Eye for an Eye Read Online Free Page A

as much from laughing as from the summer sun.
    She slowly
slipped the rubber bands back round the bundle and went to make a
cup of tea.
    ‘Huh? Oh,
thanks, Rob,’ grunted Pete absently as she put a steaming mug at
his elbow. He was reading an official-looking letter and frowning.
‘Look at this. It must be from that investment guy in Wellington,
dated six months ago. "Golden Fleece Investments" - Dad would have
liked the name, he always used to tell us the story of Jason and
the Argonauts, and Hercules, do you remember? Listen to these
promises... "Dear Mr. Taylor, we are delighted by your interest in
our investment offer, and we are entirely confident that we can
increase your funds by at least 100% in a year. Our specialised
knowledge of the New Zealand sharemarket means that we can take
your money, Mr. Taylor, and make it work for you in a way that
nobody else can. We are so confident in our services that we
guarantee your profit - yes, guarantee it! If for any reason you
are unhappy with our performance over the year, we will return all
your money, with no charge at all for our efforts on your behalf.
You cannot lose!" Blah blah blah. What a pack of bullshit!’ Pete
threw the letter down in despair.
    ‘How the hell
could Dad fall for crap like that? He must have been
desperate.’
    They looked at
each other in dismay.
    ‘How come I
didn’t see it, Rob?’
    She put her
hand on his shoulder. ‘Probably because you didn’t want to. Neither
of us did. I mean, things were awful enough with Mum being so ill
that we never thought of money troubles as well. Don’t blame
yourself, Pete.’
    Pete picked up
another letter. ‘Listen to this one. "Thank you for your cheque,
Mr. Taylor. Rest assured that our expert staff has put your money
to work right away. Any time you’d like an update on the current
state of your mounting investments, just pick up the phone and call
our Managing Director Colwyn Symons who will be happy to personally
pass on all the details of your progress." Yeah, sure he will, if
he’s not out stashing it away in a Swiss bank account or spending
it on a fur coat for his fancy woman. God I wish Dad had told me
about this - I could have stopped him.’
    ‘I told you,
don’t beat yourself up over it, it’s not your fault. The guy to
blame is this bastard who stole the money. I mean, there’s no way
he can get away with making promises like that, is there? It’s got
to be against the law, surely?’ Robyn looked more closely at the
letter. ‘I wonder if there’s any point in calling this Colwyn
Symons character. I know the lawyer couldn’t get hold of him but if
he’s still around fleecing people maybe he can shed some light on
where Dad’s money went.’
    ‘Yeah, right!
And he’ll send us a cheque for the whole lot plus interest,’ said
Pete bitterly. ‘In your dreams, sis. You heard what the lawyer said
- legal complexities, tangles of red tape, there’s no way.’
    ‘Well I’m going
to bloody ring him anyway.’ She checked her watch. ‘He should still
be at the office, looking for helpless old ladies to steal
from.’
    She dialled the
number and waited, twisting the phone cord round her finger. A
recorded message replied in smooth tones.
    ‘Hi there, this
is Colwyn Symons speaking. I’m sorry that the pressure of business
prevents me from taking your call right now, but please do leave a
message after the tone and I’ll be delighted to get right back to
you. Thank you very much for calling.’
    Robyn hung up
in disgust, rubbing her hand against her jeans.
    ‘God, what a
greasy message! He sounds like a used car salesman. Maybe I’ll try
tomorrow.’
    She picked up
the next letter from the pile. ‘Ha, only three months later, and
they’re already weaselling out of telling Dad how things were
going. "Dear Mr. Taylor, we are unable to give you the figures you
asked for, as the share market is extremely volatile at present,
and any current balance will change rapidly from one day