The Horse Farm - Chapter 2-18

"Hello, this is Francisco Mela."

"Yes, Mr. Mela," the receptionist responded. "Mr. Birnbaum is expecting your call."

The line was silent for a moment. "Hello, Frank!"

"Hello, David. Jenn mentioned that you were expecting me."

"Yes, Frank, and I'm sorry. The news isn't good."

"Does this have to do with my card being declined? I called the issuer, but they said that they couldn't provide any information."

"I'm afraid that we won't be of much help either. There are limits to what we can divulge in situations like this."

"In situations like what?"

"I'm authorized only to inform you that your assets in this bank have been frozen." 

Francisco felt a jolt of shock at this news, but he kept himself composed. "Do you know for how long the freeze will be in effect?"

"Unfortunately, no. The action isn't under our control, and we're not permitted to disclose additional information."

"I understand, David. I have see this type of thing before."

"Here in the US?"

"Internationally."

"I'm very sorry, Frank! You've always been a good customer, and we hope that things return to normal as soon as possible. But the regulations are clear, and we have no flexibility."

"That's okay." Francisco thought for a moment. "Can you tell me though whether this impacts other personal or business accounts within the family?"

"I'm afraid that we can't share an account's status with anyone except the account holder."

"How about my son's accounts?" Francisco asked. "I'm a joint signatory."

"Let me check." Mr. Birnbaum placed the call on hold. "His accounts are open, Frank. No issues."

"That's good news." Francisco searched his mind for a reason. Was he under investigation? What agencies could he contact in an effort to find answers? 

"I apologize once again, Frank, but that's really all that we can say at this time."

"It's fine, David. We'll get it straightened out."

"Take care, Frank!"

"You, too!"

Francisco held the phone in his hand as he thought for a moment. He'd closed the Ferrari's windows for privacy. It sat parked on a tree-lined street near the university hospital; the car wouldn't look out of place in a neighborhood frequented by surgeons.

Francisco dialed again.

"Deegan, Worthe, and Schweitzer..."

"Hello, this is Francisco Mela."

"Oh, hello, Mr. Mela! Would you like to speak with Mr. Worthe?"

"If he's available."

"Certainly! One moment please!"

"Frank! How are things?"

"Hi, Park. Is the family doing well?"

"Everyone's good, Frank! Thanks for asking! How's everything with YOU?"

"I was hoping that you could tell ME."

Attorney Stephen Parker Worthe, III hesitated for a moment. "I'm sorry, Frank. Is something wrong?"

"I was just informed that my private banking accounts have been frozen."

"Oh my! That's serious! Have you contacted the bank?"

"Just got off of the phone. They didn't say much."

"Of course," Worthe reasoned. "They're not allowed to."

"You didn't know anything about this?" Francisco asked.

"We haven't been notified," answered, "but that's not unusual unless records are being requested. Typically, we learn about such actions from our clients or their agents."

"What actions."

"Without knowing more, it sounds as though the Feds are looking into you."

"You think the government is involved?"

"They have to be involved," explained Worthe. "They're the only ones with the authority to freeze assets."

"I see."

"Would you have any idea why they're coming after you?"

"Not at this time," Francisco replied.

"So, this is completely unexpected?"

"Yes."

"Have you spoken with your father?"

"Not recently. Why?"

"If there's been a change in the business, that could explain things. The feds are watching international monetary transfers closely these days. Maybe it's just a misunderstanding."

"There's nothing that I know of, but I'll check with him."

"We'll place a call right away to his counsel," Worthe offered. "They'll want to take steps to keep his own accounts out of jeopardy."

"That would be helpful," Francisco noted. "I need to focus on the business now. We have to made certain that operations at El Corazon are not impacted."

"It's a busy time of year for you, I bet."

"Lots of races," Francisco confirmed. "Lots of edgy clients."

"Okay, as discussed, we'll reach out to Mr. Mela."

"Thanks, Park."

"Let us know in case you're contacted by anyone or if anything else suspicious occurs. Oh, and you should probably talk to Jerry."

"He's my next call."

"If they're going to subpoena financial records, they typically start with tax returns. Sometimes that yields low-hanging fruit."  

"I understand."

"Is there anything else that we can do?"

Francisco thought for a moment. "Should I be concerned about property seizure?"

"It's always possible but probably unlikely."

"Okay, but if it looks as though it's coming, I need to get out in front of it. I can't stay in business if the government padlocks my stables."

"Understood. Have Jerry assemble a list of critical assets. In an emergency, we can transfer them to an offshore company. That should insulate the farm from legal exposure. But you might have to take your name off of the property."

