‘That’s a pity, Mr. Kane, because I am sure you are aware that your father did not leave the bank in the happiest of circumstances and I feel certain we could have offered you a reasonable price for your shares.’
‘Better than the price my father-in-law offered you for yours?’ said Richard.
Jake Thomas’s cheeks flushed brick-red. ‘I see you have only come here to be destructive,’ he said.
‘I have often found in the past that construction must be preceded by a little destruction, Mr. Thomas.’
‘I don’t think you hold enough cards to make this house tumble,’ the chairman retorted.
‘No one knows better than you that two percent may suffice,’ said Richard.
‘I can see no point in prolonging this conversation, Mr. Kane.’
‘For the time being, I agree with you, but you can be sure that it will be continued in the not too distant future,’ said Richard.
He rose to leave. Jake Thomas did not accept his outstretched hand.
‘If that’s his attitude, we must declare war,’ said Florentyna.
‘Brave words,’ said Richard, ‘but before we make our next move I want to consult my father’s old lawyer, Thaddeus Cohen. There’s nothing he doesn’t know about Lester’s. Perhaps if we combine our knowledge we can come up with something.’
Florentyna agreed. ‘George once told me something my father thought of doing if he failed to remove your father even when he had eight percent.’
Richard listened intently as Florentyna outlined her plan.
‘Do you think that might work in this case?’ she asked her husband.
‘We just might pull it off, but it would be one hell of a risk.’
‘We have nothing to fear but fear itself,’ said Florentyna.
‘Jessie, when will you learn that FDR was a politician, not a banker.’
Richard spent most of the next four days locked in consultation with Thaddeus Cohen at the city office of Cohen, Cohen, Yablons and Cohen.
‘The only person who now holds eight percent of Lester’s stock is you,’ he assured Richard from behind his desk. ‘Even Jake Thomas has only two percent. If your father had known that Thomas could only afford to hold on to Abel Rosnovski’s stock for a few days, he might well have called his bluff and held on to the chair.’
The old family lawyer leaned back, placing both hands on top of his bald head.
‘That piece of information will make victory even sweeter,’ said Richard. ‘Do you have the names of all the shareholders?’
‘I’m still in possession of the names of the registered stockholders at the time that your father was the bank’s chief executive. But by now it may be so out-of-date as to be rendered virtually useless. Nevertheless, as you well know, you are entitled under state law to demand a formal inspection of the shareholders list.’
‘And I can imagine how long Thomas would take to release that.’
‘Around Christmas,’ said Thaddeus Cohen, allowing himself a thin smile.
‘What do you imagine would happen if I called an extraordinary meeting and gave a full account of how Jake Thomas sold his own shares in order to remove my father from the board?’
‘You wouldn’t gain a great deal from such an exercise apart from embarrassing a few people. Jake Thomas would see to it that the meeting was held on an inconvenient day and badly attended. He would also undoubtedly obtain a fifty percent proxy vote against any resolution you put forward. Into the bargain I suspect Mr. Thomas would use such a move by you to rewash dirty linen in public, which would only add a further stain to your father’s reputation. No, I think Mrs. Kane has come up with the best idea so far and, if I may be permitted to say so, it is typical of her father’s boldness in such matters.’
‘But if we should fail?’
‘I am not a betting man, but I’d back a Kane and Rosnovski against Jake Thomas any day.’
‘If I agree, what would you consider to be the most propitious time to launch the bid?’ asked Richard.
‘April one,’ Thaddeus Cohen said unhesitatingly.
‘Why that date in particular?’
‘Because it’s the right length of time before everyone has to file their tax returns to be fairly certain that a number of people will be in need of some spare cash.’
Richard went over the detailed plan with Thaddeus Cohen again and that night he explained it in full to Florentyna.
‘How much do we stand to lose if we fail?’ was her first question.
‘Roughly?’
‘Roughly.’
‘Thirty-seven million dollars.’
‘That’s pretty rough,’ said Florentyna.
‘We don’t exactly lose the money, but all our capital will be locked up in Lester’s stock and that would put a severe restriction on the cash flow for the rest of the Group, if we didn’t control the bank.’
‘What does Mr. Cohen think of our chances of pulling the coup off?’
‘Better than fifty-fifty. My father would never have considered going ahead with such odds,’ added Richard.
‘But my father would have,’ said Florentyna. ‘He always considered a glass to be half full, never half empty.’
‘Thaddeus Cohen was right.’
‘About what?’
‘About you. He warned me that if you were anything like your father, prepare for battle.’
During the next three months Richard spent most of his time with accountants, lawyers and tax consultants, who had all the paperwork completed for him by March 20. That afternoon he booked space on every major financial page in America for April 1 and informed the advertising departments that the copy would arrive by hand twenty-four hours prior to publication. He couldn’t help reflecting on the date and wondered if it would be he or Jake Thomas who would end up the fool. During the final two weeks, Richard and Thaddeus Cohen checked over the plan again and again to be certain they hadn’t overlooked anything and could be confident that the details of ‘Operation Bust a Gut’ remained known to only three people.
On the morning of April 1, Richard sat in his office and studied the full-page advertisement in The Wall Street Journaclass="underline"
The Baron Group announces that it will offer fourteen dollars for every Lester’s Bank share. The current market value of Lester’s shares is eleven dollars and a quarter. Any persons wishing to take advantage of this offer should contact their broker or write direct for details to Mr. Robin Oakley, Chase Manhattan Bank, One Chase Manhattan Plaza, New York, N. Y. 10005. This offer remains open until July 15.
In his article on the facing page, Vermont Royster pointed out that this bold bid to take over Lester’s must have had the support of Chase Manhattan, which would be holding the stock of the Baron Group as security. The columnist went on to predict that if the bid succeeded, Richard Kane would undoubtedly be appointed the new chairman, a position his father had held for more than twenty years. If, on the other hand, the move failed, the Baron Group might find themselves with severe cash restrictions placed on their reserves for several years because the Group would be encumbered with a large minority shareholding without actually controlling the bank. Richard could not have summed up the situation more accurately himself.
Florentyna called Richard’s office to congratulate her husband on the way he had carried out Operation Bust a Gut. ‘Like Napoleon, you have remembered that the first rule of war is surprise.’
‘Well, let’s hope Jake Thomas is not my Waterloo.’
‘You’re such a pessimist, Mr. Kane. Just remember, Mr. Thomas is probably sitting in the nearest men’s room at this moment and he doesn’t have a secret weapon and you do.’