Prologue

July 13, 2002

“Jebidiah, please be reasonable.” Very few people know J. Edwin Whitten’s first name and even fewer people are able to address him by it. Harrison Clayton is one of these privileged few. He and Edwin’s friendship started in their college days, way back in the 70’s.

They attended the University of Texas together. After graduation, Edwin went into banking. He soon grew bored and came to hate working at his father’s bank. So he decided to strike out on his own. He now owns his own successful company, and is considered moderately wealthy by most standards.

Harry studied him, at a little over six foot tall and 225 pounds Jeb is not an individual who intimidates easily. His piercing blue eyes, give the impression that they can look straight into the inner depths of anyone he chooses to stare at. Harry had always thought Jeb could be a very successful lawyer. Whitten’s jet-black hair has started to show traces of silver starting at the temples, and hinted at a receding hairline. His forehead is developing a furrowed look, but over all, not bad looking for someone who had recently turned forty-nine

Harry, as his friends called him, became a lawyer. He started out in a big downtown law firm in Houston, as an associate. After about ten years in the practice of law, he was still a junior partner and moving more slowly up the career ladder then he had hoped. He decided that maybe politics was where he could achieve his goal of success. In his first bid at a political career he ran for a minor seat on the Texas House of Representatives; He failed at winning a seat in the state house of representatives for two consecutive elections. Next, he ran for county judge and then attorney general and lost both times.

In his first bid at a political career, his defeat came by his own inexperience; he debated, with a polished incumbent. As a result, he came across as an uninformed and rather dull individual. The debate came back to haunt him in the second attempt, although this time it was because he refused to debate the other candidate. The voters thought of him as aloof and not informed on the issues. Once again, he lost by an overwhelming majority.

He decided to go back to practicing law, and started a firm with a lawyer in who was much older then him, Mr. Raymond Robison. Mr. Robison became his mentor and took Harry under his wing. Together with Harry’s enthusiasm and Raymond’s experience the firm prospered. Now with the retirement of Mr. Robison the firm was Harry’s and he was succeeding at expanding his caseload, and expanding the firm, by hiring new associates and taking bigger cases.

Whitten finally answered. “I don’t need to be reasonable. Just make the changes I’ve asked you to make for me.” He sat there in Harry’s office looking at the dozens of photos and diplomas as well as various framed front-page articles hanging on the “glory wall”. He reflected on the change, in Harry’s surroundings, Harry had been what people nowadays call a disadvantaged youth, his parents died at an early age, and he was forced to move to Houston and live with his maternal grandparents. He did have one thing in his favor, he was quick to learn, and worked his pants off. He received a full scholarship for college, and he took full advantage of it.

“Jeb, as your lawyer and friend, I’m telling you that what you’re proposing lacks planning, and in my opinion doesn’t represent your best interests. How can you invest in a little no name company like Lunar Development Corporation? They show a very modest earning potential and their goal to colonize the moon is extremely ambitious, impossible is more like it. The company will be bankrupt if it fails at colonizing the moon. Why do you think its going public? It needs the cash. It is trying to keep the office furniture from repossession, as we speak. Why, are you willing to invest all the inheritance from your father on it?” Harrison asked.

“They will succeed. This public offering and the company’s plan to market itself will work.” Stated, Mr. Whitten. “Besides LDC has been in business for a while already, and isn’t going broke any time soon. As for the office furniture being carted away, I know that it will never happen. This dream to colonize the moon is what really counts. Can you imagine the enormous profits that will be had, when they achieve that goal?” Whitten declared.

“Still, I’d be remiss in my duty to you, if I didn’t point out the fact that some of these changes are a bit rash. Changing your will so all of your personal fortune goes to the Fertility Foundation, the Adopt a Child of America Foundation, and The Run-away Hot Line for Teens, is a bit out of the ordinary. As is turning your home and land into an orphanage for wayward youths, people will think you have gone mad. And are you forgetting Blaire, your daughter and only child? Don’t you love her? Don’t you want to provide some security for her in the event of your untimely demise?”

“Yes, of course I love Blaire; I’ll never stop loving her. I’m not giving her a red cent until she comes to her senses, and forgets this Irish gold digger of hers.”

“Really Jeb, Ian appears to be a great gentleman, and he truly seems to love Blaire, I know Blaire really loves him. Besides, what would Maggie say about your behavior and the way you’ve been acting lately?”

“You let my wife’s memory rest in peace!” Jeb interrupted, slamming his hand on the desk. Harry jumped at the noise.

“I’m sorry about that; I was only trying to get you to think about this some more. Come on, do you really believe that’s all he wants, is just her money?”

“I believe he just wants to get money, and this way there’s no money for him to get. Now make those changes immediately.”

“All right I’ll make the changes to the will, and I’ll look into LDC for you.”

“Do more than look at it. Buy it. I should be able to buy one million shares of LDC.”

“Oh, and Harry, buy it by using dummy corporations and offshore accounts. The last thing I want is a bunch of lawyers snooping around from the SEC and the IRS. I want this to be legal, but I certainly do not want to end up listed as a major stockholder. It may be useful later on down the road to be in control of a ten- percent block with voting privileges. Take care of the details and I make sure that I double my usual bonus I pay you.”

“Oh boy! Double of nothing, I’ll be as rich as you are in no time at all.”

“I’ll wire the money to you at 8:00 AM sharp tomorrow, wise guy. You still on for dinner as usual?”

“Of course! It’s your turn to buy.”

Whitten was in the study having his customary drink of the evening. He drank only one thing scotch and soda. From 6:00 pm. until 7:00 pm. was Whitten’s quiet time. No one who knew him well interrupted it.

He used this time to relax from the stress caused by running a multi-million dollar corporation. Whitten Avionics Inc. was very successful, less then twenty - five years in business and already it had sales in the five hundred million-dollar range. It had profits last year of 150 million, and he had a personal net worth of 200 million. All from a small factory, he had bought from an ex-air Force sergeant, who was going broke slowly, selling aviation electronics.

He thought back to the time he decided to try to acquire the business. Edwin went to his fathers’ bank for a loan. He tried to convince his father that all the company needed to be profitable was, better leadership and a more disciplined approach to business. He also tried convincing his father that he could turn the company around in a short amount of time. His father decided not to give him the loan.

“It’s too risky and you’ll lose your shirt trying to make a living at it” He replied. “Besides I’m ready to retire and turn the bank over to you. Why take a chance on something that will never amount to anything?”

“Father, we’ve discussed this, I don’t want to take over the bank, and I haven’t even worked with you for years. Besides, I have a bank job now and I cannot stand it. I’m bored. What would I be if I ran a bank?”

“Secure and most likely rich like me. Why is it all the people of your generation are so set against doing anything that your fathers worked for?”

“Were not against everything you’ve worked for, and I want to be just as successful as you. I just want to do it on my own. Why can’t you understand?”

Edwin got the loan from another bank. His father saw this as an act of rebellion. For the next twenty-four years, he never let Edwin hear the end of it. He constantly brought it up at every family gathering. Even after Whitten Avionics Incorporated was doing well, his father never recognized it for the success it was.

Edwin believed he would turn the company around. He did, in just three years it was in the black. He started by calling every aviation firm from Houston to Moscow. He succeeded by never taking a “no” for an answer.

Many times, he made personal appearances at the doorstep of every two-bit company in the area, just to scare up some sales.