Goldengirl

‘But of course. He would be working for the government if they were not ultrasensitive about security. His early training was in Peking, and that has dogged his career ever since, even though he defected as long ago as 1966, the period of the Cultural Revolution. He has no affiliations or sympathy with Red China. Finding his Chinese qualifications were unacceptable here, he joined Columbia as a mature student, graduated and went on to take a doctorate. Then he moved West and obtained a lecturing post at Berkeley, which gives some indication of his caliber. Things went well for him for a time there, but you know what Berkeley is like. An imbecilic group of students calling themselves Maoists raked up his story from somewhere and proceeded to hound him as if they were Red Guards in Peking. They made it impossible for him to continue. He resigned his post and joined the psychiatric team at Los Angeles County General Hospital, which is where I met him four years ago on a public health committee. We found an instant rapport existed between us. As our acquaintance developed, we exchanged more confidences, and when he told me one evening of his experiences in China and at Berkeley, I realised what trust the man was reposing in me, for there are people in the medical world, just as there are in the academic, who delight in destroying reputations. When I needed the help of a psychologist here, it seemed quite natural to approach Lee. He listened to my account of Goldine and agreed to join us as soon as he had worked a month’s notice at the hospital.’

‘Is he in the consortium?’ Dryden asked.

‘No. Lee is staff. He receives a good salary. I see to that. The only members of the consortium you have met so far are Armitage, Valenti and myself.’

‘Not Klugman?’

‘Klugman, like Lee, is staff,’ said Serafin. ‘You assumed he was on the board? I asked him to meet you in the lounge out of courtesy, as one of the senior staff. Lee would have been there too, but he was working with Goldengirl. The schedule has priority over everything here.’

‘Could I see it?’

‘The schedule?’ Serafin took a half step backward and his face shaped into a refusal, but unexpectedly altered. ‘Why not? You are entitled to know how far we are committed to this project. Yes, you can see it. Come to the lounge.’

If it was displayed in there, it was surprising he had not noticed it before.

‘So Lee is in charge of the girl’s psychological conditioning, and Klugman the physical?’ Dryden said as they headed toward the built-up end of the camp.

‘Broadly speaking yes. Klugman has two assistants: Brannon and Makepeace, both former athletes and coaches of some experience. And I am involved as well, of course, physiology being my specialty.’

‘How did you come to recruit Klugman?’ Dryden ventured, making the most of this communicative mood. ‘He doesn’t look to me like a Chinese defector.’

Serafin drew in a sharp breath and stood still. ‘Mr. Dryden, I appeal to you for your own sake not to be facetious here. Klugman, since you ask, came here because I wanted a coach of Olympic class with the intelligence to bring Goldine to the necessary standard. He is one of the new generation of track clinicians. The day of the vulgarian trainer reeking of embrocation and incapable of using a knife and fork has passed. Klugman is eminent in his field, and commands the same respect from me as Lee. He came because I offered him double the salary his college was paying. Like Lee, he has no family ties, which was a factor I took into account in engaging him.’

‘Does he work in collaboration with Lee?’

‘We are a team,’ said Serafin, making shapes with his hands and stepping forward again. ‘As you will see from the schedule, we have built in regular sessions for staff co-ordination. I am no autocrat. I believe participation in decision-making achieves the best results.’

‘You won’t mind me asking, in that case, whether Goldine participates in the decisions?’ said Dryden.

‘Each phase of the program is fully discussed with her,’ Serafin evenly replied. ‘She does not attend staff co-ordination sessions, if that is what you mean, but her views, when she expresses them, are paramount in our discussions. In actual fact, she is not given to commenting much on the schedule.’

‘I’m surprised,’ Dryden said, matching Serafin’s blandness. ‘I formed the impression this afternoon that she could put her point of view over pretty strongly.’

‘Has it not occurred to you that she might be perfectly satisfied with what is arranged?’ said Serafin.

‘Not having met the young lady, I couldn’t say,’ answered Dryden.

Serafin nodded. ‘I take the point. You shall be given an opportunity of conversing with her this evening, after her workout in the gym.’

‘A private conversation?’