by Stan Mason
‘Don’t get clever with me!’ she fumed. ‘Don’t ever try to get clever with me!’
He put on a boyish expression which looked odd in his swollen face, his one eye pleading like a cocker spaniel. ‘I think we started off on the wrong foot. Can we please begin again?’
She tucked her handkerchief into her sleeve and rose from her seat. ‘I know all about young men like you!’ she snapped coldly. ‘You’re one of life’s selfish creatures, breezing in and out of other people’s lives for your own benefit. Careless... unfeeling!’ She stormed out of the room slamming the door behind her, leaving him with a wry grin on his battered face.
Later that day, Ivan left the office to return to Elsie. She wasn’t at home so he scribbled a message on a pad explaining about the late appointment. Then he left the house and went to a shop where he bought two pairs of ladies stockings.
‘You were lucky to be treated to dinner,’ remarked Teddy after they had left the restaurant. ‘Mr. James rang me earlier to say there was a glitch with the arrangements and that he wasn’t going to bring the client to dine with us. He asked that you stay on at my apartment in case the situation changes. He wouldn’t take it kindly if you went home and he turned up with the client later.’
He nodded without replying and they continued onwards to her apartment. After removing his outer clothing, he spread himself into a comfortable armchair while Teddy disappeared into the bedroom. The room was spacious, well-furnished and handsomely decorated. He wondered how a secretary in a tiny mining consultancy firm could afford such luxury. When she reappeared, she was wearing a blue chiffon dress pulled tightly at the waist which sported a very low neckline.
‘You look like a princess,’ he commented with admiration.
She sat on the settee ostensibly unaffected by his comment. ‘If you want a drink, you’d better help yourself,’ she suggested.
He wandered over to the cocktail bar and poured himself a glass of whisky, splashing the drink with soda from the syphon.
‘Quite a place for a secretary,’ he remarked, waving the glass in front of him to emphasise the comment. ‘By the way, I bought you a present.’ He put down the glass on the coffee table in front of him and went to his overcoat, pulling a package from one of the pockets. He removed the packaging to reveal the stockings. ‘Now we can really show off your lovely legs.’
‘There’s one thing I want to make crystal clear,’ she told him icily and ungratefully. ‘I never mix business with pleasure!’
The atmosphere between them remained frigid. It had started out that way in the office and continued relentlessly during the evening. Each time that he ventured to make a compliment or showed some personal interest in her, she either turned on him savagely or treated him with contempt. An hour passed by and James did not appear. They drank cups of coffee, watched programmes on television and then drank more coffee. Eventually, Ivan dozed off in the warmth and fell asleep for a while before waking to a strange low moaning sound. The room was in darkness, except for the glow from the simulated coals in front of the electric heater in the hearth. Teddy appeared to be asleep on the floor. She had started by sitting on the lamb’s wool hearthrug with a base of the settee supporting her back but she had rolled to one side to lay in a prone position. The hem of her dress had ridden up to the top of her thigh and Ivan moved off the armchair to lay beside her, gently muzzling at her ear. She made no movement at all as he slid his hand smoothly behind her and gently unzipped her dress down to the waist. Inch by inch, he slipped the dress off her shoulders to realise that she was wearing nothing underneath. As he stared in the glow at her nakedness, his upper lip trembled spasmodically as passion swept through him. He tenderly caressed the erotic parts of her body failing to produce anything but variations to the tone of her breathing. After a short while, he became more aroused. He undid his trousers and lifted up her dress to discover that she was totally naked underneath. Running his hands over her breasts gently, stroking her nipple to raise her sexual excitement, he rolled over to stimulate the rest of her body with his hands, touching her sensitively between her legs. His finger worked like a butterfly on her vagina and she actually moved her body up and down with his fingers deeply inside her. However before he could progress to the next stage of total intimacy, she groaned, heaved, convulsed and went limp beneath him. Then, satisfied sexually, even though no serious intimacy had taken place, she opened her eyes, adjusting her vision to the dim light, and stared at his partial nakedness in a pretended state of shock.
‘What do you think you’re doing?’ she screamed at him indignantly in mock annoyance. ‘You filthy beast!’ She gathered up her dress, covering her body quickly, before turning on him in fury and shrieking. ‘Get out! Get out!’
He was stunned for a moment until she began raining blows on him with her free hand. Without delay, he fastened his trousers and scampered out of the apartment unaware that as soon as the door had closed behind him, Teddy let the dress fall to the floor with a smile touching the corners of her mouth. She went calmly into the bathroom and began to sing a popular song, pleased with herself that she hadn’t succumbed to his animal advances. The brute had taken advantage of her when she was asleep... but what could she do about that? Fortunately she had come to a sexual climax before he penetrated her body. Ivan on the other hand was angry for allowing himself to become duped. If there was to be any kind of relationship with the woman, he would have to familiarise himself with the rules of the games she liked to play. He strolled along the pavement, haunted by the prospect that he would have to spend the night with Elsie. It was far more comfortable in Teddy’s apartment. The incident of what had happened replayed in his mind and he soon began to see the amusing side of it. Teddy had trapped him like a bird of prey catching its quarry. She had extinguished all the lights in the room to create an atmosphere and ore absolutely nothing under her dress. She knew how much he liked her... how much he wanted her... and released low moaning sounds to wake him up so that he could make love to her. However it was always her intention to make him feel guilty and embarrassed for what he had done to her even though she had contrived for it to happen. It was a very strange way to carry on!
***
Elsie was waiting up for him when he returned home. She had failed to shrug off her concern for his welfare and couldn’t sleep without him. ‘Where have you been?’ she demanded fervently as he entered.
