There Must Be A Mistake Ch. 26

Mel said, "Water, your people found water and you expect it to pay off?"

"I love the way you said that Mel. Another doubter; California has one year of drinking water left. The Southwest is ready to turn back to the dustbowl era of the 30s. Climatologists are predicting rapid changes in climate due to rising heat levels across the continent. New York reservoirs are 30 percent lower than they ever have been. Atlanta nearly went dry two years ago; and you say to me WATER. Our people estimate there is more water down there than the Oglala had in its infancy. The only reason no one found it before, is no one was looking for water. They were all looking for oil and gas reserves. If they didn't find either one of them, they moved on. William has people looking for everything that can make money, and we stumbled on this just at the right time. How much do you pay for a bottle of water Mel?"

"That's not the point, what happens to your money if it starts to rain like the flood?"

"What is $150 million to William Zabo? However, that's not going to happen, and what is going to happen, is he or his sons are going to be so wealthy governments are going to be frightened of them."

"Will you accept the summonses for Maude, and Harold Ames, Mel?"

"Since I'm their attorney, I can do that. You are asking for $350 million from each of them Thomas?"

"You should be thankful they didn't have Sandra's name on the title to the car. Otherwise, like the next two defendants we would be asking for it from all three of them. Remind them what happens when we have to take a case to trial. William will not take one penny less than the stated amount. I have no leeway in that case at all. If it is $600 million, their check is going to be for $600 million and not one penny less. Have a good day Mel."

"You to Thomas."

******************

As she walked in the door, Sandra said hello to her parents, without much feeling in her voice. She went to see her children.

Mel Purcell greeted them more warmly.

"Mister and Mrs. Ames, we have to talk. Those men outside were lawyers for the Trevelyan's, but actually they were lawyers for their great uncle, William Zabo. I know the man well, so listen to what I have to say to you."

Maude said, "Why don't we go into the living room where we can be more comfortable. Would you like a coffee, or something stronger?"

"No, I'm fine thank you."

"Tell me Mister Purcell, how much are they asking for?"

"First let me tell you that Sandra has been found not guilty of any crime in this matter. Someone spiked her drinks, while she was at the club. All she had that night was sparkling water. It was verified by the bartender, and the people she was sitting with, while she was not dancing. It is the only reason I believe we may have a little wiggle room in dealing with Tom Shackleford, James Hurst, and Vincent Caruso.

Tom and Jim have been in business for the better part of thirty years, and they have yet to lose one case. Vincent is the newcomer. It is said that he paid $100 million to become a partner in that firm. That was nine years ago, and he has not lost a case yet. I am not talking about little trials; I am talking about trials against the US government, multinational corporations, and even other law firms that have netted them, in fees alone, more than $100 million. They are not a good law firm, they are the very best there is.

"The car is in both your names. You are both being sued for $350 million. That comes to $700 million, and before you ask me if they are joking, William Zabo does not joke when it comes to money. If the baby died, there is no telling what he would have done, or the lengths he would have gone through to get all three defendants put in jail for life.

He would have dragged you through every court in the land, including the Supreme Court, if necessary, to get a decision on the fetus. You can't possibly outspend him. He owns newspapers, and magazines, so you cannot out advertise him. No politician, who wants to get reelected, would talk against him. If he wants a piece of legislation passed, between him and his friends, it will be passed. So this is my advice to you, and if you take it, I will cut my fee in half, because my aggravation level will go down by half.

I am suggesting you make an offer of $400 million, payable within thirty days. That is a savings to you of $300 million if they take it; and that is a big if. Thomas has to get that by William Zabo, and that man does not need your money. As Tom said to me outside, he is looking for revenge because you hurt his nephew, niece, but the most important his progeny. This couple has waited ten years to get pregnant, and when they told him it happened he was dancing on air."

"I am going to have to get rid of most of my portfolio."

"What would you have to do if it was $700 million?"

"I would have to sell everything, and I mean everything."

"There is your choice. You can have something left if they take it, or have nothing if you hold back. If you give me permission to call them now, we can strike while the iron is hot and try to get you out of this thing with some money left over, and a little dignity."

Harold put his head between his hands in an attempt to think about the situation.

Maude said, "What are you thinking about, it is my money."

"$180 million was your share of the money. I made it grow to what it is today. So keep your fucking mouth shut."

