the Made Men

CHAPTER 23

Making Stefan Right Hand worked out almost too well. Aurora told him only what she wanted him to hear. The basics. And she was able to keep him busy with little non-important tasks that made him feel as though he was contributing to their cause. While she kept him occupied, she had bigger fish to fry.

For the evening, Aurora took off her hat as Boss and attended a dinner party with Pierre as her plus one. The mansion in the gated community that hosted the gathering was home to none other than a fellow board member of the Crazy Eight Fund. The board, as Aurora explained it to Pierre, was a tight-knit group of one-percenters who individually had gross incomes of at least half a million dollars. The group was so strict that even Aurora had a hard time joining at first.

Pierre, not having gone to college, sought hard to understand the fundamentals. Like what were the names of the Ivy Leagues? He was able to piece together by the name, Crazy Eight Fund, that there were eight schools. Though there were rumors not many knew exactly what the fund was. While Aurora mingled and introduced Pierre as a consultant she shared with him that the board only consisted of Ivy League alumni. They all ranged in age, race, and gender.

Pierre being Aurora's cousin knew the Morelli family dynamic and started piecing together a narrative that made sense. Aurora, Ezra Sr., and Paula all went to the University of Pennsylvania. So naturally, Ezra Junior only had one choice for college. Slowly throughout the night, Aurora introduced Pierre to more board members and shared more details about the fund. Aurora said words like donations, fundraisers, tax write-offs, and offshore accounts.

From what he gathered the Crazy Eight Fund was nothing more than an Ivy League college admissions bribery ring. And the board members had everyone in their pocket. High school college counselors, college advisors, admission board members, and standardized testing facilitators. The list went on. Though the board acted as references for application recommendations, parents who could afford the service through the fund attended a randomly held auction at the CFC for a chance to bid on their child's future. For many generational wealth turned into generational access and the legacy continuously lived on.

The selling point for the fund was that parents had to look at the opportunity as an investment. Those whose kids participated in the fund saw an 80% chance of receiving an acceptance letter over the average student. The percentage of people who went to Ivy Leagues through the fund to do great things in life was high. Somewhere around 87%. For that reason alone, parents whose kids seemed to lack academic smarts were willing to pay a fortune if that's what it took.

After the board sat around what looked like a thirty-person table, there was one person who spoke as if they were in charge. They sat at the head of the table and it appeared as if everyone was in their home. The man himself was older with white hair and a white beard. "The bids in Bali were astronomical. The fund is at an all-time high and the future ahead is very bright."

There were claps all around the table. Each board member had at least one thing in common. They all graduated from an Ivy League. Some got degrees from multiple. While a mixture was legacies meaning generations of their family had gone to one of the eight through the fund.

Aurora informed Pierre that the lead of the board, the person whose home they were in was Edward Fitzgerald. Including that the last CFC in Bali, months prior, totaled the Fund somewhere around sixteen million dollars in play money. With there being eight Ivy's they normally send on average 2 kids to each school every year. But something they quickly learned was that some parents planned far into the future. Some wanted their kid's golden tickets stamped as early as middle school, some as early as birth.

Pierre couldn't put his thumb on it. But it was as if the man at the head of the table and others largely played a part in determining the location of the annual CFC. Pierre understood that the location of the CFC was announced to the public the day of. He finally understood what he was now involved with. The Crazy Eight Fund was a need-to-know privilege to a targeted group of one-percenters. Giving them an annual opportunity to put up a million-dollar bid on the college of choice for their child. From there it was smooth sailing. As the parents and their child awaited an acceptance letter, the Crazy Eight Fund board got their hands dirty. Using the investment they received to ensure that so-and-so's child was accepted. By any means necessary.

The man who appeared in charge continued. Edward Fitzgerald spoke with great confidence. "This time next year we will have a new graduate of the fund who I feel will be an asset to our community."

Everyone looked at Aurora and smiled.

"I'm having trouble remembering which school again. Harvard? Dartmouth? Princeton?" Ed smiled. "I'm hoping Ezra Junior will join me at the only promising Ivy, Cornell."

There were laughs all around.

Aurora finally said, "I trust my son will make the right decision." Unknown to the group, Ezra Jr. needed all the help he could get. Unlike his sister who was a straight-A student. Ezra Jr was a C student at best. Learning and tests were not his strong suit. HE skipped school often and failed the practice standardized test even with the help of a tutor. Aurora had her work cut out but was determined to keep UPenn in the family.

After the dinner, at the car, Pierre stood across from Aurora and asked. "A consultant, huh?"

"The Ivy League network is very...particular. As a consultant, you will be of great value. All students are expected to be elite. Did you know graduation from an Ivy almost always guarantees a top-tier job? Ivy grads normally marry other Ivy grads. And the cycle continues." She noticed Pierre's ora. He seemed overwhelmed or under, she couldn't tell. "Not what you hoped for?"

"The rumors were just...wrong. This doesn't help the underprivileged. This helps the elites stay elite." He didn't know why he was surprised. Pierre knew that wealthy people could buy anything but this was nothing he expected.

"We pride ourselves on discretion. Our clients don't invest to hear the word 'no'. They don't do waitlists, they don't do competition. They only do early admissions."

He understood that being a consultant meant something entirely different. "Has there been trouble in the past?"

"There was an incident a few years back. Two applicants, one a part of the fund, the other not. One acceptance slot. Jacob Barrington...I'll never forget it." She paused. "Let's just say the board got their way."

Pierre didn't know what to make of that statement.

"But welcome to the Crazy Eight Fund," she added, then left him alone.

Naturally, Pierre was curious so he googled the name Jacob Barrington on his phone. There was more than an incident as Aurora described it. The news article stated that Jacob Barrington was a high school senior born and raised in Cambridge, Massachusetts. His parents described him as a loving and fun boy who was supposed to be the first person in their family to attend college. But tragedy struck and Jacob unexpectedly died in his sleep. One the coroner said was perfectly healthy and the local Priest said whose death was a sinister test of faith.

Pierre sat in his car for hours questioning what he truly signed up for.