A Conspiracy to Commit...

Another late trip down to the exercise room and swimming pool to swim some laps. I got back to my room physically tired, but a lot of confused ideas were still banging around inside my head. This time I took some sleeping pills, staring at the ceiling for over an hour before the pills took effect. Sleep this night was not as restful as the two previous nights. The thoughts of Carol with a con man kept bobbing up to the surface of my dreams.

It wasn't till a day later that they told me that the name Phil Bogan had rung a bell with them. As it turned out, after Felix tracked Carol's car to the house in Elmwood, he sat in his car making notes and surveying the other homes in the neighborhood. A red Mercedes SL500 pulled into the driveway of the house where Felix tracked Carol's car. He remembered that Carol and a man who looked very much like the man in the video came out of the mall together. Now this other man was going into the house to join them.

Felix got the license plate number of the Mercedes and called it in to Josh. A quick DMV trace came up with the owner of the SL500. It just happened to be Phil Bogan.

Josh didn't want to add that bit of information to my already mixed up and confused mind. He felt he had some more digging to do to see what connection Phil Bogan had to this strange situation. At least now he knew that Phil and I were acquainted. Also, that Phil had given me a call to ask about my stay in Boise. Somehow there was a connection, and Josh and Felix were on this new "scent" like a couple of hungry blood hounds.

*

Chapter 8: Another Twist

Thursday morning was another late wakeup for me. It seemed that I really needed to get some extra sleep every morning since dealing with this crisis. After I showered and had room service breakfast, I called the office to talk with Mr. Chase. This time I did my usual sucking up to Rita without being prompted and was put through to Mr. Chase.

The first topic was all about the Boise report. He had read it thoroughly after the courier delivered it yesterday. There were some specific questions that I answered to the best of my knowledge. Finally he asked my advice on several other matters and then shifted the subject to my marital crisis.

Instead of divulging everything to him, I only told Steven half of what Josh and Felix had told me. I told him that Josh felt the man who Carol was with was a con artist who preyed upon unsuspecting women. Josh was doing further investigation into the how, where and why of the situation. I didn't tell him that they had located the house where Carol was staying.

Just as we were about to hang up, I asked him. "By the way, Mr. Chase. Did you happen to mention in your staff meeting yesterday that I was going to be stuck in Boise a while longer?"

"No, I know I didn't mention that in staff. Why do you ask?"

"Probably nothing, but Phil Bogan called me yesterday afternoon just to chat about my staying in Boise a little longer." I paused and then added. "I just found that a little strange, that's all."

"You're right about it being strange. Phil was not in the staff meeting yesterday. He sent his assistant to take notes. She said that he had an appointment out of the office." There was a long pause as we both tried to link a rational reason for Phil's sudden interest in me.

Steven broke the silence. "It always seems that some innocent actions take place when our minds are filled with other problems. This was probably just that, an innocent coincidence." His voice was not very convincing.

"You're probably right. I'll call you tomorrow if I find out anything new about my wife." The phone call ended with both of us wondering about Phil Bogan.

Another trip to the Casino was on tap for me again today. It could be another lucky day for me. Maybe I would even be able to clear my mind of all the turmoil that was gathering inside my head.

Still, I felt as if I were in exile. Being kept away from the real action that was going on with Josh and Felix. All I could do was to try to keep busy till it was my turn to move to center stage.

It was a slower day at the poker table. Not a lot of good action. In spite of all the noise, I was able to concentrate on the card game and keep Carol pushed to the back of my mind. After about four hours at the table, I was only a few hundred dollars to the good, so I decided to cash out and take a ride around the area to get some fresh air.

It was a nice sunny afternoon as I drove aimlessly up the Fox River valley. As I was approaching the town of Algonquin, the cell phone rang. It was Josh calling. I pulled over to the side of the road so I would be able to concentrate on the phone call.

Josh told me that Felix did not find anything out of the ordinary when he went back to check on the house in Elmwood. The tracking signal was still strong. He went back to my house to see if anyone had been there. Nothing. "All quiet on the Western Front."

