Dark Oil (22 page)

Alan frowned and Martin turned to her open-mouthed. She continued undeterred. She owed it to the company to set out all possible outcomes, even if it wasn't what management wanted to hear. “Somewhere along the track, when we've invested hundreds of millions more, built the plant, employed thousands of locals and expatriates, the permit could be taken off us again for no particular reason, just like that.” She clicked her fingers. “There is no security of title in Africa.”

The men both leaned back, as if to distance themselves from her, from what she was saying. She tried not to think of their reactions as she pushed ahead. “We might not be lucky enough to get it back at that stage. There will be a lot more motivation to expropriate us, whether through the appropriate channels or under the guise of a breach by us, when we've thrown more money into this.”

She paused, giving the information a little time to settle. “And we won't have any more recourse than we do now. Bottom line: it's a dictatorship. Do we really want to invest in areas with such great political risk? There are other countries, even other African countries, with more liberal governments and resource-rich soils. Of course the risk has to be weighed up against the potential benefits, the main one being the oil reserve could be the biggest in the world.”

Martin glanced at her from the corner of his eye and she could see he was apprehensive of Alan's reaction, but she couldn't beat around the bush. She had to be straight with Alan. It was the company's first time in Africa and everyone, including the CEO, was new to the game.

Alan deserved honesty and somehow, unlike many employees who simply grovelled to the head of the company, she had the strength to tell it like it was—even if it meant she wouldn't be the CEO's favourite person. It was her duty, it was the right thing to do, and that was something she definitely understood.

Alan stood and paced the room. “You have a point, Lara. Perhaps that's something to consider in the long term. Right now we can't roll over and let them do this to us. Don't they know who we are?” And then, nearly in a whisper, he added “The bastards”.

“We'll do whatever you want, Alan.” They were Martin's first words, words of humility and submission, words that somehow didn't sit well with Martin's personality.

Lara nodded. “It goes without saying.”

Alan crossed his arms. “Then go over and nail them. And if we can't nail them, the next step will be to let them get legal bills bigger than they've ever imagined.”

As Lara and Martin left the room, she opened her mouth to ask about Jack. Was he meant to be at this meeting? Would he be coming to Negala? If not, why not?

She looked at Martin, his tense jaw, his furrowed brow, and decided it wouldn't be a good move. Besides, she didn't really want him there. She didn't, did she? “So when are we leaving?” was the substitute question.

“I have joint venture meetings tomorrow and we can't get flights anyway. So it's Friday. “

She was thankful for the day she would have to get ready to leave. Another day to get over the jet-lag before being hit with it again, a few spare hours after work to go and see her mother one more time, and a sleep-in the next morning.

“Do you have any urgent matters at the moment?” Martin was dry, but at least he was showing interest.

She shook her head. “I checked my emails last night. Most things I can pass on to one of the other lawyers.”

“Then do that.” He couldn't help himself, always telling her what to do, even if he knew, or ought to have known, better. He wasn't her boss. Even though she offered legal services to the Commercial Department, meaning Martin was technically her client, she officially reported to the head of Legal. Perhaps that thought crossed his mind, for his gaze softened. “I have to say, I'm relieved we'll be going on our own this time.”

She simply nodded, didn't need to ask what Martin meant. He was referring to Jack, or rather his absence, and it seemed neither he nor Lara wanted to pronounce that name for very different reasons. But not saying his name didn't mean she wasn't thinking of him, despite her best efforts. How awful it was going to be, being stuck in Negala on her own with Martin! It certainly wouldn't be enjoyable.

Still, it was better than going there with another man you couldn't trust, and Martin had warned her enough—she couldn't trust Jack.

She prepared her matters for handing over to the other lawyers, writing out detailed file notes, explaining where she was at and what needed following up. She made a few phone calls, dropped in on a few colleagues, packed up and headed home.

She'd seen Susan that morning, but couldn't leave the country without telling her own mother so she phoned her that evening.

