Pale Horses (37 page)

‘So, have you decided where you would like to start trading?’ Mr Anderson asked her.

Resting her elbows on the table, Jade nodded confidently.

‘I’d suggest a balanced portfolio to spread the risk …’ the financial advisor began, but Jade interrupted him.

‘I would like to put all my available funds in one position,’ she told him.

He pressed some keys on his gadget.

‘Which one would that be?’ he asked.

Jade thought briefly of Ntombi Khumalo and Zelda Meintjies. Two women who, having lost loved ones and now alone in the world, both deserved a very generous compensation payment. Thanks to the leverage available in the futures market, Jade was confident that the profits from a single, well-timed trade would set them both up for life.

‘I’d like to take a short position in Global Seeds,’ she said.

First and foremost, a huge and loving thank-you to my partner Dion, who is the first person to read every word I write. You are my inspiration, and you rock my world.

Thanks to Frances Marks from Forzalibro Designs – the most amazing and entertaining editor in the world.

A huge thanks to Fourie Botha and Fahiema Hallam at Umuzi for all their support and enthusiasm, to Hannah Ferguson and Camilla Ferrier from the Marsh Agency in London as well as Debbie Gill from Maia Publishing Services for the great work they have done on my behalf, and to the fantastic team at Soho Press in the
USA
, including Bronwen Hruska, Michelle Rafferty and Juliet Grames.

The subject of genetically modified foods is one as fascinating as it is controversial. I did a huge amount of reading during my research, and in particular found the book
Seeds of Deception
by Jeffrey M Smith to be an enlightening read.