the Holy Lance - Chapter 8

Ortwin Schwartz looked at the blinking numbers on his screen one last time and turned it off. He should not be doing this anymore, he had one hundred people working for him, all of whom were more than capable, but he could not resist. Making money was like a drug, and he was still good at it. Another 5 million dollars had been added to the pot today, more than satisfactory in anyone’s terms. Not that the pot was all his of course, the Schwartz group was a $10 billion hedge fund giant, with clients ranging from wealthy individuals to charities, but a decent amount of it was his own money.

Leaving his glass and steel desk, he moved over to the mahogany shelves and poured himself a brandy, intending to relax for a bit before bed. His wife had already retired for the evening, but he did not mind, their marriage had always been based on his money and her looks and connections. They had 2 fine children together, and that was enough. Both had kept their side of the bargain.

Reviewing the day’s trades, he was particularly pleased with his silver position, he relaxed on the antique Chesterfield sofa, and let his mind wander. A journey which was rudely interrupted by the ringing of the third phone on his desk. Walking over, he picked up the cordless receiver and listened to the unaccented voice at the end.

“The old man has retired.”

“Good, and the younger?”

“There was an interruption, he refused to sign the papers.”

“I trust you will make sure that he does so soonest.”

“Of course, sir”

The caller clicked off, as he always did. Security was the man’s obsession, as well it might be and telephones always made him wary. Although the Echelon programme run by the American National Security Agency and its allies, such as Britain, was designed to intercept satellite communications and most modern calls were carried by optical fibre, there was also the chance, no the likelihood, that they had found a way to intercept those as well. All conversations were brief and their meaning disguised.

Ortwin hung up, dissatisfied. He had learnt from years of trading the markets that there are things which cannot be anticipated, but still, the secret was to react to them and adjust one’s position accordingly. It looked like this was one of these moments.