“Just be careful,” said Giles. “The Russians may have their own Inspector Warwick, who could be sitting waiting for you.” After his own experience in East Berlin, Giles doubted if Harry would get beyond customs but he accepted there was no way he could ever hope to dissuade his brother-in-law once he’d made up his mind.
“I’ll be in and out before they realize it,” said Harry, “so there’s nothing for you to be anxious about. In fact, I’m far more worried about the problems Emma’s facing.”
“What in particular?” asked Giles as he handed Harry a brandy.
“Desmond Mellor is standing for deputy chairman at next month’s board meeting,” said Emma.
“Are you telling me that charlatan’s found two directors who are willing to propose and second him?” said Giles.
“Yes, his old friend Jim Knowles, assisted by his even older friend Clive Anscott.”
“But if they fail to get him elected,” said Giles, “surely all three of them will have to resign? So this could turn out to be a blessing in disguise.”
“Not much of a blessing if they do get him elected,” said Harry.
“Why? What’s the worst Mellor can do, even if he does become deputy chairman?” said Giles.
“He could suggest that I stand down until the trial is over,” said Emma, “‘for the good of the company.’”
“And then the deputy chairman would become acting chairman.”
“But only for a few weeks,” said Harry. “You’d return once the trial was over.”
“You can’t afford to give Mellor that much rope,” said Giles. “Once you’re no longer able to attend board meetings, he’ll find a way of making temporary become permanent, believe me.”
“But you could refuse to stand down, Emma, even if he does become your deputy,” suggested Harry.
“I won’t be given a lot of choice if I have to spend the best part of a month stuck in the High Court, defending myself.”
“But once you win…” said Giles.
“If I win.”
“I can’t wait to get in the witness box and tell the jury some home truths about Virginia.”
“We won’t be calling you, Giles,” said Emma quietly.
“But I know more about Virginia than—”
“That’s exactly what my barrister is worried about. After a few well-chosen words from her ex-husband, the jury might even end up feeling sorry for her, and Mr. Trelford, my barrister, says Sir Edward Makepeace, her silk, won’t be shy about raising the subject of your second divorce, and what caused it.”
“So who are you going to call?”
“Major Alex Fisher MP.”
“But won’t he be a defense witness?”
“Mr. Trelford doesn’t think so. Fisher could well be as much of a liability for them as you might be for us.”
“Then perhaps the other side will call me?” said Giles, sounding hopeful.
“Let’s hope not.”
“I’d pay good money to see Fisher in the witness box,” said Giles, ignoring his sister’s barb. “Remind Mr. Trelford that he’s got a very short fuse, especially if he’s not treated with the respect he feels he deserves, and that was true even before he became an MP.”
“The same can be said of Virginia,” said Harry. “She won’t be able to resist reminding everyone that she’s the daughter of an earl. And there won’t be too many of those on the jury.”
“However,” said Giles, “it would be equally foolish to underestimate Sir Edward. If I may quote Trollope when describing another advocate, he is ‘as bright as a diamond, and as cutting, and also as unimpressionable.’”
“And I may need those same qualities at next month’s board meeting when I climb into the ring with Mellor.”
“I have a feeling that Mellor and Virginia must be working together,” said Giles. “The timing’s just a little too convenient.”
“Not to mention Fisher,” added Harry.
“Have you decided yet if you’re going to stand against him at the next election?” asked Emma.
“Perhaps it’s time to tell you that Harold Wilson has offered me a seat in the Lords.”
“Congratulations!” said Emma, leaping up from her chair and throwing her arms around her brother. “Some good news at last.”
“And I turned him down.”
“You did what?”
“I turned him down. I told him I wanted one more crack at Bristol Docklands.”
“And one more crack at Fisher, no doubt,” said Harry.
“That would be part of the reason,” admitted Giles. “But if he beats me again, I’ll call it a day.”
“I think you’re out of your mind,” said Emma.
“Which is exactly what you said when I first told you twenty-five years ago that I was going to stand for Parliament.”
“As a socialist,” Emma reminded him.
“If it makes you feel any better,” said Giles, “Sebastian agrees with you.”
“Does that mean you’ve seen him since he got back from New York?” asked Harry.
“Yes, and before you ask, he clammed up the moment I raised the subject.”
“A pity,” said Harry. “Such a remarkable girl.”
“But what I can tell you is that when I dropped into his office before taking him out to lunch, I spotted a child’s painting on the wall behind his desk that I’d never seen before. It was called
“A painting of me?” asked Emma.
“No, that’s the strange thing,” said Giles. “It was of Samantha.”
* * *