Then Josh began to ask more questions about Phil Bogan. I told him a few more things that I knew about Phil. "I talked to Mr. Chase this morning to discuss my Boise report. After we were done with that, I asked him if he had mentioned my extended stay in Boise to any of his staff, in particular to Phil Bogan. He said he didn't tell his staff that I was still in Boise. He also mentioned that Phil was absent from the morning staff meeting."

There was a long pause before Josh spoke up. "Somehow, I keep thinking that Phil Bogan is deeply connected to this whole affair, simply because Phil keeps popping up when he should have no business popping up. I'll tell you more when we get together tonight. Give him some more thought and we'll discuss it then.

"Why don't the three of us meet for dinner somewhere around Rolling Meadows, that's about half way for us. Let's meet at the Bold Knight and go over all the latest details.

"Also, you should give Carol another call. This time you need to tell her that you're really concerned about not getting in touch with her. Tell her you're thinking about coming home this weekend if you don't hear from her."

"Sure, that sounds good. I'll do that. Do you have any idea where we should take this mess now?" There were more puzzle pieces on the table since Monday night. Do any of the pieces fit yet? I was trying to think of a scenario that would have these puzzle pieces come together in a happy ending for Carol and me.

"Not completely, Barry. Not just yet. There are still too many possibilities for us to consider before we try to set our plan in place. At least now we know two of the other players in this sordid situation. But, maybe it's time to push it to another level and see what else comes out of it. If their plan is set to kick into action with that phone call to Carol, then we need to start thinking seriously about how to handle the call."

I could almost hear his mind slowly tumbling the known pieces around in his mind like the rotating drum at a bingo parlor. Just what letters would fall out was a mystery.

"It still makes me wonder what the motive is here. What is Phil doing in this mix and is Carol a knowing participant or just a duped victim in all of this?"

"Sounds like we have a lot to talk about this evening, Josh. I'll see you and Felix at the Bold Knight around 6:30. Take care. Bye."

The silence filled the pickup truck as I sat there on the side of the road. Sitting alone, I tried my best to make the pieces of the puzzle fit in my mind. Nothing. No logical explanation was surfacing. It all seemed so James Bond-like, so covert and manipulative. I felt like a pawn piece on a chessboard. No power, no control and certainly no way of knowing how this game was going to end.

I was about to drive away when the cell phone rang. The incoming number was from the corporate office. My first thought was that it was Phil Bogan calling me again.

"Hello."

"Hello, Barry. This is Steven. Do you have a moment?"

"Why yes, sir. What do you need? Any problem with the Boise report?"

"No, Barry. The Boise report is fine. Corrective actions are now being taken with that."

Quite. A long pause. "What I'm calling about is that comment you made earlier this morning about Phil Bogan. That comment got me thinking about some things that have been going on behind the scenes. I would like to see you and discuss them with you in more detail. Do you have time this evening?"

I thought about the dinner arrangement with Josh and Felix tonight.

"I'm having dinner with my cousin and another friend tonight. But, I think you might be interested in what they have to say about Phil Bogan also. It seems that Phil is in some way connected to this marital crisis that I'm in right now." Pause. "Would you be interested in joining us for dinner? It might just be productive for all of us."

I could hear the wheels turning in Steven's head. "Yes. I think that would be a good idea. I may just come and listen to what they have to say." There was a hint of secrecy in Steven's voice. Maybe there was something he didn't want Josh or anyone else to know about.

After giving him directions to the Bold Knight, we said our goodbyes and hung up. If ever I was going to lose my cool, it was at that moment. I began swearing out loud inside the cab of the truck. Cursing and damning all these devastating events that had entered my once peaceful and orderly life. Why me?! Why Carol?! I could not stop the flood of tears.

*

Chapter 9: Meeting of the Four

I arrived at the Bold Knight a little after six o'clock. There was no doubt that JD and I needed to 'talk' a bit before the others arrived. There wasn't much time for 'talking', as I had just taken a long sip when Josh and Felix came into the lounge. They looked like two cops from Law and Order as they approached the bar where I was sitting.

