High Steaks: A Bjorn Trilogeé Adventure

Chapter 8: Abe

Three men sit around a large oaken table. They are bathed in the light of a single golden candelabrum and their shadows play out a deranged show on the basement wall. Although this was indeed a basement, it was well furnished and smelled more of imported wood than of musk. It was just past noon. The weekly meeting of the Crewmen of Champlain Lodge (aka the Grand Order of Young Important Men Chapter 138) has officially begun.

Mr. Silverstein tapped the gavel on to the table. He was a tall, slender man with a pointy nose and an air of importance. The candle light glimmered happily off of his thin platinum hair. "Order, order ... let the meeting now commence. Mr. Copperfield will you please take the minutes and Mr. Goldsmith must you insist on wearing that hideous contraption on your bloody head?"

"It just so happens that this hat is the official headgear of the C.O.C. Lodge. You, being the lodge president, should know this." Mr. Goldsmith gave a snarky look and without thinking he stroked the fur on his Buffalo hide tricorn hat. He suddenly let out a small sneeze from his rounded nose, the force caused his golden mutton chops to shiver. Seemingly, Mr. Goldsmith has forgotten that he is terribly allergic to buffalo fur.

Mr. Copperfield looked up from his note pad and tapped the pencil onto the chestnut fuzz of his pudgy cheek. "Why do you bloody care? It's a sham organization anyway, it's not even a real lodge ... you moron." This was indeed correct. All over the world these society's and organizations serve as a convenient front for the elite G.O.Y.I.M., and Chapter 138 in particular was the most prominent. Although these three men seem like typical 'money men' with their jaded perspective, endless bankroll and Thurston Howell cadence; underneath it all they were the top movers and shakers. Mr. Silverstein, Mr. Goldsmith and Mr. Copperfield were in essence the head of the entire G.O.Y.I.M. What they planned in this room was gospel and whatever they wanted done was always done.

Mr. Goldsmith rose from his seat and shook his fist, "I'm not the moron, you are the moron! You ... moron!"

"Order! Order!" Mr. Silverstein slammed the gavel. "First order of business is the yearly raffle. Mr. Copperfield, you will be in charge of purchasing those funny little tickets. We will draw the winner at the annual luncheon next month. Ok, next line of business is the assassination of that nosey little twit Prefect Duquesne ... any headway on that?"

"Exploded in his car last week," Copperfield answered.

"Excellent"

Duquesne was very vocal about the Lodge's residence in the historic Francis Gaye house. The fifth oldest house in France, it was built in 1450 and was the former residence of Antoinette de Maignelais's best friend's stable boy. He wanted the home opened to the public and resented the fact that the Lodge has locked it down; basically, the man was getting too close.

Smoke billowed up from Mr. Silverstein's freshly lit cigar. Instinctively he leaned back in his chair (technically it was the throne of Charles VII) and kicked up his feet. For a brief moment he lamented on the fact that hundreds of years ago his relative was merely a local baker, but through shrewd practices he managed to monopolize the trade and become the king's personal chef. Soon, he was rolling in the dough ... which King Henry VII found to be very unsanitary and proceeded to fire the young chef. No worries, for the man had already become incredibly wealthy. He joined a stealthy group of elites and eventually planned the manipulation and assassination of Henry. Goldsmith and Copperfield money comes from the jewelry trade and business, but the Silverstein's made their bread through bread ... and he was rather proud of that.

The wooden door creaked upon and an elderly butler crept into the room. He was dressed in a black suit with a red bow tie and had a white mustache and glasses. A crystal decanter was placed onto the center of the table and goblets were passed around. The butler shakily poured the amber liquid into each cup.