‘But only in conditions that are never going to happen, that’s the whole point. It’s like removing a safety net you don’t need in the first place. He fed in all this speculative data that was based on projected climate-change scenarios and the possible long-term consequences of global warming. It was ridiculous.’
Gina looks up, glares at him. ‘You’re like a fucking child, do you know that? Trying to talk your way out of trouble. If the report was so ridiculous, then what was the problem? Why bury it?’
Norton shrugs. ‘It was… not a problem as such, I mean, you couldn’t really -’
‘Look,’ Gina says, holding up the gun, ‘enough.’ She points it directly at him. ‘Do you want me to shoot you, too? In the fucking head?’
‘OK, OK. There was a problem. It was with his conclusion. He recommended that repairs be done immediately, that steel reinforcements be welded onto each of the building’s three hundred joints.’
Vaughan whistles. ‘That would be expensive.’
‘Yes. Very.’
‘And best-case scenario you’d be looking at a… what, a six to nine-month delay?’
‘Easily, and with huge knock-on penalties for going over agreed completion dates. Plus, we’d miss the tax-incentive deadline.’
‘Not to mention what a PR catastrophe it’d be.’
There is silence for a moment.
‘And if the repairs aren’t done?’ Gina then says.
Norton stares down at her now with naked contempt. ‘You’re not going to let it go, are you? You’re like a dog after a bone. Like Flynn, like your brother.’ He pauses. ‘What is it you want, the bottom line in all of this, is that it?’
She nods.
‘Right. Fine.’ He takes a deep breath and holds it in for a moment. ‘According to these calculations, without the repairs, and in storm conditions so rare you might only see them in this country once every hundred years, the building has a fifty per cent chance of, let’s say… of withstanding the pressure.’
Gina shakes her head. ‘No.’
‘What?’
‘Let’s not say that. Let’s say it another way. Let’s be as explicit as we can, shall we?’
She gives the gun a little shake.
Norton rolls his eyes and breathes out sharply.
‘OK, yeah, let’s. In certain extreme weather conditions, this building, Richmond Plaza, has a fifty per cent chance of collapsing. Are you happy now?’
‘Fifty per cent?’
‘According to these calculations, yes.’
‘And given the potential for loss of life and damage to surrounding property, you think that’s an acceptable level of risk?’
‘Absolutely. I’m not worried at all.’ He pauses. ‘Because what I don’t accept is the data he was working with. I just don’t believe it would ever happen. But none of that would matter if the report got out, you see. Perception would be everything.’
‘Perception?’
‘Of course. The sound bite. Fifty per cent chance of collapsing? You think anyone’s going to see beyond that?’
Gina presses her head back against the glass. ‘And that justifies having people killed? For completion dates, for tax purposes, for fucking PR?’
Norton throws his hands up, as though in exasperation or despair.
‘There you go again with this crap,’ he says. ‘I didn’t have anyone killed. What do you take me for?’ He turns to Vaughan. ‘Jimmy, look -’
‘Save it, Paddy. I’m not interested.’
‘What?’
‘This is… I’m having a hard time believing this is actually happening. I just…’ He looks at his watch. ‘I just want to get on the next goddamned plane out of here.’
‘But what about -’
Vaughan holds up an admonitory hand.
Norton stops, his frustration palpable.
As the two men stand there in silence, Gina checks something on her phone. Then she looks up at Vaughan. She waves the gun at him.
‘Go.’
‘What?’
‘Go. Now. Get your meds. Catch your flight.’
Five minutes after Vaughan has left, Gina’s mobile rings.
‘Yeah?’
‘Gina? Are you all right there?’ A Kerry accent, the voice soft and instantly reassuring. Whoever this is has been trained in the subtle art of hostage negotiation. ‘Listen, can we maybe -’
‘I said. I want to talk to Jackie Merrigan. In person.’
‘Yeah, Gina, we were looking for him, but he’s on his way now. So, I don’t know, in the meantime -’
She cuts him off.
Norton sighs impatiently.
She looks up at him. ‘What?’
‘You’re a very stupid girl, do you know that?’
‘I’m not a girl, Paddy. And we’ll see who’s stupid.’
Hunkered down at the window, facing the partition units, she doesn’t have a direct view of the rest of Level 48 and can’t tell what is going on. Norton can, and keeps looking around. At one point she catches him trying to gesture or signal to someone.
‘Face the window,’ she says. ‘Now.’
He does.
‘There’s a whole bloody army back there,’ he says. ‘They’ve got flak jackets, machine guns, the works.’
‘I can hear them, but I’ve got this.’ She points the gun directly at him. ‘I’ve used it once. I’ll use it again.’
Norton says nothing. After a while, he asks if he can take something out of his pocket.
‘What?’
‘Tablets.’
‘You as well? Go on.’
He takes out a packet, fumbles with it and swallows two – maybe three – tablets.
‘What are they for?’
He looks at her. ‘What do you care?’
She sighs. ‘You’re right. I don’t.’
She starts keying something into her mobile.
‘You know, Gina,’ Norton then says, ‘this is not going to end well for you. It can’t.’ He clears his throat. ‘Any credibility you might have had before, you cashed in by doing this. So no one’s going to listen to you. And if you think sending that report to Baladur and Lazar is some kind of a trump card, you’re wrong. They’ll close ranks now, everyone will, Vaughan, the contractors, everyone. The spin merchants will be out in force. Coming from Noel, the report might have carried some weight. It was his design. People would have had to listen. But not anymore. No one will endorse it now.’
She looks up at him. ‘What, no one will admit what you just admitted a few minutes ago?’
‘Of course not. And no one has to. No codes or regulations have been broken. The arguments in the report can be torn to shreds in five minutes, and they will be. Because no one’s going to want to be associated with this carry-on.’
She shrugs, and goes back to what she was doing on her mobile.
‘The media won’t take it seriously either,’ Norton continues. ‘They won’t understand it for one thing. And if you persist in making those claims about how I had something to do with your brother’s death I’ll have a restraining order slapped on you so fast you won’t know what hit you.’ He shakes his head. ‘Believe me. I’ll come down on you like a ton of bricks. I’ll tie you up in legal knots for years.’ He laughs. ‘But sure that won’t matter anyway, because you’ll be in prison.’
Gina ignores him.
Behind her, faint at first, but growing louder, is the sound of a helicopter.
‘You see, you’re going to be the story in all of this, Gina, not some stupid fucking report. What they’ll be interested in’ – he nods his head forward, indicating the helicopter – ‘is the crazy lady who shot some poor innocent bastard in the leg and then took two hostages. You’ll be tabloid fodder for days, weeks.’ He laughs again. ‘You see, like I said, it’s all about perception.’