David Dun - Unacceptable Risk

Baptiste and Rene walked in the Menilmontant, in a neighborhood off Rue de Couronnes, on a small side street lined with middle-class flats. When they arrived at the Flower of Paris Apartments, they climbed the stairs to the first floor off the street and took the elevator to the third. It was a nice enough place for Paris, reasonably maintained but with tiny, single bedroom flats. Space in Paris was at a premium and one had to pay for it.

They knocked on the door of apartment number 7 and were greeted by an older woman obviously crippled from arthritis.

"Hello. I am Baptiste, Jean-Baptiste, and this is Rene, and we are from the government. May we talk to you for a few minutes?"

Baptiste showed his badge, as did Rene.

"Come in," she said, moving slowly back in small, awkward steps.

"We are here to inquire about Georges Raval. He is your son?"

"Oh no. That is my brother's boy. I'm Chloe Raval and I'm living in their apartment. Well, actually, I guess it's my apartment now. My sister-in-law and her son went off to America. Is there trouble?"

"Do you have an address for them?"

"No, I don't. It's strange. They send me letters but no address where I can write back."

"Do you have any of those letters?"

"The last one was a week ago, but someone else came and I gave it to them."

"Who?"

"Someone from his old company. They said their name, but I forgot it. It was very important that they find him right away or he might lose his pension, they said."

"What about the envelope? Was there anything on it that would indicate where he was?"

"I threw that away before the letter."

"Do you remember where it was postmarked?"

"No. I'm sorry, I don't. Are they in trouble?"

"Oh no. Not at all. In fact, they could be of great service to their country."

"How so?"

"By giving us information."

"Well, they call sometimes, and when they do, I will tell them."

"When did they last call?"

"Just two days ago."

"When they call again, would you ask that Georges Raval call this number?"

Baptiste handed her a card.

"Of course. There is one thing, though."

"What's that?"

"I have a sister who lives in New York. I think she might know where they are because sometimes she's on the phone with them."

"Where in New York does she live?"

"A place called Manhattan? Does that sound right?"

"Could be. What's her name?"

"Claudia Roche."

"Do you have her address?"

"Well, I have it somewhere. It's something Christopher or Christopher something."

"Could you find it?"

She went slowly into her kitchen and opened a drawer. Inside was a box with cards. Eventually she pulled one out that bore the address and phone number of Claudia Roche. Hurriedly they wrote it down.

"Did these men from the company leave any message for Georges?"

"No."

"If you hear from Georges, have him call this number. And you call us."

They left after going over the instructions several times. Baptiste also made sure she knew to call if she ever saw the men from her nephew's company.

"According to Figgy, Bowden is in New York, and sooner or later we'll find Raval with Bowden. It will be a remark able coincidence," Baptiste said to Rene as they hurried down the steps.

"We could check her phone records."

"Go ahead. But Raval calls her and not from any place we could trace. If he wasn't smart Gaudet would have him by now."

Baptiste found himself frequenting the lab where Benoit spent her days away from jail. He admitted to himself that she was probably becoming a dangerous habit. Without re ally planning to, he was telling her every facet of the investi gation. In return she spoke openly of her knowledge about Grace Technologies and Devan Gaudet.

After having left her two hours ago, she had just called him on his cell phone. She needed to see him right away. Benoit was allowed visitors and had recently seen a staff member of le Senat, according to the log in the lobby. Baptiste was more than a little curious.

"If we want to move ahead, we need to do something radical," she began.

"We are. I have a man inside with the American, Sam, and I'm after Georges Raval. We found his aunt Chloe. She's a good start."

"That won't do it. You'll muddle around forever."

"Then what do you suggest?"

"We need to contact Gaudet, make a deal directly, and then I need to go to the United States and see Raval. He will see me. He won't see you. It's the only way to do it quickly."

"You're out of your mind," Baptiste scoffed.

"Maybe. Maybe you need to open yours. See what the ad miral thinks."

"I don't want the admiral involved."

"Look, he doesn't need to know about our financial arrangements. But think about what we have to accomplish: we need to broker a deal between Gaudet and the French government to buy everything. That means getting the Chape rone technology from Raval and putting it into a Swiss escrow. Plus we need to get the molecule from Bowden and put that in the same escrow. Lastly I'll buy from Gaudet all the Grace Technologies lab notes he stole. But we have a se rious time problem. Gaudet's going to attack the U.S., and he isn't waiting for us. Do you see how the admiral could facil itate much of this?" Benoit challenged.

"He'll never let you leave France."

"You've yet to ask him."

Baptiste was still processing the details of her plan. "Even assuming you could convince Raval to give up the technology process, why the hell would we then run it through Gaudet and pay him anything?"

"First, because Gaudet already has the technology. It may be our only way, depending on whether I can find Georges. Second, your idea of how to make money is far too danger ous and it's stupid. Selling it to a foreign government? Yourself? I will tell you what works. The French government buys from Gaudet and Gaudet gives you a cash kickback. Likewise Raval. Gaudet is a criminal so he is our shield. Believe me, you don't want the government throwing you in jail. I can attest to its unpleasantness. Do you understand?"

"How do you work with a man like Gaudet?"

"The Swiss escrow's the key. By agreement, the government pays directly into that account. By agreement, you get your cut, Gaudet his. Gaudet doesn't actually touch the cash originally, so depending on him to pay you is not an issue."

"I don't see why Gaudet needs us at all in this scheme," Baptiste grumbled.

"He needs me and I need the French government. I can deliver Raval and probably Bowden. There is no time for Gaudet to try to find Raval and either persuade him with money or torture, so without me there is a great probability that Gaudet will fail to deliver a sellable product to the gov ernment of France. Without me France will have a hard time knowing whether they have the real goods. I am only inter ested in a pardon-not money, so I am the glue that holds this deal together. It's that simple."

Baptiste merely nodded, still absorbing the structure of her proposal.

"You know what we do next? If we learn when Gaudet plans to launch his operation, this Cordyceps attack, then we use the money to sell the world markets short by buying short- term put options just before Cordyceps is launched. We take positions in London, Japan, and not much in the U.S. Use twenty different brokers. The leverage will be incredible. We don't even need much of Gaudet's cut to make money, you see. Say two and a half percent on two hundred million or five mil lion. It isn't enough money that Gaudet will want to double- cross you, and with a properly set up Swiss escrow it would be nearly impossible to cheat you anyway. The market after Cordyceps will turn the five million into more than fifty million on highly leveraged accounts. This is all if we learn the precise date. I don't even care about the money myself. You take as much as you want; I get my pardon from the French government for brokering the deal with Gaudet. Got it?"