AllFreeNovel
Share Us
"Very," said Loren. "According to Swiss depository records obtained covertly by the CIA-- I swore to them on a thousand Bibles that this information would remain strictly confidential-- Destiny's deposits of gold into Swiss vaults come close to matching the hoard at Fort Knox."
"Their retrieval of gold would have to be held on a select level, or world gold prices would plummet."
"According to my sources, Destiny's management has yet to sell so much as an ounce."
"For what purpose would they squirrel such an enormous hoard away?"
Loren shrugged. "I have no idea."
"Maybe they've slowly and discreetly sold to keep market prices up. If they suddenly flooded the market with tons of gold, their profits would go down the toilet."
The waiter arrived with their pate with truffles. Loren took a dainty forkful into her mouth and made a gratified expression. "This is wonderful."
"Yes, it is good," Pitt agreed.
They relished the pate in silence, finishing the last morsel before Loren resumed the conversation.
"Although the CIA has accumulated a mass of data on a neo-Nazi movement after the war, they did not find evidence of an underground conspiracy involving Destiny Enterprises or the Wolf family."
"Yet according to this," said Pitt, holding up a stapled file of papers, "it was no secret that the loot stolen by the Nazis from the treasures of Austria, Belgium, Norway, France, and the Netherlands, plus much of the gold and financial assets of the Jews, were slipped into Argentina by U-boats after the war."
Loren nodded. "Most of the gold and other hard assets were converted to currency and then diverted through central banks."
"And the holder of the funds?"
"Who else? Destiny Enterprises, soon after it was organized in 1947. What's strange is that there is no record of a Wolf on their board of directors in the early years."
"They must have taken control later," said Pitt. "I wonder how the family shoved aside the old Nazi who fled Germany in 1945?"
"Good question," Loren agreed. "Over the past fifty-four years, the Destiny empire has grown to where their power influences world banks and governments to an unimaginable degree. They literally own Argentina. One of my aides has an informant who claims a significant amount of money goes into campaign funds for members of our own Congress. That's probably the reason why no government investigation of Destiny Enterprises ever got off the ground."
"Their tentacles also reach into the pockets of our honored senators and House representatives, and many of the people who have served in the White House."
Loren held up both hands. "Don't look at me. I never knowingly got a dime under the table from Destiny for my campaign funds."
Pitt threw her a foxlike look. "Really?"
She kicked him under the table. "Stop that. You know perfectly well I've never been on the take. I happen to be one of the most respected members of Congress."
"Maybe the prettiest, but your esteemed colleagues don't know you like I do."
"You're not funny."
The bowls of vichyssoise were set before them and they savored the taste, enhanced by an occasional sip of the Martin Ray Cabernet. The wine didn't take long to course through their veins and mellow their minds, and the attentive waiter was always nearby to refill their glasses.
"It's beginning to look like what the Nazis couldn't achieve by mass slaughter, destruction, and warfare, they're accomplishing through economic power," said Loren.
"World domination is passé," Pitt disagreed. "The Chinese leaders might have it in the back of their heads, but as their economy builds the country into a superpower, they'll come to realize that a war will only bring it crashing down. Since Communist Russia fell, the major wars of the future will be economic.
The Wolfs understand that economic power ultimately leads to political power. They have the resources to buy whatever and whoev
er they want. The only question is what direction are they headed in."
"Did you get anything out of the woman you apprehended last night?"
"Only that doomsday is just around the corner, and the entire human race, with the exception of the Wolf family, of course, will be wiped out when a comet strikes the earth."
"You don't buy that?" asked Loren.
