The last chance, p.24
The Last Chance, page 24
As the aircraft left the runway on its long flight to London, Rick enjoyed another glass of the Marlborough estate wine. He folded his papers back into a neat bundle, and it was then that Arrow Hall came clearly into his thoughts. Whatever he had promised to Claire, that was a promise he could no longer afford at this time. The wine estate or Arrow Hall. That was the crossroads he was now facing. The short, snappy calls in the past few weeks with Claire he knew had shown his impatience with New Zealand. And the more he thought about it, he was certain that $750 of perfume would not clear those memories.
Inevitably, the overnight flight to Heathrow left him with little sleep, and by the time a chauffeured limousine dropped him at his Mayfair apartment, he felt far from refreshed. It was early morning, and as Rick walked through his front door, he expected to find Claire there. But his wide penthouse apartment was quiet, empty. There was no colourful display of flowers enlivening the lounge; there was none of Claire’s clutter in the bathrooms; and when he opened the wardrobe, her clothes had gone. As he collected the pile of post from the box on the landing, he could see that Claire had not been there for a few days.
Rick showered, changed from the crumpled clothes he had travelled in, and after running through all the post that had accumulated, it was late morning before he called Claire.
‘Long journey and I’ve just got home. Thought I’d find you in the apartment. Where are you?’ Rick asked.
‘I’m in Brighton. I’ve been looking up somebody, so I stayed over.’
‘Claire, could we meet at Arrow Hall?’
‘Have you decided what you want to do with it, finish it, sell it or just leave it?’
‘First, I’d like to walk around the site with you as soon as possible. You can then tell me what we’ve spent, and I hope you’ve been able to work out what’s still needed to finish it all off. And I have to leave again at the end of the week, so I don’t have much time.’
‘You really should have called or texted to let me know you were coming home. I haven’t heard from you for almost ten days.’
‘My fault,’ Rick said tersely.
‘I’m staying over in Brighton for another day. I’ll call as soon as I’ve finished here.’
‘Yes, there’s a lot to catch up on. I’m sorry I was so unthinking in sending in my surveyor without talking to you first,’ Rick said.
‘Do you remember James? I’ve sacked him. He wasn’t much good.’
‘Claire, please. Of course I do, and I’m ready to listen.’
There was a pause and Rick knew this was going wrong. Yeah, he had put James on the site, but he had not yet listened to Claire about what she was accusing him of doing. And he had not asked her any more about the accident to James.
The short call ended; Rick was again surprised at the coolness in Claire’s response. He would have been surprised too, to know that Claire was not in Brighton when she took his call, but she was alone in her own new flat.
Rick started unpacking his papers from buying the wine estate and he could feel the tension within himself. It was a blunt reminder that they had not spent much time together in the last few months even just to talk. Chasing his own vanity project, he had let the demands of travelling and buying a wine estate overtake him. And he had not been here for Wimbledon ladies’ final day, Claire’s favourite outing of the year.
He busied himself at his desk, but he was not concentrating. Rick wanted Claire to stay; he wanted to sit down and talk to her. But Arrow Hall was difficult. The rebuild was now no more than a cold lump of money which he had to get back. Quickly.
Unsure of Claire’s feelings towards him, he walked moodily around the large apartment. Whatever he now said to her, it would be letting Claire down on Arrow Hall. That, he was certain, was what would finally cause her to walk away.
83
Stone was not expecting good news from anywhere. He had not eaten during the day – there was still not much in the fridge – but he was not hungry. His mood was downbeat; Claire had turned against him.
And when his phone rang, it awakened him from his dark thoughts.
‘I got this one wrong.’ It was Roger, who sounded almost excited. ‘Circus Inc. The price has doubled. This one caught everybody out.’
‘Surprised to hear that you agree I was right. That makes a change, Roger. I went in big on this because I knew it was going to happen.’
‘Don’t get too excited yet. You’d better not tell me where you got your illicit information from, but it’s been picked up that there has been some heavy buying just before the news that somebody was buying Circus Inc became public. A lot of alarm bells shouting out loud. Somebody in a pinstriped suit will be expecting that there’s a bit of a fraud going on. So be careful with what you’ve got.’
‘Roger, you sound like a schoolmaster scolding a pupil for looking over the shoulder of the person next door in an exam. It happens all the time. Have you never done it?’
‘I don’t have to answer that. But okay, you make money big time, so have you now cleared the lot to buy Marine House?’
‘Just, little bit to go yet.’
Those words echoed in Stone’s head as he finished the call and looked again at the sheet of paper he had pressed into a tight ball on a train from London. He opened his laptop and peered eagerly into his stockbroker account. He liked what he saw. Circus Inc was another big win.
Stone had already poured two measures of whisky that afternoon, but he now poured another one. He sat still and the pain he had been having during the whole of that day dissipated. The back of the sofa was a soft spot as Stone rolled his head onto it and his eyes just shut. Stone wanted to sleep. Manipulating money for Marine House was like playing a game of poker, and this time he had not held all the right cards to keep it.