"Understood."

"I'm sorry about this, Frank."

"Thanks, Park."

"You bet! We're always here for you!"

    

  

'The Horse Farm'

Copyright © 2015 Daniel R. South

All Rights Reserved

The Horse Farm - Chapter 2-17

Francisco parked the Ferrari in front of the Hotel Grande Parisienne and handed the keys to the valet.

"Why are we here?" asked Terri.

"This is the restaurant that I told you about," said Francisco. "It's quite good!"

"You're taking me to the same place where you took your ex-wife?"

Francisco replied calmly but firmly. "Ilsa and I had lunch here, not an affair. I promised that I would tell you everything that we discussed here that day. If you'll come inside, we can talk about it."

"What if she's here?" Terri protested.

"Ilsa? No. She had to fly back to her embassy. Something urgent required her attention."

Terri climbed out of the Ferrari and walked into the hotel lobby with Francisco. "You have a lot of balls, Frank!"

"Thank you!" Francisco said playfully.

"It wasn't a compliment, and you know it!"

The Maître d'Hôtel approached. "Ah, Monsieur Mela! Mademoiselle! Bienvenue! Your table is ready." 

"Merci, Charles!"

The Maître d' nodded to a well-dressed gentleman with white gloves. He led the way without explanation. They all seemed to know Frank and where he preferred to sit.

"Nice place!" Terri noted. Her reluctance was beginning to abate.

Francisco gave Terri an overview of the situation. He had asked Ilsa to come to town when their son, the younger Francisco, announced that he no longer wanted to go to college. They had a series of discussions together, but the boy wouldn't budge and wouldn't explain his change of plans. His attitude was evasive and his answers vague.

As Frank talked, Terri noticed Walter walking into the restaurant with a pretty young woman. Walter didn't see them.

At one point, Terri excused herself and went to the restroom where she engaged in a text conversation with Louise.

Terri: "At lunch with Frank. FYI Walter just walked in with some chick."

Louise: "What does she look like?"

Terri: "Cute, petite, bangs, big smile."

Louise: "Asian?"
Terri: "Yeah"

Louise: "OMG that's HER!! The hot pants chick!"

Terri: "Really?"

Louise: "What are they doing?"

Terri: "I don't know. In bathroom. Going back out. I'll report back after lunch."

Louise: "ok"

--

"Wow! This is a nice place!" Walter remarked.

"It's getting great reviews," Susan said. "I'm glad we're trying it."

"I'm not sure I can afford a place this fancy," Walter said with a smile.

"You don't have to," Susan said. "I'm paying."

"Oh, no!" Walter protested.

"Oh, yes!"

"No!"

"It's for your promotion," Susan explained.

"I can't let you do that," Walter argued.

"I want to."

"No, either we're doing this Dutch, or I'm walking out and we can pick up a bagel somewhere."

"Okay, you win!" Susan conceded. "Dutch it is!"

"I appreciate the gesture," Walter said earnestly.

"I appreciate you taking the time," she said. "How's the new job working out?"

"Good," Walter said. "Busy. I have to go to Houston next Monday."

"Already?"

"Yeah, that's going to be a monthly trip at the very least," he said. "And then I'll be in Colorado the following week."

"The week of the Fifteenth?" Susan asked.

"Yeah."

"That's cool," she said. "I'm actually going to be visiting my parents that weekend."

"When are you coming back?"

"Sunday."

"I'll be flying out on Sunday," Walter said. "We'll just miss each other."

"I could fly back on Monday," Susan offered. "Maybe we could have dinner."

"Oh, I don't want you to change your ticket," Walter said.

"Oh, it's no problem," she assured him. "I'm doing it all on miles. I can change my flight any time."

"Really?"

"Yeah," she said. "In my last job as a consultant, I flew all over the place. I've got tons of miles."

"Well, I still don't think you should change your plans unless you really want to stay the extra day," Walter said. "But if it works out, yeah, sure! We can catch up."

"Great!"

--

"So, anyway, I'm sorry that I didn't tell you," said Francisco.

"That's okay," Terri said. "It's a family thing. I understand."

"If you have any suggestions..."

"I ... guess ... you should just keep talking with him," Terri suggested. "Listen to him. He'll tell you what's on his mind eventually."

"You're right."

The waiter approached the table nervously. "Monsieur Mela, I'm so sorry, but your credit card was declined."

"Oh, I'm terribly sorry!" Francisco pulled a one-hundred dollar bill and a fifty from his wallet. "Please keep the change. My apologies."

