Thaddeus Cohen arrived forty minutes later. William heard him out in attentive silence.

When Cohen had finished his revelation, William said, Tour father would never have approved of such underhand methods!

'Neither would yours,' replied Thaddeus Cohen, 'but they didn't have to deal with the likes of Abel Rosnovski.'

:What makes you think your plan will work?'

Look at the Bernard Goldfine and Sherman Adams case, only one thousand six hundred and forty - two dollars involved in hotel bills and a vicuna coat, but it sure embarrassed the hell out of the President when Adams was accused of preferred treatment because he was a Presidential assistant. We know Mr. Rosnovski is aiming a lot higher than that. It should, therefore, be easier to bring him down.'

'Game, set and match. How much is it going to cost me?'

Twenty - five thousand at the outside, but I may be able to pull the whole deal off for less.'

'How can you be sure that Rosnovski doesn't realise that I am personally involvedT 'I'd use a third person who won't even know your name to act as an intermediary!

'And if you pull it off, what would you recommend we do then?'

Tou send all the details to Senator John Kennedy's office, and I guarantee that will finish off Abel Rosnovski's ambidous plans once and for all because the moment his credibility has been shattered he will be a spent force and find it quite impossible to invoke Article Seven of the bank's by - laws - even if he did get hold of eight per cent of Lester's.'

'Maybe - if Kennedy becomes the President,' said William. 'But what happens if Nixon wins the election? He's way ahead in the opinion polls and I'd certainly back his chances against Kennedy. Can you really imagine that America would ever send a Roman Catholic to the White House? I caiet, but then on the other hand I admit that an investment of twenty - five thousand is small enough if there's better than an outside chance the move will finish Abel Rosnovski off once and for all and leave me secure at the bank.'

'If Kennedy becomes President...'

William opened the drawer of his - desk, took out a large cheque book marked 'private account' and wrote out the figure& Two, five, zero, zero, zero.

38

Abel's prediction that Kennedy's opening of the Baron would hit every front page did not turn out to be wholly accurate. Although the candidate did indeed open the hotel, he had to appear at dozens of other events in Los Angeles that day and face Nixon for a televised debate the following evening. Nevertheless, the opening of the newest Baron gained fairly wide coverage in the national press, and Vincent Hogan assured Abel privately that Kennedy had not forgotten the other little matter. Florentyna's shop was only a few hundred yards away, but father and daughter never did meet.

After the Illinois returns came in, and John F. Kennedy looked certain to be the thirty - fifth President of the United States, Abel drank Mayor Daley's health and celebrated at the Democratic National Headquarters on Times Square. He did not return home to his bed until nearly five the next morning.

'Hell, I have a lot to celebrate,' he told George. 'I'm going to be the next . . .' He fell asleep before he finished the sentence. George smiled and put him to bed.

William watched the results of the election in the peace of his study on East Sixty - eighth Street. After the Illinois returns which were not confirmed until ten o'clock the next morning (William never had trusted Mayor Daley), Walter Cronkite declared it was all over bar the shouting, and William picked up his phone and dialled Thaddeus Cohen's home number.

All he said was, 'The twenty - five thousand dollars has turned out to be a wise investment, Thaddeus. Now let us be sure that there is no honeymoon period for Mr. Rosnovski.

But don't do anything until he makes his trip to Turkey.' William placed the phone back on the hook and went to bed. He was disappointed that Richard Nixon had failed to beat Kennedy and that his distant cousin Henry Cabot Lodge would not be the Vice - President but it is an ill wind. . .

When Abel received his invitation to be a guest at one of President Kennedy's inauguration balls in Washington, D.C., there was only one person he wanted to share the honour with. He talked the idea over with George and had to agree that Florentyna would never be willing to accompany him unless she was convinced that the feud with Richard's father could be finally resolved. So he knew he would have to go alone.

In order to be in Washington to attend the celebrations, Abel had had to postpone his latest trip to Europe and the Middle East for a few days.

He could not afford to miss the inauguration, whereas he could always put back the date for the opening of the Istanbul Baron.