Stone was awakened from his reverie to take a call from Sol in Hatton Garden.
‘Harry, my friend, have you got that last big carat diamond?’
‘I’m still waiting for it. A couple of days, okay?’
‘My Russian client is now in London. He’s here ’til middle of next week, doing his shopping. He’s eager to handle the last big diamond. Get it to me before then, and if it as sharply cut and well polished as the others you’ve brought me, it’ll be £85,000. How does that sound?’
‘I like it.’
‘Harry, I know you’re not too well, but are you alright? I’ll come and collect it from you if you prefer.
‘My lady, Claire, is dealing with it for me. I’ll tell her it’s getting urgent. But we’ll get it to you in good time.’
Delivering the last diamond was becoming urgent. Eighty-five grand was big money; Stone was not going to let it slip away, like a high tide going out.
84
Manipulating people was a life skill that Stone had learned over many years of practice. Anyone would bend and be coerced if enough damage was threatened to them. It always gave him satisfaction that he was in control. But today Stone tried to stop his anger simmering as he called Claire.
‘Where’s that Edith woman you gave £75,000 to? I want to see the receipt she signed to make sure it isn’t an outright lie they’d sell Marine House to me.’
Stone’s voice was raised, but it sounded hoarse, as if it had no force behind it.
‘I’ve got it safe; I’m working on it,’ Claire said, trying to be evasive.
‘There’s enough out there now to pull that family down. I never trusted Josh; I knew he was an outright liar and a thief who’d walk off with a diamond. But he’s played right into my hand. It’s time to spill their thieving and sexual promiscuity secrets right onto the street, until they cry for me to stop. Or sell me Marine House at a knock-down price.’
‘Be careful how you deal with this. You don’t want to get into a legal fight; you’ve got your own secrets to hide. Like how you’re going to pay for it. And they’ll want to know where your funds have come from to make sure they’re not being paid in laundered money. And diamonds from a tax haven in the Caribbean will not sound good,’ Claire said.
‘You’re being negative. I don’t want to hear that – the end of my lease is close, and I don’t have much time left.’
‘I know it’s difficult for you, but be patient for a couple more days.’
‘Yeah, you’ve said that before. But where are we now?’
‘Calm yourself. Raising your voice to me is not going to help you,’ Claire said.
‘Get me Josh. Get me that diamond. I’m going to frighten him so he runs to his mother.’
Stone’s voice trailed off; he had not meant to shout at Claire. She was right about his money – it was tainted, laundered to a far-off island in the Caribbean. And trading diamonds, no, that would not sound good either.
As he hauled himself from the deep sofa, he eased his back slowly as he stood. At the front door and then the rear door, he tested the heavy bolts that held them securely. He was never going to move away from Marine House, and if Lady Ruth thought she could take it with her aloofness and contempt, it wouldn’t work. He would let the Jackson family stew for a few more days. And this was a place to squat and relish the rage from that tribe that would be fired at him.
85
Anxious that everything as she had known it was fast running away from her, this morning Claire drove at speed. Just before mid-afternoon, as Claire weaved down the small lane, her nostalgia for Arrow Hall returned. It was the old iron gates that had made the entrance to the first Arrow Hall that set it off. They were always there, wide open, shrouded in a green canopy of moss and with a large bush growing through one side. This part of Arrow Hall had never changed, and it was Claire’s hope that she would never see those gates moved from their open welcome. But as she entered the site, Claire quickly reminded herself that she had to move on from all that.
There was only one contractor’s vehicle parked on the grass; the cabin door was closed; and Claire held the new keys tightly in her hand. She walked to the half-finished building, through the front door to what would be the entrance hall and then straight into the morning room which had been Stone’s study. But this time it was different; Harry Stone would never again sit at his desk in this spacious room, often his voice raised on the phone.
Inside, building work had not yet reached the first floor, so it was not possible to see through the rooms that had once been her flat in the west wing of Arrow Hall. Someday, this place would be free from the clutter and noise of building work, but Claire stood and gazed for a minute, saddened that she would never be here to finish what she had started so eagerly just a few weeks ago.
She walked quickly to the cabin. Inside, James’s laptop, papers and drawings were still on the table, gathering inevitable dust. It even felt mouldy and damp in this cramped place, but it was ready for a fresh start just as she had left it. As she watched from the cabin, waiting for Rick, tension returned, tightening the frown lines on her face. A few minutes later, Rick, dressed casually in a fresh, deep-blue, short-sleeved shirt, came into the cabin. He looked as sophisticated as she had always known him. The difference between seeing James and Rick in this small space was stark. Rick kissed her on her cheek as she tried to avoid looking at his eyes.
‘Claire, it’s good to see you again. I feel I’ve been away a long time.’
‘Yes, Rick. You’ve been away five and a half weeks, and in that time, I’ve barely had three calls or even texts from you. And each time you did call you were too busy to listen. So, what’s going on?’
‘I don’t want to talk about New Zealand now.’
‘Have you thought about Arrow Hall at all while you were away?’
