“How do Milstein and Crane know each other?”
“As far as I know, just from being in the business. Crane has always had a reputation as a moneymaker, but someone who takes risk. A lot of risk. But risk is what creates reward. Like I said, Milstein needed revenue. Somewhere along the line, I assume Milstein reached out to him. Could have been the other way around, but I’d say Milstein made the deal.”
“So they have no past history together?”
“Not that I’m aware of.”
Christ, thought Beck, she’s back to hedging her answers. He decided he’d better get to the heart of it.
“Is Crane making money now? Is he underwater, or in the green?”
“I don’t know. He did well last year, but now, honestly, I don’t know. The fund managers don’t report numbers until they absolutely have to.”
“What happens to Summit if they lose Markov?”
“My opinion, if they lose Markov, the firm might go under. Milstein needs the income Crane’s bringing in. He might muddle through. I can’t be sure.”
“How long has Crane been running Markov’s money?”
“I don’t know about before Summit. A little over a year at Summit.”
“So he has to have made money for him in the past. Nobody is going to stick around with somebody who’s losing.”
“Absolutely. But like I said, his risk profile is very high.”
“Even if he’s pulling all kinds of shit to bring down the value of stocks he’s shorting?”
“The market is way bigger than one guy and one hedge fund. A few wrong moves can really hurt.”
“Where’s Milstein on this?”
“Hoping the money keeps coming in and Crane doesn’t blow up.”
“What about Markov? Does he think Crane can keep this going?”
“My experience is, unscrupulous people like being with someone who is stealing for them. Doing it straight is for suckers. But guys like Markov, they can sense when it’s time to pick up their chips and leave.”
Beck nodded.
“You said, you estimated Markov’s holdings are over a hundred million.”
“Yes. Although, like I said, I don’t see the day-to-day numbers.”
“How’s one guy amassed that much?”
Olivia gave Beck a confused look. “Do you know how many people out there have amassed that much and more?”
“No.”
“Thousands. Tens of thousands. It takes a lot of people to make up the one percent, Mr. Beck. From what I hear, Markov has been at this for a long time.”
Beck changed the subject. “How much time would Crane need to liquidate everything?”
Olivia frowned and shook her head. “It all depends. If Markov pressures him to do it fast, it could be within a couple of days. I’m sure Crane is in a bunch of different markets. But I don’t know his positions. A lot of his trades are options. He might be underwater, waiting for stocks to gap up, or more likely down. If so, he’ll push for more time. It depends on how much Markov pushes to get out. And how much it will cost him.”
“Give me an outside time. Your best guess.”
Olivia looked up, thinking it through, talking out loud. “I don’t know, what’s today, Wednesday? Markov doesn’t seem like a very patient man. Probably end of the week, Friday latest.”
Beck nodded. Lost in thought for a moment. “I don’t suppose you have any extra clothes with you.”
“No.”
“Did you drive here?”
“Yes. Manny said parking wouldn’t be a problem, so I drove.”
“What kind of car do you have?”
“A Porsche SUV.”
“The Cayenne?”
“Yes.”
“You can’t go back to your apartment. It’s too dangerous. And this place could be as much a target as your apartment. It know it’s an expense, but you should check into a hotel for a few days.”
“Really?”
“Yes. Really.”
“Okay. I know a place where I can get a good rate.”
“Where?”
“The Four Seasons on Fifty-seventh.”
“Little close to Summit, don’t you think?”
“What difference does it make? It doesn’t sound like I’ll be going out much. I like the hotel and I have a connection there.”
“You’re not using some corporate rate are you? Something that could get back to Milstein.”
Olivia smiled. It was the first time Beck had seen her smile. It was a beautiful smile.
“No, nothing will get back to Milstein. Summit has no connection to that hotel. Out-of-town clients stay wherever they want. I just know one of the managers from going there for lunch a lot. If the hotel isn’t full, I’ll get a better rate and a better room than I could get anywhere else.”
“Okay, so do you mind if we borrow your car while you’re there?”
“Of course not.”
“I would prefer you get out of here sooner rather than later. I’m going to ask Manny to take you to that hotel. Maybe stop somewhere you can buy some clothes. Enough for a few days.”
“All right.”
“And try to be fast about the shopping. Manny doesn’t like hanging around anywhere.”
“I understand.”
Beck stood up abruptly and said, “Okay. I’m sure there’s more that I’ll need your help on. This is going to go where it goes. I can rely on you to help us, right?”
“Anything. I got you all into this.”
“Good.”
Beck walked over to the front of the loft where Ciro sat. Olivia headed downstairs to meet with Manny.
“Ciro, we might need some firepower on the home front.”
“Yeah, sounds like it. You want a few of my guys to bunk in?”
“I prefer to keep the psychopaths to a minimum. Manny is talking to some of his people if we need them. So, for now, you should plan to be around here, and how about your cousin Joey? Is he available?”
Ciro pulled out his cell phone.
“I’ll find out. How long should we plan on?”
“For now let’s say two, three days.”
“So, James…”
“What?”
“We’re still following the usual playbook, right?”
“Always. The game might be a little different on this one, but yeah.”
Ciro nodded. “Understood.”
Suddenly, without warning, a voice sounded from out on the street, yelling Beck’s name.
One second Ciro was on the couch. The next he was at the second-floor window, his .45 in his hand.
Beck yelled out, “Easy, Ciro. I know who it is.”