did together, I think he'd be very hurt that you've forgotten him so quickly.'
'You must be mistaken, Ms Jackson. I don't recall ever having done business with a Mr... Osborne, did you say?' He was aiming for genial indulgence, but he wasn't hitting the mark. There was a wariness in his posture that might have escaped many observers. But Carol had learned her lessons, from Tony and from others, and she recognized his unease. Now she was in the thick of it, she was starting to enjoy herself, feeling the power she had to control this situation.
'Look, I understand why you're being wary here. You know how Colin died, so of course it makes you edgy, having some strange woman walk through the door and start talking about him. But I know that you guys made a lot of money together, -- and that's what I want to talk to you about.' ^
He shook his head, a tight smile failing to loosen up his face. 'You must have the wrong person, Ms Jackson. The only business interest I have is a chain of stores that sell and rent videos. Now, your Mr Osborne may well have been one of our suppliers, but I employ staff to deal with people like that. You don't think I conduct the day-to-day purchase of stock myself, do you?' His mild air of condescension was well done; H he was recovering control of himself by the second. She couldn't afford to let that happen. Not quite yet.
Carol leaned back in her chair, bidding for the relaxed look. 'You're very good,' she said. 'No, really, you are,' she added as he tried a look of mild surprise. 'If I didn't know better, I'd fall for the "legitimate businessman" line. But I didn't come all the way to Berlin to talk about videos, Tadzio.'
The use of the diminutive form of his first name was another calculated move on Carol's part to wrong-foot him. That it had worked was obvious in the narrowing of his eyes. He was trying to get past his initial reaction, to size her up, but he couldn't escape the power of memory. 'Then you've wasted your time, Ms Jackson,' he said.
She shook her head. 'I don't think so. Look, it's obvious that you must be missing Colin badly. I've come to take up the slack.'
He shrugged. 'You're not making sense.' The five-minute bell rang, signalling the imminent end of the interval. 'Now, if you'll excuse me, I think you should be getting back to your seat.'
'The view from here is much better, you know. I think I'd rather stay.' Carol dropped her bag on the floor and crossed her legs, tilting her head and smiling at him. She could see the war of instinct and interest flickering in his uncertain eyes.
'I don't think so,' he said.
Carol gave an exasperated sigh. 'Look, Tadzio, stop pretending. You need me.'
He looked shocked. His mouth opened, but no words emerged. 'Colin was doing a good job for you,' she continued. 'But Colin's history. You need someone to take your illegals off your hands once they get to the UK. I can do that. Can we stop pussyfooting around and talk straight? Naturally you're nervous about discussing this with a total stranger, but, right now, I suspect I'm the only show in town when it comes to getting you off a very awkward hook. What do I need to do to prove to you that I'm trustworthy?'
'I still don't know what you're talking about.' There was a stubborn set to his jaw now. 'Illegals? What do you mean? We don't sell blue movies in my stores. We certainly don't import them into the UK.'
Carol smiled again, genuinely delighted that she was having to stretch for this. If it had been too easy at the start, she would have had to work harder later on. This way, she was getting into her stride, feeling her way through Caroline Jackson's skin to an argument that would open him up to her. 'Oh please,' she said, injecting a little steel into her voice. 'That line is getting rather tired. Look, I know what you and Colin had going for you. I can give you the addresses of his factories in Essex where the illegal immigrants ended up working for a pittance. I can tell you how many of your imports he handled in the last year. I know where Colin lived, who he drank with, who he was sleeping with -