'I'll give you a choice: a conference room at Woodman amp; Weld, or the dining room at my house.'
'Well, let's see,' Lance said. 'The Woodman amp; Weld venue has the advantage of the Four Seasons right downstairs.'
'Are you really going to put four days of lunches at the Four Seasons on your expense account, Lance?'
'You have a point,' Lance said. 'The boys in accounting tend to get itchy about that sort of largesse.'
'Tell you what: my housekeeper is an excellent cook; I'll spring for lunch every day, if you do it at my house.'
'I'll have to send people in to sweep the place,' Lance said.
'I'm okay with a free sweep of my house,' Stone said, 'but I want two simultaneous recordings of the proceedings, and you leave one with my client, just so we won't have to worry about who said what at some later date. Also, the recordings will never be seen on television or outside the intelligence apparatus of the government while my client is still alive.'
'You mean that if I want to put all this on 60 Minutes, I'll have to shoot Pablo first?'
'You will never lay a hand on Pablo, neither figuratively nor literally.'
'If I get the feeling that I'm being had, I'm going to be very, very angry,' Lance said.
'Pablo's wish is not to have you, but to tell you everything he can. And, if you and your people behave yourselves and treat him like the gentleman he is, you may get a bonus or two when we're done.'
'What sort of bonus?' Lance asked.
'That remains to be seen, doesn't it?'
Lance held out his hand. 'Deal. One thing, though: I am not going to get between Pablo and the IRS. Life is too short. Any deals with them will have to be separate from our arrangement.'
Stone pretended to think about that. 'You're sure you can't help him with the tax people, even a little?'
'Not even a little,' Lance replied.
Stone shook his hand. 'Deal. You're a hard man, Lance.'
'We start Monday morning at nine?'
'Good.'
'I'll have my people stop by to sweep and install the recording equipment.'
'Good.'
Lance was looking very smug by the time his osso buco arrived.
THIRTY-ONE
Lance dropped by Stone's office the following afternoon, and Stone was ready for him. Joan got them both a drink, and Stone handed him an agreement to read.
Lance read it quickly, but apparently thoroughly. 'This seems to reflect our discussion of last evening,' he said, then signed two copies and handed one to Stone.
'Here is your letter to Pablo,' Stone said, handing him a single sheet of paper. 'You can have it retyped on your letterhead.'
Lance read it. 'This is a little stronger than I had conceived of.'
'That won't cost you anything, Lance.'
'Oh, all right.'
Stone handed him another sheet of paper. 'This is the letter to be signed by the attorney general.'
'You really do have a lot of balls, Stone,' Lance said, reading the letter. 'You presume to write the attorney general's correspondence for him?'
'If he objects, the president can sign instead-on the proper letterhead, of course.'
'I'll put it to the general.'
'You'd better put it to him right away and get his signature, because I want all these documents signed and sealed before the start of our fourth day together.'
'Or what?' Lance asked insouciantly.
'Or you won't get the bonus.'
'Ah, I see, you're saving the best for last.'
'Something like that.'
'Give me a hint.'
'It's something you want, and nobody else can give it to you.'
Lance thought, then he chuckled. 'Surely you're not talking about-'
'I'm not talking, period,' Stone said. 'This conversation is at an end.'
'Oh, all right. I'll see you Monday morning at nine. Will you be offering breakfast, as well?'
'If you can ask questions while chewing. Who are you bringing with you?'
'Holly will be here, and at least one person who may remain anonymous. Also, there'll be a court stenographer with his little machine.'
'As long as they'll all fit at my table.'
'Will you have anyone else there besides Pablo? If so, they'll have to be cleared.'
'Just the two of us,' Stone said. 'Occasionally, Pablo and I may have to consult privately, and as our agreement states, I can instruct him not to answer, if necessary.'
'Ever the lawyer, Stone,' Lance said. He shook hands and left.
Joan came in when he had gone. 'So that's the elusive Lance Cabot?'
'Elusive? Why do you say that?'
'Well, I've heard you talk about him for years-usually disparagingly-but I've never seen him until now. He's very good-looking and beautifully dressed, too. It's strange having two of you in the office at once.'
'I'll introduce you next week.'
Joan left, and Stone called Pablo.
'Hello?' He sounded relaxed, but alert, as he always did.
'Mr. C. has just left my office. We have concluded arrangements, and I'd like to tell you what they are.'
'Please do, I'm dying to know.'
'He's going to have four eight-hour days of your time to interview you. He'll be bringing several of his people to sit in, and the entire interview will be recorded with video and audio, two copies. You get one, he gets one. That way there can be no later dispute about who said what to whom.'
'All right, but I don't want our discussion about you-know-who recorded-audio or video.'
'That's fair. We're going to get all the signed documents-including a letter from the attorney general-before we introduce that subject. It will be the very last thing on the agenda.'
'Good. I will need a large-scale map of the border area between Afghanistan and Pakistan.'
'I'm not going to ask him to bring that; it would tip him off. Visit a map store. There's one on West Forty- third Street, just east of Sixth Avenue.'
'As you wish,' Pablo said.
'Pablo, now would be a good time to move your family,' Stone said.
'I have already done so,' Pablo replied. 'My family and my staff have moved to my house in-'
'I don't need to know that,' Stone said.
'My wife called me last night. They are safe and comfortable.'
'I'm glad to hear that.'
'It will be a great relief for her when this business is concluded.'
'I'm sure it will be.'
'You will have to come and visit us, Stone. I live in very nice places. You'd like Marbella.'
'That's on the coast of Spain, isn't it?'
'Yes, a lovely spot.'
'It would be very pleasant to come and see you, Pablo.'
'Stone, I would like you to draw a new will for me.'
'I'd be happy to, as a courtesy.'
