After the Win

Just before his wedding to Anne, Mike went back and rounded up his bride, as well as Stephen and Christie, and told them it was about time to move on into the room and meet the judge and a few others that Mike felt like Steve and Christie should meet, given what was coming at them in a short time.

When they got to the judge, the judge shook hands with everyone and said in a serious voice, "Mike I hope this marriage lasts longer than the honeymoon this time. I am getting tired of signing all those annulment papers." Mike's face fell and all color drained from it as he was so shocked he did not know what to do or say, so he just stood there and looked back and forth between Anne and the Judge before Anne says "Michael, How could you?" Then taking pity on a poor speechless Mike, she said, "Uncle Roger, it looks like we got him pretty good. What do you think?"

The Judge said that if he was any more shocked they would have had to start CPR. Best laugh he had had in years. Mike finally found his voice, although it was a bit squeaky at the moment and he looked at Anne and said "Uncle Roger?"

Anne smiled at him mischievously and said "What?? I am not allowed to know important people also?" and laughed some more at his confusion. Anne then explained that the Judge was an old friend and the father of her college roommate and that he enjoyed a good joke as much as anyone did.

Mike quietly said sort of under his breath, "Wonderful. Simply wonderful. My future wife is a very devious woman and I just now found it out".

Then the Judge got everyone's attention and said to find a chair and let's get this wedding done before one of the participants had a heart attack, which brought laughter from the crowd that had gathered.

"Dearly beloved and honored guests, we have gathered together to honor and witness the unions of these fine couples into the state of matrimony" and continued with a short service lasting only a few minutes in reality. The vows were made and the rings placed onto the proper fingers and the Judge pronounced them husbands and wives and told the grooms to bestow the customary kiss upon their bride and then introduced the two couples by their new legal married names to the crowd and to the world, and with that the ceremony was over.

Everyone gathered at what was actually the front of the room but had been the back of the ceremony for a plate of cake and punch that the hotel had supplied. Everyone was happy. As time wore on, Stephen began to get nervous and edged over to Mike and whispered "I hate to break up a party, but we have some work to do pretty quick now."

Mike agreed and then told Stephen that he had sort of discussed the situation with the judge before so he knew the basics of what was going to happen that morning. He moved them over to where the judge was engaged in conversation with a media type that Mike had seen before. Waiting until the judge noticed him and called him over, they told the judge they thought it was time to go confront Mike's grandfather and asked the judge if he would like to accompany them. The judge thanked them and said he would give anything to have been able to see the reaction to all this from him, but that there was a possibility the case might come before the judge and he really did not want to recluse himself from the bench for that battle. He did say that to make it all look more convincing that he had two black Suburban's outside with two men wearing dark suits in each to create the illusion of members of the FBI and Justice Department without having to be guilty of impersonating an officer of the law.

They quickly discussed how to go about making the confrontation and again what to demand in the form of payment for past and future deeds and silence about those deeds. They had decided that they would demand that he move 51 percent of all his stocks into a trust for the three blood relatives, Christie, Mike, and his father; resign from all boards and ask that his family replace him on those boards; resign from any company in which he is listed as a corporate officer; Move 60 percent of all liquid assets into trusts with his kids and grandkids names on it; and lastly, place all his remaining holdings into a blind trust denying him the ability to manipulate those funds, thus removing him from the public eye. This would be done or all the information and proof of wrongdoings would be given to the authorities at that time and they would move forward with lawsuits and also press charges of murder and attempted murder, crimes which had no statute of limitations and extradition was guaranteed.

Yes, it sounded great when they said it. Now, if it only worked even close to that way for real.

As soon as they could excuse themselves from the celebration of the weddings, the two freshly married and exuberant couples and Mike's father William left and went out to the SUV parked outside that the two couples would use and also Willian's car, a newer looking Bentley. Stephen did a double take for a minute and then remembered that both William and Michael were very successful attorneys that had tried and won several very large law suites recently. Many people had told Steve that the mere mention of their names made opponents consider changing their pleas or stories or attitude towards discussing settlement terms. It was said that they could be as vicious as a pack of hungry sharks in the water.

They also had the two back Suburban's that were there as window dressing and to create the illusion of government involvement or interests in this matter. Now was going to be the time for each of them to present the best poker face and serious look they could if they had any hope of making William's father capitulate and surrender the money without a huge fight. They had purposefully asked for the moon and all the stars in hopes of settling for maybe just the moon and a handful of stars without a fight. Time would tell.

They pulled up in front of the mansion that Williams father Robert owned and lived in. It had a circular drive in front with a turnout towards the 4 car garage down the left side of the house. Their four autos did little to fill the highway sized driveway.

After they parked, Mike walked back to the "government SUV's" and spoke for a minute giving the illusion of giving final instructions. And then all 5 went to the front door and rang the doorbell. When it was answered, Williams father Robert was the one to answer it himself as his house staff was off on Sunday. As soon as he saw who was on the door step he started to close the door quickly but not quickly enough as William had already stuck his foot into the gap to prevent such a thing from happening and then William said rather sharply "Hello, Father. Have you missed us? Well, we have come to talk." And with that shouldered the door open and led the way inside with Stephen dragging up the rear and ready to close the door if it was still open. It wasn't as Robert had shut it quickly once they were all inside.

