstood. What is it you need from us, then?”

“Actually, nothing from the firm.”

Jenks cocked his head. “I don’t follow.”

“I need your help as the senior partner here.”

“If there is anything I can do. But you said it concerns one of your investigations?”

Caravini began reaching for his cup and then remembered what was in it and stopped. “It’s another insider trading case we’re working on—a big one. And it has a connection with your firm.”

Jenks narrowed his eyes. “Do you mean one of our clients?” There was a hint of panic in his voice.

“Not really.”

“Thank goodness for that. You had me worried for a moment.”

Caravini moved to the edge of the sofa. “It’s actually much worse than that.” He watched Jenks recoil. “We believe one of your partners could be involved.”

Even with the perma-tan, Jenks paled as the consequences of what he’d just heard began to sink in. Caravini now had the senior partner exactly where he wanted him, terrified about what this could mean for his precious firm’s reputation.

“Are you certain about this?” Jenks asked, deep furrows appearing across his forehead.

“No. We’re not completely certain just yet, but the evidence is beginning to point in one direction.”

Caravini was not about to share the details his team had uncovered so far. At this stage, all he wanted to achieve was to have Jenks spooked enough to start putting pressure on Hoffman. And once Hoffman had been softened up, then he’d make his move.

“What, precisely, are you suggesting has been done?”

“We believe one of your partners, or his staff, is passing on information before deals are announced to the market.”

“Passing on to whom?”

“I can’t say, but what I can tell you is the recipient has been under our spotlight for some time. We’re pretty sure some of their inside information is coming from Dudek’s.”

Jenks sat in silence for a moment, looking lost for words. “I find all this very hard to believe. Can you at least let me have a name? Which partner?”

“Michael Hoffman.”

“Michael?” Jenks’s normally silken voice was raised in alarm. “Then I know this is a mistake. Michael would never do anything like this. Apart from it being completely out of character, why would he need to do it?”

“If it isn’t him, it’ll be someone very close to him. How about his team?”

Jenks shook his head no. “I trust them all.”

“Well, we know the deals are leaking from here somewhere.”

“Are you able to tell me the names of any of these deals?”

Caravini thought for a few seconds. There wasn’t much downside telling him at least one deal name. That way, it would make it real for Jenks and show the FBI had done its homework. “One I can disclose is Spar’s recent acquisition of Collar Telecom, but there are others.”

Jenks held his right hand to his mouth. “That was one of Michael’s.” He shook his head. “If you’re certain information is being passed on, I know it’s not from him. I’ve known him for many years. You won’t find a more honest and straightforward individual.”

“So how’s it happening, Art?”

“I have no idea. I find the whole thing shocking.”

Caravini had Jenks exactly where he wanted: panicking on the edge of the cliff. “Listen, we have no interest in damaging the reputation of your firm, but we can’t let this drop.”

“I understand that.”

“If we’re going to avoid dragging the Dudek name through the dirt, we need your help.”

“Name it. Tell me what I can do.”

“I’d like you to start asking questions internally. Find out if Hoffman knows about any of this. Challenge him. Find out if he suspects any of his team members. Put the pressure on.”

“Can I tell him the FBI is investigating some of his deals?”

“If you think it’ll help, then yes. We’re only interested in finding the source of the leaks. If it’s not Hoffman, then who is it? If you can help us with this, I’ll do my best to keep Dudek’s name out of it.”

“I’ll do anything to avoid that.”

“We’re not after your firm, Art. But I do need a name from you. Find that out for me, and we’ll take it from there.”

“What if I fail?”

“We really don’t want to go there.”

Jenks sat in silence, obviously considering his options. They were limited; Caravini had him backed into a corner. Now all Caravini had to do was sit back and wait for the pressure to build on Hoffman. Then he’d pick his moment to pounce.

Jenks made a poor attempt at recovering his smile. “I owe you one, Fab. I know you could have played this differently. Thank you for coming to see me first and allowing me the chance to protect our name.”

“Hey. The last thing I want is to destroy the firm’s reputation. There’s nothing in that for me.”

“Leave this with me.” Jenks said rose to his feet. “It’ll be my top priority.”

Caravini stood up and shook Jenks’s outstretched hand. “Let’s talk next week. This investigation is moving quickly. I won’t be able to wait much longer.”

Chapter 44

A
LL
T
HE
M
EETING
R
OOMS
W
ERE
B
USY
, so Michael met with his team in his own office, going over progress on their latest deal and allocating responsibilities. About an hour in, there was a tap on his door, and Rachel put her head around.