‘Hello?’ Tom said sleepily.
‘Tom, good morning. It’s Frederick.’
‘Morning, Frederick. How are you?’
‘I’m fine. Would you be able to come to my office this morning? There’s something rather urgent I would like to discuss with you.’
‘And Serena?’
‘No, just you, Tom. And I’d appreciate it if you didn’t mention to Miss Mayer that you were meeting me.’ Frederick put the phone down.
He turned to Serena, who had stirred at the sound of her own name being mentioned. ‘What was that all about?’ she said, stretching her arms above her head.
‘Frederick wants to see me in his office… alone.’
‘Is that wise?’ She threw the cover off, unabashed at her own nakedness. Tom realised he, too, was naked. She sidled up to him, draped an arm around his neck and pressed her body up to his. Tom could feel himself stirring again as he felt the warmth of her against his skin.
‘Probably not,’ Tom replied, wrapping his arms around her.
‘Do you have to go straight away?’
‘Definitely not.’ He swept her up into his arms and carried her into the bedroom.
An hour later, Tom was on his way to Frederick’s office in one of the golf buggies, with Serena beside him. She had dressed quickly after their lovemaking and slipped out of her apartment, returning a few minutes later with a plastic carrier bag, which she presented to him. He’d looked inside to see a security guard’s jacket. When he’d asked her where she had got it from, she just smiled and tapped her nose with her index finger. Not wanting to look a gift horse in the mouth, he didn’t press the point and slipped it on. It was a tight fit, but would certainly do the job until he’d had a chance to go into town to purchase a replacement.
They had agreed that she would drop him off and then discreetly wait for him away from the building to avoid being spotted by Frederick, should he look out of his window.
It was still bitterly cold. Tom zipped up the front of his newly acquired jacket and pulled the collar up to protect his face. The snow had stopped falling and the sun was trying to make an appearance from behind grey, patchy clouds. The crispness of the snow crunched beneath the small wheels of the cart as they drove down the central boulevard.
Serena was directed to stop about a hundred metres short of the office and reverse the buggy in between two buildings. She had a clear sight of the entrance and would be able to see Tom as he came out.
‘Is this cloak and dagger stuff really necessary?’ she whinged, putting the fur-trimmed hood up on her padded jacket.
‘If it was up to me, then I would have you in the meeting with us,’ replied Tom. ‘But Frederick was insistent that I didn’t tell you about it. I don’t know what he’s up to, but I get the distinct impression that I’m about to find out.’ He jumped out of the buggy. ‘If I’m not out in an hour, call Inspector Gervaux.’
Serena still didn’t know when to take him seriously. The expression on her face must have mirrored her feelings, because Tom laughed and told her that he was only joking and would text her if there was a problem. He made his way across the street.
She watched him all the way into the building, then sat back and prepared herself for a long wait. She smiled to herself as she began to reminisce about the previous evening’s lovemaking. However, in her reverie, she failed to notice the two figures in the golf buggy that had pulled up further down the street, who were also watching Tom as he entered the building.
‘Thanks for coming, Tom. Please take a seat.’ Frederick was back to his usual warm and vibrant self.
‘You left me little choice,’ replied Tom. ‘You sounded so mysterious on the phone, I just had to come and find out what it was all about.’
Frederick gave a short laugh. ‘Yes, sorry about that, but it will all become clear when I explain to you why I wanted to see you.’ He played with the pen on his desk for a few minutes; he seemed to be finding it difficult to know where to start. He took in a deep breath and exhaled slowly, deciding his only option was to lay all his cards on the table at once.
‘When I last saw you,’ he began, ‘I mentioned that I would like to run the document you showed me past a few colleagues. Well, those colleagues are in fact an esoteric group of eminent scientists, whose sole purpose is to steer mankind away from any paths that could potentially lead to an apocalypse.’
He looked earnestly at Tom, whose expression had turned to a mixture of incredulity and scepticism. He paused, waiting for the inevitable questions, but when none were forthcoming he pressed on.
‘Ever since the Ancient Greeks turned science into a vocation, man has been experimenting with his natural environment, the outcome of which has not always been certain. Until fairly recently, the consequential damage that could be inflicted on the population as a whole, as a result of those experiments, was negligible. Gunpowder, TNT, gelignite, semtex — the most powerful explosives of their time could, at worse, cause only localised damage. But the splitting of the atom changed all that. It was a turning point in the history of scientific experimentation. The energy released when one neutron is cleaved from a single uranium nucleus is fifty million times greater than when a carbon atom combines with oxygen in the burning of coal. Can you imagine the cataclysmic damage that could have ensued if scientists had been allowed to conduct experiments on those materials without the proper guidance?’
His eyes never left Tom’s face, trying to gauge his reaction like a player in a poker game. But Frederick knew it was too late to stop now; he had already played his hand. ‘It became evident shortly after the discovery of X-rays that radiation was not only a source of energy and medicine, but it could also be a potential threat to human health if not handled properly. When Thomas Edison’s assistant died from a radiation-induced tumour as a result of too much X-ray exposure, he vowed the same fate would not fall on his fellow scientists. He therefore banded together with the early pioneers of nuclear experimentation to ensure not only their safety but, more importantly, the safety of mankind.’
Tom was listening intently. He made no attempt to interject or ask any questions.
‘They formed a group that would meet on a regular basis to share ideas and philosophies,’ continued Frederick. ‘They exchanged views on potential risks which, eventually, they developed into a code of practice and ethical standard. The group grew in popularity and became respected as the ultimate authority on radiation. By 1914, it had over a hundred members worldwide, all dedicated to the pursuit of atomic knowledge through a strict and disciplined set of rules and regulations…’
CHAPTER 24
Inspector Gervaux had arrived at the facility just after nine in the morning. He had prepared himself to oversee another round of employee questioning by his officers, which was laborious but necessary. He knew from experience that criminals weren’t caught by dramatic breakthroughs, as portrayed in the cinema, but by the detail often found in the most innocuous of places: an email, a wastepaper bin, a passer-by who initially couldn’t recall the crime.
That axiom was shattered five minutes after his arrival at the complex by a phone call from the lab telling him they’d had a dramatic breakthrough on the substance found in Tom Halligan’s apartment. It was potassium chlorate, the same grade as the residual compound collected at the scene of the explosion.
He’d met his sergeant on the steps of the main building and told him about the results from the lab. Lavelle’s expression didn’t change, but inside he was pleased that he would get another opportunity to break the arrogant American. They made their way over to the accommodation block after establishing from the receptionist that Tom hadn’t yet turned up for work.