LuAnn sat back against the leather seat and said stubbornly, “I got enough money now to where I can handle myself okay. And I don’t like people telling me what to do.”
“Is that right?” Jackson’s hand closed around the pistol he had lifted from his briefcase. In the darkness he could have swung it up in an instant: mother and child obliterated. “Well, then why don’t you take your chances on getting out of the country by yourself. Would you like to do that?”
“I can take care of myself.”
“That’s not the point. You made a deal with me, LuAnn. A deal I expect you to honor. Unless you’re a fool you will work with me and not against me. You will see that in the long run your and my interests are the same. Otherwise, I can stop the limo right here, toss you and the child out, and I’ll phone the police to come and pick you up. It’s your choice. Decide. Now!”
Confronted with that option, LuAnn looked desperately around the interior of the limo. Her eyes finally settled on Lisa. Her daughter looked up at her with big, soft eyes; there was complete faith there. LuAnn let out a deep breath. What choice did she really have?
“All right.”
Jackson again rustled the papers he held. “Now, we have just enough time to go over these documents. There are a number of them for you to sign, but let me discuss the principal terms first. I will try to be as simple in my explanation as possible.
“You have just won one hundred million dollars and change. As we speak, that money has been placed into a special escrow account set up by the Lottery Commission under your name. By the way, I have obtained a Social Security number for you, under your new name. It makes life so much easier when you have one of those. Once you execute these papers my people will be able to transfer the funds out of that account and into one over which I will have complete and total control.”
“But how do I get to the money?” LuAnn protested.
“Patience, LuAnn, all will be explained. The money will be invested as I see fit and for my own account. However, from those investment funds you will be guaranteed a minimum return of twenty-five percent per annum, which comes to approximately twenty-five million dollars per year. Those funds will be available to you all during the course of the year. I have accountants and financial advisors who will handle all of that for you, don’t worry.” He held up a cautionary finger. “Understand that that is income from principal. The one hundred million is never touched. I will control that principal amount for a period of ten years and invest it however I choose. It will take several months or more to fully implement my plans for the money, so the ten-year period will commence approximately in the late fall of this year. I will provide you with the exact date later. Ten years from that date, you will receive the full one hundred million dollars back. Any of the yearly income you’ve earned over the ten years is of course yours to keep. We will invest that for you as well, free of charge. I’m sure you’re ignorant of this, but at that rate, your money, compounded, less even an exorbitant personal allowance, will double approximately every three years, particularly when you don’t pay any taxes. Under practically any reasonable projection, you will be worth hundreds of millions of dollars at the end of the ten-year period, risk-free.” Jackson’s eyes sparkled as he rattled off the figures. “It’s positively intoxicating, isn’t it, LuAnn? It just beats the hell out of a hundred dollars a day, doesn’t it? You’ve come a long way in less than a week, you truly have.” He laughed heartily. “To start you off, I will advance you the sum of five million dollars, interest-free. That should be sufficient to keep you until the investment earnings come rolling in.”
LuAnn swallowed hard at the mention of the gigantic sums. “I don’t know nothing about investing, but how can you guarantee me so much money each year?”