Wicked Pleasures (105 page)

And then there was something much more sinister going on. At first it manifested itself in a few isolated incidents, and it never affected Max. But once or twice John Fisher, one of the salesmen he had become friendly with, came back from a meeting with Chuck looking concerned.

‘What’s up?’ asked Max. ‘Had your bonus cut?’

‘No,’ said Fisher. ‘No. It’s nothing. Honestly.’

Max shrugged. ‘OK. Don’t tell me.’

After this had happened a second time, he took Fisher out and got him drunk. Fisher told him he had been put under pressure by Chuck to push shares in certain companies in which he personally had no faith.

‘And in which I guess our friend has an interest,’ said Max. ‘Well don’t do it.’

‘No. Well, but – that’s easy to say. He’ll check on it. Oh – I don’t know. It happens all the time, I’m sure.’

He sounded miserable. Max grinned at him.

‘Course it does. Don’t worry. It’s all in the game, as my friend Jake would say.’

But he knew it would not have happened at Mortons; and it should not have happened at Praegers.

‘The Chinese wall is developing chinks,’ he said to Charlotte. ‘Watch it. We may have something tangible to hit Drew with soon.’

One of Chuck Drew’s imports was an analyst called Vernon Bligh. Max disliked Vernon at first sight; he was very tall and thin and he wore a signet ring with a crest on it and an Old Etonian tie. ‘There’s a jeweller in Ealing knocking out those crests,’ said Max to John Fisher, ‘all the boys are ordering them. Jake told me about him. And I can tell you the nearest Bligh ever got to Eton was a day trip to Slough.’

He spent a happy lunchtime quizzing and tripping up Bligh about his house, his year, the games he’d played, the prep school he’d come from.

‘Game set and match,’ he said cheerfully to Fisher as they got back to the office. ‘Did you see his face when I said I remembered seeing him one Fourth of July? The relief. The fakes always fall for that one.’

‘I didn’t get it,’ said Fisher nervously. ‘What’s so great about the fourth of July?’

‘Because it’s the Fourth of June at Eton,’ said Max patiently. ‘Fourth of July is American Independence Day.’

Bligh undoubtedly had Chuck Drew’s ear. And was in his pocket. Analysts need to be honest, above reproach; if they are not they’re dangerous. They look at companies, assess their value, and then advise the salesmen on the viability or
otherwise of a forthcoming issue. Vernon Bligh advised the salesmen however Chuck Drew told him. Several of the clients found their stock heavily promoted and sold, and rewarded Chuck handsomely. If the companies did not then perform quite up to scratch that was felt to be the shareholders’ problem. But in the early days that summer, when share prices continued to soar to unprecedented heights, there was no problem anyway. A company needed to be almost totally incompetent for its shares to lose value; money was always available for shoring up. On paper the new Praegers UK was doing well: a considerably increased client list, and an immensely active trading floor. Fred III, Gabe reported from New York, never stopped singing Chuck Drew’s praises.

Georgina called Max at the bank. She sounded upset.

‘I don’t know what to do, Max. Everyone says I have to tell Kendrick about George and I just don’t want to.’

‘Who’s everyone?’ Max had most of his mind still on the screen. There was something going on: a lot of shares were climbing. Big bid coming in, maybe.

‘Well – Charlotte mostly. And Nanny. It’s because Aunt Mary Rose is coming over.’

‘What on earth for?’

‘Oh – some book research. She’s been in touch with Daddy.’

‘I can’t see what difference that makes. Even if she finds out. George doesn’t have to be Kendrick’s baby.’

‘No, but I expect he can still count.’ Georgina sounded gloomy. ‘And Daddy says he’s bound to let it out. I mean that George exists.’

‘I wouldn’t have thought that necessarily followed,’ said Max. Shit, this thing was big: another three points.

‘Why not, Max? Max, are you listening?’

‘Yes. Yes I’m listening.’ God, he wished she’d let him get back to the screen; it was like trying not to come. ‘What I mean is, I don’t see why Alexander can’t be asked to keep his mouth shut. He’s quite good at keeping secrets, I would have thought.’ He knew it sounded harsh; he didn’t care.

‘Oh Max, don’t. Poor Daddy, he tries so hard. Well anyway, I thought I might go and stay with Granny Caterham for a few days. She has asked me. I’d be safe up there. What do you think? At least I wouldn’t actually bump into Mary Rose.’

