Cometh the Hour: A Novel by Jeffrey Archer Read Free Book Online

questionable. Don’t forget that Mrs. Babakova had already signed the contract and accepted the check in payment.”
    “But she hadn’t cashed it and, in any case, she was under the impression Anatoly’s book would be published by Viking.”
    “And it still would have been.”
    “But not by Aaron Guinzburg, with whom she made the original deal.”
    “A High Court judge might consider that an interesting legal dilemma. And who’s going to publish William Warwick, now you’re no longer with Viking?”
    “The Guinzburg Press. Anatoly and I will be the company’s first authors, and Aaron will also be presenting me with a new fountain pen.”
    “A new pen?”
    “It’s a long story, which I’ll save for when you get back from your board meeting,” said Harry, breaking into the top of his egg.
    “I’m still a little surprised that Mulberry hadn’t considered the possibility of Aaron setting up his own company and didn’t include a clause in the merger document preventing him from poaching any of Viking’s authors.”
    “I’m sure he did consider it, but if he’d inserted such a clause, Aaron’s lawyers would have realized immediately what he was up to.”
    “Perhaps he doubted that Aaron would have the resources to set up a new publishing company.”
    “Well, he got that wrong,” said Harry. “Aaron’s already had several offers for his shares in Viking Mulberry, including one from Rex Mulberry himself, who clearly doesn’t want any of his rivals to get their hands on Aaron’s thirty-four percent stake.”
    “What goes around…” said Emma. Harry smiled as he sprinkled a little salt on his egg. “But however much you like Aaron,” continued Emma, “after his obvious lack of judgment when it came to Mulberry, are you sure he’s the right man to be your American publisher? If you were to sign a three-book contract, and then—”
    “I admit I had my doubts,” said Harry, “but I’ve been reassured by the fact that Aaron’s father has agreed to return as president of the new company.”
    “Is that a hands-on job?”
    “Harold Guinzburg doesn’t do hands-off.”
    *   *   *
    “Item number one,” declared Emma in her crisp, clear chairman’s voice. “The latest update on the building of our second luxury liner, the MV Balmoral .” She glanced toward the group’s new chief executive, Eric Hurst, who was looking down at an already open file.
    “The board will be pleased to learn,” he said, “that despite a few unavoidable holdups, which is not unusual in such a major undertaking, we are still well on course to launch the new ship in September. Equally important, we remain within our forecast budget, having anticipated most of the issues that so bedevilled the construction of the Buckingham .”
    “With one or two notable exceptions,” said Admiral Summers.
    “You’re right, admiral,” said Hurst. “I confess that I didn’t foresee the need for a second cocktail bar on the upper deck.”
    “Passengers are allowed to drink on deck?” said the admiral.
    “I’m afraid so,” said Emma, suppressing a grin. “But it does mean extra money in our coffers.” The admiral didn’t attempt to suppress a snort.
    “Although I still need to keep a watchful eye on the timing of the launch,” continued Hurst, “it shouldn’t be too long before we can announce the first booking period for the Balmoral .”
    “I wonder if we’ve bitten off more than we can chew?” chipped in Peter Maynard.
    “I think that’s the finance director’s department, not mine,” said Hurst.
    “It most certainly is,” said Michael Carrick, coming in on cue. “The company’s overall position,” he said, looking down at his pocket calculator, which the admiral had already dismissed as a newfangled machine, “is that our turnover is three percent up on this time last year, and that’s despite a substantial loan from Barclays to make sure that we don’t miss any payments during the building