45
Tom could see the trouble ahead looming for the global economy. In hindsight, it had begun when the US ignored a fair balance of trade in the 1970s and just printed more money to cover its imports, abandoning the gold standard. But then the Euro rats became cunning and wanted payment in gold rather than American dollars. The butterfly wings started flapping back. Then Vesuvius rained down on the world banks and, in turn, governments.
In his role on the International Fraud Taskforce, Tom was looking for the next butterfly and he had to net it, preserve it, pin it, and present it to the prime minister. He was sure he could find it, the next major fraud, hidden in the wings of the butterfly.
And perhaps the butterfly would represent the simplest things—in a world where we can talk to so
