Rebecca reached over and touched Brenda’s arm gently.
‘Brenda, it’s here. This is the fantastic place with the wonderful caring staff where I want Gwen to stay.’
Brenda stared at her as though she had lost her mind and then glanced down at the brandy sitting untouched in front of them both.
‘Rebecca,’ she started gently,’ I thought that you understood…’
‘You remember that I won the lottery?’
‘What? Well yes but I…’
‘Brenda, I am going to buy Parklands. I’m going to buy the house and the business. I want you to stay on as manager, I won’t be getting involved. Well that’s not quite true. My bank manager has suggested all sorts of ways that we could improve the business and….’ she stopped.
That could all wait. Brenda was staring at her in disbelief.
‘I’m buying Parklands Brenda. Lock stock and barrel. Nobody needs to leave. Dotty and the others, we’ll do them a special deal, set up some sort of sponsorship scheme. They can all stay Brenda. As can you. Will you stay Brenda? Will you stay and run Parklands for me?’
She could see the tears start to gather in the corners of Brenda Wendover’s eyes.
‘Are you serious Rebecca? Are you really going to buy Parklands?’
Rebecca nodded. She grinned from ear to ear and nodded.
‘Oh!’ Brenda’s hand flew to her chest and for a moment Rebecca thought that it had all been too much for her. ‘Oh, I can’t believe it. That’s just too perfect. I can’t…’
Rebecca pushed the brandy in her direction.
‘It’s going to happen Brenda. Parklands is saved and we are going to keep it just as it always has been - with a few improvements of course.’
With a shaking hand Brenda picked up the brandy glass and raised it in Rebecca’s direction. Rebecca picked up her own and gently they clinked glasses.
I don’t know what to say Rebecca…I don’t...’ She put the glass back down on the desk and clasped her hands together to stop the shaking
‘Thank you Rebecca. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.’
Through the tears she was smiling and Rebecca smiled back.
‘I can’t say how much this means to me…’
Rebecca stopped her. ‘It means a lot to both of us Brenda,’ and they raised their glasses and drank.
The following few hours were like every Christmas and birthday rolled into one. At first no-one could quite grasp the news. The staff repeatedly asked if it was true, the elderly residents looked on in confusion. Then slowly the reality hit them all and one by one they started cheering and whooping and laughing and crying. Many residents phoned relatives to let them know the good news and many of the relatives wanted to speak to Rebecca or Brenda to make sure that there was no mistake. Some residents wanted to say thank you. Several just sat quietly in their favourite chair, smiling happily as they let the relief wash over them. Bottles of champagne left over from Christmas were found and glasses were filled and passed around. Giggles filled the air and the atmosphere was so profoundly different from earlier that day that it seemed to Rebecca as though she had walked into a different place. Gwen sat quietly in her chair, a look of such pride and happiness on her face that Rebecca felt the tears start again. Something of a celebrity, Gwen was getting praise from all sides for having raised such a wonderful daughter and albeit indirectly, being the answer to their prayers. She smiled and let the thanks wash over her as she sat and watched her daughter. Eventually they had a quiet few minutes together.
‘That was a very good thing you did my darling,’ whispered Gwen.
Rebecca took her mother’s hand in her own. ‘I just needed to know you would be okay, you would be happy.’
‘You did all this, spent all this money for me?’
Rebecca thought for a moment. ‘Not just for you,’ she said truthfully, ‘some of it was for me as well,’ and they smiled at each other as they sat holding hands and watching the celebrations unfold.
Hours later, with a slight headache from the glass of champagne and the sheer emotion of the morning, Rebecca made her excuses and left. She’d had another conversation with Brenda Wendover, assuring her that there was no mistake, Rebecca was indeed buying Parklands. She outlined the possibilities that Richard had opened her eyes to, the expansion of the very top floor, the idea of using the large grand reception rooms to hold courses for the elderly, escape days for those generally housebound, Parklands as a weekend or weekly retreat - all manner of improvements and diversions that would make Parklands into a profitable retirement home once more. There was so much to discuss and once Brenda was convinced this was going to happen she joined in with a vengeance, mentioning several ideas she had thought of herself and eventually, giggling like school girls they arranged a formal meeting for a few days’ time when they would sit down and decide the future of Parklands.
Rebecca drove away, smiling and waving cheerfully from the window of her car. But as she pulled out of the driveway the smile disappeared from her face altogether and her heart began to hammer with dread. She drove a little way down the road, pulling in at a layby where she turned off the engine and sat very still, staring out at the countryside to one side of her and the fast moving traffic to the other.
It had to be done. She had come to that conclusion in the early hours of the morning as she tossed and turned and fought her natural inclination to run for the hills and leave all these decisions behind her. It had to be done.
She took out her mobile phone and searched for the number she had entered before she left the house that morning.
