Nonetheless, he was annoyed that he was getting tired so quickly. Was he just too sedentary, going from lunch to a meeting, to a seat on the TGV or an aeroplane? The worrying realisation that he was no longer in good shape, not even capable of a half-hour hike in the woods, struck him. His pride did not allow him to ask Lise if they could take a break, yet he was out of breath and it was stiflingly hot. He felt somehow powerless. If he had to run or fight for himself one day, if he was pursued by some unknown danger and needed to get away, he would be out of breath after a hundred metres and at the mercy of the predator … Thinking back to his emails, he was suddenly aware that he was easy prey, an ageing male who would be caught by the first predator that came along. The image of Liem and Travis as greedy hunters came to mind. If they were really coming after him, would he be able to fight back? If they tried to force him to give up his entire library for a deal with Netflix or Amazon, would he be able to stop them? He remembered what a handler on a shoot had told him: ‘When you’re confronted with a wolf, you have to think like a wolf.’ That’s what he had to do, or their energy and youth would get the better of him. He couldn’t carry on being the wise, self-assured fifty-something, a veteran bolstered by past successes. Past successes were useless in a world where you needed to be constantly reinventing yourself, throwing yourself back in, challenging yourself …

‘Franck, are you OK?’

‘Yes, damn it, I’m OK … Everything’s fine, Lise, everything’s fine.’

Until now he had opted to trust Liem and Travis, but that had given them the impression he was pliable, harmless and resting on his laurels. Appearing harmless had been his mistake. How could he see off their suspect plans, how could he confront them if he didn’t show that he was just as tenacious and willing to attack? The toughest prey is the one that fights back.