“I accept your resignation. Put it in writing and give it to my secretary. You can leave now, I’ll inform HR.” David hung up.
Isabelle sat at her desk. She didn’t understand. The document had been real, the deal agreed. She had seen it herself. Microsoft must have pulled out. The only explanation she could think of was that they had decided against it. But why? They wouldn’t have issued a report unless the deal was concrete. The dull thud of reality hit her. Instead of having made her career, this disaster had ruined it. Isabelle wiped tears from her eyes as she typed a resignation letter. Not only had she lost her job, £50,000 of her own money and any respect her clients had had for her, she would never work in the City again. She didn’t know how she was going to get through the next few minutes, let alone the rest of her life. She kept coming back to Josh. It was his fault, but how could she tell anyone that? If she did, she might be arrested for insider dealing. Perhaps he had set her up – she brushed that thought away with her tears. There was no way he could have done that.
She tried to feel brave as she called her secretary into her office. “I’m leaving. I need you to, empty my drawers pack up my things and mail everything to my home address. Do it immediately.” She looked at her pitiful new secretary and scowled.
“OK.”
“And deliver this letter to Samantha, David Marker’s secretary.”
“OK.”
Isabelle stood up, put on her coat, grabbed her briefcase and left the building for ever.
***
The emergency meeting contained most of SFH’s managing directors. Those who couldn’t attend in person were included via conference calls. David felt uncomfortable as he came under the angry scrutiny of his peers. He placed the blame firmly on Isabelle’s shoulders. He said she had given him assurances that she knew what she was doing and, as a senior manager, she had the authority to do what she had done. He told them she had resigned, which meant she accepted full responsibility. They decided that they would issue a statement that day, naming Isabelle Holland as the person who had shown such bad judgement and distancing the firm from any blame or repercussions. The amount of money lost was not huge, and although David was told to keep a tighter control over his staff in future, his position was secure.
***
Ella ran down to the paper shop. She had been jogging every day, and on her way back she always stopped to pick up the paper. Lately, due to the reports that the stock was rising, her route had been getting shorter. She was impatient for the news. She paid for the paper and looked at the front-page headline. She blinked because she thought she must be dreaming, but then she looked again. Not only was the company bankrupt, but because so many shares had changed hands it was a top story. Her hands were shaking as she read that SFH was one of the major speculators who had lost money.
She ran home as fast as she could and picked up the telephone. “Virginia.”
“Yes.”
“It’s Ella. It made front page of the FT.”
“What?”
“JF has been announced bankrupt and it made the front page. Oh, and the best thing is that SFH has been given a mention for buying so many of the shares. It says here that they were either speculating or stupid. Well, something like that.”
“Ella, do you mean we did it?”
“Yes, girl, we did.”
“Does Clara know?”
“No, I’m calling her. We’ll meet at her place in an hour. We can do this, Virginia. We got Isabelle, and we will get the others. My God, I can’t believe how great this feels.”
“Me either. But is it real?”
“You bet your arse it’s real.”
***
Virginia got dressed in a daze. She, Virginia, a little nobody, had helped to get Isabelle and the whole of SFH into trouble. God, if only her parents could see what she’d done. They would know she was no longer the fool they thought she was.
***
Clara heard the telephone and thought of ignoring it. Then, remembering the mission, she reached over and got out of bed, removing her emergency eye mask as she did so.
“Clara?”
“Yes.”
“It’s Ella”
“I know who it fucking is. What time is it?”
“Eight.”
“Great. Why does everyone seem to want me in the middle of the night?”
“We did it.”
Clara sat upright. “We did?”
“Yes. Virginia and I will be over in an hour, or less if we can. I’ll bring the papers. We fucking did it, Clara.”
“Ella, I’m so proud. I can’t believe it!”
“With a little help from a friend.”
***
Virginia and Ella turned up at the same time, Ella carrying a bunch of newspapers. They rang Clara’s bell and went in. She was making coffee.
“Hi, girls. We’re celebrating.” Clara was smiling. Although she was tired and drawn, she still looked better than when they had last seen her.
“Here. Take a paper each and look through it.” They started reading. Although the FT had headlined it, the other broadsheets had picked up the story. They all mentioned SFH.
“Shit! I can’t believe we did this,” Clara said.
“Neither can I.” Virginia giggled.
“There’ll be more tomorrow. I bet everyone will want to know why SFH were buying such a stupid stock.” Ella chortled.
“I’m going to call Toby and see what he knows.” Clara ran to grab the telephone. She returned, grinning, a few minutes later. “Isabelle’s gone.”
“My goodness,” Virginia said.
“Toby said that everyone’s talking about it. The managing directors have gone into an emergency meeting and the press is camping outside the building. They smell a rat or a story or something.”
“If only they knew!” Ella laughed.
“They can’t find out, can they?” Virginia asked.
“No,” Ella and Clara said.
Just then the telephone rang and Clara answered it. She walked out of the room with it and returned a few minutes later. “That was Josh.”
“What did he say?”
“Congratulations. And then he asked if he could see me but I said no.”
“Why, Clara?” Ella asked.
