Dufresne’s office was on the top floor of the building. The large windows afforded an unbroken panorama of the monotonous office blocks of Albert Embankment across the river. Dufresne was in a jovial mood. They had shaken hands and he waved Mark into the armchair opposite his. After Mark declined coffee, Dufresne, making no allowance for small talk, asked point-blank: ‘Have you considered our offer?’
‘Yes, I have,’ said Mark looking straight into his host’s eyes.
‘And what’s your decision, if I may ask?’
‘The answer is no.’ If Dufresne was surprised he certainly had an excellent way of disguising it. For a second he seemed to be lost in the study of his fingernails which, Mark could have sworn, had been freshly polished.
‘What are you going to do without work? I understand from Blakemore that the Institute doesn’t have any future funding for your project.’ There would have been if you hadn’t interfered, Mark reflected, but instead he stuck to the facts.
‘I’ll finish the preliminary experiments, and quite possibly we’ll have enough data to publish our results in a short paper. And if no further funding is available I’m quite prepared to resign from my job.’
‘Don’t you think that this is a waste of your talent?’
‘Perhaps it is. But this isn’t for me to judge. There are other ways and other places I can work.’
‘Perhaps you can tell me what are they? Are you going to France? We know that your brother was quite keen for you to join them, although his wife, what is her name … oh, yes … Hélène … her support was less enthusiastic in your absence.’ Dufresne’s blatant intrusion into his family affairs still managed to upset Mark. Then the meaning of his dream came back to him.
‘It’s not your business whether I go to work in France or not. But if you want to know, I’ve decided to stay in this country.’
‘Of course, you can always opt out of our evil system and become a PWI like those gentle people in Whitstable whom you visited in the footsteps of Fiona Cartwright.’ By now Mark felt completely at ease.
‘You know, Mr Dufresne, that isn’t such a bad idea. Is there anything else you wish to discuss? If not, it is better that I take my leave.’
Mark left the room without shaking hands. Dufresne’s secretary accompanied him to the lift. From the pain and anguish of the last weeks, he had harvested power and determination. He was at peace with himself. All the ballast of uncertainty and doubt fell away from him. The menace of Dufresne had evaporated. He was free again. He knew exactly what he was going to do. He had made up his mind. He had decided to revisit Whitstable, but first he would complete his experiments.
He walked down the few steps in front of the building and made his way to the nearest underground station.