Law and Peace by Tim Kevan Page A

contacts he also acts as a rather discreet . . . how shall I put it? Er, fixer. Or as we put it to the taxman, “corporate PR”.’
    â€˜Oh.’
    ScandalMonger raised his eyebrows in a particularly smug way, as if to say, ‘Yes, I am the master of the universe and am able to fix anything. Little people, little problems. Easy.’
    â€˜Yes,’ continued Slippery, ‘we can get a little help with the planting of stories and from time to time he can even assist with the odd witness.’
    â€˜Oh.’
    â€˜So you can see why I might need to mention it?’
    â€˜Indeed.’
    â€˜It’s just that I don’t want to get further down the line and then for, how shall I say, “scruples” to kick in.’
    â€˜Well, quite.’
    â€˜So I just wanted to make sure that you were all OK with his involvement from the outset?’
    Now the truth is that of course I wasn’t ‘OK’ with it. Not in a million years. Witness tampering for a start. Then there was contempt of court with the press. And these were just my initial thoughts. My guess was that Slippery wasn’t telling me even half of it and he was simply asking whether I was prepared to turn a blind eye. After my experience last year with TheBoss, my answer was simple. Sorry Slippery old boy, but go and slip and slide on someone else’s patch. I’m just not interested. Except that after I’d explained this in about ten different ways, he eventually said, ‘I’m disappointed, BabyB. Really I am. Believe it or not, you actually came on the highest recommendation from TheBoss himself. You might be surprised to hear that despite, or perhaps because of, what you did to him, he left with a very high regard for your abilities.’
    â€˜Well that’s very generous of him and all but I’m afraid the answer’s still no.’
    â€˜In which case, BabyB, let me sweeten the pill a little. What if I were to offer to pay off your loan shark and to refinance your mother’s loan for the next twelve months in return for your, er, cooperation?’
    My mouth must have dropped open since he added, ‘Don’t be surprised, BabyB. That’s the whole point. It’s our job,’ at which he looked across at ScandalMonger, cueing more smug face-pulling from him, ‘to know things. All things. Like the fact that a certain learned friend of yours called TopFirst is out to get you.’
    They both looked at me as if they knew rather more than they were letting on.
    Now I must decide.
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    Tuesday 4 December 2007
    Year 2 (week 10): Deal on
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    Last night I heard a noise downstairs and when I went to investigate I found my mother sorting through her jewellery which she had strewn across the living-room floor. As I entered the room she looked up and I could see that her make-up from the day before was smudged from crying. She knelt there, with a couple of earrings in her hand, and stared at me with a look of quiet desperation on her face. Then she said, ‘I just thought that perhaps these might be worth something.’ Her voice tailed off.
    I knelt down and hugged her and she started crying again.
    â€˜I’m so sorry, BabyB. I really don’t know how I let it all get this out of hand.’
    Her whole body began to shake as she sobbed. I’ve seen her in a bad way over the years but never quite like this and all I felt able to do was to hold her in my arms. Then I took her by the shoulders and looked her in the eyes.
    â€˜I promise you,’ I said, ‘that it’s going to be OK. You’ve put everything you have on the line to get me to where I am now and I’m not going to let you down. All I ask is that you trust me.’
    This seemed to calm her down and through her tears she said, ‘It’s not your responsibility, BabyB, but I do appreciate what you say. Thank you.’
    She took a deep breath. ‘You know, BabyB,