“We’re talking now to Tom Macaulay, the financial mastermind behind Walters Capital, who swept further out in front of the pack last week with a bold Eurodollar play. Tom, welcome.”

Why are the lights always so damn bright in these interviews? Makes me feel like about to be dissected.

“Good morning, Dana, it’s great to be here.” Dana Garvey and I have talked often on camera; always cordial and friendly. I have never spoken to her once about anything other than finance, and in fact I wonder, with her perfectly coiffed strawberry-blond hair, and power suits, whether she actually has an existence outside financial reporting. Maybe she just sort of pops into existence half an hour before the cameras start rolling and then pops out again when the lights are turned off.

Hold on, she’s talking to me. Focus, Tom.

“Tom, you’ve been hailed as the next great financial genius, and ‘an inspiration to those who want to master the markets.’ What traits would you say have contributed the most to your success?”

I try not to grimace on camera. “Dana, the truth is I couldn’t do anything without my team. The combined knowledge in Walters Capital is just—”

She cuts me off. “Come on, Tom, quit being humble. Tell us about your specific skills. What makes Tom Macaulay tick? What makes him—” she pauses here, and crosses her stockinged legs, “get up in the morning?”

Is she flirting with me? What the hell? “Well, Dana, since you asked, I’ll tell you. If you want to win this game, you need not only constant work, but constant creativity. You can’t stand still; you have to be coming up with new ideas all the time. That’s where my team is so—”

“Let’s talk about your plans for the future, Tom. What’s next? Have you got your eye on running your own firm?” Swoosh, swoosh go her stockings. “Or are you going to retire, and settle down to,” her tongue comes out and I get a glimpse of gleaming teeth, “a life of luxury.”

Dana, gimme a break here. It’s too early in the morning for this. “In truth, Dana, I don’t have any plans for the future. Playing the game to win is the most important thing for me. It energizes me every day I come to work, and right now I don’t want to think about anything else. Making money is what I’m good at.”

“Some would say, Tom, you’re the best in the world at it.”

As much as I try, I can’t help grinning. “Maybe some would say that, Dana.”

Dana looks down at her notes. “Let’s talk, then about your very public upcoming deal. Walters Capital announced another bond issue yesterday, the biggest one yet. The press release said nothing about whose idea it was, but it’s pretty clear you were behind it, and it’s already being dubbed the ‘Macaulay Bond.’ Can you confirm for the viewers that you’re in charge of this deal?”

“Well, Dana, I wouldn’t have given it that name.” I try to look as modest as I can. “But I’m definitely involved,” I sit forward in my chair, “although I stress this will take a lot of work from across the firm.”

“This is a synthetic bond, correct? It’s designed to mimic the performance of a normal corporate bond, but it’s made up of a number of different investments, right?”

I nod. “That’s correct, Dana.”

“So can you tell us what those investments are and how you’ve chosen them?” Dana smiles broadly as she asks this, and she knows I’m not going to answer.

I make a doleful expression. “I’m sorry, Dana, that would be giving away our secrets, explaining how the trick is done, and that wouldn’t be right, would it?”

“Having your name attached to a bond issue will provoke a huge explosion of public interest in this, and there will be a lot of people looking to buy into it because you’re involved, wouldn’t you say?”

I think for a minute. Where is she going with this? “That’s true, I guess.”

She points her pen at me, and I get a sudden bad feeling. “So, do you think that smaller investors will understand what they’re doing, or do you think they’ll just be following you? If this doesn’t work out, do you see yourself and Walters Capital as having any moral responsibility for the losses incurred by small investors?”

I spread my hands. “Dana, I—” She’s evidently been waiting to ask this question.

“Tom, don’t you think that the ‘rock-star speculator’ image which you’ve cultivated leads people into blindly trusting your judgment? If Mom and Pop investors lose money because they think Tom Macaulay can do no wrong in the markets, do you see yourself as responsible?” Next to me, the PR representative shifts in her seat, and I can tell she’s about to say something.

I pause for a moment. The PR representative takes this as me not knowing what to say, and jumps in. “Look, this line of questioning isn’t at all what we agreed—”

I wave her into silence. “Sally, it’s fine; it’s a reasonable question, and I’ll handle it.” I look down at the floor, then directly into the camera, and back to the interviewer.

“Dana, I understand completely where you’re coming from. In truth, I’ve thought about this myself a lot. The conclusion I’ve come to is that all speculation has an element of risk; we all know that,” Dana looks like she’s about to interrupt, but I hold up a hand. “Dana, please, let me finish. All speculation has an element of risk, and no-one is forced to engage in speculation in any way.”

I turn directly to the camera, addressing it instead of her. “For anyone who’s considering speculating in any market, I really can’t say this clearly enough; please don’t invest more than you can afford to lose, ever. There are a lot of lower-risk investment opportunities, and while Walters Capital just doesn’t have the capacity to respond to public inquiries, your local investment advisor is the ideal place to go to find out about them.”

I’ve rehearsed this speech plenty of times, and it comes off my tongue with just the right amount of sincerity. Dana looks like she’s about to ask more questions, but off-camera, Sally intervenes again, this time with a look and a ‘wind it up’ gesture. Dana evidently decides to quit while she’s ahead.

“And I think that’s all we have time for right now; I’d like to thank Tom Macaulay once more for coming in, and in particular for being so ready to answer questions so openly.” Was that sarcasm? I compose my features into a smile, and extend a hand.

“Dana, it was a pleasure as always.”

“Thanks, Tom. We’ll look forward to see what you and Walters Capital come up with in the weeks to come.”

* * *

As the credits roll, studio technicians fuss around me, removing microphones and proffering glasses of water. I try to catch Dana’s eye, and give her a what-was-that-about look, but she’s gone before I can get more than a glimpse of her. To the side of the studio set, Sally stands in front of me, hands on hips.

“What the hell was going on there? Did you know she was going to hit you with that public-responsibility shit, Tom?”

I snort. “Of course I didn’t, Sally. We knew after the global financial crisis, though, that those questions were always on the agenda. I’m surprised it hasn’t gotten more airplay already.”

“Fine, maybe on mainstream media, sure. But here, on a financial channel? When did they suddenly develop a conscience? More importantly, why did they suddenly develop a conscience?”

“Honestly, Sally, I don’t know. Look, it’s done now. Let’s just see what happens when the interview airs, and make sure we’re more prepped for it next time, OK? I’ll brief the team, and maybe you can work on some standard responses if anyone gets put on the spot. Also, we need to warn the board that it’s in play.”

“Sure, Tom. I’ll get on it now.”

“Another thing, Sally.” I stand up, snapping the lid shut on my briefcase. “Reporters are going to be trying to contact the team personally, sniffing around for details. Make sure nobody replies to any emails from news organizations.”

* * *

Leaving the studio, Dana’s words keep coming back to me.

…moral responsibility…

…do you see yourself as responsible?…

…Tom Macaulay can do no wrong…

I pull out my phone, and look at the photos on it. Me and my team, celebrating. Each of them has a family to go home to. I don’t; all I have is this game. Getting to the top of the mountain in finance hasn’t left time for relationships or a family. But that’s how I chose it. No regrets. I switch my phone off and keep walking.

Everyone is responsible for their own actions. If people do what I do, and don’t do it well enough, what can I do about it?

No regrets.