"Do it Mister Purcell, do it right now. Tell them we want an answer by noon tomorrow."

"Do not do that Harold; do not put pressure on them, because they have all the leverage. Make the offer and let it sit. Thomas will do the rest."

"Okay Mister Purcell, do it your way."

"I need a room where I can talk to Thomas alone."

"The sitting room is empty. I will show you the way."

************************

"Do you think he bought it?"

"When was the last time you haven't seen Mel Purcell slobber over the thought of money? I thought he was going to get down on his knees and lick your shoes."

"Did you see his eyes when the three of us got out of the limousine? I think his blood pressure went through the roof."

"I have a feeling something else is going on that William is keeping us from. It wouldn't be the first time he did it to us to keep us clean. Follow the law, and don't do anything outside it. This seems much too easy to me."

**********************

Thomas's telephone rang, and he thought it was the office. "Hello Elise, what's up?"

"You just left, and I have not had time to have a sex change operation."

"Did you forget to kiss me goodbye Mel?"

"One day Thomas, I am going to have you kiss my ass."

"You are going to have to wait a long, long, time for that to happen. How can I help you?"

"The Ames would like to make you a settlement offer of $400 million total. Would you run that by your clients and see if it is acceptable. Would you explain to your clients that Sandra's drinks were tampered with, and that is why she lost control of her vehicle? It is not an excuse, it is an extenuating circumstance."

"You know I cannot promise you anything Mel, but it is a generous offer. I will do what I can to make them accept it. I will make the call as soon as we get off the phone."

"Thank you Thomas, I will look forward to hearing from you."

**************

"William Zabo's office, this is Colonel Lucius Canyon speaking."

"Colonel Canyon, this is Thomas Shackleford, I am William's lawyer. I am handling the case in reference to Rory and Lucy Trevelyan."

"Yes Mister Shackleford, Mister Zabo has turned that case over to me, as it only refers to money now. His nephew and niece are on the mend, and that is all he was interested in. How are things progressing up there?"

"Harold, and Maude Ames, whose daughter Ms. Sandra Finch was driving the red Mercedes, was found not guilty of all charges. It appears someone tampered with her drinks, and it affected her judgment just prior to the accident. They have made a reasonable offer in the amount of $400 million to settle this matter immediately."

"Are you absolutely sure they are telling the truth about this Finch woman?"

"Yes sir, there is no doubt about it. Her bar tab, and the women she sat with all night agreed she never had any alcoholic beverages."

"$400 million is acceptable. Have it placed in the following account within fourteen days."

"Thank you Colonel I will tell them their offer is acceptable, with payment due in fourteen days."

**************

"Mel, Tom, $400 million is approved. You have fourteen days to get it into this account."

"How did you sell it Tom, was he in a good mood?"

"I do not know. He handed it off to one of his executives. This Colonel told me as soon as he found out Lucy and Rory were going to be healthy again, and it was down only to money, he couldn't care less."

"Can you believe that man Thomas?"

"I guess when you have as much money as he has, you can do what you want. I am coming up on my next victim's home. Somehow, I have a feeling this one is not going to be as smart as the Ames were."

"What do you expect; the Ames had a great lawyer."

"Goodbye Mel." Tom turned his personal phone off. He did not want it ringing during the next interrogative.

**************

The gates to the sprawling estate of Hooter Gibson swung open to allow the limousine in. This was money, serious money, and the three men in the limousine smiled. It was time to make a big dent into someone's bank account. They already knew the figures, but it was nice to see the facts before them."

They walked up the steps to the estate, and a servant opened the door.

"Good afternoon gentlemen, Mister and Mrs. Gibson, and Melvin are waiting for you in the drawing room on your left."

"Thomas and James led the way, but Vincent stayed a few steps behind. He asked the gentleman, "Do they pay you well?"

"Sir, they pay me according to my color."

"Thank you, I am going to enjoy the hell out of this."

As he walked into the room, Vincent apologized. "I'm sorry for the delay. I had to adjust my shoe. May I do the interrogative Thomas?"

Shackleford looked at Vincent questioningly, but nodded his head.

"Mister Gibson, why aren't your attorneys here?"

"Attorneys, for a simple accident?"

"You do realize your son is criminally negligent for this accident?"

"We will take care of that when we get to court."

"So you believe this city will not punish him, because of your status in the community?"

"They wouldn't dare."

