Like Clockwork

by Margie Orford

  ‘Let me know how it goes,’ said Clare.

  ‘You want to come with me?’ asked Riedwaan.

  ‘Thanks, but I think I’ll pay our friend Otis Tohar a visit instead.’ She folded the newspaper up thoughtfully. ‘I think he might be a little stressed.’ She slipped it into her bag.

  ‘Oh?’

  ‘Just a feeling. Landman and him are all over each other like a rash. And I saw some pictures of Brian King at that launch party. Their shared interest in films might be worth exploring a little more.’

  ‘Where did you see the pictures?’ asked Riedwaan.

  ‘Jakes took them.’

  ‘I didn’t know you’d been seeing him,’ said Riedwaan.

  ‘I’m not. Don’t be paranoid,’ said Clare. ‘I stopped by there because something niggled and he showed me the pictures he took at Tohar’s party.’

  ‘Was this before I saw you?’

  ‘Yes. Riedwaan, why are you interrogating me? Are you jealous?’

  ‘No. I’m just asking.’

  ‘Well, don’t. It’s not your business anyway.’

  ‘I’ll speak to you later.’ Riedwaan cut the connection. Irritated, Clare pulled on her running gear,. She had to get out. It was a bright morning, with the sun reflecting in the pooled rain. She lost herself temporarily to the steady pounding of her feet on the paving, and got home with her head much clearer. It was already nine o’clock when she phoned Tohar to arrange a meeting. She showered and dressed quickly and was there by ten. She pressed the intercom and waited. Eventually a voice asked what she wanted. ‘It’s Clare Hart. I’ve come about the interview.’

  The door clicked open and she was inside. The mirrored elevator was waiting for her. Within seconds it had delivered her safely to the penthouse apartment. Looking svelte in a tailored suit, Tohar’s PA was waiting for Clare.

  ‘Hello. I’m Janet Green,’ she said.

  Clare put out her hand. ‘Hi, I’m Clare Hart.’

  ‘Mr Tohar said he’d be in shortly.’

  ‘Do you mind showing me around while we wait for Mr Tohar to arrive?’

  ‘Absolutely. Come this way.’

  Clare followed her from the hall into the sitting room. It was immense and luxuriously furnished. The art was original, expensive: vast abstract canvasses that picked up the colours of the sofas. It was a perfect room, but cold, with not a single photograph or book in sight.

  ‘Can I bring coffee?’

  ‘Thanks,’ said Clare. She sat on a large blue sofa by the window, the sweep of the bay in front of her. She pulled the newspaper out of her bag. In the margin of an inside page was a tiny story warning that the big developers who had bought too much and not sold on fast enough were facing a big crunch. The article singled out the Osiris Group as having over-extended itself and run into problems. Its bankers were reluctant to increase their lending and were considering calling in their debts as the group’s cost spiralled and prices levelled out. Osiris had apparently found one or two anonymous investors, but with the sudden dip in prices and a strong local currency, even this investment was looking dicey. There were also allegations of black economic empowerment fronting. Already, the liquidators were circling on the periphery.

  Clare put down the paper and looked out at the graceful curve of the bay. Otis Tohar was in a very vulnerable position, though he must have accessed cash from somewhere to have kept going. Clare thought about Landman’s proprietary air. She grimaced. She’d certainly not like to be owing Landman money, and be unable to pay him back when he demanded.

  Janet Green came back with the coffee and poured it. It was very strong. ‘How long have you worked for Mr Tohar?’ asked Clare.

  ‘I started with him about six months ago. I was working for one of the hotels before. This seemed like an interesting opportunity.’

  ‘And has it been?’

  ‘It is challenging,’ said Janet.

  ‘What do you do, exactly?’

  ‘I manage Mr Tohar’s publicity. I also manage his social diary, and I’ve been involved in re-branding the Isis Clubs.’ Janet stood up before Clare could ask her any more questions. ‘Shall I show you around now?’

  ‘Thanks,’ said Clare, putting down her coffee and following the PA. The apartment had been converted from the original old hotel rooms. Enormous sums of money had been spent on it. Janet gave her detailed descriptions of the furnishings and artworks in each room.

  ‘Would you like to see anything else?’ asked Janet.

