Andrew Pepper - The Revenge of Captain Paine

Pyke kept his expression composed. ‘I’m sure you’re doing all you can and it goes without saying your help is much appreciated.’

Gore nodded his gratitude. ‘So what brings you here today?’ He glanced down at the scene in front of them with evident satisfaction.

‘If possible,’ Pyke started, trying to keep his tone matter-of-fact, ‘I’d like to revise the terms of our business agreement.’

‘Oh?’ Lines of concern instantly creased Gore’s forehead. This wasn’t what he’d been expecting.

‘You were willing to pay sixty thousand for a third stake in Blackwood’s bank.’

‘That’s right.’

‘So would you be prepared to pay one hundred thousand for my entire two-thirds stake?’

Gore’s unease was suddenly palpable. He hadn’t expected this and for a while he was silent. ‘You want to sell me your entire stake in the bank?’

‘That’s what I said.’ Pyke checked himself, aware that his tone had perhaps been a little sharp.

‘Do you mind if I ask you why?’

‘After what’s happened to my wife and child,’ Pyke said carefully, ‘my heart is no longer in it.’

Gore nodded, as though he understood. ‘But you surely don’t equate the two? This dreadful business regarding your family, on the one hand, and your running of the bank, on the other.’

‘To be perfectly honest, I don’t know what to think any more.’

‘I can well understand how you must be worried half to death at the moment and, believe me, no one wants to help you more than I do. But have you really thought about this? That’s to say, is it what you really want? You see, Pyke, I’d rather hoped we might work together. My reasons are selfish, I know, but as the years pass and my age catches up with me, I’ve started to look for suitable candidates to take over from me at Gore’s and I have to say no one has really excited me. I rather thought you were different.’

‘You had considered me as a candidate to take over from you at Gore’s when you retire?’ Pyke tried to feign both amazement and enthusiasm. He didn’t know whether he’d done a good job or not.

‘I thought you were a man cut from the same cloth as me,’ Gore replied, sounding injured and self-righteous.

‘But not any more?’ Pyke asked, fighting the urge to reach into Gore’s mouth and rip out his tongue.

‘Do you really think that when I was your age, I would have sold out my interest in Gore’s?’

‘Then we’re perhaps not as alike as you imagined we were.’

Gore studied him for a moment, his eyes narrowed to slits. ‘I’d say you’re a rather complex man, Pyke. Relentlessly self-interested and oddly principled. Until now, I’d been hoping your better self might win the day.’

‘And that would be?’

‘Misguided principles have led many a good man to ruin.’

This time Pyke let a little of his anger show. ‘And is the love of one’s family such a principle?’ He thought about Jackman, nailed to the crucifix, and the others who’d been killed, too.

‘A man’s place is in the public realm. That’s where his reputation and fortune are earned. And lost.’

‘So you’re intimating that my decision to want to sell my share in Blackwood’s is misguided?’

Gore turned from him and gazed out across the construction site. ‘In its own way, it’s rather beautiful, isn’t it? Mark my words. It won’t be long before our poets are writing about scenes like this rather than mountains and lakes.’

Pyke laughed bitterly. ‘I don’t think human exploitation will ever be celebrated as an aesthetic achievement.’ The words were out of his mouth before he could stop himself. He waited to see how Gore would react.

‘I look down there and I see admittedly coarse specimens who are, nevertheless, being assimilated into the workforce. Is that such an evil? A year ago, many of these men would have qualified for poor relief. Now they’ve learned to sell their labour at the marketplace and they’re earning a fair wage dictated by the forces of supply and demand. And in the process, they’re helping to build something that will change everyone’s lives for ever.’

Pyke allowed himself a quiet sigh. He would have to be more careful. His slip had unnecessarily alerted Gore’s suspicions. ‘I’m sure you’re right. But I didn’t come here today to debate the undoubted merits of your railway.’

‘No, you came to try and sell me your entire stake in Blackwood’s.’ Gore studied his expression.

‘If you wanted a third, then why not extend your stake to two-thirds? The bank’s a very profitable enterprise.’

‘I don’t doubt it.’

‘So what’s the problem?’

‘The problem?’ Gore looked at him. ‘Who said there was a problem?’

‘You don’t seem to be particularly keen on the revised terms I’m offering you.’

‘Perhaps you’re right,’ Gore murmured, scratching his chin. ‘Can I be blunt with you, Pyke?’

‘By all means.’

‘A man of your mettle doesn’t simply walk away when things get difficult and his problems mount up.’

‘Is that what you think I’m doing?’

Gore eyed him cautiously. ‘It looks very much like that.’

‘What’s happened in the last few weeks has made me reassess my priorities. Let’s just say your initial offer came at an opportune moment.’

‘Then it’s to be my fault the world of commerce loses one of its brightest stars?’

A brief silence lingered between them. Pyke tried not to think about how Gore had used and betrayed him and how ruthlessly he had exploited his perceived friendship with Morris. ‘So does that mean we have an agreement?’ Pyke tried to inject a degree of hope into his voice.

‘I think you’re a fool but yes, we have an agreement.’ They shook hands but there was suddenly no warmth in Gore’s actions. Briefly Pyke wondered whether Gore already suspected that he knew about his complicity in Jackman’s death.

If so, it meant Pyke would have to tread very carefully. It wasn’t just a question of getting his hands on Gore’s money. That was simply a means to an end.

‘Now it’s just a matter of agreeing a schedule for the exchange of contracts,’ Pyke said, trying to appear calm, when all he wanted to do was squeeze Gore’s neck with his hands.

‘I see no reason for delaying the matter.’

‘Nor I.’ Pyke even managed a smile. ‘In fact, I’d be happy to proceed as quickly as possible.’

‘What if I were to instruct my lawyers to draw up the contracts today? You could join me at my office later this afternoon and sign them then.’

‘In principle, it sounds perfectly acceptable,’ Pyke said, working out a way to turn the situation further to his advantage. ‘The only problem is whether you could arrange for the money to be transferred into my bank account by then.’

That seemed to throw Gore off his stride, as it was meant to.

‘Of course,’ Pyke added quickly, ‘if you opened an account for me at Gore’s and credited my balance to the tune of a hundred thousand pounds, I could sign the necessary paperwork this afternoon.’

The suspicion seemed to return to Gore’s eyes. ‘It’s a slightly odd request but one that could be accommodated.’

‘So we have a deal?’ Pyke held out his hand again.

This time Gore took a little longer to shake it. The sun was directly in his eyes and he held up his hand to shield them from its glare. ‘I’m disappointed not to have you as my business partner,’ he said, gravely, ‘but it goes without saying I’ll continue to work round the clock to try and get to the bottom of this despicable business involving your wife and child. Who knows? Perhaps I’ll have more news for you when you come to my office this afternoon. Shall we say four? That should give my lawyers plenty of time to draw up the necessary contracts.’