‘Hello?’
Rebecca paused. She really did not want to do this.
‘H-hello. Is that Mr White. Tom White?’
‘Yes. Who is this?’
Another long pause. It wasn’t too late. She could put the phone down and go home, lock the door and pretend none of this had ever happened.
‘Hello Mr White. It’s Rebecca. Rebecca Miles.’
Tom White was surprised, Rebecca could hear it in his voice. He was also a gentleman, a kind, elderly man who had never been anything but courteous to her whenever their paths had crossed.
‘Rebecca! Well this is a surprise Rebecca. I haven’t spoken to you in a long, long time. What can I do for you my dear?’
Rebecca’s hand was shaking and the phone was rattling against her cheek. She gripped it more tightly, trying to steady her nerves.
‘I needed to speak to you Mr White…’
‘Oh please Rebecca, call me Tom.’
Always so polite, always so nice.
‘I needed to speak to you Tom. It’s about White’s and the offer Daniel has made.’
There was silence.
‘You see, I don’t know whether you realise this but I won the lottery and Daniel is using the money to buy White’s.’
There was a small chuckle from Tom White.
‘Daniel has offered to buy White’s Rebecca. He hasn’t bought it yet.’
‘Oh I know, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean…’
This was so hard. Rebecca closed her eyes. She could hear the drone of the traffic on the road the soft sound of Tom’s breath on the phone. What did she mean?
‘I understand that he increased the offer a few days ago, offered you personally one million pounds if you would accept?’
‘Yes. He did.’
‘What I needed to say Mr Wh… Tom, is that Daniel is unable to stand by the offer he made to buy White’s. You see, the money he was planning on using is actually mine and I have decided not to …support him in the take-over.’
Tom White said nothing.
Rebecca gripped the phone tightly again. She had to do this. It was hard but she had to do this.
‘The thing is Mr White I don’t think it would be a good idea if Daniel took over White’s. I don’t think it would be good for White’s or the people who work there. I think Daniel is - confused at the moment and he has made a decision based on…’
‘…based on the wrong reasons. The money is mine and I will not let him have what he needs to buy White’s. I understand that he has offered you a substantial amount of money if you will say yes but I’m phoning to ask you to say no to this deal. And if you do I will still pay you the million he promised you.’
Chapter 20
Rebecca stayed in the lay-by for almost an hour after the conversation with Tom White. She could of course just tell Daniel that he couldn't have the money. That she wouldn't let him have the millions he wanted. That she had bought Parklands and his dream of owning White's was over. But her guilt at the way she had handled the whole business of winning made her want to at least try to save Daniel's feelings. If he just thought Tom White had said no then it ended the matter. Even Daniel would understand that he couldn't just keep offering more and more money. He had tried to buy White's and his offer had been turned down. It was time to forget about White's and move on. Whether they could move on together, Rebecca was beginning to seriously doubt but at least he wouldn't have the humiliation of knowing that Rebecca was behind the refusal. He wouldn't ever know that she was so disturbed by his mean spirited nature, his need for revenge and the humiliation of others that she had bribed Tom White to say no to Daniel's latest offer.
Eventually, her head aching with thinking, she pulled out onto the road and headed for home. She wondered if Daniel would be back yet and offered a silent prayer that he was still busy on the golf course. The thought of doing battle with him again left her drained and exhausted. Pulling into the drive her heart sank as she caught sight of another vehicle parked a little way into the entrance, only to realise that it wasn't Daniel's car. Passing them and pulling her own car up to the front door, Rebecca climbed out and walked back down the drive.
‘Can I help you?’ she asked pleasantly as a young man who had been examining a clipboard jumped out and approached her.
‘Hello, you must be Mrs Miles?’
‘Yes, and you are...?’
‘I'm from Homefront Mrs Miles, I'm just here to put up the sign. I won't be two minutes then I'll be out of your hair.’
He smiled, turned away from Rebecca and walked to the back of the estate car.
‘Homefront?’ said Rebecca frowning. ‘I'm sorry, I don't recognise the name.’
‘Homefront,’ echoed the young man opening the boot and letting it swing upwards. ‘The company who are selling your house Mrs Miles.’
He laughed as though it wasn't at all unusual to come across home owners who had forgotten the name of their estate agents and reaching into the back of the car he pulled out a large sign that had emblazoned across the centre FOR SALE.
For a moment Rebecca thought she might actually pass out. The ground suddenly rushed to meet her and the young man's voice drifted off into the distance. She put a steadying hand onto the bonnet of his car and watched as he pulled out a pole.
‘Mr Miles has instructed that the sign needs to go right at the end of the drive, where people will see it clearly.’
He grabbed a hammer.
