TREADING WATER [Verse 1] They meet where nobody notices, Airport glass and business light, Two men reading different papers Waiting for the same late flight. One has numbers in a folder, One has names he shouldn’t know, Both are selling information Neither one can safely own. No guns. No codes. No raincoat in the dark. Just a badge beside a coffee And a rental in the car park. [Pre-Chorus] They’re treading water, Keeping their collars dry, One hand underneath the surface, One eye on the other guy. [Chorus] Treading water, Company men with borrowed names, Patents changing hands at midnight, Everybody knows the game. Treading water, Nothing written, nothing signed, Steal the molecule, lose the evidence, Leave the fingerprints behind. [Verse 2] There’s a trial somewhere in Basel, There’s a factory east of Bonn, There’s a compound worth a fortune If you know what’s coming on. There’s a woman in procurement Who thinks she’s talking to a friend, There’s a chemist with a mortgage And a password he can lend. One photograph. One dinner. One mistake inside a file. Corporate espionage With frequent-flyer miles. [Chorus] Treading water, Company men with borrowed names, Patents changing hands at midnight, Everybody knows the game. Treading water, Nothing written, nothing signed, Steal the molecule, lose the evidence, Leave the fingerprints behind. [Verse 3] Then they find the German lawyer, Pressed suit, expensive shoes, Always knows the private entrance, Always knows which rules to lose. He likes cash and introductions, Likes to think he understands, Moves the papers through the companies, Never sees the larger plan. He calls himself a strategist. They let him keep the word. The cleverest thing about him Is believing what he’s heard. [Break] He invoices twice. They pay him once. Nobody corrects him. [Verse 4] He opens doors he shouldn’t, Makes a call he shouldn’t make, Drops a name across a dinner For vanity’s sake. He thinks he’s indispensable, A spider at the centre of the room. They think he’s useful. That will do. [Pre-Chorus] Still treading water, Watching circles spread, Nobody asks who started it, Nobody wants anybody dead. Not yet. [Chorus] Treading water, Deals beneath fluorescent light, One more shell company in Hamburg, One more train into the night. Treading water, Everybody sells a piece, Science, money, law and secrets Changing hands without release. [Bridge] Formula. Patent. Licence. Name. Change the company, Keep the game. Data room. Hotel key. Who works for whom Depends who pays the fee. And the lawyer keeps on talking, Certain he’s the smartest man alive. Nobody tells him That’s the reason he survives. [Final Chorus] Treading water, Cold blue light across the Rhine, One man steals another future, Calls it market intelligence every time. Treading water, No heroes on either side, Just people keeping heads above it While the current changes tide. [Outro] Delete the message. Close the file. Take the morning train. The lawyer sends another bill. They laugh. And pay again.
