Chapter 9

We were sitting at a breakfast meeting discussing all the projects we had ongoing when Dennis updated me on the Goldmine.

"It would seem that our new manager wasn't the right choice for the goldmine" he started.

Susan looked up startled.

"What makes you think that?" I asked; he had my attention now.

"Looks like he took the money and ran; we tracked him to Rio." Dennis stated.

"How much did he take?" I asked

"All of it. He transferred all of the money to an account in the Caymans then took a vacation."

I whistled. So he took the full four million and skipped. This wasn't good.

"What are the chances of getting the money back if we bring in the police?" I asked.

"Probably nil" Dennis replied.

Susan looked white as a ghost sitting there listening to this. She had picked the manager and hired him.

"Do you think there is a chance of convincing him to give the money back the same way as that realtor a few years ago?" I asked.

Dennis smiled as he remembered having a couple of guys visit the realtor down in New Zealand where he thought he was safe from us. "I think it is worth a try"

"Well this time we will have caught up with him long before he has had a chance to spend everything." I said hopefully.

"Yes having the bank account watched has really given us a good start on this one." Dennis stated

"OK let's get someone to visit him as soon as possible. Make sure you caution them to start out with just a request this time. I don't want this guy hurt too badly until we get the money. Then they can do with him whatever they desire." I said.

Susan looked up at me startled that I would even consider hurting someone.

"How are things going in Greece? I asked Susan.

She looked relieved to have a change of topic.

"So far things are going well for us. It doesn't look like he has any chance of making a profit, if anything he is losing more money. The advertising campaign should be starting today." Susan replied.

"Where are we sitting at Wheeler?" I asked.

"Still a little rocky there, but moving along as good as can be expected." Dennis replied.

I noticed Karen nodding.

"So how are you doing through all of this Karen?" I asked

"Good I think. I am learning lots; Dennis has had me doing all kinds of things." Karen stated.

"Good. Well is there anything else we need to know?" I asked.

"I got the first report from the private detectives we hired this morning, we have 28 of them hired at our companies now and so far there is nothing out of the usual to report." Susan said.

"How is it working out having so many subcontractors working with a single agency?" I asked.

"We promised them lots of work so they seem to be working out their differences and working together." Susan replied.

"Good, maybe look at what it will cost to acquire the agency and if they do what we expect buy them." I said.

"Well I guess that's it then let's go and get to work." I said getting up.

Susan went to pay the bill so I waited for her as Dennis and Karen walked outside.

As we got into the car Susan said "We have to make a stop on the way back to the office. The single moms want to meet you before they sign on to the deal."

"Ok, any idea how many will be there?" I asked.

"I think there will be about 30 women. The rest are waiting to see what happens at the meeting." Susan said.

"So do we have any of the camp set up yet?" I queried.

"One dining room has been set in place and the rest of the camp should be arriving over the next week" Susan said.

Susan turned into a parking lot in a seedy part of town.

"I rented the conference room in this hotel for the meeting. It isn't much but most of the women can walk to here." Susan explained as she pointed at the run down hotel.

We were a little early so Susan briefed me on what she had told them so far as well as what to expect for questions.

The room started to fill up with people a few minutes before the meeting was to take place. I was looking around at the strange cross section of people when Susan nodded towards one of the women walking across the room.

"That's Sharon, the friend I was telling you about." She whispered.

I nodded and turned to greet her. Susan introduced us, and thanked Sharon for arranging to have all of these women come out to the meeting.

Susan turned to me "Rick I think it is time to get this started."

I walked up to the podium, looking out over the crowd. The room started to get quiet as people noticed me walking to the front of the room. I was pretty nervous looking at the curious faces as I cleared my throat and started.

"Good Morning Ladies, I am Rick Johnson. I know you are wondering what is going here so let me explain a few things to you. First of all I am sure you have all heard that there is shortage of skilled and unskilled labour in this province. I have a project that requires quite a bit of labour, both skilled and unskilled." I stumbled through, this was more people then I usually talked to and some of them looked like they could be hostile.

"In order to get this project started and or succeed we need to have people that are committed to the project. My assistant has come up with an idea that if it succeeds it will change your whole way of life. She has suggested we hire and train single mothers to do the tasks normally done by the construction companies. These duties would include everything from operating the construction equipment to doing the books for the construction company. We are building a golf resort complete with a hotel and all of the amenities that go with it. Once the building is completed we will then require people to run this resort. The people that helped build it will get the first choice for all of those jobs."

"The training you would receive will be of a quality which will be recognized by our trade schools here in Alberta. I have been assured by SAIT here in Calgary that our candidates will be able to enroll in the school as any other apprentice." I stated. Not my best speech but I hope they got the idea.

"Are there any questions or concerns?" I asked.

Hands shot up all over the room.

"Ok I see there are lots of questions lets start over here in this corner and if you can stand up and ask the question I will try to answer them." I said pointing to the corner on my left.