Oleksandr Dan - Insomvita. Psychological thriller with elements of a crime story

Amanda took a small pillow and placed it under Trevor’s head. She moved her chair closer to the couch, sat down and turned on a voice recorder.

«Relax, Trevor. Close your eyes and listen carefully to what I’m saying.»

After an easy pause, Amanda continued slowly in a steady voice: «You feel the pressure of the pillow against the back of your head and your shoulders. You feel the couch under your entire back. Now, focus on your thighs and feel the couch support your entire body. You are very relaxed, as if your whole body has sunk fully into the soft couch… completely immersed in it.»

Trevor listened to her pleasant, low voice and the steady beats of the metronome.

«Imagine yourself at home or in another cozy place, where you’d like to fall asleep. It could be a sea shore or a forest, or a cool, dewy meadow by a river on a hot summer day.»

Trevor suddenly remembered that night on the canal in Bangkok. He is lying on the bottom of the gondola and somewhere above him a voice grows quieter and quieter, following him to the dream world.

«You are breathing steadily and deeply. Your body is soft and relaxed… You are calm and very relaxed… Your whole body is relaxed… And now you fall asleep… Sleep, sleep peacefully, deeply, calmly and deeply… sleep… You are falling asleep deeper, and deeper, and deeper… Sleep and listen to my voice.» Amanda’s voice grew quieter and quieter, then increasingly distant until it disappeared completely…

Trevor came to upon hearing Amanda shout «Wake up!»

Trevor opened his eyes. Everything in the room was the same as it was just a few minutes ago; the metronome continued its steady rhythm.

Amanda looked concerned and confused.

«Well? Did you manage to dig something out of my head?» Trevor joked.

«What did you dream about? Did you have a dream?» she asked instead of answering.

«Amanda, I told you I don’t have dreams,» Trevor sighed and tried to say something else, but Amanda interrupted him.

«Well, you just spent a good hour trying to convince me otherwise.» Amanda looked at Trevor anxiously, prompting Trevor to feel anxious as well.

«Here, listen to this. I think you will find it very interesting.» Amanda placed the voice recorder before Trevor and turned it on.

Robert was in his hotel room looking through materials related to a contract. In an hour he was to meet Mr. Zimme, a gemologist, for dinner at a restaurant, and so he wanted to examine the details of the deal one more time.

Morgan Lawyer & Co. was acting as intermediary in the acquisition of a large lot of diamonds and had provided documentation and legal support for the deal. The seller was a billionaire from Russia living at One Hyde Park, a luxury residential complex in London, and the buyer – a sheikh from Saudi Arabia. The Russians wanted to remain in the shadows, so he involved an offshore company from the Virgin Islands for the sale and acted through representatives. All negotiations between buyer and seller, without exception, however, involved Robert.

The firm usually had him support these kinds of deals worth hundreds of millions of euros. So, this wasn’t the first transaction of this sort for Robert.

The day before, there had been a meeting at the office of the firm’s director, where Roland said to Robert: «I understand your concerns about the rush. I know Christmas is just days away, but the buyer wants to spend the money before the year’s end. You know, for tax purposes. Besides, the buyer is a Sunni, and for them our Christmas doesn’t really exist. Everything will be ready by December 16. No later. Brink’s Incorporated, the shipping company, has already delivered the diamonds to the bank, and I was notified today that the buyer’s money has been transferred there too. Here’s the SWIFT transfer confirmation.»

«Roland, the rush is not a problem. Rather, I’m concerned about insurance liability and possible consequences. I told you the diamonds’ sales contract clearly specifies a strict deadline for completion of the deal. If the deal falls through, the default party will have to pay a penalty of five percent of the value of the deal.»

«Well, what’s bothering you there?» asked Roland, surprised. «The bank already blocked this amount on the accounts of the parties to the contract.»

«That’s not what I mean. I am suspicious that the payment of the penalty and insurance indemnity to the seller under the preliminary agreement and at the request of his representative are transferred not to the account, where the funds from the sale of the diamonds are transferred, but to an offshore account. The buyer, meanwhile, makes the payment through a top bank, and the possible penalties and insurance indemnities are also transferred there.» Robert paused and took the contract in his hands. «The fact that the buyer agreed to that is what is most suspect. These kinds of contracts take at least a month to prepare and we have only slightly over a week. By the way, December 16 is the last day. I’m not used to being so pressed for time. What if the deal does not go through on the 16 th? We are really short on time,» he said.

«Listen, if the buyer does not object, what can we do? I offered, but the Arabs did not focus on this at all. Also, Robert, why do you think that the agreement will fall through? After all, the insurance indemnity is paid only if nothing happens. I think your suspicions are groundless. Both parties are serious about this and nobody will risk their image for some five percent. No, that’s just silly.»

«Roland, the penalty is nearly fifty million dollars! You think that’s silly?»

«Robert, maybe the seller wants to evade taxes this way.»

«You mean the taxes he would pay on the principal bothers him less than a possible loss from the penalty?»

«Well, that’s why we are sending you, Robert. You have to make this deal happen, so that nobody has to pay any fines.»

In the evening, Robert and Kenan Zimme, who worked at the laboratory of HRD Antwerp, were dining at one of London’s oldest restaurants.

Mr. Zimme was an active, sociable and nice seventy-year old Jew, a native of Odesa. At the beginning of the Second World War and German occupation of the city, his family fled to Palestine. Shortly afterwards, due to the constant conflicts inside the newly created Israel, the Zimme family moved to the United States, where his father opened a jewelry store and a pawnshop.

That’s what he told Robert during dinner. Mr. Zimme joked a lot, and he shared funny stories from his life. During the conversation, he remarked several times that a smile made him feel like a twenty-year old young man and that as luck would have it, he was sick only once in his life – he contracted epidemic parotitis, the mumps, at the age of four.

Zimme was reciting all this with great humor, typical of those who are fully content with their life and fate.

Robert was noticeably concerned about the contract, but Mr. Zimme cheerfully reassured him: «Young man, believe me, from an old perch that’s swum in different waters in this life, you need not worry. Everything that is bound to happen will happen, and everything that is not meant to happen will not happen, regardless of your concerns and your actions. So, is it worth being nervous or anxious then? Today, when you go back to your hotel, don’t worry about anything. Just lie down and sleep tight. Trust the rest to God. He will take care of everything. As for our object, I must tell you that it is wonderful. It’s been some years since I’ve seen something like that. I reviewed everything thoroughly and I am confident there won’t be any trouble.»

But Robert was still concerned. He could not understand the reason behind his doubts and anxiety. To distract himself a bit, he decided to call Chloe.