A Wicked Stepfather Pt. 03

"Yes, that's correct. Josephine the assistant manager is considered too young to step up to manage the department but another year would make the difference. Being a recent graduate she is right up to date with regulatory compliance and has been here long enough to absorb our management culture. Work in close consultation with her and you should have no problem. I'll send you a job offer setting responsibilities, remuneration, benefits plus the extra benefits your mother will insist you received."

"Thank you. Then Monday week then?"

"You haven't sighted the job offer yet."

"Peter, if my mother is involved in this I've no doubt that acceptances is only a formality."

"Thank you darling," Eloise cooed. "It is so lovely having you back."

When Eloise went to the bathroom while Peter went off for another bottle of champagne, Eliot said to Jenna, "That guy is brilliant. He's found the answer to parking you away in HR where you are as far removed from his areas of fiddling that you could possibly be."

"Yes, my thoughts too. But you have ears and what you hear could be important to our mission. You must become super-friendly with Sloan. She's about your age so that could be easy. And she cycles to work."

CHAPTER 7

Eight weeks later Eliot had the evidence he wanted to nail Peter. Once they had extracted the information from Peter's computer it was just a matter of hooking everything together and linking to hard evidence where they could find it.

Peter had gone to a publishing convention, taking his new PA. The chairman and Eliot took immediate action. Eloise opened the home safe and handed Peter's laptop to Eliot who had a computer forensic expert with him.

"That swine is not intending to indulge in business at the convention so has not taken his computer," Eloise said darkly.

The computer guy booted the computer and then grinned. "This will be moderately easy. He's used a cheap encryption program. Amuse yourselves while I crack it with my gear. It will take anything from half an hour to four hours.

As Eliot followed Eloise out to the day room he said, "Up to four hours. What can we do Eloise?"

"Let's watch a DVD. We could do something else but I'd not do the dirty on my daughter."

"Oh I'm so relieved," Eliot sighed. "You know if Gus busts the coding we can't use the computer as evidence because we would be up on computer cracking crime charges."

"God that's so unfair."

"But it will show is where and how to look."

"Oh and we have to find footprints?"

"Exactly."

It took ten days for them to work on the copies of Peter's files they secretly possessed.

Eloise called in police criminal investigators and handed over copies of documents she possessed linking Peter to 127 hours of unauthorized press running and told them to seized Peter's notebook and passed on information given by the forensic guy including the unlocking password.

The cops first took in the commercial print manager Wes Gould for questioning. ,When finding the amount of evidence the police possessed. he folded and confessed and a promise the police prosecutor would plead leniency for him if he gave evidence against Peter about any crimes.

Eliot and has team had also uncovered a racket on buying and selling company vehicles and for travel and accommodation and once the police demanded evidence of kickbacks paid by those organizations in lieu of facing charges of collusion, they all cooperated fully.

The police with Eloise present confronted Peter. After initial denials looked incredulous when examples of his swindling were read out. He then was cautioned and went quietly, not looking at his wife.

At the precinct he denied everything but lost his color and confidence when he was arrest and indicted on eleven charges of criminal activity. His attorney persuaded him to negotiate a lesser term of imprisonment for confessing. Peter balked at first because the police said not way would leniency be sought unless he divulged the whereabouts of all or most of his horded ill-gotten gains. The word 'most' offered Peter flexibility so he gave information that led to the recovery of $1,367,944. Eloise and the board agreed that deal was acceptable and the deal was made, no one except Peter knowing exactly how much money awaited him when he would leave jail.

Peter received seven years imprisonment on convictions relating to conspiring to defraud, theft and for betraying the trust of his company as its senior executive.

Eloise had filed for divorce the day her cheating husband was arrested.

Two hours after the celebratory drinking began, Eloise, Jenna and Eliot were left alone in their section of the bar.

"Well Eliot, what now?" Eloise asked. "You'll come off your investigation salary as from tonight but you can stay on as news editor at a salary typical for that post if you wish. I will be recommending to the board we pay you a bonus of $150,000."

Jenna said, "Eliot could you see if the kitchen here will do us some sandwiches or filled rolls. I want to talk to mom for a few minutes."

Eliot returned with a plate of sandwiches.

Eloise poured from a new bottle of champagne. "Eliot this is Jenna's idea and I concur completely. The suggestion is she takes over immediately as director of the printing works with a seat of the board and you become managing director of the newspaper company. Then when I retire Jenna will become executive chairman of the group. How does that sound?"

"I accept providing I am authorized to begin negotiations with the board of The Daily News, accompanied by your Eloise, over the merger of our two companies on equitable terms, using outside consultants to appraise valuations."

"What has brought this on?" Eloise asked.

"I had lunch last week with an old pal who works for the News. As you know the News is privately owned. Well the management committee required $15 million in capital for new presses and other expenditure and the family has turned them down. A revolt is likely and executives are threatening to leave unless their final ultimatum is met."

"And what's your solution."

"We build a new office block for News editorial and advertising personnel and merge all other departments."

"That's brilliant mom. Our newspaper presses can easily output both newspaper."

"What about our investigation into publishing four community newspapers?"

"That day is at least three years away. The chance to acquire the assets of the News is now. Morning newspapers are fairly secure according to the experts but evening newspapers are doomed except in exceptional circumstances."

"So you are saying this is a business decision that will appeal to me and my board?"

"Yes Eloise. But we need to move fast and open negotiations to build a morning-evening newspaper consortium."

"Well let's do it. I know the matriarch of the Fraser family. I will make an appointment to see Emily Fraser tomorrow. With you of course Eliot."

"What about Jenna?"

"No, leave me till negotiations appear to be going somewhere. I suggest you ask Mrs Fraser if she's interested in proceeding to leave preliminary talks between you two and her son Robert who is managing director of their private company and herself. She rules the purse strings. Robert is in his early sixties so might be considering retiring as his family is mostly in Europe. Mrs Fraser might be looking for a buyer."

"But outside buyers will see outdated presses."

"Yes Eliot. And we ought to point that out to Emily at the right time. Now I've not heard talk of marriage between you two?"

"We are talking about it mom. Just watch this space. I was waiting for you to get rid of your husband."

"Don't you dare put that label on him Jenna. Simply refer to him as my Ex."

THE END