“I just can’t. End of subject.” They read on in silence, but they kept smiling to themselves. They were savouring their first victory.
“Who’s next?” Clara asked.
“What for?”
“Well, now we’ve proved that revenge works, we should move on to our next victim,” Clara said.
“I think it should be Tim,” Virginia suggested. “Well, it was you who got this done – you know Josh and everything. I think Tim should be next.”
“I agree,” Ella said.
“Thanks, girls, I appreciate it. Let’s get Tim Pemberton.”
“I’ll drink to that,” Ella said, and they clinked their coffee cups.
Chapter Twenty-nine
The media hounded SFH for a week. The company issued a statement saying that the bad judgement of one of their senior salespeople had resulted in the buying of the stock and that that salesperson was no longer with the company. They denied any foul play, or that they had listened to rumour; they pointed out that buying was often done on judgement and that was the whole story. They also said that they would be reimbursing their clients with any money lost as a show of goodwill. Their main priority was regaining client confidence. SFH had suffered as a result of JF Technologies, but they would recover. Someone was brought in from an outside company to take over Isabelle’s job.
***
For the first time since they’d lost their jobs Virginia, Ella and Clara were happy. They had found something to fill the void in their lives. Virginia didn’t feel any guilt towards Isabelle: the woman had treated her appallingly and now she was finished. It was a blow on behalf of everyone who had been treated unjustly by her, and Virginia felt empowered. Isabelle had been given a
taste of her own medicine.
She still couldn’t believe how easy it had been. The plan had been so simple, and it had all happened so quickly. She thought back to the times when she had let people hurt her. Her parents, Noel, numerous friends and her boss. She had let them: she hadn’t ever argued or stood up for herself. Well, now she was standing up for herself and everyone else who had been treated badly. It was a new feeling; a good feeling.
***
Ella was still unsure of how the plan had worked. She discussed it with Jackie, who was delighted by everything. She said they were lucky to have had Josh because it couldn’t have worked without him, but Ella knew that Isabelle’s ego and her greed had really caused her downfall. Ella knew that when she herself was trading she treated all information with suspicion. She would not have been quite so eager to take the information and use it – although she couldn’t say that she wouldn’t have fallen for it. It had been professionally executed after all.
It was the personal aspect of what they were doing that interested Jackie, and Ella told her she should be studying psychology not English. When she spoke of Clara’s unpredictable behaviour and Virginia trying to find her voice, Jackie was fascinated. But Ella was frustrated by it: a friendship was not developing and they still knew little about each other, although they seemed bound together. Ella hoped this was only temporary.
***
Clara felt invincible. She only wished she could tell James what was happening. Whenever she saw him, she told him she was still trying to find her vocation. She didn’t tell him that revenge was proving more rewarding than anything she’d done before. And then there was Josh: he kept calling her, asking to meet her. She refused him all the time, and she was sure that that was the only reason for his continued interest. It was obvious that he didn’t really want her or care for her. He just saw a pretty girl who had rejected him and it grated on him. A man like Josh couldn’t accept this. She just wished it didn’t hurt so much. Now she would look forward. She would look forward to the day when Tim got his comeuppance. She would relish that. Until then, and until they had got Johnny as well, nothing else mattered. Clara had a mission and she loved it.
***
On Sunday, they met to discuss Tim, their success driving them on to the next goal. This one belonged to Ella. As they sat around Clara’s dining-table, she outlined her plan.
“Here, look at this.” She reached into her bag and took out the Sunday News.
“Oh, lovely, Ella buys tabloids,” Clara said, barely glancing at it.
“Yes, I do, and I read them along with a huge number of the population of this country. The circulation is huge.”
“I don’t read them,” Virginia announced.
“Well, there’s a surprise,” Clara said.
“Shutt up a minute. Look at the headlines. It’s all about sleaze, sex, drugs and celebrities.”
“Really? Gosh!” Clara picked it up.
“OK. Imagine this. ‘Top Managing Director of One of Britain’s Most Respected Investment Banks in Prostitute and Cocaine Scandal.’” Ella sat back in her chair.
“Fuck, you’re a genius,” Clara conceded, when what Ella was suggesting had sunk in.
“Thanks,” Ella replied.
“But how?” Virginia asked worriedly; this type of newspaper scared her.
“Well, let’s just think. Tim uses prostitutes, we know that, and he uses cocaine. Reporters love to discredit people and he could be a prime candidate.”
“Yes. We could set him up so that he talks to them about his prostitutes and we could even get him to offer them cocaine. It’s brilliant!” Clara was relishing the time when she would see the headline.
“But how?” Virginia repeated.
“Well, I haven’t worked out the details, but the way I see it is that Tim is an egotistical man. We engineer a meeting with a reporter under some sort of pretence and he talks. Then they expose him. How smart is he, Clara?”
“Not very. At work he plays the clean-living married man, but I know he’ll talk, given the right situation. After all, I know all about his sick life. If he told me then he’ll tell anyone.”
“Yes, but you were sleeping with him.” Virginia pointed out.