  ‘Yes, I would like to see the home cinema. I hear that it’s state of the art.’ said Clare. Janet paused to answer her phone and Clare walked ahead down the passage. She opened the first door on the left. Instead of seeing the edit suite she had expected, she stepped into what looked like a dungeon. There was an array of whips and manacles and other props on the walls. There were cables and plugs on the floor and lighting tracks on the roof. Just then, Janet Green came up behind Clare and closed the door.

  ‘Come this way. Please.’ She opened the next door. There was the edit suite that Clare had seen before. The cinema was on the other side of the perspex window.

  ‘What sort of movies do you make here, Janet?’

  ‘What do you think?’ She picked up a tape and gave it to Clare. ‘What does it matter if people like it and they pay? There’s nothing illegal in that.’

  Clare looked at the tape. On the cover was a woman in a black mask, thigh-high boots and a corset. She was standing holding a whip over some girls dressed as glamorous galley slaves in what looked like a stone boathouse. ‘Who does the filming?’

  ‘Mr Tohar is good. He does some. Otherwise we hire a cameraman,’ said Janet.

  ‘And who acts?’

  ‘Some of the Isis girls. This is easy money for them.’

  ‘What is your role, Janet?’

  ‘Admin, finding locations, production management.’

  Clare put her hand out, touched the bruises that twined up Janet’s slim, white arms. ‘Is this part of the deal?’

  Janet pulled her arm away. ‘That’s nothing. I had an accident.’

  There was a noise – the front door opening. ‘Come. He’s back.’ She hurried Clare out of the suite and down the passage.

  Otis Tohar was in the sitting room. ‘Bring us fresh coffee,’ he demanded.

  Janet disappeared into the kitchen. ‘So, Clare. I was surprised to hear you were coming. I can’t see how I can help you with your investigation. Do you like what we’ve done here?’

  ‘Your renovations are stunning. But I had a couple of things I wanted to ask you.’

  ‘Yes, Janet told me. Did she show you around?’

  ‘She did, thank you.’

  Janet returned with the coffee. She put it on the table next to Tohar. ‘Why don’t you go and get your things ready, Janet?’ said Tohar. ‘We have that lunchtime meeting at La Traviata.’ But he pulled her towards him, his fingers closing very precisely over the bruises on her arm. ‘She’s been looking after you?’

  ‘She has, thank you,’ said Clare.

  ‘So, how can I help you?’ asked Tohar. He let Janet go.

  ‘I was curious about your relationship with Brian King,’ she asked.

  ‘Purely business,’ said Tohar, voice smooth, hands steady. He took a delicate sip of coffee. ‘We looked at a development together. It wasn’t feasible, unfortunately. So tragic about his daughter.’

  ‘Yes, it is,’ said Clare. ‘Did you know her?’

  ‘No. Never met her.’

  ‘You didn’t know the other two girls, did you?’

  ‘No. Why would I?’ He placed his cup on the tray. ‘What a peculiar question.’

  ‘One of the girls auditioned at the Isis Club.’

  ‘We have very high standards. I presume she wasn’t up to them.’ Tohar stood up abruptly and handed Clare her jacket. The interview was over. Clare went to the door.

  ‘Just one more thing I wanted to ask you,’ she said. He took his hand from the door handle. />
  ‘What was that?’ he asked.

  ‘How is your company dealing with all the financial pressure? There’s such a squeeze on developers at the moment, especially high-end apartments.’

  A muscle pulsed in Tohar’s throat. ‘My investors are wealthy men. We can weather a bumpy ride. It’s a matter of managing your cash flow and keeping costs strictly under control.’

  ‘I imagine it’s a strain, especially if you have cash investors who want quick returns.’

  ‘It could be, but information flows help. Keeping people informed.’

  Clare held out her hand. Tohar took it, his palm slippery with sweat. ‘Your sideline, if it’s not just a hobby, must be lucrative,’ she said.

  ‘What do you mean?’ asked Tohar.

  Clare took a wild chance, ‘Your films – how shall I put it? – starring these girls … there’s clearly more to it all than meets the eye.’

  Tohar withdrew his hand. ‘Janet. See Dr Hart out. I have things to attend to.’