Vincent handed the summonses to Mister and Mrs. Gibson, and Melvin. He informed them they were each being sued for $500 million, because the car in question was in their names."

Hooter Gibson yelled, "One and a half billion dollars for an automobile accident? You people are out of your mind. How can you justify that amount of money where no one died, or was seriously injured?"

"Let me bring you up-to-date Mister Gibson. Mrs. Lucey Trevelyan has taken a turn for the worse. She is in ICU, and may or may not lose her baby, and her life. Lucy and Rory have been trying to have a child for 10 years. Their great uncle, William Zabo, is on the warpath, because of this accident. You should be thankful he is not standing here in front of you.

Your son and his friend were traveling down a two-lane road, side by side, at over 100 miles per hour. If this was not reckless enough, it was in the dead of night. They disregarded a sign that warned them of the turn ahead and lost control of both their vehicles as they entered it. Your son's Corvette slid onto the gravel hit Mrs. Finch's Mercedes, which had already hit the Lincoln town car carrying Mister and Mrs. Trevelyan. They were unconscious and hurt by the first accident, only to be hurt again, by your son's irresponsible driving. Then, to add insult to injury, Mister Glover's Jaguar hits the Trevelyan's automobile again. How the Trevelyan's survived is beyond all of us here. How Mrs. Trevelyan managed to keep her baby alive is a miracle only God can understand. If she had lost that baby, William Zabo would be asking for the death penalty for all three of the people involved in the accident. I don't care who would have defended the three of drivers, I guarantee you they would have been found guilty."

"Where am I supposed to get money like that? Even if I sell everything it doesn't come close."

"Mister Gibson, I feel sorry for you. Maybe you can find work like your servants, and get paid like them."

"What do you mean, I pay my servants well."

"In that case you should live well. I think you should contact an attorney immediately, but make sure he's not too expensive. You should pay the attorney in advance, because when we get through with you, and your son, because of his reckless behavior, you will be lucky to have shoes on your feet."

"You son of a bitch."

"Let's not get personal now, because I do not wish to get angry. I know both my father and mother. They are aging well and living in Italy. How my father is dealing with 13-year-old twins is the funniest thing you will ever see."

"I don't give a fuck how your father is dealing with 13-year-old twins. Get out of my house, now."

"May I have those summonses back please? I want to adjust that figure upward, to $600 million each, because you made this personal."

"I'm sorry, I won't do it again I promise."

"Whether it's me or my partners, you had better keep a civil tongue in your mouth Mister Gibson, and get a fucking lawyer."

"I will, I will have one by tomorrow."

Vincent opened his briefcase, and took out a recording device. "Mister Gibson, I want you to know that the three of us recorded this session. Don't tell your lawyer any lies about what was said here, because if you do, I will have people here digging up this house by weeks end and turning it into rubble."

"Yes I understand. I will tell them the truth about this meeting."

"What was my first question when I walked in?"

"You asked me, where is my lawyer."

"Very good Mister Gibson, I think I'll have the IRS check to make sure you are paying your staff above minimum wage. I would hate to think of you making less than minimum wage after we take every penny from you."

"I pay my staff very well."

"I'm very happy to hear that Mister Gibson. Have a wonderful day."

As they were being escorted from the residence, Vincent handed the servant one thousand dollars, and told him it was his pleasure to do so.

When they entered the limousine Tom asked, "What the hell got into you today Vincent? Did someone shove the red hot chili pepper up your ass?"

"The servant's shirt had a frayed collar. It meant one of two things to me. It was his own shirt, or the bastard was as cheap as hell. I delayed a moment and asked if he was paid well. He told me he was paid according to his color. I told him I am going to enjoy the hell out of this. He smiled."

James Hurst said, "You two got your rocks off today, can I do the next one?"

Tom said, "Okay Jim, just remember if you get into trouble, we have your back."

Suddenly a cell phone started ringing. Since Jim and Tom had turned their personal cell phones off, and only their special cell phones on, they panicked, and started searching their jackets for them. It had to be answered by the third ring or there would be hell to pay. Celeste would kill them, or worse, they could lose her as a client. Suddenly, it stopped ringing. They looked at each other in despair. They continued looking, and found their special phones in their briefcases. They checked to see which one of them she called. Their phones showed no missed phone calls. They had no idea what the hell was going on. Then they turned towards Vincent, who was quietly talking to his wife, Donna. They attacked him unmercifully.