We exchanged greetings and some half humorous bullshit. Seeing the drink in my hand, they called the lovely young bartender over and ordered a drink. Surprisingly, they both shied away from the hard stuff. Josh ordered a diet Coke and Felix went for the iced tea. That tore away my mental image of the hard drinking cops downing shots of bourbon in the local bar after work.

Before either of them got into the serious stuff, I told them about the call from Mr. Chase and that he was going to be joining us for dinner tonight. I hinted that he was also concerned about Phil Bogan and would be interested in what was found out so far. Both men nodded their heads. Josh was the first to speak.

"That may be good. I'm still struggling with a hard motive. It does seem to have something to do with GeoTex, but there's nothing obvious coming to the surface." Pause. "Phil Bogan has a clean sheet. Nothing but a traffic violation, a few years ago. He does live in the ritzy part of Lake Forest. He's been married for three years to a high profile socialite. Sort of a trophy wife."

"I haven't been able to dig up any more dirt on Les Snyder. He's a real scumbag, but the ladies seem to be very attracted to him. I talked to several officers I know in Vegas and they told me that he's a very smooth operator. They also said that he usually works alone, without an accomplice. So, that begs the question: what is Phil Bogan doing in this mix?" Felix added to the conversation just as Mr. Chase came into the lounge.

I waved him over to our booth and made the introductions. If someone had taken a photo of the four of us together at that moment, the scene would have looked out of balance. Not anything like a picture of four bowling league buddies at a bar. More like mixed vegetables in a salad. Josh and Felix had their Detective Joe Friday look about them, Steven just stepped out of an Executive Board Room Meeting, and I looked like a clown in my rumpled casual clothes. Now it was time to stir the salad...

"Do we want to sit here and chat awhile before dinner? Or are you guys just as hungry as I am tonight?" Steven spoke up with a smile on his face.

"Let's eat!" The chorus was unanimous as we picked up our drinks and smiled at the pretty bartender as we left the bar.

The meal was great and it did lighten up the mood around the table. The dinner talk was just chitchat while we ate. The hard dialogue would come after dinner.

The two cops took turns telling Steven and me what they had found out about Les Snyder and then about Phil Bogan. This was the first time that I was told about Felix seeing Phil's car in the driveway of the house in Elmwood. My antenna perked up when I heard that Phil was a visitor at the Elmwood house. That fact established a clear connection that Phil was involved with my marital crisis and that he and Les were in this scheme together. Yet the motive was still elusive.

Another unanswered question remained. Was Carol also a knowing participant in this complex array of deceit and betrayal? Every time that question surfaced, I found myself wondering just how well did I know this woman who I love so deeply. The woman I chose to marry five years ago.

All this deceit made me wonder if our life together had not been relegated to the 'one year repeated five times over' syndrome. Never having us truly explore the furthest depths of each other's personalities and desires. Was it all so superficial? Did I stop exploring Carol's total character and soul when I reached some level of comfort that pleased me? Thoughts like these were surely giving me a guilt complex.

During all of the conversations, Steven sat there taking in the details that Josh and Felix had gathered so far. He slowly realized that my crisis was not just a simple matter of marriage infidelity. Somehow my job, my wife, Phil Bogan and GeoTex where all bound together. He listened quietly till both men were finished, and then he spoke up.

"It seems like a very complicated and sorry situation for you, Barry. But, I think that I may at least have a strong possible motive for us to consider." He let out a long sight and then began. "First, I need to know that the three of you will keep what I have to say a hard secret. It could damage GeoTex if it ever became public. Can I have your word that you'll tell no one?"

The chorus was unanimous. "Yes. You bet, your secret will be safe with us."

He looked at each of us, nodded and then began his soft dialogue. "About six months ago, there were hints that another conglomerate was eyeing a takeover of GeoTex. No details were given, but there was also a hint that someone high up in GeoTex was collaborating with this other group to make the takeover a success. I have been doing some quiet nosing around at corporate to try and find the mole, if one really does exist." He pursed his lips as he gave thought to the words that followed.

