Free Take My Breath Away by Martin Edwards Page B

couldn’t face returning to confront the boss who had bullied her. According to Haycraft, she was simply seeking to make easy money and destroy his career in the process.
    ‘Preparation,’ Joel said, leaning back in his chair with his hands behind his head. ‘That’s the secret of success in advocacy. Never mind the rhetorical flourishes, they’re fun, but they’re only icing on the cake. You need to know your case inside out. So you can be ready for anything.’
    ‘You wrote to the clients about rehearsing the witnesses’ evidence.’
    ‘I want to put Haycraft under pressure, the sort of pressure he’ll be under in the witness box if this case goes all the way. You come too. See how he reacts to cross-examination.’
    ‘You want to play devil’s advocate?’
    He grinned. ‘Something like that.’
    They took a taxi up Tottenham Court Road, heading for Thrust Media’s headquarters, a glass building with a cupola which looked like a millennial palace designed by Richard Rogers on an off day. Thrust sold everything from bestselling vegan cookbooks to interactive pornographic software and was a hot tip to win the lottery franchise next time around. Meanwhile Ali Khan climbed closer to the top of the British rich list every year. The bitter litigation over his battle for a British passport was long forgotten. These days, he was a pillar of the establishment. He and Will Janus were very close. Chat magazines often pictured the pair of them and their pretty wives together, attending first nights, celebrity weddingsand parties given by pals from the corridors of power.
    They stopped at a red light. Newspaper placards on the pavement screamed
Anarchist Protest Fears
. Joel shook his head, said that the Mayor ought to crack down on the trouble before things got out of hand.
    Roxanne wasn’t interested in the threatened riots. Politics meant nothing to her. ‘What do you make of the case?’
    Joel drew a slender finger across his throat. ‘Haycraft will soon be history. The company’s Dignity at Work policy is explicit. Harassment is gross misconduct.’
    ‘He’s admitted nothing.’
    ‘We’ll see. Ali Khan can’t afford to have his reputation tarnished by managers who indulge in macho posturing. Thrust are determined to root out bullying.’
    ‘Perhaps Howard Haycraft should have asked Gina Mandel to sign a love contract.’
    ‘Believe me,’ Joel said, ‘It would take more than that to save his neck. Listen, Roxanne, once I’ve finished testing his evidence, you take him for a coffee and a chat. See what shape he’s in. Go somewhere in public, so there’s no way he’ll try anything on with you. Are you okay with that?’
    ‘Don’t worry, I can handle a creep like Howard Haycraft.’
    ‘I’m sure you can. When you talk to him, he’ll be in denial. Doesn’t matter. Whatever you do, don’t let him forget he’s the one in trouble, not Gina Mandel.’ Joel gazed hard at her before adding with uncharacteristic harshness, ‘Deep, deep trouble.’
    They were greeted at reception with the news that Ali Khan wanted a quick word.
    ‘This is quite an honour,’ Joel said. Roxanne wouldhave sworn that his voice was trembling with excitement. She was reminded of Chang in
Lost Horizon,
breaking the news to Conway that the High Lama of Shangri-La had summoned him for an audience.
    In person the great man was tiny, with an over-sized head, a warm smile and a handshake that lingered too long for Roxanne’s comfort.
    ‘I’m sure you will both do what is necessary,’ he said. ‘For me, reputation is everything. We cannot afford to have the good name of Thrust besmirched by accusations of impropriety.’
    Something impelled Roxanne to say, ‘Gina Mandel’s evidence is uncorroborated.’
    Ali Khan considered her. His genial beam did not flicker. ‘Indeed. But that is no reason to disbelieve what she says. She is a highly intelligent young woman as well as, if it is not indelicate to say so in the