‘I hope you’ve found the evening useful, Clive.’
They were standing outside the front door of the farmhouse. Rowan Wiseman and Charlie were already heading for the car, with Greg Wardle close behind them. Robin Kennedy had held Clive Bamford back in a characteristically proprietorial manner.
‘Very much so. Thank you, Robin. And thank you for the loan of these.’ He held up a large hemp shoulder bag that Eric Nolan, at Kennedy’s request, had filled with a selection of books, pamphlets and other documents.
‘As I said, you’re welcome to keep most of them. A couple of the older books are rather rare and, to be honest, potentially valuable, so I’d be grateful if you could return those in due course. But not until you’ve finished with them, obviously.’
‘I’ll go through it all as quickly as I can. I’m really very grateful for all your help in this.’ Clive was conscious he was on the edge of sounding obsequious. ‘I hope I can do it all justice.’
‘I’m sure you’re just the man for that, Clive. We have every confidence in you.’
Clive had found the evening disconcerting. Kennedy had been consistently warm and welcoming, and had continued to be effusive about Clive’s journalistic skills. Clive knew full well that he was being flattered and perhaps even seduced. He didn’t particularly mind that, and for the moment he was quite happy to reciprocate if it helped him gain access to these people. He was confident that, when it mattered, he’d have sufficient independence to write fairly and objectively.
At the same time, Kennedy’s charisma and charm were undeniable. If he paid attention to you, he had the knack of making you feel special, Clive thought, as if you were the only one who really counted. As if you were the only one who really deserved to be admitted into his inner circle. He made you want to try to please him, to sustain his respect and admiration.
But there was also something about Kennedy’s manner that left Clive feeling uncomfortable. In the course of the evening, he had felt himself being drawn in, played off against Greg, whom Kennedy had continued to treat with some disdain. Clive had felt uneasy with that, even as he’d found himself helplessly playing along.
That was only part of the picture, though. For all Kennedy’s charm and apparent openness, Clive still felt they weren’t being given the full story. On reflection, this was what had left him feeling wrong-footed. Kennedy had continued to talk about the movement in broad abstract terms, but Clive had found himself unable to form any clear views about what its followers actually believed or practised. Whenever he felt he was drawing near to some kind of understanding, it would disappear into a cloud of Kennedy’s verbiage.
He climbed into the rear seat of the car, taking his seat beside Greg, who was regarding him with a sardonic expression. ‘Managed to tear yourself away, then?’
‘He was just being hospitable.’
‘To you, anyway.’ Greg looked amused rather than offended.
Rowan Wiseman had started the car and, with a brief wave towards Kennedy, who was still watching them from the open front door, she turned the car back down the track towards the road.
‘That’s the way Robin works.’ Charlie twisted in the front passenger seat to look back at Clive. ‘Divide and rule. He’s okay as long as you don’t trust him too far.’
‘You’re just saying that because he doesn’t trust you,’ Rowan said. ‘He’s probably counting the spoons back there even now.’
‘I wouldn’t steal his spoons,’ Charlie said. ‘That nice malt whisky, maybe.’
‘What did you make of him, Clive?’ Rowan said over her shoulder.
Clive exchanged a glance with Greg. ‘I’m not sure. I mean, he was very welcoming. And he gave me a load of useful stuff to take away. I felt as if he was holding some stuff back, but I suppose that’s understandable. Given what he said about wanting to attract only the right kinds of people, I imagine he’s probably just playing things close to his chest till he gets to know me better.’
‘I wouldn’t trust him an inch,’ Greg said.
‘I think that’s a little unfair…’ Clive had been surprised by the untypical vehemence in Greg’s tone.
‘Maybe I’m being oversensitive because he clearly had no time for me,’ Greg said, ‘but I just felt he was slippery. It seemed almost impossible to pin him down on anything.’ He stopped. ‘Sorry, Rowan, I’m being rude about someone who’s a friend of yours.’
‘He’s not exactly a friend,’ Rowan said. ‘I’ve known him a long time and he’s helped me out a lot. And Charlie too, even if Charlie sometimes has an odd way of showing his gratitude for that.’
Charlie snorted. ‘Greg’s got a point. Yeah, Robin’s helped us out when we needed it. But Robin’s mainly interested in Robin. As long as you appreciate that, you’ll probably be okay with him.’
‘Possibly,’ Rowan conceded. ‘It’s never easy to understand Robin’s motives. But that probably doesn’t matter. What matters is what he does.’
‘And what is that?’ Greg said. ‘That was part of the problem with tonight. Sure, he was very welcoming to Clive, but I’m not sure how much real information Clive got from him. My impression was that Kennedy can talk for England, but I’m not sure how much he actually says.’
‘Be fair to him,’ Clive said, finding himself feeling oddly defensive of Kennedy. ‘It was the first time he’d met me. Like he said, we were really just sounding each other out tonight, seeing whether we could work with one another. I really wasn’t expecting him to say too much.’
‘Again, that’s how Robin tends to work,’ Rowan said. ‘He can be cagey, but usually only when he has good reason to be. To be honest, tonight he was as open as I’ve seen him at a first meeting with someone. I think you made much more progress than you realise.’
‘You think so?’ Clive said. ‘I really wasn’t sure how to read him.’
‘Like a closed book,’ Greg said.
‘He can seem a bit inscrutable when you first meet him,’ Rowan said. ‘But that’s because he’s sizing you up, deciding if he can trust you. If you go ahead with this, you’ll find him much more open next time. Much more willing to discuss the detail.’
‘I hope so,’ Clive said. ‘I’m really keen to get on with this. If Robin really can give me the information and insights I need, I really think we can make some progress.’
‘You’ve just got to take it step by step with Robin,’ Rowan said. ‘Once you confirm that you want to go ahead and work with him, he’ll immediately become much more open. He wants to make sure the choice is yours. Again, that’s how he is. He doesn’t coerce people—’
‘No, he grooms them.’ Charlie gave a sudden explosive laugh. ‘That’s Robin’s way.’
‘Charlie exaggerates as always,’ Rowan said. ‘But he’s broadly right. Robin wants to bring you on board but he wants to make sure it’s your choice.’
‘Or at least that you think it’s your choice.’ Charlie grinned. ‘I’m just winding Rowan up. She won’t hear a bad word about Robin. I’m that bit more sceptical. Let’s leave it at that.’
‘You think you’ll do it, Clive?’ Rowan said. ‘Work with Robin, I mean.’
‘I think so.’ Clive looked across at Greg. ‘I mean, we’ll give it a go, won’t we, Greg?’
‘If you say so.’
‘There’s a lot to explore here. If Robin can give us the information and contacts we need, we can produce a good piece of work.’
‘The question is whether he’s willing to be properly open with us,’ Greg said. ‘And whether he’s prepared to tolerate me as your devoted assistant.’ He placed an ironic emphasis on the last word.
‘He’ll warm to you if you give him a chance, Greg,’ Rowan said. ‘As Charlie says, it’s just the way he works. You’ll probably find that next time it’s you who gets the charm offensive. Keeps us on our toes.’
‘I can get enough of that kind of thing at work,’ Greg said. ‘I don’t want to have to tolerate tricksy behaviour in the evenings as well.’
‘If you don’t want to be part of this, Greg, I’ll quite understand.’ Clive knew from experience that the surest way to secure Greg’s involvement was to threaten to withhold it.
‘No, I’m more than cool with it,’ Greg said. ‘I just want to be sure that our friend back there is equally happy about it.’
They were approaching the outskirts of the city now, leaving the dark of the country behind them. Charlie looked at his watch. ‘Still pretty early, you know, folks. Anyone fancy another pint or two?’