The Greatest of These by Greg Wendleton (booksvooks txt) 📕

Scott smiled and said, “Ah, off the books activity and payments. Trust me, I’m not making any judgements. I’m actually familiar with those situations. I might have a way to help you, access your money.”

“What? Really? I don’t understand how.”

“Garret, if you will trust me, I can make it all clean and legitimate for you. I recently undertook a similar task for someone I met only recently. It would require your trust, I don’t want to just hack into your account” he said with a chuckle, “but it’s doable.”

“I, I don’t know what to say.”

“A simple yes or no will be sufficient. Oh, by the way, Leilani tells me you’ve fallen under the spell of this place, just like she has been for more twenty years.”

“Yes. And yes, I have. I can’t get over the tranquility it brings me. It goes beyond the view in the daytime and the sunsets.”

“I might be able to do something about that as well. I’ve had it with some of the vacation rental places for the last five years and the fees are growing and the damages are increasing every year. I’m thinking, I’d like to sell it and take my money and plunk it into a safe investment, maybe a lifetime annuity that I can start drawing on in eight or ten years. Would you be interested in buying this old house?”

“I sure would! I think my employment opportunities in San Antonio are going to be limited and it would be nice to start over here, with my wife Fonda.”

He smiled, “I bet she’s as pretty as her name. Let’s get your untouchable money freed up and we can talk some more about the house.”

Hoping I wasn’t making another drastic error in judgement, like I had with Conrad, I provided Scott Crowley with the keys to my future.

CHAPTER FORTY-SEVEN

It wasn’t nearly as much money as Scott had managed to redistribute a few nights prior, but taking the ill-gotten funds and washing them white as snow was still not a simple task. Scott spent several hours in front of his computer in the darkened home office space, working his magic. Shifting funds from one account to another, making it look like investment earnings spread out over the past twenty years, just like his 401k. He utilized tax loopholes and laws to establish additional tax deferred and some tax-sheltered investments in European companies traded on foreign exchanges. When he was done, he once again had created a masterpiece. If he did say so himself, he was a true artist when it came to building legitimate paper trails and financial portfolios. Not to mention what a rush it was!

At three o’clock in the morning on Saturday, February 27, he turned out the lights throughout the house and quietly entered the master bedroom. To his surprise, Leilani was not asleep, nor was she clothed. Her sensuous, beautifully tanned body lie naked, beckoning him into her loving embrace. Scott slid off his sleeping shorts and tee shirt and melded into her body, becoming one. His illegal, yet well-intended activities were apparently an aphrodisiac to Leilani as well.

They awoke just after seven that Saturday morning, ready to face the challenges and rewards of the day with renewed inspiration. They quickly showered and dressed, managing to walk out of their home right at eight o’clock. Their first stop would be one of their favorite coffee and pastry shops near their office. The second stop would be the real estate office. A quick check of the staff and the schedule confirmed that all the appointments on the books were covered. Scott and Leilani bid the office personnel good day, and exited the small building. Today, they were traveling in their BMW at a leisurely pace, intent on appreciating the beauty that surrounded them.

As they neared the rental house in Kihei, they noticed a dark blue Ford van driving very slowly passed the house they owned. An Asian man was holding up his phone and pointing it in the direction of the front of the house. He was taking pictures, or a video. But why?

Emboldened, Scott turned the wheel of his car to angle it in such a way as to block the passage of the van. He hopped out of the BMW and stood, daring the man to try and get past him. The van stopped and the driver raised his hands, as if in a show of surrender. Scott carefully moved forward, taking up a position in front of his car and offset from the driver’s side of the van. The man inside lowered his window and said, “I’m sorry. Is that your house? I was admiring it and wanted a photo to remember it.”

“Really. Yes, it is my house and I’m a little bit protective of my privacy.”

Showing me the photo on his phone, he said, “I apologize. I will delete the photograph.” He made a show of deleting the photo, thinking Scott was an idiot and that he couldn’t recover it from his deleted file.

“Whatever. People in this neighborhood like their privacy and enjoy the serenity. I don’t recommend skulking about.”

The Asian man apologized again, rolled up his window and expertly maneuvered the van around Scott’s BMW. Scott walked back to his car while shaking his head. When he was settled behind the wheel, he put the car in gear and drove the one hundred feet to his rental property and parked on the street.

“I took a video of the man with my phone.”

Scott turned to his wife and smiled. “You did? Good thinking!”

Special Agent Presley was walking down the driveway as they exited the BMW. “What was that about?”

“I think he was taking pictures or a video of the house. He might have been trying to capture an image of someone, or making sure he knew the address.”

“I got a video that shows the license plate and a clear picture of his face.”

“That’s great! We’ll see if we can find out who he