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Cotton rolled his eyes. He didnÆt seem overly concerned. On his desk, a framed picture of Ebony Pilay held pride of place. It was the first of manyVogue covers sheÆd graced with her willowy presence, and she was staring into the lens as lusciously as she had gazed at Cotton at that fateful meeting.

ôJust imagine if Warren Buffett brought a supermodel to Berkshire HathawayÆs annual meeting,ö said Diedrich, ôand instead of talking about the value of the company portfolio spent two hours canoodling with his girlfriend instead! The man would be vilified!ö

ôNow youÆre simply being dramatic,ö said Cotton as he aimed the ball at a mini basketball hoop in the corner of his office and hit it on the first try. ôAnd now if youÆll both excuse me, IÆve got a lunch date with Ebony, and the lady doesnÆt like to be kept waiting.ö

And watched on by his dumbfounded dad and his apoplectic legal advisor, the youngest CEO in the business left the room, carelessly hummingæYouÆre still the one.Æ

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For a moment, silence reigned in the room, then Diedrich turned a look of desperation to the man whose legal acumen was only rivaled by his unparalleled knack for designing daring schemes, and said,ôGive me something, Tobias. Anything.ö

Tobias, a swarthy man with thick brows that concealed two cold blue eyes, steepled his fingers and brought them to his lips.ôI think I might have an idea for you, sir.ö

ôWhat is it?ö

ôItÆs a little risky, but it might offer a solution for all of our problems.ö

ôDoes it involve murdering Cotton and making it look like an accident?ö

ôNot exactly, sir. Though it does involve putting him on ice for a little while.ö

Diedrich allowed himself to drop down in one of the wingback chairs in the big office. His face was still an unhealthy shade of puce, and judging from the veins throbbing in his neck, the man was in urgent need of his blood pressure medication.ôWhat did you have in mind?ö

ôHave you ever seen a French comedy named æLe Con,Æ sir?ö

ôIÆm not really into French comedy, though I have a feeling IÆm in one right now. Though it could also be a French horror movie.ö

ôIn the movie, the CEO of one of those big French conglomerates finds himself at the center of some serious fracas, so his assistant comes up with the brilliant idea of replacing him with a double. The double is just a nobody, of course, with no real powers or authority. A puppet, if you will, controlled by the companyÆs board of directors.ö

ôA double?ö

The sharpest legal mind ever to graduate from NYU nodded earnestly.ôWe ship Cotton off to the Heartfield Clinic, where he can be cured of his sex addiction. We buy off Miss Pilay so she will sever all ties with Cotton, and while your son is safely tucked away at Heartfield, a double takes his place, his every decision controlled by us.ö

ôI see,ö said Diedrich thoughtfully. ôAnd where do you propose we find this idiot?ö

The lawyerÆs lips formed a devious moue. ôOh, I have one lined up for us already, sir.ö

Chapter 2

Eric Blandine was a man as bland as his name suggested. He was a lowly worker drone whoÆd spent his entire adult life stocking tins of foie gras, drums of caviar and boxes of exclusive pralines in one of the many warehouses that furnished these delicacies to airport stores and gift shops supplied by the Karat Group. And he was just fulfilling a large order of foie gras and boxing them up for imminent shipment when a low whistle sounded in his rear. He turned, and found himself looking at his buddy James Perkins.

ôBoss wants to see you, Goldie,ö said Jimmy with a cheeky grin.

Due to EricÆs uncanny resemblance to Cotton Karat, his colleagues had gotten into the habit of referring to him with the unoriginal nickname Goldie, short for karat gold.

ôWhat does he want to see me for?ö asked Eric, who didnÆt like to be disturbed when he was boxing up an order. He was one of those people who liked to do things the proper way, and being interrupted like this irked his sense of appropriate order and protocol.

ôYour girlfriend probably dropped by,ö said Jimmy.

ôGirlfriend?ö asked Eric, carefully descending the metal ladder and balancing the half-filled box in the crook of his elbow.

ôEbony, of course. Though to be honest I donÆt know what she sees in you, Goldie.ö

ôMust be all of his billions,ö said Margie, another one of EricÆs colleagues. She stood leaning against the rack, taking a break.

ôOr his sex appeal,ö said Jimmy. ôLetÆs not forget about GoldieÆs amazing sex appeal.ö

ôDid you see him at that meeting the other day?ö asked Margie.

ôWhat meeting?ö asked Eric, good-naturedly going along with the gentle ribbing. He was used to it by now, and didnÆt mind.

ôThat big shareholdersÆ meeting. Goldie here kissing and fondling Ebony in front of a room full of stiffs. Looked like he was having a great old time, werenÆt you, Goldie?ö

ôOh, absolutely,ö said Eric as he carefully placed down the box. ôA wonderful time.ö

ôI wonder what Maisie thinks about all this, though,ö said Jimmy, referring to EricÆs wife.