“Again!” exclaimed Susan, when Lara told her of her impending trip. “A jet-setting lifestyle, my own daughter. You know, at lot of people strike up a romance on business trips. You never know, you might meet someone.”

Her mother meant well, Lara knew that, yet it was not her place to mention romance, and Lara's wounds were so fresh. Why was it parents thought they could comment on any aspect of your life, no matter how old you were? “Don't, Mum.” She bit her lip.

“Sweetheart, all I'm saying is there might be an opportunity.”

“To tell you the truth, I don't think I'll ever trust a man again. Not after what Tim did. He must have lied to me for years. He started going out on his own not that long after we married. Sometimes I wonder if he cheated all along.”

“You can't let that stop you from moving on, honey.”

“I don't want to go through this again.”

“Nobody does, but you're too young to give up on love.” There was a silence, and then Susan chuckled. “Everyone's too young to give up on love. You'll never be perfectly happy without it. Believe me, I know.”

Lara changed the topic, moving onto the mundane, and talked about packing. She didn't want to hear any more about love, for that was the last thing she could handle right
now. What she wanted, more than anything, was to protect herself. If she didn't let a man into her heart, he couldn't break it, could he?

No, she wouldn't trust a man again, not even a handsome Adonis with a magnetic gaze—not even Jack. It was the best insurance against heartache.

Jack could have kicked himself. He'd wanted so much to be at the meeting Alan had suddenly called. He'd tried his very best to get there. Every single thing that could possibly go wrong had, from the last-minute equipment breakdown at the plant, to the cab driver getting lost. Then there'd been the accident on the main road that had held up traffic.

He'd missed the plane by a second and there was nothing he could do about it. Now, as he returned from his short trip to Global Oil's operations in the Tropics, he wondered how long it would be before he'd have another opportunity to see Lara again. Lara. . .

And what would Alan say to him? He hadn't made it back in time to be briefed, so would Martin and Lara be going on their own? Would Alan send someone else to punish Jack? If you caught the CEO on a bad day, he was capable of that, just to show you who was boss.

Jack hesitated as he made his way down the corridor. A small detour and he might see Lara. Could he justify it? Would she think it strange? He longed to see her smile, her kind blue eyes. He wanted to feel the way only she made him feel, but he couldn't let her think he was behaving inappropriately. He needed a believable excuse. She was a married woman, after all, as much as he hated it.

Yes, a married woman. He exhaled, disappointed with himself. How could this have happened? He'd sworn he would never, ever let his destiny become entangled with that of a married woman again. Ange had been a warning for him. To make matters worse, Lara was a colleague.

He'd tried so hard to get her off his mind, but nothing had worked. She was different from the others. He could be himself with her. It was as if he'd known her forever, as if. . . he managed to hold the thought at bay, but only for a second. He felt they
belonged
together.

He'd been the biggest flirt all these years, dating without commitment. He was ready to settle down, he had been for a long time, really. He simply hadn't met anyone he could see himself with at seventy five, sitting on a moonlit veranda sipping camomile tea—that was what you drank at seventy five, wasn't it?

Except for Lara. He could see himself with her, but she was another man's wife. Now, Jack had lost interest in all other women. If someone told him Lara would be forever off limits, he'd quite happily have retired there and then to the wilderness to live like a hermit. Even becoming a monk was starting to sound not so far-fetched. Well, maybe that would be a bit extreme. He smiled to himself.

But how could he go against what every fibre of his body was telling him? He had to see her. He veered to the left and headed for Lara's office, his heart beating faster. He told himself he could always ask her for an update on the Negala situation as he'd been away for a while.

She would probably see through that. After all, he could get an update from anyone on his team. If Lara pointed it out he would argue you got different versions from different people—and that was true, wasn't it? She'd never know for sure if it was a genuine request or an excuse. She'd never have to feel uncomfortable about it.