‘Good idea,’ said Max.‘Very good idea.’

‘Good.’ She sounded pleased. ‘Well if you think so, I will.’

‘All right, Georgina. That’s settled then.’ It was very sweet the way she asked him for advice: as if he was both older and wiser than she was. He was very much aware he was neither.

‘Max! Call on three!’

‘Max! Will you take a look at this screen! It’s going crazy.’

‘Max! Have we missed something, or have we missed something?’

‘I’ve got to go,’ he said to Georgina. ‘Have fun in Scotland.’

It was an oyster that did it; an oyster was the catalyst that brought them all so close, so dangerously, powerfully close. Max was sitting at his desk the day Mary Rose was due to fly in to London, trying to calculate how much commission he had made in the past month and considering putting down some money on a new flat, when the phone rang.

‘Max? This is your father.’

Max hesitated briefly, thinking, imagining Tommy; then realized, it was Alexander. Alexander sounding frail and distant.

‘Max, I’m not well. I’ve eaten an oyster. Ignored the old dictum, I’m afraid. No R in June.’

‘No. Alexander, I’m sorry. You sound dreadful.’

‘I feel dreadful. It’s all most – most unattractive, I’m afraid. I can’t ever remember being so ill. Horribly ill.’

‘Yes, well they’re nasty things, oysters.’

‘Indeed they are. Now listen, Max. Mary Rose is arriving this evening. At Heathrow. I had promised to meet her.’

‘You had?’ Max was astonished. Even given that Mary Rose had arranged to see Alexander, it seemed surprising he was actually coming to London to meet her.

‘Yes. It seemed only courteous. After all, she has no friends in London now. Anyway, I quite clearly can’t.’

‘No-o.’ Max’s attention was still half on his commission.

‘Max? Max, are you there?’

‘Yes, I’m here.’

‘Max, I’d like you to meet her. Take her out to dinner this evening, see her into her hotel.’

‘Alexander, I can’t do that. I’m going to the theatre.’

‘Well, maybe Charlotte could – oh God, Max, I have to go. Meet her, would you please, and look after her. We can talk again in the morning.’

‘Yes, all right,’ said Max, alarmed at the pain in Alexander’s voice. ‘Don’t worry. Have you had the doctor?’

‘Yes, I have. Goodbye, Max.’

The phone slammed down. Max looked at it, and sighed. He and Gemma had been going to the theatre. He had got tickets for
Phantom
. She was going to be absolutely furious …

He buzzed Charlotte’s phone to ask her if she could help, but she was having dinner with old friends. ‘And I’m not letting them down, Max, it’s been arranged for a long time.’

‘No, all right, all right,’ said Max crossly. ‘It’s not my problem either.’

‘I’ll look after her,’ said Tommy. ‘Don’t worry about it. You can tell her you have theatre tickets, and you’ll be back as soon as possible. She’ll understand. We can all have a nightcap together then.’

‘Tommy, I can’t help feeling this is dangerous.’

‘Max! Do you really think I’m going to spill the beans? You know how
discreet I am. I’ll be an old family friend, and charm itself. I promise. Besides, I’m curious to meet your aunt.’

‘Well – I suppose it might – oh, but Alexander will be furious. I can’t think why he’s so bothered about her, he never liked her.’

‘Max, by the time I’ve finished with the lady, she won’t tell Alexander. Don’t worry. I’ll take her to the Rue St Jacques, I think. I imagine I have carte blanche on expenses for the occasion? Yes, I thought so. You can come and meet us there at – what – eleven?’

‘Oh – all right. Yes. That’d be great. Tommy, you’re ace.’

‘Don’t talk about aces, Max. I did have a poker school planned for tonight.’

Max walked into the restaurant just in time to see Tommy raise his brandy glass to Mary Rose, and her smile at him, reach out and cover his hand with her own.

‘Tommy,’ she was saying, ‘you are absolutely the very first, indeed, the only person to understand how I feel about that. I’m amazed that someone outside the family could be so sensitive to the situation.’

‘Goodness,’ he said, smiling at them both, ‘I seem to have arrived at a delicate moment. Shall I go away again?’

‘Of course not,’ said Tommy, gazing up at him, his very blue eyes innocently wide. ‘We’re delighted to see you.’ Max noticed that he had not moved his hand. ‘Come and sit down. Is Gemma not with you?’