"Wow!" said Terri. "If that happens to YOU, I don't feel so bad!"

"Must be a clerical error with the account," Francisco said with a calm smile. "I'll sort it out later."

    

  

'The Horse Farm'

Copyright © 2015 Daniel R. South

All Rights Reserved

The Horse Farm - Chapter 2-16

"Well, I can't really quit my job!" Louise protested.

Terri nodded sympathetically. "I know, Lou. I was being facetious."

Louise's frustration wasn't mitigated by Terri's attempt at humor. "Okay, but what am I supposed to do?"

"You're going to get through this."

"How?"

Terri thought for a moment. "Well, I guess we'll have to come up with a plan." 

"What kind of plan?" Louise was incredulous but wanted to hear Terri's idea.

"Let's think about this for a moment," Terri pondered. "He's not going to be working here permanently, is he?"

"No."

"So, if we can get you through the next few months, you should be okay." 

"Easier said than done!" Louise muttered.

"Okay, but hear me out," Terri urged. "First of all, no socializing. You go to work and you talk to him only when necessary. Then, you go home!"

"Okay," Louise agreed. "All business, no socializing."

"No cocktail parties or happy hours!"

"That might be hard to manage," Louise argued. "The company holds official off-site events sometimes."

"Okay, well, then afterward you go straight home to Walter."

"Sure," Louise agreed. "Unless he's traveling."

"Louise, that doesn't matter!" Terri scolded.

"You're right," Louise agreed. "Maybe I can come and crash at your place if he's away."

"You are welcome any time, Lou. Oh, and absolutely no overtime! No late nights in the office."

"Yes! I mean, no!" Louise agreed. "I mean ... if I have extra work to do, I'll just do it at home."

"Good girl!" Terri exclaimed.

"Thanks."

Terri thought for a moment. "You know that he's going to be waiting for you to slip up?"

"Yeah, I think I'm pretty much aware of that."

"You can't let your guard down," Terri said firmly. "Don't go all weak and mushy - not even for a minute - or you're going to find yourself in trouble."

"Terr, I'm not an idiot!"

"I know, Lou, but you have a history with the guy. You can't switch that off just because you want to."

"Yeah, I know."

"Don't worry," Terri assured her. "He'll be gone before you know it."

"Oh, I'm so sorry!" Louise exclaimed.

"You don't have to be sorry, Lou!"

"No, not about that!" Louise explained. "I mean, I didn't want tonight to be about my problems."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean I wanted to talk about you and what you're going through."

Terri was surprised by the sudden change in the direction of the conversation, but she also felt a bit relieved. "Oh, okay..."

"Is Douglas still bothering you?"

"Oh, I ... I haven't heard from him again."

"Do you think it was just a one-time thing, him calling?"

"I don't know what to think, Lou!" Terri said in a hushed voice. "Douglas is ... obsessive, shall we say?"

"I would have said nuts, but that's a nice way to put it."

"Well, he hasn't called and he hasn't jumped out from behind the bushes..."

"Oh, that sounds scary!" Louise interjected.

"You have no idea," Terri confirmed. "He might be up to something. I just don't know."

"Well, you know that if you have trouble you can call me. Or you can come over," Louise assured her. "Walter definitely won't mind."

"Thanks!" Terri replied. "That's very considerate. But there's something else that I wanted to talk to you about."

"Oh, sure!" 

"I don't want you to get upset."

"Um, okay. I don't think I will," Louise said. "What is it?"

"I kind of went on a date," Terri said slowly. "With Francisco."

"You mean Riccardo?" Louise asked. "At the ballet."

"No, I mean Francisco."

"Francisco, the horse farm guy?" Louise asked awkwardly. "With the Ferrari?"

"With the Ferrari," Terri confirmed.

"But I thought..." Louise reasoned. "What happened at the ballet?"

Terri shook her head. "It was a setup!"

"What? Louise shrieked. "No!"

"Yep! Bait and switch!" Terri said. "Riccardo was supposedly busy with clients. Eventually, I got Frank to admit that he was the one that wanted to go out with me."

"Oh, that is crazy! Why would they do that?" 

"Um, well I guess partly because of you," Terri replied soberly.

"Me? What?"

"Okay, so, Frank's version, which I'm still not sure that I believe, is that he was afraid that I wouldn't go out with him if I thought that you were still interested."

"No way!" Louise protested. "I was NEVER interested!"

"Louise!"

"What? I was never into him! - Okay, well maybe for like, five minutes after I found out that Walter had cheated on me."

