Shock Wave(154)

They had to act decisively and fast if they were to avert a disaster. A deeply scrupulous man, Strouser was the only cartel member the board of directors could trust to persuade Dorsett not to shatter the established price levels of the market.

Arthur Dorsett stepped forward and shook Strouser's hand vigorously. "It's been a long time, Gabe, too long.

"Thank you for seeing me, Arthur." Strouser's tone was patronizing, but with an indelible tinge of aversion. "As I recall, your attorneys ordered me never to contact you again."

Dorsett shrugged indifferently. "Water under the bridge. Let's forget it happened and talk old times over lunch." He motioned to a table, set under an arbor shielded by bulletproof glass, with a magnificent view of Sydney's harbor.

The complete opposite of the crude, earthy mining tycoon, Strouser was a strikingly attractive man in his early sixties. With a thick head of well-groomed silver hair, a narrow face with high cheekbones and finely shaped nose that would be the envy of most Hollywood movie actors, he was trim and athletically built with evenly tanned skin, several centimeters shorter than the hulking Dorsett, he had dazzling white teeth and a friendly mouth. He gazed at Dorsett through the blue-green eyes of a cat ready to spring away from the attack of a neighbor's dog.

His suit was beautifully cut of the finest wool, conservative but with a few subtle touches that made him look fashionably up-to-date. The tie was expensive silk, the shoes custom-made Italian and polished just short of a mirror shine. His cuff links, contrary to what people expected, were not diamonds but made from opals.

He was mildly surprised at the friendly reception. Dorsett seemed to be playing a character in a bad play. Strouser had expected an uncomfortable confrontation. He certainly had not anticipated being indulged. He no sooner sat down than Dorsett motioned to a waiter, who lifted a bottle of champagne from a sterling-silver ice bucket and poured Strouser's glass. He noted with some amusement that Dorsett simply drank from a bottle of Castlemaine beer.

"When the cartel's high muck-a-mucks said they were sending a representative to Australia for talks,"

said Dorsett, "it never occurred to me they would send you."

"Because of our former long-standing association, the directors thought I could read your mind. So they asked me to inquire about a rumor circulating within the trade that you are about to sell stones cheaply in an effort to corner the market. Not industrial-grade diamonds, mind you, but quality gem stones."



"Where did you hear that?"

"You head an empire of thousands, Arthur. Leaks from disgruntled employees are a way of life."

"I'll have my security people launch an investigation. I don't cotton to traitors, not on my payroll."

"If what we hear has substance, the diamond market is facing a profound crisis," explained Strouser.

"My mission is to make you a substantial offer to keep your stones out of circulation."

"There is no scarcity of diamonds, Gabe, there never was. You know you can't buy me. A dozen cartels couldn't keep my stones out of circulation."

"You've been foolish for operating outside the Central Selling Organization, Arthur. You've lost millions by not cooperating."

"A long-term investment is about to pay enormous dividends," Dorsett said irrefutably.

"Then it's true?" Strouser asked casually. "You've been stockpiling for the day when you could turn a fast profit."

Dorsett looked at him and smiled, showing his yellowed teeth. "Of course it's true. All except for the part about a fast profit."

"I'll give you credit, Arthur, you're candid."

"I have nothing to hide, not now."

"You cannot continue to go your own way as if the network didn't exist. Everybody loses."

"Easy for you and your pals at the cartel to say when you hold monopolistic control over world diamond production."

"Why exploit the market on a whim?" said Strouser, "Why systematically cut each other's throat? Why disrupt a stable and prosperous industry?"

Dorsett held up a hand to interrupt. He nodded to the waiter, who served a lobster salad from a cart.

Then he stared at Strouser steadily.

"I am not operating on a whim. I have over a hundred metric tons of diamonds stored in warehouses around the world, with another ten tons ready to ship from my mines as we speak. A few days from now, when fifty percent of them are cut and faceted, I intend to sell them through the House of Dorsett retail stores at ten dollars a carat, on average. The rough stones, I'll sell to dealers at fifty cents a carat.

When I'm finished, the market will tumble and diamonds will lose their luster as a luxury and an investment."