Evans had heard nothing from Morton for almost two weeks. He could not remember ever having gone so long without contact with his client. He had lunch with Sarah, who was visibly anxious. “Do you hear from him at all?” he said.

“Not a word.”

“What do the pilots say?”

“They’re in Van Nuys. He’s rented a different plane. I don’t know where he is.”

“And he’s coming back…”

She shrugged. “Who knows?”

And so it was with considerable surprise that he received Sarah’s call that day. “You better get going,” she said. “George wants to see you right away.”

“Where?”

“At NERF. In Beverly Hills.”

“He’s back?”

“I’ll say.”

It was a ten-minute drive from his offices in Century City to the NERF building. Of course the National Environmental Resource Fund was headquartered in Washington, DC, but they had recently opened a west coast office, in Beverly Hills. Cynics claimed that NERF had done it to be closer to the Hollywood celebrities who were so essential to their fund-raising. But that was just gossip.

Evans half expected to find Morton pacing outside, but he was nowhere in sight. Evans went into the reception area and was told that Morton was in the third-floor conference room. He walked up to the third floor.

The conference room was glass-walled on two sides. The interior was furnished with a large, boardroom-style table and eighteen chairs. There was an audiovisual unit in the corner for presentations.

Evans saw three people in the conference room, and an argument in progress. Morton stood at the front of the room, red-faced, gesticulating. Drake was also standing, pacing back and forth, pointing an angry finger at Morton, and shouting back at him. Evans also saw John Henley, the saturnine head of PR for NERF. He was bent over, making notes on a yellow legal pad. It was clearly an argument between Morton and Drake.

Evans was not sure what to do, so he stood there. After a moment, Morton saw him and made a quick jabbing motion, indicating that Evans should sit down outside. He did. And watched the argument through the glass.

It turned out there was a fourth person in the room as well. Evans hadn’t seen him at first because he was hunched down behind the podium, but when that person stood, Evans saw a workman in clean, neatly pressed overalls carrying a briefcase-style toolbox and with a couple of electronic meters clipped to his belt. On his chest pocket a logo read av network systems.

The workman looked confused. Apparently Drake didn’t want the workman in the room during the argument, whereas Morton seemed to like an audience. Drake wanted the guy to go; Morton insisted he stay. Caught in the middle, the workman looked uncomfortable, and ducked down out of sight again. But soon after, Drake prevailed, and the workman left.

As the workman walked past him, Evans said, “Rough day?”

The workman shrugged. “They got a lot of network problems in this building,” he said. “Myself, I think it’s bad Ethernet cable, or the routers are overheating…” And he walked on.

Back inside, the argument raged, fiercer than ever. It continued for another five minutes. The glass was almost entirely soundproof, but from time to time, when they shouted, Evans could hear a phrase. He heard Morton yell, “God damn it, I want to win!” and he heard Drake reply, “It’s just too risky.” Which made Morton even angrier.

And later Morton said, “Don’t we have to fight for the most important issue facing our planet?” And Drake answered something about being practical, or facing reality. And Morton said, “Fuck reality!”

At which point the PR guy, Henley, glanced up and said, “My sentiments exactly.” Or something like that.

Evans had the distinct impression that this argument concerned the Vanutu lawsuit, but it seemed to range over a number of other subjects as well.

And then, quite abruptly, Morton came out, slamming the door so hard that the glass walls shook. “Fuck those guys!”

Evans fell into step with his client. Through the glass, he saw the other two men huddle, whispering together.

“Fuck ’em!” George said loudly. He paused and looked back. “If we have right on our side, shouldn’t we be telling the truth?”

Inside, Drake just shook his head sorrowfully.

“Fuck ’em,” Morton said again, walking off.

Evans said, “You wanted me here?”

“Yes.” Morton pointed. “You know who that other guy was?”

“Yes,” he said. “John Henley.”

“Correct. Those two guys are NERF,” George said. “I don’t care how many celebrity trustees they have on their letterhead. Or how many lawyers they keep on staff. Those two run the show, and everyone else rubberstamps. None of the trustees really knows anything about what is going on. Otherwise they wouldn’t be a part of this. And let me tell you, I’m not going to be a part of this. Not anymore.”

They started walking down the stairs.

“Meaning what?” Evans said to him.

“Meaning,” Morton said, “I’m not giving them that ten-million-dollar grant for the lawsuit.”

“You told them that?”

“No,” he said, “I did not tell them that. And you will not tell them that either. I think I’ll let it be a surprise, for later.” He smiled grimly. “But draw up the papers now.”

“Are you sure about this, George?”

“Don’t piss me off, kid.”

“I’m just asking—”

“And I said draw up the papers. So do it.”

Evans said he would.

“Today.”

Evans said he would do it at once.

Evans waited until they got to the parking garage before he spoke again. He walked Morton to his waiting town car. His driver, Harry, opened the door for him. Evans said, “George, you have that NERF banquet honoring you next week. Is that still going ahead?”

“Absolutely,” Morton said. “I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”

He got in the car, and Harry closed the door.

“Good day, sir,” Harry said to Evans.

And the car drove off into the morning sunlight.

He called from his car: “Sarah.”

“I know, I know.”

“What is going on?”

“He won’t tell me. But he’s really angry, Peter. Really angry.”

“I got that impression.”

“And he just left again.”

“What?”

“He left. Said he would be back in a week. In time to fly everybody up to San Francisco for the banquet.”

Drake called Evans’s cell phone. “What is going on, Peter?”

“I have no idea, Nick.”

“The man’s demented. The things he was saying…could you hear him?”

“No, actually.”

“He’s demented. I really am worried about him. I mean as a friend. To say nothing of our banquet next week. I mean, is he going to be all right?”

“I think so. He’s taking a planeload of friends up there.”

“Are you sure?”

“That’s what Sarah says.”

“Can I talk to George? Can you set something up?”

“My understanding,” Evans said, “is that he just went out of town again.”

“It’s that damn Kenner. He’s behind all this.”

“I don’t know what’s going on with George, Nick. All I know is, he’s coming to the banquet.”

“I want you to promise me you’ll deliver him.”

“Nick,” Evans said. “George does what he wants.”

“That’s what I’m afraid of.”