Detective Danny Cavanaugh 01 - The Brink

cover?”
    “Yes.”
    Danny pulled off the boot and stared at her. Again, she balked at an explanation. “Why?”
    She yanked off the other boot. “Beyond the fact that I was almost killed for trying to interpret it?”
    “Good point. But countries are no different than people, right? No matter how badly they want to get paid, Japan would exhaust every other option first. Litigation is a last resort.”
    “More or less.”
    Danny waited a moment for her to continue. He asked, “Can you be a little more specific?” when she didn’t.
    Sydney narrowed her eyes. “Japan thinks they are out of all other options.”
    “Why’s that?”
    “Because the United States isn’t going to be around much longer.”

Chapter 13
    “You’re gonna have to explain that one,” Danny said.
    Sydney had already said too much. She kept silent, choosing to begin unbuttoning the guard’s shirt. She shucked it off his torso and slid into it. It was a few sizes too big, but at least it covered her. Moments later, Danny was helping her remove the guard’s pants.
    Sydney had never been in the business of trusting other people, especially after hearing Knobby’s tale, which appeared as if it were finally coming true. But there was something about this man, this Texas Ranger, this policeman. Although his eyes were beyond weary, kindness glowed inside them. It also didn’t hurt that he was gorgeous. His dark hair provided the perfect backdrop to a tanned face framed with a few days’ worth of stubble. He resembled a rugged adventurer dressed in a tattered long-sleeved T-shirt, cargo pants, and hiking boots. Women would want to trust this man as soon as they met him, including Sydney.
    “Japan also stipulates that dollars won’t be accepted as payment,” she finally said, choosing her words carefully.
    “They can’t not accept dollars. It’s currency, the most accepted currency across the planet.”
    So, he isn’t just another pretty face, Sydney thought. “That’s exactly what I thought when I read what they want as payment.”
    “What?”
    “Gold.”
    Danny stopped fooling with the guard’s pants. “Gold? I’m pretty sure our government doesn’t have a trillion dollars worth of gold just lying around. And even if they did, they wouldn’t want to part with it. ”
    Danny probably had no idea how close he was to the truth. But Sydney couldn’t disclose it. Not here anyway. Still, she felt she had to give him something more. “My theory is that they want gold because they believe the dollar will soon be worthless.”
    “Worthless? What makes the dollar worthless?”
    Sydney looked around. “We don’t have the time—”
    “Then give me the short version.” He scanned the area. “We’re okay for a quick story.”
    Sydney sighed. “The debt that China and Japan regularly purchased represented 20 percent of the revenue for the U.S. operating budget.”
    “Which means they were subsidizing our daily operations,” Danny concluded.
    Sydney nodded. “In the three months since Japan and China have stopped buying that debt, which caused the rest of the world to play follow the leader and do the same, the Federal Reserve has had no choice but to print more money to make up the difference.”
    “Which has devalued the dollar and caused the huge jump in inflation everyone’s been griping about, right?”
    “I’m glad to see you’re up to date on fiscal policy, Sergeant.”
    “I like keeping current. But the Fed can’t just keep printing more money, right? If they do, won’t there come a point when inflation spirals out of control and a loaf of bread costs like $15,000?”
    “There is another tool the Fed can use well before it gets to that point. They can raise interest rates so other countries will start buying your debt again.”
    “And the problem with that is?”
    “The higher the interest rate, the more you have to pay in interest to your investors.”
    “I got that part, but how does that apply to the U.S. budget?”
    “To date, you’ve accumulated just over $13 trillion in debt. Interest payments on that debt represent the third largest expense in your federal budget. To make your debt attractive again, the Fed will need to increase the interest rate at least three, most likely five, percentage points. When that happens, America will not be able to afford to do much else but pay the interest on that debt.”
    Danny jumped ahead. “Which our government can’t do because we need to pay for