  Clare walked to her car, parked out of sight in a side street. She tried to phone Mrs King but there was no answer on either her cellphone or the home phone. She was about to call Riedwaan when a basement garage door opened. Otis Tohar’s Jaguar accelerated down the narrow street. On impulse Clare turned her car to follow him. He made his way down to Beach Road and then turned left into the parking lot above Three Anchor Bay. Clare followed, keeping her distance and pulling over on the other side of the road. Tohar climbed out of his car and walked rapidly to the slipway that led to the boathouses and the beach. Then he turned back, seemingly at a loss, patting his pockets. The conversation, when he found his phone in his breast pocket, was brief and punctuated with agitated hand movements. He was facing Clare. His face was congested with fury. He snapped the phone closed and wrenched the car door open. The car lurched forward and he turned back in the direction he had just come from, just missing a woman crossing the road with a pram.

  Clare got out of her car and went across to the steps that led down to the grimy bay. The tide had come up high and the stench of rotting seaweed was nauseating. There were people down on the beach, cleaning their kayaks. Ropes and buckets had been stacked in the sun and two women were industriously sweeping the boathouses. Clare went down and had a look into the closest one. It was carved like a crypt out of the rock, and only the roof sections were bricked.

  ‘Spooky, hey,’ said one of the women who was sweeping. ‘You should see all the tunnels around here. It’s like a whole underground city.’

  ‘I’d love to. I live just over there,’ Clare pointed, ‘and I’ve often wondered how this promenade works.’

  ‘I’ll show you. We’ve got a map inside.’ Clare followed her into the boathouse. The air was dank. The woman showed her a map of the promenade, and the tunnels below it and Main Road.

  ‘This is all reclaimed land, isn’t it?’ said Clare.

  ‘It is. The council issued these when there was a flood a couple of years ago. They had to go and find all the old Victorian maps to get to the problem. I love old maps, so I bought a couple.’

  Clare leaned closer, tracing the tunnels. ‘They look like spidery veins. It’s fascinating.’

  ‘I’m sure there’s another map somewhere.’ The girl ferreted through a pile of paper. ‘Here it is.’ She held it up in triumph. ‘Would you like it?’

  ‘I would! Thank you,’ said Clare. She followed the woman out, glad to be in the sun again.

  ‘How often do you clean up?’ asked Clare.

  ‘Oh, only once a year. We always do it on the same day. We all just pitch in together and get it done.’

  ‘We did it last year,’ said a man, carefully folding old sails, ‘and the next day there was that huge storm – do you remember it?’ Clare nodded. ‘That storm broke the doors down the day after our spring-clean, can you believe it. So we’re keeping our fingers crossed that it won’t happen again.’

  Clare looked out to the west. The sky was clear, the sea sparkled. ‘Doesn’t look like it. Who owns these boathouses?’

  ‘The council does,’ said the same man. ‘Our families have rented them for years and years. It’s kind of hereditary.’

  ‘They’re thinking of charging us more, though – I know that. As if we don’t pay enough rates in Sea Point.’

  Clare walked to the end of the small beach. She could still hear the group arguing about whether their rates were too high or not. The sea wall bulged broadly before it flattened towards the lighthouse. There were several large openings on the edge of the curve. They studded the sea wall like blind eyes. Clare pulled her coat around herself. It was very exposed where she was standing, and the wind was biting cold.

  42

  The clock said five-thirty when Theresa Angelo finished her voice-over.

  ‘I need a break,’ said Sam Napoli. ‘You want to get a cappuccino?’

  ‘No, thanks, Sam.’ Theresa blushed. Coffee made her jittery and it felt strange having coffee with someone who was nearly as old as her dad. Not that Sam flirted with her. He didn’t at all. But he was rather sexy – even though his shoulders were getting that stiff look peculiar to men over forty, no matter how often they went to gym.

  ‘Come on,’ said Sam. ‘You’ve worked hard. And you were brilliant, as always.’

  ‘I’ve got to meet my mom,’ said Theresa. ‘We’re going to see a movie. We always do on a Friday.’

  ‘I’m going to have a word with your mother,’ said Sam, looking her up and down. ‘You’re turning into quite a knockout. She’s going to have to keep you locked up at home to keep you safe!’

  Theresa giggled. ‘It’s just my new haircut.’