He raced down the corridor, busy and energetic, the expected look for a corporate head office. At Lara's door he came to a sudden halt. He stepped inside, feeling he was going to choke.

The lights were off, the desk clear. There was no sign of Lara. Worse, her laptop wasn't there. Had she already gone to Negala? Had Alan already decided Jack was not going on this next expedition?

He wanted to sit and stare, to be left in peace to digest what had happened. Was he being pulled from the project? Would he be sent to some other God-forsaken land on a new project and never see Lara again? When they were in Negala, Martin had mentioned changes to his role, changes that would be announced soon. Maybe this was it. Maybe Martin had taken over while Jack was away and now he was being side-lined.

There was only one way to find out. He hurried down to the CEO's office and knocked on the door.

“Come in.” Alan's elbows rested on his desk, his hands cupped around his neck. He raised his eyebrows as Jack entered. “You've finally decided to show up.”

The CEO's moods didn't intimidate Jack. He took the big man's comments with a grain of salt. What did intimidate him was Alan's power to decide what would happen with Jack's professional—and now personal—life. At the snap of a finger Jack could find himself in a mind-numbing position, or even without a job. Worse, he could be sent somewhere far away, somewhere he would never bump into Lara again, no matter how hard he tried.

“I'm sorry, Alan. I was stuck at the plant. I tried my hardest to get here for the meeting. As you can see it took a little longer than expected. It's one of the disadvantages of being in the middle of nowhere with very unreliable transport.”

Alan grunted, stretching out his arms. “Lara and Martin have gone to Zakra. I asked Martin to take your next in line. What's his name, again? Anyway, he's joining them. He couldn't leave with the others, but he'll take the following flight, so he'll be there in two or three days. Half the time you sit around for days waiting for meetings over there, anyway, so I don't expect it to cause a problem.”

Jack shook his head. “Justin Meyer? Well, I'm back now so I—”

Alan was snappy. “Martin and Lara can handle it. I'm sending Meyer as a tactic. I don't want the government to think we're allocating less people to this because it's a lost cause. Next time you'll be here when I say. Besides, I have something else in mind for you.”

Jack wanted to scream at him, tell him he had no sense of justice, he had an ego problem. He knew that wouldn't get him anywhere with Alan. That was the kind of comment Jack would keep for the day he quit, the day he had enough money aside to start his own business without being in debt. A day not too far away, he hoped.

“A new project?”

Alan nodded. “South America.”

“Oh, finally! That's good news, Alan. I'm looking forward to it.” He didn't think it was good news at all, but if he spoke his mind Alan would just dig in his heels.

“Good. The project manager will be Geoff Hunter if it takes off. I want you to go over there with that young lawyer, hmmm. . .”

Jack's eyes widened. “Lara Beckham?”

Alan's lips curled into a lopsided grimace. “Of course not. She's in Negala. The young fellow, Josh something or other. He'll be doing the due diligence while you have a look at the terrain and your usual stuff.”

“Oh, sure.” Jack swallowed, trying to put on a brave face. “Well, maybe after I come back from Negala? I really think I should go.”

“You don't have faith in Meyer?” Alan was frowning so much a deep furrow, not usually visible, halved the space between his eyebrows.

It would have been easy to express reservations about young Justin—that would have got Jack a ticket to Negala in no time—but it was wrong. It would spoil the young man's career and Jack just couldn't do it. “No, Justin's fine.”

“Good. Get ready to go to Mexico.” Alan looked down at the notes in front of him and Jack understood that was the end of the conversation. He stood and shuffling, so heavy with disappointment were his limbs, made his way towards the door.

Before stepping out he stopped, turning to Alan in a last attempt to sway him. “The government won't like having to deal with someone else. They'll see it as a mark of disrespect that we sent someone lower in the hierarchy, too. It could drastically limit our chances of getting them to listen. Or even of instilling a sense of fear in them, fear that we mean business. It could be the difference between—”