Frequent Traveller (Cathy Dixon #1) (16 page)

"You bet. The next group is arriving on 15th July, correct?"

"Yea, I'm charging them $880 each, US Dollars of course. For every person that shows up, you'll give me $100 each and you'll get $100 each. What are you going to tell the hotel for you to get the money?"

"Same as the last time, entertainment or expenses. Corporate's around so if I don't answer your calls in the next few days, it's because I'll have someone breathing down my neck."

"Any particular reason?" Neema asked as she sipped her wine.

"The usual, dollars and cents plus that PR lady wants to check if we're staying close to the MoonStar brand guidelines. Pain in the ass if you ask me but I can't get away from it. Although, I wouldn't mind looking at her ass for as long as I can," he joked.

"You're such a man! You're talking about the redhead right? I remember her from the annual dinner two years ago," Neema said.

As they rambled on about local happenings, the ambience intimate and their tone merry, a different atmosphere was building up in the conference room of MoonStar Zanzibar. Cathy sat with Nigel the fuming General Manager, Dave the boiling Vice President of Finance and a bustling executive secretary.

The table was filled with thick box files and stray papers. Cathy and Dave had arrived late the night before. Only a handful of people were aware of their trip but none, except the General Manager, knew of their intentions. They had gotten to work early this morning and had made one shocking discovery after another.

Nigel had worked with the MoonStar Hotel chain for about ten years. He had first joined as General Manager for MoonStar Nigeria and was then transferred to MoonStar Zanzibar two years ago. In recent years, he was riddled with serious health conditions such as chronic diabetes, breathing problems and even had one of his toes amputated. It was obvious that the long hours of managing the property was taking its toll on him and an upcoming scandal was bound to see him handing in his resignation. But whether the current incidents were entirely his doing or someone taking advantage of a General Manager's failing health, it was yet to be seen.

Dave was the Vice President of Finance, and had worked with MoonStar for close to twenty. With greying hair and a cheery smile, it was easy to mistake him for a laid-back retiree until you got on the wrong side of him. He was known for his demanding ways when it came to making sure every detail on every report was accurate. Any person attempting to belittle this effort was in for a nasty reminder of who was boss. Six months ago, finance executives at corporate, had started to notice severe discrepancies in some of MoonStar Zanzibar’s reports.

They had been persistent on digging as deep as possible, before pointing fingers. Every time a particular group booking was confirmed and payment was received, large sums were withdrawn and used for gifts and entertainment. Completely normal, except that all these transactions revolved around one particular travel agent from Wonder Travels. This was one of Tanzania's biggest travel agencies who provided MoonStar with many room nights, in the South African and Middle Eastern regions.

Because it involved gifts and customer satisfaction, three departments were placed on the suspect list, Sales and Marketing, Communications and Front Office. When Finance was questioned, the Financial Controller had insisted the cash allotments in question were set aside upon request of these three departments. His only demand which he had followed up on, was that all relevant receipts were given to him, so he could account for the expenses.

The handwritten receipts were from various gift outlets and restaurants. When one of the finance executives had called the travel agent in charge of the bookings, she had casually mentioned that her guests liked receiving gifts from the hotel, even if the items were packaged elsewhere. She insisted that she sold "holiday experiences" that had to be packaged with tokens of appreciation for guests to make them feel special.

This of course brought everyone back to their main suspect, the Communications Manager. The General Manager had drilled her for more than an hour and she had insisted, she had made no purchases from the shops. She even pointed out that she rarely went out to make purchases, because she presented guests with MoonStar gifts.

The weeks wore on and it wasn’t long before Corporate Finance discovered more discrepancies with the mileage claims from the Sales and Marketing Department. Two managers reported various trips to one particular company, with claims amounting to $1080 each, for a duration of three months. They acknowledged that the company was slow in giving the property room nights, but failed to mention that the company had closed down, one year ago.

This set the course for a fresh angle. The fact remained that all these payments and claims had been approved. Either someone was being negligent or all these schemes were known, and the heads of departments involved were ignoring the issue, because they were benefiting in some manner.

As part of the inspection, Dave had asked Cathy if she could check on the Communications Department. If she made sure all their expenses were accounted for, while he got to the bottom of the entire situation, it might prevent any further damage.

The associates at the property's Finance Department were least thrilled by their visit. But Cathy knew, a surprise visit from corporate usually indicated trouble and set off red flags more than it offered welcoming red carpets. Ready to question each associate, they got all their answers just by talking to the Financial Controller's personal assistant, Lisa. As soon as she was called in, she broke down and begged not to be fired.

She insisted that she was innocent of any wrong doing and wasn’t aware of what her boss had been doing, until Corporate Finance had started to make inquiries, asking for trace files. It was only that she started to connect the dots. In the last year, her boss, Russell had met with Neema from Wonder Travels, a lot. Lisa claimed it was beyond what was needed for payment issues. Sometimes, Neema, personally brought him receipts for gift items, she had purchased for her guests.

Two weeks earlier, she had been working late and had heard hushed voices from his office. She was uncertain of the exact conversation but had gathered that at least two of the sales associates had given Russell a percentage of their ‘false’ claims. She wasn’t sure how far long this had been going on for or how much he had made on the side. Lisa informed them that Russell was certain he had covered his tracks well and that corporate was only making a random visit.

It was one thing for an associate to be caught cheating, but when a Head of Department was the culprit, the ramifications were far more serious.

