“I’m going to speak to her,” says Jeff. “Make discreet inquiries.”
“Sorry, you’re asking who to do what?” says Max. “We were talking about the Oscars, bro?”
“I’m saying I have an operative in South Carolina,” says Jeff again. “Amy Wheeler—she looked after you briefly years ago.”
“I remember her,” says Max. He stares at Jeff intensely for a while. He has clearly been told at some point that his intense stare is effective. “Tom Cruise, there’s another one. Jeff, has anyone ever told you that you look like a black Jason Statham?”
Jeff decides he might as well just plow on.
“It’s all delicate, Max, I’m sure you get it,” says Jeff. “You know the nature of this business. But I want you to know we’re taking this very seriously.”
“I’m thinking of joining Henk,” says Max, putting his feet back on the table. “I thought I should let you know. I bet he’d pay more money too.”
“Well, I’d be shocked if you weren’t thinking about it,” says Jeff. Max Highfield would be Henk’s highest-profile steal yet. “And we can talk about money.”
“Amy Wheeler was the one who stopped me riding my motorbike off that bridge,” Max says.
“That was her,” says Jeff. “I believe you’d taken too much of your painkiller medication?”
“They don’t tell you not to mix it with whisky,” says Max.
“Don’t they?” Jeff says. “I’m sure I’ve heard somewhere that—”
“And she bled all over my denim jacket.”
“To be fair,” says Jeff, “she broke up a fight you’d started in a bar, and someone attacked her with a piece of broken glass.”
“Harry Styles gave me that jacket,” says Max.
“Max,” says Jeff, looking to wrest back the conversation, “will you trust me, for the next few weeks? Until we can find out what’s going on?”
“Course, course,” says Max. “Couple of weeks.”
Max begins to slip his shoes on, the signal that he is ready to move on to the next stop in Max World. Jeff stands.
“Loved the new film, by the way. Rampage 7.”
“Thanks, man,” says Max. “I wasn’t in love with Rampage 6, but we’re back on track here. And it’s nice to play triplets.”
Jeff nods in agreement. As one of the triplets, Max has a mustache, and as one of the other triplets, he has an eye patch and a French, or possibly Dutch, accent.
“Henk said someone needs to teach you to hold a gun properly, but I loved it,” says Jeff. “I hold them sideways too sometimes.”
“Henk said that?” Max stands to his full height. The full six feet four inches that meant Max wasn’t stuck acting in minor British soap operas for long.
“Afraid so.”
“Huh,” says Max. A man who has been given something to think about.
“Not everyone gets cinema,” says Jeff.
“I am misunderstood, as a man,” says Max. “And as an artist. And that’s Britain all over.”
“Terrible country, agreed,” says Jeff, his extended hand engulfed in Max’s. “I’ll get this sorted.”
As Max leaves, a heady haze of testosterone and Tom Ford lingering behind him, he passes Susan Knox on her way in to see Jeff. As he passes her, Max gives her a firm pat on the backside.
“There she is,” says Max. “My hot cougar.”
“She’s the head of HR, Max,” says Jeff.
“She doesn’t mind,” says Max over his shoulder, as he leaves the room. “It’s a compliment.”
“I’m guessing you do mind?” says Jeff, inviting Susan to sit. “That sort of thing?”
“That sort of thing? Yes,” says Susan, impassively. “I mind that sort of thing.”
“Would you like me to do something?” Jeff asks.
“Dismantle the patriarchy?” suggests Susan.
“I’ll talk to them,” says Jeff. “They don’t really like black guys interfering, but I’ll do my best. Is that the François Loubet file?”
Susan nods and places the file on Jeff’s desk. “May I ask why you wanted it?”
They had done a job for Loubet around two years ago. Didn’t meet him, of course; no one meets François Loubet. He’s the world’s biggest money-smuggler and, as such, likes to keep himself to himself. They were protecting one of his staff. Henk had objected at the time; he was always a bit more particular than Jeff when it came to their clients. But, as Jeff had said, if you don’t protect criminals you very soon run out of clients. Henk will discover this in his new business. Perhaps this row had been the beginning of the end for the two of them?
Jeff opens the file and looks at Susan. “Have you read it?”