‘No,’ said Max, ‘she had a headache.’

This was a slight understatement for the screaming tantrum Gemma had thrown when she heard he was not after all going to take her out for an expensive dinner
à deux
, but it was adequate for the occasion. He bent and kissed his aunt. ‘How are you, Aunt Mary Rose?’

‘I’m well thank you, Max. Your friend Mr Soames-Maxwell has been looking after me so nicely.’

‘I’m delighted,’ said Max, pulling up a chair. ‘I’m only sorry I couldn’t be with you myself.’

‘Poor Gemma,’ said Tommy, finally and slowly withdrawing his hand. ‘Would you like some Armagnac, Max?’

‘How kind,’ said Max, smiling at him through faintly gritted teeth.

‘I was just telling your aunt,’ went on Tommy, picking a very large Romeo y Julieta from the box the waiter had offered him, ‘how well you were doing at Praegers, and that I thought it might be just a little hard for her to see the bank filling up with Caterhams. That she must feel her own family has been perhaps a little sidestepped. After what must have been a great deal of hard work, raising them and so on.’

‘Well, we’re half Praeger,’ said Max, smiling easily at Mary Rose, after flashing an intensely dangerous glare at Tommy. ‘Don’t forget that. And of course Freddy is very important at Praegers now.’

‘Of course,’ said Mary Rose coolly. ‘But just the same, it was always understood, at least until Charlotte stepped in –’ she made it sound as if Charlotte had taken over Praegers entirely of her own volition –‘that the bank would be one hundred per cent Freddy’s, in due course.’

‘Well, yes, but that was a long time ago,’ said Max. ‘Blood on the tracks, eh, Tommy?’

‘I beg your pardon?’

‘Old expression of Tommy’s. So have you two been having a good evening? I’m so sorry neither Alexander nor I could meet you.’

‘To be perfectly frank with you,’ said Mary Rose, with a glance at Tommy under her lashes which Max realized was meant to be flirtatious, ‘I’m quite glad you didn’t. Oh, no offence, of course, Max, but Mr Soames-Maxwell and I have had the most charming evening. He was telling me how he came across you in Las Vegas, and how you and the rest of the family have been so good to him.’

‘Oh really?’ said Max, smiling slightly nervously. It would be useful to know quite what Tommy had been saying. ‘Er – did he explain the family connection?’

‘Oh yes of course,’ said Tommy, ‘that my grandmother and Betsey were classmates. Back in the distant past.’

‘Oh. Oh yes, of course.’

‘And then Mr Soames-Maxwell –’

‘Tommy, please!’ said Tommy, smiling into her eyes.

‘Yes of course, Tommy. Tommy has been regaling me with wonderful stories about staying with the Kennedys at Hyannis Port, and how he knew Hemingway, and all kinds of interesting people, in fact I was telling him that if he has any problem with a publisher for the book he’s writing I should most certainly be interested.’

‘That does sound fascinating,’ said Max. ‘I’m delighted.’

‘Well,’ said Tommy, ‘I can only say that I too have had a most wonderful evening. It’s so rare that one finds a sympathetic listener.’

Mary Rose smiled at him; she was flushed with a mixture of wine, flattery and pleasure, and looked nearer to pretty than Max had ever seen her. He suddenly remembered his father’s anger when he had insulted Mary Rose, and how Alexander had defended her, and the other occasions when he had proclaimed her attractive (and even sexy). He himself had obviously never found the key to her.

Tommy was talking again. ‘But now I really feel, as you are in Max’s excellent hands, I should take myself home. It’s getting late, and I have an early start tomorrow. Max can take you to your hotel. Could you get me a taxi?’ he said to the waiter, who was hovering with the bill. ‘And I think Viscount Hadleigh will be settling that.’

‘Can’t we drop you off in the car?’ asked Mary Rose. ‘It’s outside now, I can see it, and I always rather like a drive round London at night. So pretty.’

‘Oh, it’s terribly out of our way,’ said Max hastily. ‘No, we’ll get you a taxi, Tommy.’ He was studying the enormous bill: a bottle of vintage champagne, a bottle of a vintage white burgundy, caviar, a
mille-feuille
of salmon and the Armagnac, the cigar – Tommy had certainly gone to town.