"All this while, he has been playing me for a fool. When I first asked him, if he suspected anything amiss, he looked me in the eye and said that as far as his department was concerned, they had nothing to do with this," Nigel said, his temper all set to lash out at anyone in his path.

"I just want to be clear about how this was done. Russell worked with Neema to pull off this scheme. She'd pay him what the guests paid her or accept payment directly from the guests in MoonStar’s name. He then gave her some cash and kept some for himself. These transactions were then written off as entertainment expenses as she went around, accumulating receipts and brought them back to him, correct?" asked Cathy.

"It looks like it, but if he was carrying out this scheme with Neema, there must be other travel agents or transactions we have not spotted," Dave said, thoughtfully.

"And I always wondered why our property was that far down in the annual MoonStar rankings," said Nigel, his tone varying from anger to bitterness.

"If he wanted a raise, he should have just asked for one. What about the Sales Department? How many associates do you think are involved in making false claims?" asked Cathy.

"Well, the only way to be sure is to dig it all up. I'll have some of my executives make a trip here. The associates here are going to be defensive but I want nothing more than to get this sorted quietly and quickly," Dave said, his mind already calculating each move they would need to make.

"For the Sales associates involved in this fiasco, I'll have HR type out their suspension notices. I'm pretty sure they are all out for lunch at the moment. We can have them called up when they get back. One by one they can come up here, that way they'll have less time to get rid of papers or evidence and Security can escort them out. Dave, thank you for taking the time to sort this out," said Nigel.

He knew there was much to be done and his mind was already cluttered with the various negative situations that could arise from this affair and the effects of it on him. He was certain he felt an ulcer already forming on the one side of his cheek.

Dave and Cathy watched him leave, his head hung low.

"That's why you have a Corporate Office," Dave said slowly.

RABAUL, PAPUA NEW GUINEA

August 2009

One of the least populated and yet one of the most culturally diversified countries in the world, Papua New Guinea is believed to be home to more than 780 traditional communities and tribes, each with a speaking dialect of its own. It is the world's fiftieth biggest country and is a vast mixture of islands and highlands, located on the Pacific Ring of Fire between several tectonic plates. This has made made Rabaul an unpopular choice for development. Between immense volcanic activity, earthquakes and tsunami waves, the locals remain acquainted with hardship, a testament to the nation's anthem "O Arise, All You Sons".

Poverty is so rampant, the average income is not above $30 a month. The country gained its independence from Australia in 1975 and has continued to be influenced by its other colonial rulers which included the Spanish, Portuguese and the Germans.

The country is also said to be the first in practicing and passing on, traits of cannibalism. The extent of this practice is yet to be determined, with some studies pointing out at least twenty thousand people have been affected in the past, while others indicate it is still practiced amongst smaller, religious tribes.

In 1937 and 1994, two volcanoes Tavurvur and Vulcan erupted leaving behind a trail of ash and destruction. After the first time, the town was rebuilt in a span of two decades but was completely condemned after the eruption in 1994. As a result, the entire town of Rabaul was relocated to an area less than twenty kilometers away. Now, popular for its enchanting harbour, several tour operators within the new Rabaul, offer adventure seekers a once in a lifetime trip exploring rare marine life.

A new venture which had started operating more than a year ago, MoonStar Rabaul stood tall in an area literally spewing with volcanic uncertainty, making marketing and promotions a continual challenge.

The property was jointly owned by MoonStar and two local businessmen who were determined on rebuilding their city. The success of this property rested on ensuring every guest felt the same way here as they did in other MoonStar properties around the world. This was a task far easier printed on a brochure than accomplished. Feeling an urgent need to compensate for its location, the owners had built 380 guest rooms in an expansive area of more than eight hundred acres of land. There were eight buildings and each was thematically associated with a different country like France, USA, South Africa, England, China, India, Germany and Australia. All of these buildings were connected to one colourful reception area. It was their belief that highlighting attractions from around the world would encourage locals as well as foreign tourists to stay at the property, a theory that had thus far engaged in more costs than any profit.

Aside from the usual sales ventures and travel agent offers, regional sales had made it compulsory for other properties to cross-promote MoonStar Rabaul. They had formulated a super saver promotion which included return flight tickets, water sports, travel insurance and meals for the entire stay. So far it had worked like a charm. For more than seven months, the property had seen an average occupancy rate of 60%, with groups arriving from as far away as Russia and England. It was during one of these trips that a particular incident would threaten the property's already fragile state.

A male figure lay sound asleep, his loud snores filled every corner of the room. Rick and Emily had arrived two days ago and had spent every possible minute they could exploring the various water sports offered by the property. Their first long holiday in almost a decade, they considered every minute that was absent of activity, was pleasure wasted.

Earlier in the day, they had spent most of their time snorkeling and were to attend the beach barbecue with other hotel guests but Rick had felt queasy. He knew full well the excitement of the trip was starting to take its toll on him and had changed his mind. While Emily made her way to a host of seafood dishes, he ordered a club sandwich, watched an in-house movie and was in bed by 9:00 p.m. A few hours later, a loud knock at the door woke him up from a deep sleep.

Uncertain of whether he was dreaming, he attempted to pull himself together, fumbled with the bedside clock and got out of bed. The knocking continued.

“Ah Em, you forgot your key again," he muttered as he made his way to the door.

He swung it open and expected to see a slightly tipsy Emily, his wife of ten years, but instead was taken aback at the sight of a little girl. Obviously one of the locals, with long jet black hair, dressed in an orange t-shirt with denim shorts, she could not have been more than ten years old and looked up at him with big bright eyes.