“I know, but what I’m saying is that if someone comes along and he wants to impress them, it won’t take much to get him to talk. He told me practically as soon as we started having sex, which was a gamble. I know we can’t get anyone to sleep with him – well, unless you want to, Virginia,” Virginia turned crimson, and Clara continued, “but we can easily get someone to make him talk.”
“So there we go. The thing is, what sort of people does he need to meet to spill the beans?” Ella asked.
“Surely we can’t just get a meeting with a reporter and expect him to do that.” Virginia still couldn’t understand how this would work.
“He’d need to be probed a bit. These reporters pose as other people, they don’t just say, “Hi, I’m a reporter, can you get me some cocaine?” What are his weaknesses, Clara?”
Clara looked thoughtful. “Class.”
“Class?” Ella prompted.
“He’s working class, although he’d never admit it. He’s from somewhere in London, he grew up in a council house, a real poor guy who made a fortune by working himself up.”
“So he’s clever,” Virginia protested.
“No, he was clever but now he has everything he ever wanted he’s more relaxed. How do you think we ended up together? I seduced him and he fell for me.”
“But you said he’s revolting.” Virginia said.
“Yes, but I wanted a promotion, you know that. He allowed himself to be seduced and then he turned nasty. Anyway, I don’t see what this has to do with anything.”
“In what way was he nasty?” Virginia asked.
“Well, he used me for his fantasies. He gave me cocaine to make me do what he wanted. He once, well he once, I think he raped me. Anyway, that’s irrelevant. He’s a major sleaze.”
“He raped you?” Virginia gasped.
“My God,” Ella said.
“Look, I wasn’t going to tell you. I mean, he might not have done.”
“Clara, he either raped you or he didn’t,” Ella said gently.
“I can’t be sure.” Clara looked upset.
“Honey, did he have sex with you against your will?” Ella’s voice was soft.
“Is there such a thing for a sex addict?” Clara asked.
“Yes, there is. Tell us,” Ella commanded.
“When he found out about me sleeping with the client, I didn’t go to work because I overslept. Tim came over. He asked me if I slept with Stephen and I said I did. Then he shouted at me and then he, well, he pushed me to the floor, and he pinned my hands down and he opened my bathrobe and undid his trousers and put himself inside me.” Tears were streaming down Clara’s face.
“Clara, that is rape. You should have called the police.” Virginia reached over and hugged her.
“I couldn’t call the police – how could I? Who would they have believed? Him or me? And I really think he didn’t see it as rape. Afterwards he acted like nothing had happened, and as we were having an affair, I guess I didn’t think it could be rape. Oh, God. What a mess.”
“Clara, listen to me. He had no right to do what he did to you. I know that, you know that. Listen, darling, you don’t want to go to the police but we’ll ruin the bastard for you. I promise you we’ll do this.” Ella’s eyes were shining with tears. She felt so sad for the lost girl who sat before them. The girl who thought so little of herself that she could believe a man was allowed to rape her. Every bad thing she had thought about Clara in the past evaporated. Clara needed help. They sat together while Clara cried, then got angry and shouted, then screamed abuse about the man who had done this to her. They held her when she fell into their arms, they moved away when she wanted to vent her rage.
Eventually she calmed down. “I’ve been such a fool. OK, we’ll get him. Back to the
plan. Remember what I said, his background is his weakness.” Clara looked at Virginia and Ella with determination. They saw this as a sign not to discuss the rape further.
“How about we get a journalist to pose as someone with a title – a lord or something? We can tell him to ask Tim where he can get cocaine and prostitutes. He’ll fall for that, won’t he?” Ella suggested. Clara smiled.
“I’m sure he will. He would never be able to resist a title. My background impressed him – he was always asking about my family and school and everything. Wow, Ella, that’s a fantastic idea.”
“How do we get this set up?” Virginia hated being the one who asked the stupid questions, but this sounded even more bizarre than the last project.
“Well, he wants to see me again,” Clara said.
“So you arrange to meet him, don’t turn up and we get a reporter to start talking to him while he’s waiting for you. He’ll call you, you say you can’t make it. He’ll be pissed off and then he’ll stay drinking with this guy who’s posing as a toff. Ella clapped her hands.
“Do you really think it will work?” Virginia almost whispered.
Clara and Ella looked at her sharply. ‘don’t you?” Ella asked.
For some reason Virginia wanted to cry. The Isabelle plan had been something she could understand: it had involved brains and strategy. This was different. “I suppose I’m just a bit worried about it being public. And, well, I know Tim deserves everything he gets, but what about his family?” That was her worry; going to the press might present all sorts of problems. If it came out who had started this set-up, their lives might be ruined. Although Virginia felt hers was ruined already.
“We’ll be doing his family a favour. They deserve to know what he’s like. You can’t back out now.” Clara looked stern.
“But Virginia’s right. There’s a bigger risk to us here, because we’re going to have to speak to a reporter to get the ball rolling.” Dread ran through Ella. If the press found out who she was, her life might be turned upside down. She might even be convicted of Tony’s murder – or Sam might be implicated. They were bound to do some research on the person who was giving them the information – they wouldn’t just take their word for it. She couldn’t be the one to do this. She hadn’t thought about it properly.
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