'You've got two minutes,' he said.

'No,' said Joe, determined not to be over-faced. 'You being here means I got as long as I like.'

The man said, 'We'll see. So talk.'

In most of life's transactions there are two possible approaches, the subtle and the direct. By getting Sir Monty to leave his meeting, Joe reckoned he'd sc.r.a.ped the bottom of his subtlety barrel. Time for a dose of directness.

He said, 'You planning to build a hyper-market on the Royal Hoo golf course, right?'

If this came as a shock to Wright, he was too experienced a negotiator to show it.

He said, 'Nice idea. So how am I going to get planning permission?'

'Getting permission's no problem. Specially not with Mr Ratcliffe King on the case,' said Joe. 'It's getting the land that's hard. Mainly because you'd need a majority of the members who are also the shareholders to agree a sale, and the majority shareholder is the Porphyry family, represented by Christian Porphyry.'

'A b.a.s.t.a.r.d who loves me so much, he's going to roll over and say, There you go, Monty, it's all yours for a shilling an acre. I don't think so!'

This was spoken with real venom.

This isn't just business, this is personal, thought Joe. That was good. Business he'd never really understood, but personal was people and that was his strength.

'You don't like Mr Porphyry much, do you?'

'Hardly know the guy. But from what I've seen, he's not my type, no. Life's been easy for him. When his mother dropped him, he landed right at the top of the pile, didn't have to get dirt under his fingernails dragging himself up there.'

Joe considered this. Social envy played as little part in his own make-up as social ambition. You played the cards life dealt you. Injustice wasn't the deal, it was when some joker cheated. And he didn't really believe Sir Monty had a socialist chip on his shoulder either. If you think you're any man's equal, there's not much s.p.a.ce for social resentment.

Suddenly he recalled something Merv had said the other night about his conversation with the club chairman at this very table.

He said, 'This is because you think Chris Porphyry blackballed you, isn't it?'

Sir Monty shook his head perhaps a little too emphatically.

'That's not the way I work,' he growled. 'Business deals are about money and markets. Minute you start letting personalities get into them, you're in trouble. I've got thousands of employees, even more shareholders. You don't think I'd put their wellbeing at risk for the sake of a private grievance, do you?'

He spoke with a dismissive a.s.surance that was completely convincing. But it rang a note Joe recognized. He'd been performing in public, and certainly in public houses, as long as he could remember, and he knew that to take your audience with you, it wasn't enough simply to sing a song, you had to inhabit it. You had to leave people in no doubt that, martial or romantic, melancholy or comic, you really meant those words you were singing.

That was the note his performer's ears were hearing. The note of rehearsal to such a pitch of perfection that Sir Monty probably believed himself when he spoke, the same way Joe could never finish singing 'Mammy' without tears streaming down his cheeks.

He said, 'Don't believe you. I think you're so p.i.s.sed off with Porphyry that when Ratcliffe King contacted you to say there could be a chance the Royal Hoo was coming on the market, you didn't ask questions.'

Wright said, 'I always ask questions.'

'But maybe this time you didn't ask enough. And when you found out it all depended on Chris being stripped of his membership 'cos he'd been found guilty of cheating, bet you didn't ask questions then? Bet you were just over the moon to hear he was going to be disgraced?'

'No, I didn't ask questions then because it didn't surprise me,' said Wright aggressively. 'That type, they think they've such a G.o.d-given right to be on top, the usual rules don't apply to them.'

'Yeah? So why'd you start asking yourself questions the other night when you heard Porphyry had hired me? I think you started wondering why the shoot would someone like Porphyry hire someone like me to prove he was innocent? Bet you thought, a guy would have to be really desperate to do that. And then you got to thinking, or maybe he'd have to be really innocent.'

Wright leaned forward so that his round perspiring face was close to Joe's.

'OK, mind-reader, so here's a question for you. Have you proved he's innocent, Sixsmith?'

Joe didn't flinch but said, 'No, I've not proved it. But I know!'

'You've not proved anything, but you know?' Wright echoed mockingly. 'And this is what I've missed my beer and sandwiches for? Sixsmith, I'd always heard you were a better singer than a detective. My advice is, get yourself a pitch down the underpa.s.s and start busking.'