‘Only when we’ve spoken, which hasn’t been easy, I know. But, Claire, first, before anything else, I need to say sorry about being so sharp the other day. I was very travel weary, and I should not have spoken like that. Please forgive me,’ Rick said.
There was a pause and Claire looked down to the floor.
‘I need to see Arrow Hall finished. Urgently. So where are we on the rebuild? How much have you spent so far?’ Rick shot the question quickly at Claire.
‘Over £300,000, but looking at the original tenders for the work still to be done, it’s going to take double. And maybe more to get the gardens landscaped and the old moat reseeded to make it look green again. I’ve printed a detailed list of exactly what has been spent, and I’ve tidied the papers – they’re all in here. The surveyor you send to replace James will soon follow the trail of where we are.’
‘The site looks derelict, abandoned. So where are all the contractors?’
‘It’s James, you appointed him to run the site. He’s too arrogant. He lost control and none of the builders would work with him. Some just walked off; he was lucky not to have a brick thrown at his face, and when it got serious, he had a knife flashed over his back. I sacked James two days ago. And when you’ve got time to listen, I’ll tell you what he was up to.’
‘Claire, please, I’ve always got time to listen,’ Rick said.
‘Did you ever check James out before you let him onto the site?’
‘I had no reason to.’
‘I wonder how much he’s creamed off working for you on other sites. Nothing sophisticated, just fake bills from a carpenter that doesn’t even exist. Invoices that don’t add up, invoices signed off for payment twice. Shady bank accounts to receive all this money. Why you gave him £15,000 in cash I can’t imagine. I was never able to get from him where even one penny had gone.’
‘You are scathing, so let’s have it. Who else was in on this?’
‘Probably a contractor or two on the site, probably the one who knifed James, and then there was Harry Stone, you remember him?’
‘How could I forget. That man must have seen you coming.’
‘He says he should have held out for a bigger price when he sold the site to you. This little trick was his way of making up for it.’
‘What’s the total that went missing? How much are we talking about?
‘Just a penny or two short of £120,000.’
‘Wasn’t it missed before it got to that enormous sum?’
‘Rick, I didn’t miss anything. I found what was going on; I’ve confronted James and Harry Stone. And Harry has repaid you £60,000 and sent £60,000 to Plaistow Children’s Hospice, a charity he supports. It’s finished. And so is James.’
‘I think we should go to the police with this,’ Rick said.
‘Harry Stone is dying. He only has a short time to live. Prostate cancer. Going to the police is not going to do much good. And, Rick, the clear-out of Arrow Hall is complete, ready for you to do what you want with the place.’
‘I’m not having Harry Stone tell me which charity he wants to send my money to, so go and tell him I want the £60,000 back.’
‘Rick, I’ve told you he’s dying. Please let’s move on,’ Claire shouted.
‘I come home to find this place spinning out of control. And I only bought the derelict building because I thought you loved Arrow Hall.’
‘You bury yourself in New Zealand on a vanity project; we don’t talk for several weeks; and then all you do is criticise when what I needed was for you to listen. Rick, that’s not good enough.’
‘I can’t let it go on like this, you know that, Claire.’
Rick quickly shuffled some of the papers on the desk as if he wanted to hide something.
‘I know this is not what we set out to do here. But I’m needing to sell Arrow Hall. I’ve got to raise some money quickly. And quite a big sum.’
Claire knew those words were coming. They had never really been hidden. Her tenseness again tightened the frown lines on her forehead.
‘In the past few weeks, I’ve cleared up an undercover fraud, seen fights on the site with large knives slicing at James and all I get now is that you’re going to sell the place.’
Claire’s anger at this whole debacle was growing. She turned away.
‘Please, Claire, I had something planned if only you would stay and listen to me.’
‘No. It’s final. If you’re going to sell, then I’m finished with it. All I can say now is goodbye. I never wanted it to finish this way. I’ve rented my own apartment, and I’ve cleared everything out from your place – I’ve moved out. I won’t be back. And thank you for the good times. There have been many, Rick, and…’ Claire struggled to finish.
The keys to the cabin and the large metal industrial gates jangled as she put them on the table. She turned and walked quickly from the small, enclosed space. There was nothing more she wanted to hear from Rick that would make the break easier. And Claire did not wait to listen.
86
Standing on the top step to Marine House, Stone leant down to inspect the repair which the carpenter had just finished to the front door. It had not even been painted yet and, grudgingly, he handed over £300 in notes for what he saw as an expensive piece of wood for two panels and for boarding up the broken window in the sitting room until it could be reglazed.
He closed the front door without looking along the road for the thug who had loitered menacingly around Marine House. Even handing over Xavier’s demand, with a knife flashing in his face, would never leave this place secure from the heroin addicts who would do anything for a payday.
He walked down the wide hallway and into the sitting room where he poured a whisky. Today his pain was never far away; it was showing in the lines of his thin face. The hurt in his back was very intrusive; Nurse Carol had called earlier that morning with his medication, but it was slow to work and there was little he could do to get comfortable.
