The Cassandra Conspiracy by Rick Bajackson Read Free Book Online

remedies.”
    “I understand,” Ettleberg said.
    “Second,” the chairman said, “in front of you is a portfolio containing biographical information on the rest of our members. If you break the seal, you signify your unflinching commitment to our organization and its objectives. If you elect not to read the contents, and the seal stays intact, you may leave the estate; however, you remain bound by your oath of secrecy never to divulge anything you learned tonight. Doing so will precipitate the gravest consequences. Do you understand?”
    “I do.”
    “Then I will leave you to your decision,” Wingate said as he strode toward the library doors.
    Minutes ticked by as  Ettleberg stared at the leather -bound portfolio on the conference table. Several times he picked it up only to replace it. Handling the file as if it were a rare Ming vase, Ettelberg finally broke the seal and began to read.
    Anthony Crofton
    Corporate Affiliation:  Crofton Publishing
    Background:
    West Coast-based publishing empire that started out printing a small local paper. Expansion through reinvestment of corporate profits, which were later used to acquire competing companies. Currently owns several newspapers throughout California, Washington, and Oregon.
    Introduced West Coast Today , a magazine targeted at the growing population centers in California, Oregon, and Washington. Magazine slowly adding readership in other areas. The magazine’s op-ed section is highly regarded from the beaches of California to the hallowed halls of Congress. Annual revenue from all sources in excess of $1 billion.
    West Coast Today is read and respected by members of Congress. It thus provides a unique forum from which to extol the Committee’s position on various topics.
    Committee Membership:  2 generations
    Grover Albright
    Corporate Affiliation: Worldwide Agricultural Products
    Background:
    Chairman and CEO of this multinational manufacturer of farming and construction equipment. WAP provides early-generation agricultural equipment to Third World countries. Sales and service outlets widely placed in most South American, African, and Middle Eastern nations. Construction equipment manufactured in seven overseas factories and shipped around the world. Service and sales organizations in place.
    Committee Membership: 3 generations
    Annual Sales : over $3 Billion
    Helene Rochambeau
    Corporate Affiliation:  Aigrette Habiller
    Background:
    Holding dual French and U.S. citizenship, Helene Rochambeau was born in the States while her French parents were on vacation. She earned her seat in the group by her intensive expansion of Aigrette Habiller, a company her father had started to make men’s clothes. Her family had made a respectable living from the Paris company. But when her father died suddenly, Helene at the young age of twenty-four took over the company that had been in her family for decades.
    Fresh out of an exclusive Swiss finishing school, Helen Rochambeau set about to learn all there was to know about men’s fashions, and then expand Aigrette Habiller. It didn’t take her long to realize that the company, albeit quite well positioned with respect to men’s suits, wasn’t paying an ounce of attention to women’s fashions. Against the advice of the company’s stodgy senior management team, she recruited some of the emerging designers on the continent, paying them handsomely, but also demanding their best designs. She promised each of them that regardless of how bold or outrageous their designs were, Aigrette Habiller would develop the designs and manufacture the apparel. The promise of unbridled designs was worth more to most of the newly hired designers than the potential increase in their respective incomes. Her design studios became a bustle of activity, each effort focused on producing the best possible design be it for a new suit, gown, skirt or blouse. Soon Aigrette Habiller became a major contender in the women’s fashion marketplace rivaling