Lisa Gardner - The 7th Month

“How?” D.D. asked, genuinely puzzled. She was a homicide detective, not a fraud investigator.

“It’s a paper game, really. Say you’re Crime Boss A, and you have two million in illegal gains you’d like to make legal gains. You pretend to “loan” half a million to a major producer to finance a film. The film will then earn one point five million dollars in legal profit, even if it never sells a single ticket. Basically, Crime Boss A hands over two million in illegitimate funds, in order to get back one point five in ‘real profit.’”

D.D. had to think about it. “Crime Boss ‘donates’ two million dollars; half a million goes to the film as an investment expense, one point five million is eventually returned to him as a legal gain-his own money, once dirty, now cleaned up as the earnings of a reputable business enterprise. What happens to the half a million paid to the movie?”

“It goes into the movie producer’s biz as a legitimate investment, which the producer can then skim, waste, manage wisely, whatever. And business profits abound.”

D.D. was still frowning. “But how can anyone guarantee the movie makes money? I mean, if a film costs twenty million to make, and never sells a single ticket, won’t the IRS question the one point five million paid to the gangster as a return on investment?”

“Notice Donnie’s wound a little tight?”

“Noticed.”

“That’s because guaranteeing profit would be his job. He has two issues, really. One, he needs to be putting together a paper trail so convincing no IRS auditor will ever question Crime Boss A’s great business savvy. Two, as the person directly laundering the money, Donnie needs to make sure he doesn’t, say, lose any socks in the dryer.”

D.D.’s eyes rounded. “No way!”

“Foxwoods. Bad round of blackjack. For about a month straight. You’d think Donnie B. would know when to walk away.”

“He gambled away a crime lord’s dirty money?”

“About a quarter of a million dollars, according to sources.”

“Whose?”

“Andréas Chernkoff.”

D.D.’s eyes rounded further. She’d heard of Chernkoff, or the Chernobyl of the North, as he liked to be called. He’d arrived in Boston eight years back, intent on conquering new territory, while expanding his empire from caviar and vodka into high-end call girls and cocaine. He liked to say that local investigators were jealous of his car collection. Local investigators were mostly jealous they couldn’t pin a thing to a man who routinely thumbed his nose in their direction.

“Doesn’t he have a reputation for cutting off ears?” D.D. asked now.

“And big toes,” Joe said. “I don’t think Donnie is sleeping well at night.”

D.D. thought about the producer’s obvious nerves, which now made sense.

“Who knows about all this? I mean, there are a hundred and four people running around this movie set. Are we talking half real movie biz, half plants, what?”

“Oh all movie biz. Director is legit, actors legit, crew legit. A real movie is being made based on a real script and financed by some real investors. Just not all law-abiding investors. Donnie, as the executive producer, is the money man. From what I can tell, he’s bitten off more than he can chew. Probably was approached by one of Chernkoff’s financial minions and offered a staggering sum to finance his latest project. Being a short-term thinker, Donnie said yes. Later, the fine print probably became clearer to him. Including the risk to not only his professional reputation but also his ability to remain among the living.”

“Donnie’s pretty desperate?”

“Day by day, I’ve watched him become wiser and wiser to the mess he’s made.”

“And Samuel Chaibongsai,” D.D. pressed. “The cop consultant? Surely he started to figure out not everything about the set was up-and-up. Including”-she pinned Joe with her gaze-“I bet he made you.”

“Day four,” Joe confessed. “Guess I really can’t quit my day job for the big screen.”

“What did he say?”

The federal agent shrugged. “Much like you. Pulled me aside. Said he could tell I had on-the-job experience. I came clean. Chaibongsai seemed legit. I wasn’t worried about him.”

“Have much did you reveal?”

“Federal agent, working a fraud investigation. Chaibongsai was old school, a retired beat cop. White-collar crime was enough to cool his curiosity. Drugs, prostitution, gambling, those crimes he would’ve found interesting. Fraud… I believe his exact words were ‘Better you than me, buddy.’”

D.D. didn’t like it. She shook her head, chewing her lower lip. “He was found murdered tonight,” she informed the FBI agent. “No way that’s coincidence. Maybe after Samuel’s discussion with you, he did a little digging on his own. Old beat cops love to show up young feds.”

Joe appeared shaken at the news of Chaibongsai’s death. “He never came to me with anything,” the undercover agent said, a shade defensively.

“Maybe because he was killed before he had the chance.”

“That’s a lot of maybes.”

“Two mil is a lot of motive.”

Joe hesitated. “How was he killed?”

“Beat to death with a blunt instrument, possibly a baseball bat. In his own apartment. Landlord found the body. Apparently, the unit below his noticed a drip.”

Joe thinned his lips, shook his head, thinned his lips again, then sighed heavily. “Sounds like something Chernkoff’s henchmen would do.”

“You must have backgrounded Chaibongsai,” D.D. said, “before you ‘came out’ to him.”

The fed nodded. “Nothing in his record or file to indicate he was anything other than a good cop. Retired well respected, with full bennies. No signs of gambling, drinking, no unexplained income in the bank account.”

“He was a good man,” D.D. stated. “Biggest risk factor being his current movie consulting job, where he found himself working a project funded by a Russian crime boss and under investigation by a federal agent.”

Joe wouldn’t look at her anymore. He stared at the dark sidewalk, nodded curtly.

“Think he pressed Donnie?” D.D. asked. “Asked too many questions, pushed Don too far?”

“I would think he would know better than to do that.”

“Like you said, he was a patrol officer, not a trained investigator.”

Joe glanced up at her. “Give patrol officers more credit for basic survival skills. Anyone can see Donnie’s losing it. Real question is: Why hasn’t Chernkoff dropped the hammer yet? Surely he’s gotta view Don as a weak link by now.”

“Night’s young,” D.D. said. “Maybe the murder and mayhem is just beginning.” A new thought occurred to her. “Wait a minute, there’s at least one other person who must know you’re not a real actor-the casting director. Do you think before Chaibongsai talked to you, he talked to him… her?”

“Her, Sally Clarkson,” Joe filled in. “But even she doesn’t know. One of the movie investors owed us a favor. He ‘encouraged’ Sally to hire me as the stand-in. There were three of us who were prepared for the undercover gig, but once we saw who they cast as the lead actor, I was the best physical match for the stand-in position, so I got the job.”

“You think you’re clean?” D.D. pressed. “Only one who knows your ‘real identity’ was Chaibongsai? Never had the sense of anyone on set paying special attention to you, seeming to watch your every move, maybe rifle through your things?”

“I left my fed creds at home,” Joe informed her dryly. “Hey, I know how to do my job.”

“Fine. So how many weeks later, what have you got to show for it?”

She gave him a skeptical look. He glared at her right back.