Free Silent Partner by Stephen Frey Page A

portfolio. It ain’t big, but I’ve got one. Come on, Angela, give me a tip.”
    “I’m sorry, John, but I really can’t say anything.”
    “Yeah, sure.”
    “Bill Colby’s a scary guy,” Angela commented, trying to change the subject.
    “Yeah, I don’t like him much. But he knows what he’s doing,” Tucker admitted grudgingly. “Being head of security for Jake Lawrence is no picnic.”
    “Why is Jake Lawrence tougher to guard than any other wealthy person?” she asked, glad Tucker had taken the bait.
    “First of all, Mr. Lawrence isn’t just any other wealthy person. He’s probably one of the top ten wealthiest people in the world. One of the accountants in New York told me that if he’s ever kidnapped, Colby has a standing order to pay up to $100 million just on proof of life.”
    Angela shook her head. “Lord.”
    “That’s why you can’t find pictures of him anywhere. Colby won’t allow it. No pictures makes it tougher on anybody who’s thinking about kidnapping or killing him.” Tucker nodded back over his shoulder in the direction of the cabin. “The army Colby surrounds Lawrence with makes it tougher, too. So do the decoy teams.”
    “Decoy teams?”
    The horse strayed slightly toward the cliff. Tucker steered the animal closer to the rock face. “Yeah. As I understand it, there are three imposter Jake Lawrences running around the world posing as him. They’ve had plastic surgery to make them look as much like the real McCoy as possible, and they travel with a personal army just like Mr. Lawrence does. Sometimes they’re with him and sometimes they aren’t.”
    It was fascinating, the lengths to which Lawrence went to protect himself. “Why would the teams ever be with Lawrence?”
    “If he absolutely has to go somewhere, and it’s an area that Colby determines is ‘hot’ or high-risk, especially if the trip is last minute, Colby may send one of the decoy teams in first.”
    “To test the waters.”
    “Exactly. Even if the first one makes it to the destination safely, Colby might send a second decoy in while he’s slipping the genuine article into the area in an old pickup truck.”
    “Have any of the teams ever been—”
    “Attacked?” Tucker interrupted, anticipating her question.
    “Yes.”
    “Yup. Colby tries to keep all information dealing with Mr. Lawrence’s security very hush-hush, but I understand that we lost a decoy two years ago.” Tucker’s eyes narrowed. “It was a car bomb, and there wasn’t much left. I just hope we took care of the son of a bitch’s family,” he said softly.
    “Do you know where the incident occurred?”
    “Algeria, I think.”
    “Algeria? What in the world would Mr. Lawrence be doing in Algeria?”
    “I’m sure I don’t know.”
    “I don’t remember reading anything about that.”
    “Of course not. Jake Lawrence has influential friends in high places, including the press. The incident never made it into the newspaper columns.”
    Angela nodded to herself, thinking about how Jake Lawrence seemed to know that the Wall Street Journal was considering a follow-up on Liv Jefferson’s articles. “Then based on what you’re telling me, I can’t be certain that was the real Jake Lawrence I just met.”
    “That’s true,” Tucker acknowledged, “except for one thing.”
    “What?”
    “Bill Colby is a control freak. If Colby is around, there’s a good chance the real Jake Lawrence is in the area, too. I’ve tried to tell Bill that unfriendlies may pick up on that, but he doesn’t seem to want to take advice from a cowboy.”
    “So I noticed,” Angela said quietly.
    “The second reason it’s tough to guard Lawrence,” Tucker continued, “is that he tends to piss people off. He sticks his nose into sensitive issues, according to one of those in-house New York accountants I shared a flight with last year, into situations where he isn’t wanted. Maybe that’s what somebody was doing in Algeria.”
    Angela peered over