He began to rise. Joe tried to think of something that might hold him, but nothing came. Running out of ideas rarely involved him in a marathon, but this hadn't even been middle distance.

Then his phone rang.

He took it out, glanced at the caller display and said, 'Hi, Christian.'

Sir Monty froze.

'Joe, glad I got you. I'm sorry to disturb you when you're away on another case ...'

'No, that's OK,' interrupted Joe. 'Change of plan. I'm still here.'

'Thank G.o.d for that! Listen, something's happened.'

There was an edge of desperation in the YFG's voice which made Joe's heart sink. It was like hearing Callas reaching for the notes after her ill-advised come-back.

He said, 'What?'

Sir Monty had sat down again and was watching him like a cat who sees his dinner slowly approaching through the long gra.s.s.

Porphyry said, 'Have you seen the Crier?'

'Yeah, but that's nothing ...'

'Yes, it is. I hadn't mentioned any of this to Tiffy, that's my fiancee, but now she's seen it and her father Bruce has seen it and he's furious about that crack about the Bugle and furious that I hadn't told him what was going on ...'

'Chris, this is all irrelevant,' urged Joe. 'Newspapers print so much c.r.a.p, no one even notices the smell any more. Tomorrow it will be forgotten.'

'Don't think so, Joe,' said Porphyry gloomily. 'Tomorrow it looks like they'll have an even better headline. I've just been talking to Tom Latimer. He said the Four Just Men had been worried about my hearing because the next round of the Vardon has to be played by the end of next week and it depends on the outcome whether Syd or myself goes into the draw. Then this thing in the Crier made up their minds for them. As long as it was kept inside the club, that was fine, but now it's in the open, it isn't something the Hoo needs to have hanging over it. The upshot is they've brought their meeting forward to this evening. G.o.d, Joe, I thought we had a fortnight and now there's only a few hours. What do you think, Joe? Is there any hope?'

No wonder King was happy to get me out of the way for a couple of days! thought Joe. The b.a.s.t.a.r.d knew this was on the cards. It was probably him who primed the Crier! There I was thinking it would make no difference when the truth was I'd have come back to find everything done and dusted! And when he discovered I hadn't gone to Spain, he decided that a few broken bones would do the job just as well.

He said, 'There's always hope, Chris. You at the club now?'

'Yes. I'm in the car park. Had to come out here to ring you, but I'm heading back to the terrace. Mustn't let people think I'm running for cover.'

That's my Young Fair G.o.d! thought Joe. Still sticking to the rules even though the b.a.s.t.a.r.ds were going to chuck him out for breaking them! And determined not to let anyone think he was running scared.

He said, 'I'm following a lead just now but I'll be along later, OK?'

'A lead?' The hope in Porphyry's voice gave him a jolt. 'I knew I could rely on you, Joe.'

He looked at Sir Monty who, though he'd only heard one side of the conversation, had an expression on his face which said, So that's it, Sixsmith. Give it up. You had your chance to convince me and you blew it.

Maybe if I got him to talk to Chris, thought Joe. No, there was no way forward there. What could they say to each other? Sir Monty would only be rudely triumphant and Christian would be completely bewildered.

On the other hand ...

He said, 'Hold on, Chris,' and put his hand over the mouthpiece.

'Sir Monty,' he said, 'I'm going to ask Mr Porphyry a question and I want you to listen to his answer, OK?'

Wright shrugged indifferently.

'Chris,' said Joe. 'Just to clear something up, Sir Monty Wright was up for membership recently and he got blackballed. Was it you who put the blackball in?'

He shuffled his chair round alongside Wright's and held the phone between them.

'Good Lord, no,' said Porphyry in a surprised tone. 'I thought he was an excellent candidate. I met him when his sponsor brought him round to look over the place. Very nice chap, and I heard he could hit the ball a mile. I was really knocked back when he didn't get elected.'

'Yeah? Any idea who might have blackballed him?'

'No. Whole idea is that n.o.body ever knows, you see. Though I did hear ... but no, idle gossip causes nothing but trouble, I should know that!'

Thinks he's being disloyal to his beloved club, thought Joe. Dear G.o.d! How could anyone believe this guy was a cheat?

