“So what are you suggesting? That I buy the goddamn things? What the
hell would I do with them?”
Jack watched Lord finally lean forward, then continued.
“You buy them for bottom dollar, maybe a half-billion, using a portion
of the proceeds from the raw materials sales. You will buy them using
dollars, which can then be used by Ukraine to purchase other necessities
in the world markets.”
“Why bottom-dollar? Every Middle Eastern country will be bidding on
them.”
“But Ukraine can’t sell to them. The G-7 countries would never allow it.
If Ukraine did, they’d be cut out of the EU
and other Western markets, and if that happens, they’re dead.”
“So I buy them and sell them to whom?”
Jack couldn’t help but grin. “To us. The United States. Six billion is a
conservative estimate on their worth. Hell, the weapons-grade plutonium
those babies contain is priceless.
The rest of the G-7s would probably pitch in a few billion.
It’s your relationship with Kiev that makes this whole thing work. They
look to you as their savior.”
Sullivan looked stunned. He started to rise and then thought better of
it. Even to him the amounts of money potentially out there were
staggering. But he had enough money, more than enough. But to remove
part of the nuclear equation from the collective miseries of the world
…
“And this was whose idea?” Sullivan looked at Lord as he asked the
question. Lord pointed at Jack.
Sullivan leaned back in his chair and looked up at the young man. Then
he rose with a swiftness that startled Jack.
The billionaire took Jack’s hand in an iron grip. “You’re going plates,
young man. Mind if I tag along?”
Lord beamed like a father. Jack couldn’t stop smiling. He had started to
forget what it was like to hit one out of the park.
After Sullivan departed, Jack and Sandy sat at the table.
Finally Sandy said, “I recognize it was not an easy assignment. How do
you feel?”
Jack couldn’t help but grin. “Like I just slept with the prettiest girl
in high school, kind of tingling all over.”
Lord laughed and stood up. “You’d better go home and get some rest.
Sullivan’s probably calling his pilot from the car. At least we got his
mind off the bitch.”
Jack didn’t hear the last part as he quickly left the room.
For now, for once in a long time, he felt good. No worries, just
possibilities. Endless possibilities.
That night he sat up late telling a very enthusiastic Jennifer Baldwin
all about it. Afterward, over a very chilled bottle of champagne and a
platter of oysters specially delivered to her townhouse, the couple had
the most gratifying sex of their courtship. For once, the high ceilings
and murals did not bother Jack. In fact, he was growing to like them.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
THE WWM HOUSE RECEPVES MILLIONS OF PIECES OF NONOFficial mail each year.
Each item is carefully screened and aPpropriately processed, the whole
task handled by an in-house staff with assistance and supervision by the
Secret Service The two envelopes were addressed to Gloria Russell, which
was somewhat unusual since most of this type of COrrespondence was
addressed to the President or members of the First Family, or frequently
the First Pet, which currently happened to be a golden retriever named
Barney.
The handwriting on each was in block letters, the envelopes white and
cheap and thus widely available. Russell got to them about twelve
o’clock on a day that had been going pretty well up until then. inside
one was a single sheet of paper and inside the other was an item she had
stared at for some minutes. Written on the paper, again in block
letters, were the words:
Question: What constitutes high crime and misdeweanors? Answer: I don’t
think you want to find out.
Valuable item available, more to follow, chief, signed not a sara
admirer Even though she had expected it, in fact had desperately wanted
to receive it, she still could feel her heartbeat increase to where it
pounded against the wall of her chest; her saliva dwindled down to where
she reached for and gulped down a glass of water and repeated the