She couldn’t believe what she was hearing.
“Are you drunk?”
“I wouldn’t mind being drunk.” He smiled his charming, sincere smile. “I’m sorry… I admit it’s a mess, but messes do happen.”
“Are you telling me you forged my signature?”
He hesitated and for a moment, his heavy face darkened.
“Sounds hellish, doesn’t it? But that’s what I did.”
“You must be out of your mind!”
He lifted his hands.
“I suppose I was then, but it looked so certain. I could have cleaned up three million.”
She put her hands to her eyes. She couldn’t bear to look at him. There was a long, heavy silence, then he broke it by saying, “I’m sorry. It seemed so certain.”
She snatched her hand away and her eyes snapped as she said furiously. “All weak, stupid, greedy, dishonest fools say that! Don’t give me that crap! You’ve broken a trust! Worse… you’ve proved yourself a thief and a forger!”
He flinched.
“Yes… I deserve that.”
“How could you, Jack! How could you have done such a thing?”
He stubbed out his cigar.
“A mad moment… don’t you have mad moments?”
She felt her heart skip a beat.
“We’re not talking about me. We’re talking about you.”
“Yes… what are you going to do?”
“What is there to do? I must tell Herman. There is nothing else I can do. I won’t be party to this. You have done it and you must take the consequences. I’ll try to persuade Herman to accept what has happened… I’ll do that.”
“Herman is an unforgiving, ruthless sonofabitch,” Archer said quietly. “He’s sure to prosecute. Look, Helga, for old times’ sake, won’t you give me a hand? After all we were lovers… I did fix your marriage… don’t you feel you owe me something?”
“No, and you know it! You wanted me married to Herman to be sure of his account!”
“Just try leaning over backwards a little. Look, suppose you tell him I suggested investing in Australian nickel. You agreed. The stock began to rise so we plunged two million into it. Suppose you tell him we were gambling on his behalf. Do you think he would buy that?”
She hesitated. She realized she couldn’t send this man to prison: even now the memory of those ‘quickies’ was too strong. Yes, she thought she could convince Herman this had been a bad speculation that hadn’t come off. She would be contrite and promise him it would never happen again. He was certain to give her a tongue lashing but if she ate enough humble pie he would still leave her in control of his affairs, but only if she got rid of Archer. She would have to do that. From now on she would have to deal with some firm like Spencer, Grove amp; Manly, stuffy people, but highly respectable and their integrity unquestionable. She could no longer work with Archer. She could no longer trust him.
She lit a cigarette in the effort to steady her nerves.
“All right, I’ll persuade Herman to buy it,” she said quietly.
“But I am going to tell him to move the account to Spencer, Grove amp; Manly. I can’t work with you in the future. You understand that?”
“You really think Herman will buy it?” Archer sat forward, relief on his face.
“I said so, didn’t I?”
“Then why close the account, Helga? There’s no need to. If you’re sure he’ll buy it we are back on square A.”
She regarded him as if he were a stranger.
“As soon as Herman arrives I will have a letter for him to asking you to transfer all his holdings and files to Spencer, Grove amp; Manly.” She picked up the list of securities and got to her feet “I don’t ever want to see you again,” and she walked to the door.
“Helga.”
She paused and turned. He was lighting another cigar.
“Well?”
“Is that your last word?”
“Yes,” and she reached for the door handle.
“Don’t run away,” he said, a bite in his voice. “We still have things to talk about.” He paused, staring at her. “How did you find Larry? He’s quite a character, isn’t he?”
The Dean of the School of Law where Helga had taken her doctorate had said among many other things that there was a time to bluff and a time to be intelligent enough to know when not to bluff.
Helga had accepted this wisdom during her Law years. When she had bluffed, she had bluffed with a finesse of an expert poker player but when the situation was such she always accepted the inevitable.
The fibre of steel in her would not allow Archer to see the shock his words had on her. Her face expressionless, she turned around, came away from the door and sat down.
“What else is there to talk about?” and even she was surprised how steady her voice sounded.
He regarded her and genuine admiration showed in his eyes.
“I always thought you had guts, Helga, and now I know it for sure. You took that sucker punch like a champion.”
“What else is there to talk about?” she repeated woodenly.
“Me and you.” He leaned back in the armchair and drew on his cigar. “You see, Helga, I can’t let the account get away from me. You don’t imagine I would forge your signature and take all that money from Herman unless I was in a desperate fix? I’ve not only lost Herman’s money, but I have lost my own. Things are bad at the office. The fact is so many of the old fossils have died recently, so many accounts have come to a grinding halt since the new US. tax laws that we’re scarcely ticking over. Herman’s account is about the one thing that keeps us solvent.”
“You should have thought of that before you turned thief and forger,” Helga said harshly.
“I had no alternative. I was in too deep. It was either sink or swim… I’m not the sinking type.”
“That I can believe.”
“The fact is I don’t intend to lose the account. You and I are going to continue in partnership, and I’ll tell you for why. We are both cheats: I am a thief and forger and you are a whore. Neither of us would get any mercy from Herman. If he found us out, we wouldn’t survive. You would lose sixty million dollars and I’d go to jail. That’s why we are going to remain partners.”
She sat very still.
“What are you threatening me with?” she asked.
He studied her, then nodded his approval. He reached for his briefcase, opened it and took out an envelope.
“This,” he said and flicked the envelope on to the table. It skidded across and landed in her lap.
Her hands, still steady, took the envelope and lifted the flap. She drew out a glossy photographic print that was still a little damp. She studied it, keeping her expression under control although she felt as if ice water was running down her back.
In the photograph, she was lying on her bed, naked, and exposed, her hand on Larry’s trouser zip, while he appeared to be tearing off his jacket. In spite of her control, she felt the blood draining out of her face. She returned the print to the envelope and put the envelope on the table
“Thief, forger… and now blackmailer,” she said unsteadily. “At last, I’m getting to know you.”
He smiled: a thin smile, but a smile.
“I’ve already called myself all those names, Helga. I have now got beyond shame. I’m just not going to sink, and I have persuaded myself the end justifies any means. After all, you yourself are no saint, are you?”
“How did you get this photograph?”
“Do you really want to know?” He sank lower in his chair. “It was a long term operation and a technical
