would choose his staff carefully. Capable salesmen who, as long as they got their commission, were not too bothered if someone else took all the glory.
When he realised the receptionist was looking at him, he smiled sweetly and gave a condescending nod. If he hadn’t dropped the blinds before returning to his work, he might have seen the rather crude sign she made to him.
Jack saw it, though, and smiled to himself. Having already been obliged to discreetly mop up the new manager’s mistakes, Jack held much the same opinion of Stuart Branagan as Jan did. ‘Little sergeant-major!’ he mumbled, ‘hunched in his office, ordering tea and biscuits, and putting on airs, while the minions out here have to work twice as hard to keep the place going.’ He had hoped he might get on with the new manager, but no matter how he tried, he could find no respect for him.
‘All right then, Jack?’ That was Bill West, a young newcomer, wet behind the ears but eager to make a name for himself.
‘Fine thanks, Bill. And you?’
‘Not sure.’
Jack understood. ‘Been thrown in at the deep end again, have you?’
The younger man nodded mournfully. ‘You couldn’t help me out, could you, Jack? Only I’ve mixed my appointments up again. I don’t want to tell the boss-man, or that’ll be his excuse to have me out the door.’
He went on quietly, so as not to be overheard: ‘Trouble is, I’ve got this customer arriving in five minutes . . . he wants a trial run in the four-by-four. But when I checked my notes just now, I realised I’ve gone and booked Mr Tomlinson in at the same time, and I can’t get hold of him to change the appointment. He’s not answering his phone.’
‘What’s he coming in for?’
‘To talk about finance, on a trade-in against a new car.’
‘Go on then.’ Jack could see he was beginning to panic. ‘Be sure and make a good job of selling that four-by-four, and I’ll deal with your Mr Tomlinson. Have you done your work on the finance?’
‘Yes. It’s in my desk-drawer – second down on the left.’
‘And do you have his first name?’
‘Er, yes. It’s Jason, I think.’
Jack had a piece of advice for him. ‘First rule of the game, Bill. Make a mental note of the client’s first name. Read the signs, and if it’s all going well, then you adopt the friendly approach . . . but not too friendly, if you know what I mean?’
Bill nodded, ‘I really do appreciate you doing this for me, Jack.’
‘That’s OK. As it happens, I’ve got piles of paperwork to check and file, but because I need to take an extra-long lunch-hour, I’ll be staying on late to make up. So, I’ll do the paperwork then.’
‘Aw, thanks, Jack. You’re a pal. I owe you one.’
As it turned out, Bill’s first appointment was done and dusted in record time. With Mr Tomlinson arriving half an hour late, the young man was thrilled that everything had fallen so neatly into place. However, buoyed by his first-ever big sale, he was too excited and too gushing to concentrate on the matter in hand. Consequently, the second customer walked away without signing.
‘What did I do wrong?’ he asked Jack.
As always, Jack gave it to him straight. ‘Sale or no sale, Bill, once you’ve dealt with one customer, you need to clear your mind and concentrate all your attention on the next one. You have to make every customer feel as if they’re the only one that matters.’
Then, not wishing to curb Bill’s enthusiasm, Jack slapped him on the back and assured him, ‘Don’t be too down-hearted, though. Mr Tomlinson came here because he liked our product. I dare say he’ll be back. They usually are.’
Bill thanked Jack and went away to consider his advice. Jack’s words had pricked his bubble, but he had learned a valuable lesson today. One he would never forget. And for that he was grateful.
As the morning wore on, Jack grew more edgy. The hours passed all too quickly, and then it was time to leave for his dreaded appointment. He was on his way out, when Jan called to him, ‘Going anywhere nice for lunch?’
‘Hardly!’
‘Want me to come with you?’ she asked, fluttering her eyelashes saucily.
‘No, ’cause I need you to keep an eye on young Bill,’ Jack told her, worried that he might have been a bit too harsh with his advice.
‘Why? What’s he up to?’ Jan was curious.
‘He’s not up to anything as far as I know, but I reckon he might need a friend and a cup of tea . . . when you’re making one.’
By the time she turned to look where Bill might be, Jack was already out the door and heading for his car.
Once inside the car, he sat awhile, wondering if he should go or not. There was no denying he was nervous – and he had every right to be. Molly was right, though. If he didn’t master this thing, it would master him.
More than anyone, he knew the score. The nightmares had gone on for too long. Maybe now that he was older, he could handle whatever the sessions threw up. Also, since his relationship with Molly was taking a battering, it was time to seek help. Time to trust a stranger again; enough to put himself into their hands. Today could be his chance to root out his fears and hopefully put a stop to the torment.
The alternative did not bear thinking about.
DOCTOR LENNOX WAS waiting at the clinic to greet Jack.
The GP was a handsome fellow in his early sixties and with numerous letters after his name. ‘As I explained in our little telephone chat, I’m not qualified to deal with these particular issues,’ he said, ‘but Mr Howard, on the other hand, is one of the best in his field. You’ll be in safe hands with him.’ He suddenly caught sight of the man in question. ‘Ah! Here he is now.’
A tall, bony man with sweeping eyebrows and a look of authority came striding up to Dr Lennox, and greeted him as a valued old friend. ‘Good to see you, Sam.’
Having briefly renewed his acquaintance with the older doctor, he then turned to Jack and shook him by the hand. ‘You’ll be Mr Redmond, no doubt? I’m Alan Howard.’ Taking stock of Jack, he saw a responsible, accomplished man, just as Dr Lennox had described. He also saw the shadows beneath his eyes and the tension in his features, and could tell that he was deeply troubled.
‘Dr Lennox tells me you’ve agreed to let him sit in on the session?’ The psychiatrist allowed the whisper of a smile. ‘If you’ve changed your mind, we’ll just send him away.’
Jack assured him it was fine. ‘I’ve known Dr Lennox for a few years now,’ he confirmed. ‘I would be happy to have him stay – if that’s all right with you?’
‘Of course. We don’t apply rules as such.’ Howard’s voice was unusually soft, almost mesmerising. ‘I’m here to help, and that means I’m prepared to do whatever is necessary. So, if having your trusted family doctor on hand puts you at ease, I have no objections whatsoever.’
In truth, having another person sitting in on the session was not something Howard would normally allow, but he knew Sam Lennox very well and trusted him implicitly. Also, he knew that Lennox had deep concerns regarding his patient, and wanted to see for himself how Jack reacted to this treatment.
‘I don’t mind telling you, I’m not looking forward to this,’ Jack admitted. ‘The sooner it’s