"What's the meaning of this outrage? I have not invited you people to my home and I want you to leave and leave now otherwise I call the police."

"Go ahead and call them, Father of mine, it will save me the trouble later. Of course I do have a couple of teams of feds, namely the FBI and Justice Department standing by, but if you want the city boys involved then so much the better. Want me to make the call?" asked William.

Everyone swallowed hard when Robert picked up the phone on the table and dialed 911 and asked for officers to come to his home to remove uninvited people.

At the same time, William took out his cell phone and called the detective bureau and asked to speak with Captain Pruitt. When the captain came on William identified himself and asked for detectives to come at once to the address there to investigate a double murder, numerous charges of money laundering, bank fraud, stock manipulation, and that is just for a start as the list of city, state, federal and international laws broken were staggering.

"And who is supposed to have done all this? Asked Captain Pruitt."

"My own did father did it over a period of 30 years. The two murders were his first wife and my mother, and another woman he had made pregnant and was supposed to marry but killed instead. I have her daughter and son in law here with me so DNA will be easy to assess. Details are still coming out as we speak and will for some time, but there will be some digging to do also. By the way, Jim, your detectives best hurry as the rest of us are about to be arrested for trespassing. No, we not break and enter, but we did not leave when told to. We will be right here waiting for your boys to arrive and for the show to begin. In fact, I have waited for 30 years or more for this moment to arrive. You probably need to notify the FBI and Justice Department or US Attorney to get here quickly also" exclaimed William

When William disconnected from the Captain, he quickly hit a speed dial number and it was answered on the first ring by someone. William started speaking immediately, "Smithers, it is on. Use your list and follow it completely and in order. Make sure that you get the feds to do the lockdowns on all the banking and investment accounts at all financial institutions and the stock exchange. Make double sure he is on the no-fly list and his passport is suspended indefinitely. You make the calls and follow up on them. We may have to spend the night in jail. I am not certain yet, it all depends on timing and such. Stay on duty tonight and make sure that you and whoever else you may need are at the courthouse before 730 in the morning with plenty of coffee and Danish and the hand full of the lawsuits I have outlined for you already. Make sure that all the newspapers and every local and cable TV station get a heads up. In fact, make a handout listing each lawsuit and the parties and amount involved. Make sure to spell the names correctly. The synopsis of the murder charges is there too, and these can be leaked but not released. Of course, they could accidently be included in the original file packet. You figure something out. As soon as the charges are made it will all be public information anyhow."

"We were going to try to talk it over with the old bastard but he started calling the cops on us, so we figured he did not want to talk, so here we are. Most of the work has been done for you already, but you may need some help. Go ahead and call in anyone you want. Oh, and there is a list of characters for this play on my desk. Make sure that is included in the press packets. If there are requests for media interviews, tell them that as soon as I get out of jail I will gladly talk with them. You could also use a little face time, you know. It has been a while since you had any limelight shine on you, Buddy. Hey, come to think on it, we could have a TV crew or a news print crew just happen to be at the jail later when we get there and we could start the whole process a little earlier. It would mean having to make more copies of the charges, reports, and character lists but what the heck... Talk it over with some of the guys and go for it if you like it. Got to run now as I hear sirens coming. Our tax dollars at work you know. Later, Smithers."

As soon as William was off the phone, Robert was in his face demanding to know what the meaning of all this was and why was he trying to drag the family name through the dirt like he was and didn't they teach him the meaning of libel and slander in his law school"

William looked at his father face to face for the first time in several years and said "You always told everyone that you had a mind like a steel trap and never forgot anything or anyone. Ever. So how is it that you forgot all about my mother and that little push you gave her up on that ridge that day that killed my mother and let you cut me out of my rightful inheritance and then there is the matter of you giving Christine's mother a nice shove sideways and sent her off a cliff to her death that time. Remember now? I know you seem to have forgotten your daughter and son after you killed their mothers. And once more, you somehow wound up with someone else's trust fund money and also their inheritance. Funny how that happens, isn't it, Father" and spat when he said the word.

"We came to talk and try to settle, but you had other ideas, so we will play it your way. Here are the cops. Let the games begin. But before anything else, let me introduce you to your daughter and her husband, Stephen and Christine Armstrong. Not that you will ever make their Christmas card list." Said William.

"I get it now. This is a ploy, a sick attempt to squeeze a little money from me, isn't it? Well, it isn't going to work, not at all. I have had hucksters of all sorts over the years trying to steal my money and it didn't work then and it isn't going to work now. So, when you get out of jail, leave this area and never return if you know what is good for you."

"Well, Father, let me say this. Collectively, we had many times the cash that you have. So, what do you think of that?? Kind of shoots holes in some of your theories, doesn't it?"