"I think it may have been a little more than that," Terri observed.

"Okay, but I was not, like, really into him," Louise assured her. "He was just ... a distraction when I was going through a really bad time."

"I know," Terri said. "It was  a misunderstanding."

"But wait, so..."

"So, Riccardo asked me on a date, but it was really Francisco that wanted to go out with me."

"Holy cow!"

"They set me up."

"Oh, you must have been pissed!" Louise exclaimed.

"I was LIVID!"

"So, what? You told him off, and that was it?"

"Not exactly," Terri admitted.

"Terri! What happened?"

Terri shook her head. "Oh, boy!"

"What's going on?"

"Okay, well, I admit that I was seriously pissed. I mean, I was so angry I found it hard to speak. But I wanted to hear his explanation."

"Okay, so...?"

"Well - I don't know - when he explained why he did it, he just sounded really sincere."

"Really sincere?"

"Yeah..."

"Oh my God, Terri! You just told me not to go all soft and mushy on Antonio, and here, you fell for this guy's ploy hook, line, and sinker."

"Okay, I guess I did," Terri admitted as she flashed a girlish smile.

"Did you see him again after that?"

"Well..." That was all that Terri needed to say.

"Oh, my God! Oh, my God!" Louise was laughing uncontrollably now. 

"What?"

"Oh my God!" Louise shrieked. "How many times?"

"A few times."

"Oh my goodness! Really?" Louise was unable to control her excitement.

"And we kind of spent the weekend together."

"Terri, I can't believe you!"

"Yeah, well, I'm not sure I believe it either," Terri admitted in a more somber voice.

Louise gasped. "The blonde!"

"Yeah."

"Oh, no! Terri, we had no idea when we told you about that."

"It's okay. It turns out that it's just his ex-wife in town to talk about the kid's college or something."

"Did you know that she was coming?"

"He didn't tell me."

"Oh, no! I'm so sorry."

"Yeah, well, I'm supposed to meet him for lunch tomorrow. He says he wants to explain."

"You know, I'm sorry, Terri. I want you to be happy and everything, but this guy is a total manipulator."

"Yeah, I'm getting that feeling," Terri admitted. "By the way, he sent me about an acre of flowers today."

"At the office?"

"Yeah," Terri sighed.

"Total manipulator!" Louise said with a wink.

"Yeah, but I could probably deal with a little more of that kind of manipulation."

    

  

'The Horse Farm'

Copyright © 2015 Daniel R. South

All Rights Reserved

The Horse Farm - Chapter 2-15

Terri smiled and waved from a table as Louise walked in. "Thanks for coming!" 

For a moment, they reconnected through a warm embrace.

"Oh, believe me! I couldn't wait to get out of that stupid cocktail party."

"Was he there?" Terri asked.

Louise rolled her eyes. "Oh my God! What an arrogant douche!"

"What happened?"

"Well, first I had to hear from one of our project managers - NOT from my boss, who should have given me a heads up - that starting next week, I'm going to have to work with the jerk."

"What? You're going to be working with Antonio?"

"Yup!"

"Oh my goodness! Really?"

"Really! My idiot boss apparently agreed to this without telling me."

"I thought you told her that you didn't want to..."

"I did," Louise interrupted. "But I guess she was too worried about her toddler's latest case of the sniffles to back me up."

"What a stupid cow!"

"Oh, please! Don't hold back!" Louise pleaded. "I want to hear you say it."

Terri laughed.

"No, seriously!" Louise insisted.

"Okay ... Dumb bitch?"

"More!"

"I am not going there!" Terri protested.

"Oh, come on!" Louise smiled genuinely as they shared a good laugh.

"So, anyway," Terri continued, "what else happened?"

"Oh, yeah, well, I was kind of giving him a hard time about the fact that he never called me after he left."

"What did he say?"

"Something about his family, blah, blah, blah!"

"Oh!" Terri exclaimed. "That's it!"

"What's it?"

"I figured it out!" Terri said. "I just can't believe that I missed the signs."

"Figured what out?" Louise asked impatiently. "Missed what signs?"

Terri looked her friend in the eye and spoke with exaggerated drama. "He's a MAMA'S boy!"

Louise let out a howl of laughter. "Oh, you're joking!"

"No, now I'm sure of it!" Terri asserted. "It makes total sense!"

Louise tried to guess Terri's reasoning. "So when he went back home..."

"He was coming back home to Mama," Terri explained. "And she put him under her thumb. 'Where did you go? Who were you with? What did you do?' He was no longer free to do as he pleased, so he had to stop contacting you."