He said, 'Nothing you tell me is gossip, Chris. Client confidentiality, right?'

He felt bad about that, sitting here with his phone held up so Sir Monty could hear the reply.

'Well, if you're sure,' said Porphyry reluctantly. 'The only person who might get a glimpse of who puts what ball in is Bert Symonds, our steward, who carries the bag round when the vote is taken. That evening after Sir Monty got blackballed, I went round to the service area to have a word with Bert about some catering matter and I overheard him say something about the vote to another member of staff. Well, when I got him by himself, I really tore into him. Firstly because I hate gossip, and secondly because I knew in this case it must be untrue.'

'What was it he said?'

'He reckoned it was Tom Latimer who put the blackball in. But he must have got it wrong. I'm absolutely sure of that because ... Joe, the pro's waving at me, wants a word. I've got to go. Keep in touch. Please.'

The phone went dead.

Joe switched off and looked at Sir Monty, who shook his head violently and said, 'No!'

'No? Hey, listen, this wasn't something I set up ...' began Joe indignantly.

'No, it can't be true,' said Wright, ignoring him. 'He got that right at least. No way it could have been Tom Latimer ... no way!'

He was shaking his head, but to Joe it seemed he was shaking it to dislodge an idea rather than deny it.

It took Joe his usual ten-second delay to get there. And then ...

'It was Tom Latimer who proposed you! Wasn't it?'

'Yes, of course it was,' snarled Wright. 'And Latimer's a smart guy, he knows which side his bread's b.u.t.tered on. So tell me, smartypants. why the h.e.l.l would he want to put the black in?'

This time Joe didn't need ten seconds.

'Maybe because if you'd just got elected to the Royal Hoo, you were hardly likely to be interested in knocking the place about and building a hyper-mart on the site, were you?' he said.

He saw Wright taking this on board and pressed his advantage.

'Who was it told you it was Christian who blackballed you?'

Wright didn't answer. He didn't need to.

'And how long was it afterwards that King Rat said he'd got a whisper that the Hoo might be up for grabs?' Joe went on.

Now Sir Monty spoke.

'About a fortnight.'

Joe did some working out.

'That would be a good week or more before the Porphyry cheating thing came up,' he said.

He didn't need to say more. He had a great respect for people whose minds left his standing when it came to working things out, and it wasn't for nothing that Sir Monty watched the beautiful game from the Directors' Box while Joe's season ticket placed him high behind the south goal with the sun straight in his eyes.

Larry approached the table looking a bit nervous.

'Sir Monty,' he said. 'They're asking about you upstairs ...'

'Yeah, yeah, I'm coming,' said the chairman. 'You done here, Sixsmith? I got a really important meeting to attend.'

Joe found the stress offensive. If the guy didn't think what they'd been talking about was important, he'd been wasting his time.

'Just one more thing,' he said, letting his irritation show. 'Woman called Bradshaw got fired from your Luton store a while back. You probably never heard of her ...'

'Betty Bradshaw? Yes, I know her. n.o.body gets fired from my stores without I know, Sixsmith. What's your point?'

'She says she got made redundant to make way for cheaper labour.'

'She's right. The amount of stuff she was lifting from the store, anyone would have been cheaper!'

'She got fired for thieving?' Joe was disconcerted. He tried to think like Butcher and heard himself saying, 'Well, maybe you weren't paying her enough to feed her family and she thought you wouldn't miss a few tins and stuff ...'

'She wasn't stealing food, Sixsmith,' grated Wright. 'It was top-quality Scotch and cognac mainly. About five hundred quid's worth a week. Nice little scam, undetectable if she hadn't got greedy. Only reason I didn't charge her was it might have given some other people the same idea. I take care of my staff. All I expect in return is honesty. You might find it hard to believe, Sixsmith, grubbing around in the muck where you spend your working days, but being a businessman doesn't mean being a crook. You make hard decisions but there's a line you don't step over.'

'Does Ratcliffe King live on the same side of the line as you?' asked Joe.

The supermarket magnate stood up and glowered down at him.

'Interesting talking to you, Sixsmith. But at the end of the day, you've proved nothing.'

'Maybe not,' said Joe. 'But I know. And the difference is, now you know too, don't you?'