‘Just give me a figure.’ There was a steeliness in Roddy’s voice Adam hadn’t heard before. He didn’t like it.
‘With start-up costs and wages for the first few years factored in, given that we can’t sell the product until…’
‘A number, please.’
‘One point two million would cover it.’
Roddy threw his head back for show and laughed.
‘It wouldn’t be as much as that to begin with,’ said Adam hurriedly. ‘We could start online sales of the new spirit after a year, and we could even bring in some money from a visitor centre and cafe, maybe run whisky-making courses in the quiet season, other distilleries…’
‘You mean it, don’t you?’ said Roddy. ‘You actually want me to give you over a million fucking quid…’
‘Not give it to me, invest it in this place. Roddy, it’s a great opportunity. You know yourself that the whisky industry has been bulletproof during the credit crunch, in fact the market for Islay malts is going through the roof in the Far East and India…’
‘Go to a fucking bank.’
‘What?’
‘I said go to a bank. Loaning people money is what they do.’
‘Come on, Roddy…’
‘Go to the bank.’
‘I already went to the bank.’
‘And?’
‘What do you think? I don’t have a track record in the industry, I’m not a successful businessman, I didn’t have any collateral to borrow against. They weren’t going to give me a million quid.’
‘So why should I?’
Adam felt his heart thudding against his ribcage.
‘Because you know me,’ he pleaded. ‘We’ve been friends for twenty fucking years. I’ve never asked you for anything in all that time, but I’m asking you now. It’s not a favour, it’s a sound investment.’
‘What makes you think I have that kind of money lying around?’
‘Come on, you’re always talking about how much you make.’ Adam heard his voice rise in pitch but couldn’t control it. ‘This is probably peanuts to you, you make this much in yearly bonuses.’
‘That might be true, but I didn’t get to be the best in the business by throwing money at pie-in-the-sky projects.’
‘It’s not pie in the sky,’ said Adam, panicking. ‘If you’ll just take a look at the business plan, the figures all stack up. You can have whatever percentage of the company you like, I’m just interested in making quality whisky.’
‘This isn’t Dragon’s fucking Den,’ laughed Roddy. ‘We’re talking about a million quid and change of my money getting pished into a big black hole at the end of a dirt track on a God-forsaken rock in the Atlantic. It’s not going to happen.’
Molly piped up. ‘You could at least take a look at the details of the proposal, Roddy. It seems like Adam’s gone to a lot of work putting this together.’
Roddy turned and stared. ‘He’s got you in his corner, has he? Well listen, darling, I don’t need to take a look at the details, because I’m not going to throw money away on a ridiculous scheme like this.’
‘It could work,’ said Molly. ‘Bruichladdich have proved that. And there’s a new farmhouse distillery at Kilchoman that’s doing great business already after only three years.’
‘That’s right,’ said Adam, feeling sweat on his hands. ‘I’ve arranged for us to have a chat with the owner and manager of Kilchoman this afternoon, take a look round the place. It’s amazing what they’ve done in such a short time.’
‘You’re wasting your time,’ said Roddy. ‘I’m not investing in this fucking crazy idea.’
‘But why not?’ Adam begged.
Roddy stared hard. ‘Because, Adam, you’re one of life’s losers, you always have been and you always will be. You’re almost forty and still working in a shop, for fuck’s sake. You’ve spent your whole life being petrified of taking a chance on anything. That doesn’t necessarily make you a bad person, but it sure as shit doesn’t make you the kind of person who runs a successful business either. You never take risks, it’s that simple, so you’ll always be one of the also-rans. You’re a beta male through and through.’
‘But don’t you see, I’m trying to change that with this project,’ Adam said. ‘I’m trying to turn things round, take risks and grab life by the bollocks.’
Roddy smiled. ‘Did you fuck Molly last night?’
‘What?’
‘I said did you fuck her?’
‘Mind your own business,’ said Molly.
Adam looked confused. ‘What’s that got to do with anything?’
Roddy shook his head. ‘Man, you couldn’t get laid if you fell into a barrel of fannies. You can’t even pull with a woman who actually likes you, that’s how much of a risk-taker you are. I bet you’ve still got those two Viagras I gave you.’
Adam looked at Molly. ‘I didn’t want them, he put them in my pocket and…’ He turned back to Roddy. ‘Anyway, that’s got nothing to do with anything. This is business we’re talking about.’
‘It’s all part of life’s rich tapestry,’ said Roddy. ‘Loser in love, loser in life.’
Adam was exasperated. ‘Look, at least consider it,’ he said, picking up the paperwork and thrusting it at Roddy. ‘Take a look at the numbers and the plans, and if you don’t like it, then fair enough.’
‘I don’t need to, I’m not investing.’ Roddy walked towards the door, kicking up dirt.
‘Fuck’s sake,’ said Adam, grabbing his coat. ‘If you were a friend, you’d at least consider it.’
Roddy turned sharply, grabbed Adam and shoved him against a wall, pinning him. ‘If you were a friend, you wouldn’t ask me to pish away a million quid of my own money on a no-hope fucking joke of a scheme.’
He released Adam in a cloud of masonry dust and turned. ‘Right, I’m getting in the car and driving away from this shitheap. If you lot want a lift back to civilisation, I suggest you’re in the car in two minutes.’
He swept out of the stillroom, leaving Adam scrambling around picking up the plans that had scattered on the filthy floor.
‘Fucking hell,’ he said.
The others helped him collect up the paperwork.
‘I guess that didn’t go according to plan,’ said Ethan quietly as he and Luke headed towards the door.
Molly put an arm round Adam and led him out of the stillroom.
‘Don’t give up just yet,’ she said.
16
Bad feeling hung in the car. Roddy pushed buttons on the stereo.
‘Fucking cheap shite,’ he growled. ‘Piece of crap bollocks.’
He got out a hipflask, took a swig and passed it to Luke, sitting impassively next to him. Ethan was wedged between Molly and a forlorn Adam in the back. The Oa sped past outside, a rough blur of greens and browns. Behind them, heavy clouds were roiling over the ocean.
‘I know what you’re all thinking,’ Roddy shouted. ‘I’m the bad guy here. Well, fuck that. We’re talking about over a million fucking quid. If it’s such a great idea, why doesn’t one of you invest in his little plan, eh? See how you like it?’
He drove one-handed, reaching into a pocket for his coke case. He flipped it out, tapped a line onto his steering hand and snorted. The car swerved round a bend too fast then he regained control.
‘Easy, man,’ said Luke, passing the hipflask into the back. Ethan and Molly passed. Adam took it and stared at Roddy.
