The Angels' Share (The Bourbon Kings #2) - J. R. Ward Page 0,54
have to get back to New York, buddy—”
“I need you—”
“—but I’ve made sure I have everything ready for the Feds.” The guy indicated various printouts and held up a flash drive. “I’ve created a summary of—”
“You’re miserable on Wall Street, you realize.”
“—the withdrawals that I’ve found. It’s all right here. Just give them this drive, actually, and they’ll know what to do. They can call me with questions. I’ll leave my card and my cell phone number.”
“You have to stay.”
Jeff cursed and rubbed his eyes. “Lane, I’m not some magic talisman that’s going to make this all go away. I’m not even the best man for this kind of thing. I also have no official role at the company and no legal authority.”
“I trust you.”
“I already have a job.”
“That you hate.”
“No offense, but my paychecks are huge and they don’t bounce.”
“You have more money than you need. You may live in a modest Midtown apartment, but you’re sitting on a fortune.”
“Because I don’t do stupid things. Like leave perfectly good work —”
“Miserable work.”
“—for a forest fire.”
“Well, at least you’ll be warm. And we can toast marshmallows. Wassup.”
Jeff broke out laughing. “Lane.”
“Jeff.”
His friend crossed his arms over his chest and pushed his metrosexual glasses up higher on his nose. In his white button-down oxford and his black slacks, he looked like he was prepared to go to his office directly from landing at Teterboro, N.J., airport.
“Tell me something,” the guy started.
“No, I don’t know the square root of anything, I can’t do that pi thing to the nth degree, and if you ask me why the caged bird sings, at the moment, I’m feeling like it’s because the damn thing has a gun to its head.”
“Why haven’t you called the Feds yet?”
Lane went on a wander, heading over to the bank of windows that overlooked the side gardens and the river. Down below, in the morning sunlight, the Ohio was a gorgeous, shimmering pathway to Charlemont’s business district, as if those glass-and-steel buildings were some kind of nirvana.
“There were crimes committed, Lane. Are you protecting your father even though he’s dead?”
“Hell no.”
“So drop a dime.”
“We’re a privately held corporation. If there was malfeasance, my family are the ones who were damaged. It’s our money that was lost, not that of thousands of shareholders. It’s no one else’s problem or concern.”
“You’re kidding me, right.” His old roommate stared across at him like there was a horn growing out of his forehead. “Laws were broken because improper disclosures were filed with the state attorney general and the IRS. I found discrepancies in your mandatory annual reports. You could be brought up on federal charges for collusion, Lane. Hell, I could, too, now that I know what I do.”
Lane glanced over his shoulder. “Is that why you’re going?”
“Maybe.”
“What if I said I could protect you?”
Jeff rolled his eyes and went over to a duffel on the bed. As he zipped the thing closed, he shook his head. “You entitled motherfuckers think the world revolves around you. That the rules are different just because you come from a family tree with some money.”
“The money’s gone, remember.”
“Look, either you call in law enforcement, or I’m going to have to. I love you like a brother, but I’m not willing to go to jail for you—”
“Down here things are taken care of.”
Jeff straightened and cranked his head around. He opened his mouth. Then shut it. “You sound like a mobster.”
Lane shrugged. “It is what it is. But when I say I can protect you, it includes against things like the government.”
“You’re crazy.”
Lane just stared at his old friend. And the longer he met those eyes behind those glasses, the paler Jeff became.
After a moment, Jeff sat down on the bed and braced his hands on his knees. Staring across the elegant room, he said softly, “Shit.”
“No, not shit. You stay here, find out everything that happened, and I will deal with it privately. That’s the course we’re going to take.”
“And if I refuse?”
“You’re going to stay.”
“Is that a threat?”
“Of course not. You’re one of my oldest friends.”
But they both knew the truth. The man was going nowhere.
“Jesus Christ.” Jeff put a hand to his temple like his head was pounding. “If I’d known what kind of rabbit hole this was, I never would have come down here.”
“I’m going to take care of you. Even without the money, there are too many people who owe my family. I have plenty of resources.”