Horner barely seemed to register any response to the vitriol of Griffin’s speech. He sat in the chair with a thin smile, as if allowing the outlet of an indignant but foolish child who could not be expected to understand such matters. Griffin did not react.
‘I seek neither understanding nor pardon. It is too late for that now and in any event it’s irrelevant. Any decision you make upon which moral stance to adopt is unlikely to have any impact on the bearing of events. As you may or may not know, the real point of the break-in was the acquisition of incriminating evidence to be used as leverage in blackmailing my former partner Geoffrey Asquith, who, though innocent, would be considered guilty by association and ruined.’
‘What then Michael? You think I might be able to help? To rescue yourself and your precious wealth and reputation? You should know that that would be purely a by-product of my own self-preservation.’
‘And you Mr Griffin would be well advised to realise that this has nothing to do with your influence or your employees, both of which are negligible factors in this situation. You should not presume that Griffin Holdings is anything but a prop in this particular play. Mere scenery. Certain groups or individuals have decreed that they will manipulate Geoffrey through the results of some ill-judged folly of my youth and they will not be deterred. Do you really think they would have made such an audacious attempt at blackmailing a man in Geoffrey’s position unless they were certain of its success? I think you afford yourself a little too much credit Andrew.’
Griffin’s cheeks burned but he held his tongue. ‘Your remarkable self-regard is always a spectacle to behold but I am growing a little tired of repeating the question Michael. Perhaps you could get to the point?’
63
Wednesday. 6.20pm.
Campbell’s voice failed him and his legs refused to function. Force of habit compelled him to call out and invite the man in, to go to the door. Instead he stood stiff at the back of the suite and stared across toward the door.
There was a sliding sound and a click and then he heard the handle turn and light spill in from the hallway, silhouetting the figure of the man who stepped inside.
‘Is there anyone here?’ he called out.
‘In here,’ Campbell said finally but still he did not move.
The other man let the door close behind him and stepped cautiously into the room, glancing around for any signs of company.
‘Its just me,’ Campbell said.
‘And you are?’
This was it. Everything he had been building up to, each agonising second, minute, hour of the past few days had arrived in this moment.
‘Two weeks ago, a man by the name of Tony Cooper, a man with a record of criminal activity and associations, came uninvited into my home. He had been wounded fatally and he passed me something of a highly sensitive nature before I helped him into an ambulance. All of which has involved me, rather unfortunately in what I believe to be a very personal dilemma involving yourself and your old business associates.’
Campbell fell silent, unsure whether to maintain his momentum, to continue making his pitch or let the other man respond.
‘That doesn’t tell me who you are,’ the man said. ‘Nor what you want.’
‘Mr Asquith,’ Campbell addressed him directly, ‘I am familiar with Griffin Holdings Ltd and its previous incarnation, founded and run by yourself and a Mr Michael Horner. Mr Horner became involved in the smuggling of guns into Sierra Leone during the period of its civil war and involved in the smuggling of uncut diamonds out of the same country by way of payment for his services. Whether you had any involvement in that- ’
‘I had nothing to do with that!’ Asquith interrupted sharply. ‘Michael acted entirely in secret and of his own volition.’
‘As you say. Even so, the mere association is enough, for a conviction, as they say, in the court of public opinion. You know this perfectly well and you know that this would ruin you, your ex-partner, and the existing company and every one of its staff.’
Campbell paused for a moment, to let his words sink in. He needed the other man to realise what he knew, how far this went and that he was to be taken seriously. Asquith didn’t respond this time, his quick temper apparently replaced now by apprehension, as if he couldn’t figure out Campbell’s role in this.
‘I am aware of the attempt to blackmail you Mr Asquith though I can assure you, I am in no way involved, if that is what you are thinking.’
‘I think you should tell me who you are before I call the police,’ Asquith replied with a hard edge to his voice, clearly short of patience now. Time to play your hand Campbell.
‘I can tell you who your blackmailer is Mr Asquith, and why.’
‘I saw what I thought to be an opportunity to make a significant sum of money many years ago and that is exactly what I achieved. Did my small actions prolong the civil war? Did they sway the war in any particular or decisive direction? Could I have stopped it by abstaining from what I did?’ Horner shook his head at Griffin, his expression dismissing any objections the other man might seek to make. ‘My actions represented a tiny fraction in a far wider situation. There were larger institutions with vested interests in the conflict, getting paid vastly more than I received and involved in ways that dwarfed my own involvement. But those actions were despicable and shameful nonetheless. I profited from the misery of other people. Yes. I was ruthlessly opportunistic and those actions have come full circle to haunt and threaten me and other people. Yes. I do not want you to understand this Andrew and I do not ask for such hollow luxuries as forgiveness. But what I would like from you is discretion.’
The silence that followed was thick with tension as Griffin took in the weight of Horner’s words. He reached for the glass of water and took a sip, then another, set the glass down.
‘Silence?’ Griffin said, his tone cool and challenging.
Horner said nothing. After a moment he dipped his head just a fraction in assent.
‘I have no more interest in this information becoming public knowledge than you do,’ Griffin said.
‘Not now I grant you. But things change, people move on, retire. I should very much like to ensure that should circumstances, uh, alter in time, I can rely on you to remain, what is the phrase? On message.’
And then Horner slipped a hand inside the jacket of his expensively cut suit and took out a small dark object. He laid it on the table in front of him and pushed it halfway toward Griffin. It was a small black velvet pouch. Griffin wanted to examine Horner’s expression, his eyes, but his own eyes were fixed on the bag.
Time passed and neither man spoke or moved. Horner sat motionless, watching Griffin stare down at the table.
Then, slowly, Andrew Griffin sat forward and hesitantly reached for the pouch on the table. Though he knew what he would see there, something compelled him to look anyway, something he couldn’t fight.
He picked it up and could feel the hard sharp shape inside the velvet as he pulled it open.
‘The price of silence,’ Michael Horner said softly.
Griffin gave no indication that he had heard him as he continued to stare inside at a large uncut diamond.
64
Wednesday. 6.40pm.