"Welcome, guys, as the police officers came in the door. He is the one that called you for the trespassers, which would be us. When the next batch and the detectives arrive, along with the FBI, The NSA, Homeland Security, Securities and Exchange Commission, State Bureau of Investigation, and who knows what or who all else, the person that called is us here and the lying and murdering Son of a Bitch that killed our mothers and stole our money is that rotten bastard over there, my own father, such as he is." Stated William.

"Officer, this is my house and these people entered forcibly and refused to leave. I want them all arrested and charged with criminal trespass and breaking and entering. And I want them out of my house right now. I do not want to ever see any of them again. If they are arrested and they promise to never return, I won't make additional charges against them." Said Robert.

"Oh, let him charge us. Anything and everything he wants, although we did not break and enter as he opened the door and we came in and would not leave until the authorities showed up. We have him by the short curlies now and will keep him there for a long time, too." replied Mike this time.

The local cops looked back and forth between each other not knowing what to do considering the enormity of the possible charges being mentioned so it was decided to simply ticket each of the accused trespassers and watch to see what the feds did.

After the assorted federal authorities arrived and had interviewed each person, the senior FBI agent said that the younger family members could leave as he had all their information and that the senior Mr. Morgan was going to be detained and taken to their headquarters for further interviews and interrogations.

As the FBI agent had stated, the two couples were starting their married life, but not their honeymoons as yet, so they went to their respective hotel rooms to set up and engage in many, many rounds of practice for the honeymoon, trying to get it right but somehow always perhaps just trying a bit too hard and thus failing in their quest and thus forcing the engagement of yet another round of wonderful lovemaking. As it turned out, each couple was so in love with their new spouse that nothing could or would separate them until their phones started ringing later that next morning.

Somehow the media had found out that Robert Morgan, one of the state's wealthiest citizens had been taken into custody even though he was in his 80's, for suspicion of a multitude of crimes, as well as his attorney, accountant, and most of his board of directors and a whole host of his friends and business associates and the investigation into all their affairs promised to bring a lot more charges to a number of people in the near future. That investigation could take years to complete and have all the proper charges filed. Lawyers were going to get even richer and their younger associates way overworked.

The media had also discovered that Robert had been named as the prime defendant in a host of lawsuits pertaining to his business dealings, mentioning stock manipulation, price fixing, money laundering, frauds of various sorts, insider trading and outright theft of funds and inherited stocks, tax evasion and then there was the wrongful death and abandonment and child neglect charges and law suits list just went on and on with promises to continue for a while. Basically being sued for every penny he has and every bit of property and every board seat and all of his financial and real estate interests with the lawsuits saying he would not have these properties if it wasn't for the money and inheritances he stole from two dead wives and two abandoned children.

It was even joked that he might have to defend himself as he would not have enough money to hire even an inexpensive attorney. Of course there was always the publicity hungry lawyer that might take his cases or part of them Pro Bono for the publicity and free advertising that it would give his firm. Who knew at this point, but in each lawsuit it was requested of the court to freeze any and all assets until final determination of awards were made and published. It was also requested that the persons bringing forth the suits, his son, grandson, son-in-law, daughter, daughter-in-law, and grand daughter-in-law be given un-compensated control of his various companies to ensure their continued operation and operation at a reasonable profit for the future owners whomever that might be, which statement was given the most thought by the judge and laughter by the court spectators. In the end, he allowed the request and asked pointedly if the family wanted to fill the positons subject to the court's approval or if they would like the court to name temporary replacements for those key positions.

Mike stood and looked at the Judge, and said "Your Honor, if it please the court, this family feels strongly that in order to ensure the best interests of the family as a whole are protected we need to make sure that we have at least one family member on each board or panel. We have a total of 6 family members available, 3 men and their respective spouses. If the court wishes, the family can produce a list that suggests the best person for a particular position. We would only ask for a short recess to have that list typed and then reproduced in sufficient numbers to satisfy the court's requirements. Thank you, Your Honor." And he sat down smiling inside as he had just been handed what the family wanted so badly, family members on every board even if they had never had one there before. Only time could tell how far the crimes and Robert's influence extended.

William had the thought that Angie, as good a CPA as her firm has, wasn't going to be nearly enough to conduct the necessary audits on all the companies, corporations, businesses, and individuals that might owe the family money. He would have to have a serious talk with Angie about that situation and right away, too. He thought he should call her and see about lunch and making the enquiry and letting her start with compiling a list of firms to bring on board as needed as well as a rough estimate the cost of an audit of the firm's financial history. This complete audit could take months and cost millions but would prove to be well worth the cost.

They judge quickly looked at William and said that the court was going to order such a list be presented and that it should be ready to present when court reconvened at 3 PM that afternoon and court was dismissed until then.'

In the essence of time, the family went down to a coffee shop that was not overly busy and took a large table and opened brief cases to remove the list of known companies that would have a new board member and company officers on board and then the name of a family member or members to post there. Once seated and down to business, Mike pulled a list from his briefcase and handed it to his dad. William looked at it and the first thing he saw was Angie's name listed as his wife, and he kind of grunted and said "Uh, Mike, you have Angie listed as my wife and that isn't so. This could be perjury you know."