"Up until yesterday when you and I talked, Barry, there was no trail or clue to who the mole might be. I was beginning to think it was just a bad rumor.

"When you told me that Phil Bogan had called you, bells and whistles began to go off in my mind. So, I did some covert digging of my own and found several very suspicious activities that involved Phil. Trips made out of town at strange times. Phil had requested several confidential financial reports that he didn't really need for his work. And some other non-assignment activities that I found out about." It was obvious that Steven was trying to tie all the ends together just like the rest of us.

Now we seemed to have a substantial motive to hang on Phil, but how did that connect to Carol and then to me? There was silence at the table as we all tried to get the last pieces to fall into place.

Josh looked at Steven and then asked him several questions. "How do you think Phil and Barry would tie together at the company? If Phil is the mole in your organization, what reason would he have to get Barry involved? And why use such a devious scheme as getting his wife involved in an affair?" The questions were exactly the same questions we were all asking ourselves.

"I don't know the answers to any of those specific questions, Josh. The only thing that comes to mind is the fact that Phil knows that Barry is one of my closest and most trusted advisors. Maybe he felt that he could recruit or coerce him into joining his covert actions. Just maybe, he thought of a way to use Barry's wife as bait or leverage. All of this is a strange situation, but I do agree that GeoTex is a major part of the mix." Steven's response did have a good ring to it. Maybe Phil was trying to force me into a conspiracy with him to aid in a hostile take over of GeoTex.

"That might make sense, Steven." Josh said as his mind was working its way around that possibility. "There must be some reason that Phil would think that he could get to Barry through Carol." Long pause. "That plan might just blow up if Barry insists on an immediate divorce from Carol. Then what leverage would Phil have?"

"One thing is for sure, Phil knows my strong feeling toward marriage. I frown upon divorce and cheating spouses. Maybe Phil thought that Barry would just suck up the situation with his wife and stay in the marriage no matter what. Also, he may have thought that Barry would feel the need to keep Carol's indiscretions a secret from me.

"That would make Barry an easy target to blackmail and coerce into becoming a member of the takeover conspiracy. I don't know that as fact, but there is some warped logic in that premise."

More good theories to throw into the mental hopper. The one big question that still didn't have a good answer was Carol's role in all of this. Was she just a duped lonely wife who was conned into a situation that she really had no idea of? What was I going to do about Carol? What were my options? That video gave me a clear idea of what Carol thought she needed to make her happy. Would she still have the same sexual needs and feelings after the truth came out about Les and Phil?

A harder question for me to answer was, could I forgive her infidelity? Could we start a new life with this ghost in our closet? Was divorce inevitable? My mind was still a clouded mess of loose facts and no clear answers.

It was getting late and Steven got up to leave. "I guess that the four of us need to go off and give all of this some more serious thought." Steven's facial expression told us that he had a lot on his mind as he stood by the table, about to leave.

"Barry, I'll be calling you if I come up with anything new on Phil. I don't know if I've helped you with your marital problem. But, I'm sure you guys have helped me identify my mole problem. Thanks guys." He turned and walked away.

*

Chapter 10: Getting Ready

The three of us sat around talking for another hour. Then Felix brought up another subject. He had checked to see if Carol had missed any work in the past week. What he found out was that Carol had quit her job almost two weeks ago. That statement hit me right between the eyes. Another very hard piece of bad news for me to accept. Carol had loved her job. Many times when she was in the middle one of her depressed moods, she would bury herself in some project at work to help pull her out of her blue funk.

With that new revelation still banging around in my mind, the nagging voice continued asking me what part Carol played in this crisis. The motives for the two men were becoming more and more obvious as we tossed around all the facts that we knew. But, there didn't seem to be any logical reason for Carol to have gotten mixed up with this con man. As Josh and I played some 'what if' scenarios with the facts that we knew, Felix got up and excused himself.

What if there was something other than using Carol to leverage me into their conspiracy? What if Carol has something personal to gain by willingly joining Phil and Les in the grand scheme to take over GeoTex? What if...? What if...? My head felt like it was going to explode.