Louise was incredulous. "I don't know. He's a grown man."

"So, why didn't he act like a man and call you? Or keep calling you?"

"You have a point."

"While he was up here, he was running off of the leash," Terri continued. "Nobody kept track of his friends and his whereabouts. You two guys spent time together and ended up fooling around."

"Yeah, don't rub that in," Louise protested.

"The problem is that, to you, it all seemed real. You were into him. You thought that he was into you. But what if, to him, this was all just vacation sex."

"Ouch!" Louise protested. "Why would he do that?"

"Sorry! But just consider the possibility. He goes back home, and mother is waiting to take care of her little boy and stuff him back into her smothering embrace."

"Okay," Louise was listening, but the idea seemed far-fetched.

Terri continued: "In the end, though, he realized that he can't fall in love with another woman because his heart belongs to mama!"

"Oh, my goodness, that's gross!"

"I'm serious!" Terri insisted. "Latin men are like that!"

"Really?" Louise argued. "They're all into their mothers?"

"More like the mothers are into them, and they don't give control up easily."

"Okay, well, I guess I can see that," Louise admitted. "He did talk about his mother sometimes. But I don't remember thinking that it was weird."

"It's a cultural thing," Terri explained.

"I guess." Terri was probably right, but the whole idea made Louise feel even more uncomfortable.

"So, what else happened?"

"Oh!" Louise clenched her jaw for a moment before she spoke. "You're not going to like this part."

"Why? What did he do?" Terri demanded.

"He asked me why I was leaving so early. Why wouldn't I stay and have a drink and hang out and talk?"

"Yeah?"

"I told him that I had to go because I have a life."

"Okay..."

"Then he said, 'Oh, you mean the same life that you were willing to cheat on before?'"

"Oh, my God!" Terri exclaimed with a look of shock on her face.

"Yeah."

"Oh, my God! What a fucking jerk!"

"He is a jerk," Louise concurred.

"What an ASSHOLE!"

"Yep! That, too!"

Terri was livid. "I would have fucking PUNCHED him."

"Oh, don't think that I didn't want to that, too!" Louise assured her.

"What did you do?"

"I turned and walked right out of the club."

"You didn't say anything?"

"Not a word."

"Oh, Lou! Good for you! Good for you! Don't give that jerk the satisfaction of having an argument ."

"Yeah, but what he said was cold."

"It was cruel!" Terri insisted. "Hey, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I will be," Louise replied while wiping the corners of her eyes. "But you know...?"

"What?" Terri demanded. "What is it?"

"He's actually kind of right!"

"Oh, no! Lou!" Terri insisted.

Louise wasn't encouraged. "Well, if the shoe fits..."

"Lou, stop it! Please don't say that."

"I mean, I did what he accused me of doing." Louise was on the verge of tears now.

"No! It's NOT true!" Terri insisted. "When he came here to work the other time, you had no idea that he was going to run off and ditch you like that."

"I should have known," said Louise in a hushed voice.

"How COULD you have known?" Terri argued. "You had no idea that he was going to stop calling. For all you knew, he could have been your soul mate."

"I guess," Louise sobbed.

"He did everything in his power to get you to fall for him," Terri observed.

"And it worked."

"Okay, Louise! But that's not your fault. You had no idea that he was playing you. You two spent real time together. It seemed like he was into you."

"I guess."

"Now, it's completely different," Terri explained. "Now, you know what his agenda is."

"Yeah."

"He's a selfish, arrogant jerk who got you to fall in love with him, and then ditched you the minute he landed in godforsaken Uruguay. That's all he is, a heartless player."

Louise nodded.

Terri continued her rant. "And now this cruel jackass flies back up here and tries to make you feel bad for giving him your heart? I am NOT going to let you blame yourself for that."

"Okay," Louise said. "I get the message."

"Loud and clear?" Terri asked.

"Loud and clear," Louise agreed. "But I still feel stupid."

"You're NOT stupid, Louise!" Terri said forcefully. "Please don't ever say that."

"Okay."

"I mean, seriously, Lou. Can't you see? This guy is TOTALLY bad news. You really shouldn't even talk to him. Just avoid him altogether."

"Well, that's gonna be hard now that I have to work with him."

"That is a problem," Terri admitted. "Actually, I think you might have had the right idea the other day."

"What idea?" Louise asked. "What did I say?"

"You said that you wanted to quit."

    
  
 
 

'The Horse Farm'

Copyright © 2015 Daniel R. South

All Rights Reserved