  ‘And a brand-new figure, too.’

  ‘I’ll see you next week?’ asked Theresa.

  ‘See you then. We need a couple more hours. And be good!’ Sam called after her.

  ‘I will. See you then.’ Theresa picked up her bag from the security guard.

  ‘You need an escort, sisi?’ he asked. ‘It’s a bit dark now.’

  ‘No, thanks. I’ll be fine. I’m meeting my mom at the Waterfront. I’ll see you Tuesday.’

  ‘Okay, sisi, nice weekend.’

  Theresa crossed the road and ducked under the boom at the exit to the Waterfront Marina apartments. Theresa was glad of the voice-over work. She was planning to take her mother away to a spa in the mountains. She had the brochure in her bag. Maybe that would make her happy again. Maybe a break would help her mother face the fact that Theresa’s father had left her – finally and for good. For the better, was what Theresa thought. He had etched lines of sadness into her mother’s soft face and slowly turned the corners of her smiling mouth downwards.

  The wind off the sea was cold and damp. Theresa walked faster, to escape her thoughts and to warm herself up. She had two hours, still, before meeting her mother for a movie and a pizza. She walked along the marina and looked at the yachts, avoiding the people thronging across the drawbridge towards the Waterfront.

  Floodlights glimmered on the black water where the boats rocked to and fro. Theresa was cold, her jeans useless against the wind which was starting to pick up. Beyond the slipway, light spilled from the small windows of The Blue Room. She went into the bar feeling very grown up. It was quiet, empty except for the barman polishing glasses. She made her way to a table away from the draughty doorway and sat down, dropping her bag at her feet. The barman came over to her.

  ‘Cute bag,’ he said. ‘Can I get you something?’ He was very good looking – dark hair, eyes shiny black.

  ‘Thanks,’ she said. ‘I’ll have a decaf café latte please. With a glass of water.’ Theresa calculated how much money she had in her purse. Should be enough. Theresa did not drink, but she was pleased that he hadn’t asked her for ID.

  ‘Okay. Ice and lemon?’ He gave the table a superfluous wipe.

  ‘Just plain tap water.’

  ‘You waiting for someone?’

  ‘Not here. I’m going to the movi
es later. I’m a bit early, that’s all.’

  He went behind the bar and rattled the coffee machine, steaming her milk into perfect frothiness.

  ‘Here you are.’ With a flourish, he put down the latte, and next to it a glass of iced water. There was a tiny biscuit with the coffee. Theresa was disappointed to see that a bit of the liquid had spilled and made it soggy.

  She smiled up at him. ‘Thank you. It’s very quiet here this evening.’

  He looked at his watch. ‘It’ll start getting busy soon. It usually fills up at about seven, seven-thirty. All the yachties come in then.’

  ‘I love those yachts,’ said Theresa. She watched the masts through the window, streaks of silver, magical against the night sky.

  ‘You should have a look at them. There are some real beauties in at the moment.’

  ‘I will when I’m a bit warmer,’ said Theresa.

  ‘What’s your name?’ he asked.

  ‘Theresa. And yours?’

  ‘Tyrone.’

  She took a sip of her coffee. ‘This is delicious.’

  He flashed a smile. ‘Like you, Theresa.’

  Theresa blushed to the roots of her hair, but he did not notice. The barman had turned to welcome new customers. The three men moved in an unsmiling pack towards a table by the window. Theresa was glad that they sat far away from her. She had not liked the way that one of them had looked at her and passed his tongue slowly across his lips. She zipped up her hoodie, finished her coffee and went over to the bar.

  ‘Something else?’ asked the barman.

  ‘No, thanks,’ said Theresa. ‘Just the bill.’ He handed her the slip of paper. She had just enough money.

  ‘You take care, now,’ he told her. She smiled at him and then she went out into the night. It was now completely dark. She could just make out a couple of people walking with their heads down towards The Blue Room. She had an hour to kill, so she wandered down the jetty to look at the yachts. It seemed unfair to have tethered them here. They were like restless horses, streamlined curves designed for movement, for freedom. The last yacht was the most beautiful, a gleaming dark blue with stainless-steel trim. She admired it as she leaned against the small barrier at the end of the jetty. The wind slapped the tightly furled sails against the mast.