‘Lovely house,’ he sighed looking enviously down the drive. ‘A lot of people who have this kind of house, you know - excusive kind of a house - they don't always bother with a sign but Mr Miles explained that you were after a quick sale and wanted a sign up pronto.’
He hitched the sign and the pole under one arm and swung the hammer in his other hand. ‘Won't take long Mrs Miles,’ he said cheerfully. ‘I just need to...’
‘Put it back.’
Rebecca's voice was so calm, so reasonable, so low that the young man paused and looked at her questioningly. ‘Sorry, didn't quite catch that...’
‘I said,’ this time Rebecca's voice was like a roll of thunder rushing across the fields to break over their heads, ‘PUT IT BACK!’
The young man stiffened. The hammer stopped swinging and he stood very still, staring at the woman before him who suddenly seemed to have grown several inches.
‘Er, you mean you've changed your mind about the sign?’
Rebecca was walking towards him and instinctively he took a step back. She looked wild, her head held high her eyes blazing.
‘I have not changed my mind about anything. This house is not for sale. This is my house and I do not wish to sell it. Mr Miles has nothing to do with this house, he doesn't decide whether it will be sold, whether it will have a board, he has no say in this house.’
Rebecca was now nose to nose with the young man who took another hasty step backwards.
‘This is MY house. MY HOUSE. MINE. Do I make myself clear?’
The young mad nodded. Rebecca stared at the sign still in his hand and he threw it hastily back into the car.
‘Now will you please take this sign back and tell Homeland or Homefront or whatever it was called, that this house belongs to Rebecca Miles and is not for sale.’
‘Yes ... yes I'll do that right now.’
He threw the pole and the hammer in the boot, wincing as he heard the hammer hit one of the signs.
‘You tell them not to come here again with a sign, a pole or anything to do with the sale of my house.’
‘I'll go now and...’
‘Tell them this is MY HOUSE.’
‘I will, I'll tell them Mrs Miles, I'll tell them right now,’ and with a nervous backwards glance he jumped into the car under the watchful eye of Rebecca and reversed down the driveway to screech out onto the road and disappear.
Rebecca stood motionless, watching the car until it disappeared from view and long after, just in case the young man decided to sneak back and put the sign up anyway. Eventually she turned in the direction of the house, her house, and walked up the drive to the front door. She put her hand on the shiny brass handle and then her legs gave way and a huge sob ripped through her body as she sank onto the stone step and sobbed and sobbed. She just couldn't stop, almost howling as she gave vent to all the frustrations of the last few days. The sobs kept coming, shaking her body as she sat on the cold stone. In the distance she could hear a phone ringing and wondered if she should go inside and answer it but it stopped. It rang again, much nearer and for a moment Rebecca looked around in confusion until she realised that it was the mobile ringing in her bag. Reaching in blindly she pulled it out and pressed the answer button, still unable to stop the sobs that were now erupting involuntarily.
‘Rebecca - is that you? Bec? What's the matter? Oh my God, Rebecca what's happened?’
Rebecca tried to answer Helen but she was beyond speech and shaking her head frantically all she could manage were a few garbled words mixed with yet more huge body wrenching sobs.
‘I'm on my way over Bec. I'm only a few minutes away. I'll be there soon...’
And the phone went dead.
Numbly Rebecca stayed on the step. Her bottom was cold, her back ached, her head throbbed and her face was soaked with tears. She took a couple of deep breaths and managed to control her crying. A couple more and the sobs subsided. A couple more and she felt some control coming back. Just a few more she thought, just a few more breaths. She wiped her face with an old tissue she pulled out of her pocket.
A car screeched into the driveway and raced in Rebecca's direction to skid to a halt. Helen flung open the door and almost fell out in her haste.
‘Rebecca! Oh Rebecca what's happened. Are you all right?’
She was crouched by her friend scanning her body, looking for signs of injury, trauma.
‘What happened?’
Rebecca took another deep breath. ‘There was a man here,’ she started.
‘What!’ Helen jumped upright, ‘did he hurt you? Oh my God shall we call the police, has he gone?’
Rebecca put out a calming hand, although it was shaking badly.
‘No! I don't mean that. He had come from Home something.’
A sigh shuddered through her body and Helen sank back down onto the step to put a comforting arm around her shoulders.
/> ‘He had come to sell the house, well he wasn't selling it, Home something was. He had the sign.’ Rebecca shook her head. ‘Daniel had gone to an estate agent and told them to sell the house, my house. Someone was here to put up a sign when I got back.’
Helen grimaced. ‘Well let's face it Rebecca, it's not the first time he's sold a house from under you and made you move.’
Rebecca gave a snort. She hadn't thought of it like that. ‘I suppose you're right. It's just this time he did tell me he thought we should sell and I said no. He just ignored me and decided to go ahead anyway.’
Did I Mention I Won The Lottery? Page 21