He had put on his best suit but it was modestly cut and he looked clumsy and other-worldly amidst the style and selfassertiveness on the rue St Honoré. Still, he reminded himself, he was not here for a fashion show.
He’d first thought of making the exchange in Istanbul with its cloudburst of humanity beneath which one solitary soul might disappear, but even amongst the labyrinth of souks and smoky bazaars the authorities had their men, the informers, and there was always the danger of his bumping elbows with someone he knew. He didn’t trust his luck in such matters; he’d once gone off to Antalya on the excuse of an energy symposium in order to spend two nights with Sherif, a nubile young girl from Personnel who was into older men, only to discover that a neighbour had booked into the next room. Praises to God, the man had been engaged on a similar mission of deceit, allowing them to share the solidarity of sinners. Yet he felt the presence of prying eyes everywhere in his homeland, and this was worth so much more than a quick scramble between the sheets.
He had chosen Paris because he had once visited it as a student many years before, because there was no chance of his being recognized – and because the French understood what was required. The English were too stuffy and of constricted sphincter, while the Americans were all cowboys. If he were to survive, Hakim needed discretion, a partner who could be trusted to keep his mouth shut and not be found after two drinks and an encouraging smile bragging about it in the bar of the Hilton. In matters of corporate espionage, tax evasion and fraud the French had all the necessary finesse, they also had bank accounts untraceable by the Turkish authorities; pity about their limp coffee.
Anxiety had made him early and he sat in the sidewalk café swirling the dregs in his cup, waiting. His mind danced with thoughts – of drowsy islands set in mystical seas that shimmered as though studded with a treasury of diamonds; of bougainvillea-clad villas overlooking the sacred Bosphorus and tinkling to the sound of female laughter; of oil wells trembling in the Mediterranean breeze beneath their plumes of black gold – and of the fetid rat-filled walls of Istanbul’s notorious Yedi Giile prison, echoing with the cries of those who had come too late to repentance. It was not too late for him, not yet, he could still get out, go home, be back in the office tomorrow. Back to being Hakim the Forgotten. The man whose skill and experience had single-handedly uncovered one of the great natural treasure troves of his lifetime – without whom none of this great adventure in exploration would have been possible! But even as he had handed them his report and analysis, his chest heaving with pride, they had told him it was all in a day’s work, what TNOC paid him for, he shouldn’t expect any recognition or thanks. And he had received none.
An executive Citroën with immaculate black paintwork drew up on the roadway beside him and a window of darkened glass wound down.
‘Mr Hakim, over here. Quickly, please!’
Already the Volkswagen behind was sounding its horn impatiently. They had told him about the café, said nothing about a car. Disconcerted, untrusting, but seemingly with little option, the Turk scurried across the pavement. The rear door opened and he settled into the deep leather seat. A hand extended, cuffed in a timepiece of Swiss gold.
‘Delighted to meet you at last, Mr Hakim.’
He had insisted on meeting the top man, face to face, not being fobbed off with aides and underlings. He needed decisions, he wanted to deal with the man who made them.
‘Forgive the caution. Couldn’t be sure you didn’t have – how can I put it? – somebody else watching us at the café. A news photographer. A competitor, perhaps? I thought a little privacy might assist our discussions.’
Hakim grunted. The man reeked of authority, money; Hakim was well out of his league.
‘We were very interested in the material you sent us, Mr Hakim…’ – carefully selected pages from the report, crumbs to whet the appetite but not enough to chew on – ‘…interested enough to check you out. You’re genuine. But is your report?’
In response, Hakim took a single folded sheet of paper from his suit pocket and, with only the slightest hesitation for a final thought, passed it across. It was the report’s summary page, giving the estimates of the potential beneath the sea bed.
‘Fascinating. And I assume there is a price for this material.’
‘A heavy price,’ Hakim growled, snatching back the single sheet. ‘But a very fair price.’
‘How much?’
‘For the entire report?’ He chewed his thumb nail. ‘A million dollars.’
The other man didn’t flinch. His stare was direct, examining Hakim as if some clue to their business might be found in his leathered face; defiantly the Turk stared back.
‘This matter is very simple, Mr Hakim. Your information is of no value to anyone unless it is accurate, and of no value to my company unless we get the licence to drill.’
‘When the time comes you will buy the licence. With this report you will know how much to pay – and who to pay.’
‘That time is some way off.’
‘Sadly for you, I am not a patient man.’
‘Then let me get to the point. My proposal – which is also my final proposal – is this.’ An envelope had appeared in his hands. ‘Here is fifty thousand dollars, for sight of the report. If after studying it we believe its contents to be genuine, there will be another two hundred thousand dollars.’ He held up a hand to stay the objection beginning to bubble within the Turk. ‘And if my company succeeds in obtaining the licence and striking oil, there will be a payment to you of not one, but two million dollars. Worth that, if what you say is true.’
It was the Turk’s turn to consider, agitatedly squeezing his salt-streaked moustache as though wishing to pluck it from his lip. ‘But how can I trust you?’
‘Mr Hakim, how can I trust you? How am I to know you’re not hawking this same document around every one of my competitors? There has to be a measure of mutual trust. And look at it this way, what would be the point of my trying to cheat you of millions when there are potentially billions at stake?’
The Turk was breathing heavily, trying to encourage the supply of oxygen to his thought processes.
‘If your document is genuine, I shall be giving you a quarter of a million dollars with only your word that it’s the sole copy in circulation. A costly mistake for me if your word is false.’ The Frenchman paused. ‘But it would be a still more costly mistake for you.’
‘What?’ Hakim mocked. ‘You are threatening to break my legs?’
‘Not at all, my friend. I would simply let the Turkish authorities know of your activities. I imagine your legs would be the least of your problems.’
The Frenchman smiled, raised the envelope with its fifty thousand dollars and gently proffered it.
Hakim stared, debated, twisted and tore at himself, but the exercise was pointless. It was too late now, neither conscience nor caution could argue with fifty thousand dollars and more, much more, to come. From within his briefcase of imitation crocodile he extracted his report and handed it across.
