Part 11
Call me unhealthily obsessed and I wouldn't argue with you. As soon as I learned that Rich and Paul had moved to London, the first thing I did was book a flight for myself to board the next day. Even though there was that oh-so-annoying voice in the back of my mind discouraging me, prodding me to stay in Australia and continue my TV work - Don't Forget Your Toothbrush was in the works for another season - my work was far from done, and it would be very difficult to carry out my plans from halfway around the world. I would go alone, of course. Victoria and I had split, stating 'irreconcilable differences', and I was now living on my own, though certainly not in discomfort.
My determination to break Rich and Paul apart was now being driven by a reason other than my desire for Paul. My attention had now turned to Rich, with the urge to make his life as difficult as possible. With me keeping a safe distance from them since the group split, no doubt the couple had already pushed me out of their minds. Hence, anything that went wrong in their lives could now not be blamed on me, and I could proceed with my scheme without fear of being discovered.
The next call I made before boarding my flight was to Jonathan, the man who was the driving force behind Rich's choice to move to London and take Paul with him. I learned through the proverbial grapevine that Jonathan had invited Rich to join his CD-ROM company in London, and quickly gave Jonathan a call, despite the time difference. Once I had him on the phone, I put my bribery skills to practise. Through various connections I had aquired information about Jonathan that could possibly destroy his career and his public identity. I almost didn't want to use this information against him, because he and I had gotten along fairly well whenever the group had visited London, but when you want something so badly, you do whatever it takes to get it. I told him that if he hired or had any association with Rich, I would reveal what I knew. The knowledge I had was all it took for him to obey.
I arrived in London a day after Rich and Paul did, making sure that I went to all the places they would stay away from. I figured they'd have put themselves up in a ritzy hotel, tossing around their money as though they didn't have a care in the world. Once I checked into a more low-key hotel on the outskirts of the city, I gave Jonathan a 'friendly' phone call to check if he'd complied. He had, though he was far from pleased. He was genuinely interested in having Rich join his staff, but he had no choice - I held the higher power. And, I have to admit, I loved the feeling of control, being able to manipulate things to suit my needs.
I didn't have to worry about running out of money for accommodation during my stay in London. While I was there I made contact with a friend I had made during my previous visits with Rich and Paul. His name was Justin. He was barely a few years younger than me and very attractive, but I had no craving for him. My desire was for Paul and only Paul.
I'd had more than my fair share of fleabag hotels, so when I asked to move in with him, he welcomed me with open arms. It wasn't that I didn't feel as though i'd be able to survive on my own in this place so far from home. It was that if I was going to carry out my plans successfully, it would take a lot more than one person, and it would certainly help if I had an associate. However, I didn't say anything about my intentions for being in the city yet - if I was going to take him on board, I had to gain his trust first, and it didn't take very long.
After two weeks in the comfort of Justin's home, I revealed my motives over a traditional English breakfast and asked him to assist me. To my delight, he was more than willing, and together we discussed the next move that we were going to make. We didn't know where Paul and Rich were staying, nor what they were doing in terms of work, so that made things a little difficult for us.
But not long after we teamed up, our prayers were answered in the form of a newspaper advertisement. Justin and I had visited the city early that morning to purchase food and other supplies, and at the last minute we threw a newspaper in with our pile. Once we got back to Justin's house, I relaxed into his couch with a warm cup of coffee, flipping through the newspaper without much interest. But halfway into the publication, my eyes fell on an advertisement for an art exhibition. It listed the time, date and venue for the event, and it also happened to mention a selection of artists whose artworks were to be featured.
Towards the top of the list, it said in italics: Paul McDermott.
Voila.
Part 12