Covering his head he yelled, "What did I do?"

Tom pulled Vincent's phone away from him. "Donna darling, after we kill him, we will let him talk to you again."

"Okay Thomas, but be gentle on the part that I love."

As they pummeled him, Tom said, "The only phones Jim and I had turned on were for Celeste. When your phone rang, we thought it was her, and we couldn't find our phones. After the third ring, everything went silent. We thought we lost Celeste as a client. When we saw you on the phone with Donna, you deserved the death penalty."

"Gentlemen may I remind you that you do not share your illicit gains from Mrs. Castronova's account with me. I do not complain about it, because she is your private client. I would suspect after you two retire you would take her with you and keep a one-client office. I, however, have a wife who I love, and she calls me because she misses me. Ten children and she still looks like God's gift to womanhood. I couldn't care if Mrs. Castronova called and you could not find your phone, because it does not affect me. Your aged minds are making you forget where you place your pens, phones, and wives. Be careful gentlemen that last one could cost you 50 percent of everything you have ever had, or will have. I am sure Trudy would love to have your home in the Hamptons. She may even find a boy toy to fly your helicopter."

"I will crash my helicopter first."

"Will you be in it? It will mean more for Jim and me."

"Someone did put a hot red chili pepper up your ass today. Why aren't you in court?"

"You brought me here to Vermont remember, or is your mind aging that quickly?"

"I am going to hit you."

"Go right ahead, you're too old to hurt me."

"Why did I have to get you into my alma mater?"

"I believe it was because you won a $1 billion settlement for my parents."

"Yes, that was nice, and the $17 billion award for Celeste didn't hurt either."

"Yes, but that was a class action suit and you didn't make as much money off that than you did for my parents. You two only got $750 million in her private suit, and you had to split the profits between you."

"Yes that was a terrible payday also. Do you want to know what the worst part of it is Vincent?"

"Of course I do."

"We have to be honest to the penny on both our corporate taxes and personal taxes, because the IRS is up our ass every year."

"I feel very bad for you guys, I really do. However, think about me. In two years, I lose my last four dependents. I lose my tax deduction paying for college. Do you realize what a big increase that is going to be on my yearly state, and federal income taxes? They are going to be all over me like army ants wondering what they can get from me next."

"Are you ready Tom?"

"Absolutely Jim, one, two, three; AAAAAWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW."

Vinny laughed. "I love you guys."

****************

They arrived at another palatial estate, with high wrought iron fences and Arabian horses roaming around at will. They stopped at the gate, and a guard came out to greet them.

"We are here to see Mr. and Mrs. Rawlings and Wilson Glover, and their son, Daniel."

"What is your name sir?"

"Thomas Shackleford."

"One moment please." He went to the guardhouse and made a call. When he returned he said, "Mister and Mrs. Glover do not wish to see you now."

"We are here to serve summons on the three Glover's. Do they want me to call the police to gain access, or do they want to do it the easy way. Tell them I can see their attorney's car parked on the side of the house."

The guard did not return; he simply opened the gates.

As they were led into the lounge, Tom said, "Mel, if you are going to represent two clients, and you are trying to keep the second client a secret, either park your car in the garage, or rent a different one."

"I'm only sitting in Tom. They are hiring another attorney as soon as possible."

"Have you advise them of their rights and responsibilities yet?"

"Yes I have."

James Hurst said, "Mister and Mrs. Glover, Daniel, I want you to know we are taping this conversation. Mister Purcell has indicated he told you what your rights and responsibilities are. Vincent Caruso will now hand you summonses, which require you to be in attendance at the courthouse two weeks from Monday for depositions. One of the three of us will be in attendance. The Jaguar in question was in all three of your names. It makes all three of you responsible parties in this incident. Unfortunately, for all of you, Daniel is the most responsible party in this incident. We will prove, in a court of law, the area his Jaguar hit the Lincoln town car caused the most severe damage to Mrs. Lucy Trevelyan and her husband Rory. The Jaguar's imprint is shown just left of the center support posts of the town car, causing a concussion to Mister Trevelyan and severe bruising of his body, while he was attempting to protect his wife from further injury to her body. Today, she was moved back into ICU, because she had a relapse. It is not known if she will survive, if the baby will survive, or where the pain in her side is emanating from. We have jet standing by in Burlington just in case we have to rush her to Boston.