‘Toni, is that you?’ said a voice.
It was Michelle, one of the suits from her show, a senior executive producer from the money side of the business.
‘Hi Michelle,’ she said brightly, wishing she could come up with an instant lie to get her out of this but for some reason, her much-vaunted ability to lie on any occasion had deserted her. Now, of all times.
She felt quite emptied of all the abilities that had made her successful in her career.
‘I’ve been trying to get in touch with you for the past couple of days,’ said Michelle, who was a serious and bespectacled woman of around Lou’s age and who was best known to Toni as a woman who wore nothing but Comme des Garçons clothing purchased on vintage shopping sites. Fashionable, clever and earnest were her three words.
‘I assume you know what it’s about.’
‘Yes.’
‘Mr Lanigan’s people have been on to us. Apparently he is considering making a formal complaint about your treatment of him. It has been intimated that there is a recording of you and him in the office car park here and that this might be made public.’
‘You know he can’t make the recording public in any legal sense,’ said Toni bluntly. ‘He didn’t tell me he was taping me, he hid his phone from me, therefore it’s illegal. Any release of it would have to be subtly done by a “friend”.’
Toni guessed there were loads of ‘friends’ who’d do it.
‘I know,’ said Michelle evenly. ‘We would hope to ...’ she paused, ‘and I say this cautiously, Toni, we would hope to back you once we understand what actually went on. We need to know your side of the story and, so far, we haven’t heard anything from you. Cormac Wolfe has talked to me, and he has explained that Gerry Lanigan leapt upon you in the car park and frightened you.’
Good old Cormac, thought Toni.
‘Yes, he did frighten me,’ she said, thinking of his finger jamming into her breastbone.
But nobody had seen that: it would be her word against his and he had the tape, after all.
‘He loomed out of nowhere – and he’s a big guy, Michelle. The encounter was certainly scary,’ Toni said. ‘But that would be me using the “I’m a woman and I was scared” defence, and the right wingers would make mincemeat out of me for that.’
She sighed from somewhere deep inside her. Her fear could mean nothing in this story because the law was still many years behind reality when it came to male strength and aggression used against women. If she said anything, she’d be demonising Gerry Lanigan when, in reality, he’d threatened her physically and they both knew it.
‘I reacted badly, for sure. But I did say those things. I shouted at him and said I would finish his career. It might have been fear talking, but that’s irrelevant when it comes to a recording that could finishmycareer.’
‘You should get legal advice, Toni.’ Michelle sounded more cautious now.
‘Are you taping this?’ Toni asked, feeling suddenly paranoid.
‘No, I am not. I am phoning to say we are essentially behind you, but we need to know what happened. We want to get a vision of what we are defending if we are to defend it. You’re a brilliant presenter and the interview in question was broadcast on Epsilon Radio, so we are not liable for that. Our issue is to do with your continuing employment with the TV show.’
‘I get that,’ agreed Toni. ‘Things are a little unclear at the moment.’
Understatement of the year, she thought. ‘There have been some personal issues which may have affected my lashing out at Mr Lanigan in the car park. But I was scared by his appearing beside my car unexpectedly when I was alone and that was a factor too.’
‘Cormac didn’t mention any personal issues,’ said Michelle in surprise. ‘Are you all right? Are you ill?’
The part of Toni that could expertly gauge the news cycle knew that if she had been seriously ill, she’d have a get-out-of-jail card for anything said to a bullying man in the TV car park.I was ill – big man scared me. Problem over. The simplistic view would give her an out, but Toni wanted to play this authentically, even if that was a truly stupid decision.
Despite herself, she smiled.
‘No, I’m not ill. It’s something between myself and Oliver and ...’ She paused. How did she explain any of this? The answer was that she couldn’t, not yet and certainly not to Michelle. ‘I need to talk to a lawyer.’
‘Good plan. Lanigan is certainly out for blood. We will not tolerate being bullied, but we have to have a plan in place.’
‘OK,’ said Toni. ‘Can I come back to you?’
‘Of course. Are you in Cork? You were at your sister’s party or something?’
‘No.’ Toni gazed over the balcony railings at the stunning view of the Mediterranean. In the distance, a yacht was passing elegantly by. Toni couldn’t see the passengers but imagined people in shorts, T-shirts and deck shoes discussing a dive later and wondering which part of the island they’d head to for a leisurely dinner. She wished she were living their lives.