He surveyed the dingy slum with distaste. In comparison with the apartment, it was a transition from Paradise to Purgatory. ‘I had to meet a client,’ he told her. ‘Didn’t you read my note?’
She sat at the table , her face white and drawn. ‘You wrote it in Russian!’ she complained. ‘You don’t love me any more, do you?’ she wailed. ‘You took all my money and now you don’t want me.’
‘Pull yourself together, woman!’ he shouted unsympathetically. She continued to weep as his words brought her little comfort, whimpering loudly until the noise began to irritate him. ‘I’m sick and fed up with this dirty hovel!’ he went on angrily. ‘And I’m sick of this miserable, low-class, third-rate life! I want something better! I deserve something better!’
‘You’re a selfish bastard!’ she accused harshly. ‘Selfish... selfish.’ Rising quickly, she hurried into the bedroom and lay distraught on the bed after slamming the door behind her.
Ivan shrugged carelessly. The effects of the day were beginning to fatigue him and he came to the conclusion that it was time to leave Elsie for good. He cast off the pain to his ribs and went into the bedroom after her. ‘It’s not working out, is it?’ he said softly.
‘It’s not my fault,’ she replied tearfully. Her chest heaving between sobs. ‘I’m doing everything I can to please you.’
‘I know you do,’ he said gratefully. ‘But things have changed. We just don’t get on any more.’
‘We do... we do!’ she bleated in an effort to save
the situation.
‘Don’t make it harder, Elsie!’
She sat up on the bed. ‘Don’t leave me, Ivan! Please don’t. I’ll do anything you want... anything!’ She moved forward and clutched at his body in a panic.
He tried to pull himself free but she gripped him so hard that pain rifled through his body. ‘Elsie!’ he called out squirming from his injuries. ‘Let me go!’
They stood up swaying forwards and backwards together until he managed to loosen one hand which he swung savagely to strike her across the face. It had the effect of stopping her in her tracks and she released him.
‘You lousy swine!’ she swore. ‘I suppose you’ve found some worthless tart who’s snapping her fingers at you.’
‘My dear woman,’ he responded trying to catch his breath. ‘Not only that but I have a new-born son as well.’ She reached for a chair and sat down tiredly. He placed his hand on her shoulder but she remained as cold and still as a plaster statue. ‘I’ll come tomorrow to collect my things,’ he told her quietly. He left the house closing the front door behind him. For some weeks, he had relished the thought of ending their relationship but, now that it had been completed, the euphoria seemed sterile and flat. He gave a backward glance at the old house knowing that he would return there only one more time. Only one more time!
He arrived at Teddy’s apartment a little while later and pressed the doorbell. There was no reply so he rang it again. This time he heard footsteps in the hallway and she opened the front door to stare at him coldly.
‘I’ve nowhere to stay the night,’ he pleaded, ‘and you’re the only person who can help me.’
‘Go away before I call the police,’ she hissed.
He opened his mouth to speak again but the door was slammed in his face. For a moment he didn’t move, then he shrugged his shoulders and walked slowly away. The sudden change in his life was not proving beneficial. All the avenues were beginning to close behind him. It had been a long time since he had slept in the old hut on an island in the lake. The problem was climbing the damned railing with the barbed wire fixed to the top! However if he was going to sleep anywhere that night, he would have to risk it!
Chapter Ten
An unusual twist of fate occurred in Sadler’s office at the bank a few days later. Out of the blue, James, who was a customer at the branch, made an appointment to see the bank manager. His purpose was to seek funds to purchase the Botallack mine. Sadler had already made two errors. The first mistake occurred with regard to the entries on his appointment list that day in the presence of the sharp-witted Phyllis Roberts who asked him if he wanted to see some details of the Botallack mine before the interview. Without thinking clearly, he told her that he knew a little of the history of the mine and its location which drew a long, hard and thoughtful stare from the inquisitive woman. He clasped his hands in front of him as if in prayer, wishing that he had the foresight to allow her to pursue her enquiries, but was too late to retried the situation. Almost she would make enquiries of her own to satisfy herself... but she would never forget that he knew all about the mine! The second mistake was one of deceit. When the mining consultant arrived, the banker received him without declaring a conflict of interest and he played falsely to the man, pretending that he knew nothing about the mine. James walked into the lion’s den relating his request honestly and fairly, completely unaware of the intention or the involvement of the banker with regard to the mine.
‘I want to raise a loan to buy Botallack,’ advanced James. ‘The mine was owned by my family for sixty years. They leased it to certain parties at the end of the last century. It closed in 1914 but no trace can be found of the deeds. Someone else is trying to buy it at present but I claim it belongs to my family. As such I intend to take legal action through the Stannary Court.
The bankers eyes gleamed at the prospect. What a wonderful situation prevailed! He would be splitting the share capital fifty/fifty with Morris. The challenge by the mining consultant would not necessarily affect the process... not if they offered a percentage of the shares to him. It would, at the same time, reduce the cost that Sadler had to find to buy it. Additionally, he pondered on the idea of cutting Morris out of the picture entirely by offering James fifty per cent of the shares if the man was willing to put up half the money. The other problem which flashed through his mind was that he lacked the knowledge of the power and disposition of the Stannary Court. Little was known about it at the branch because no mining companies had accounts with the bank. Stannary law matters tended to relate to ancient laws which no longer had any effect, having been replaced by modern laws. Although miners believed that the Stannary laws still existed they had no legal powers. The bank’s research department would help him to find out more about the subject. In the meantime, a diplomatic approach was required to determine whether he could strike a bargain with the customer concerning a share in the mine.
‘If a loan was granted,’ he began seriously, ‘ how would you repay it?’
The mining consultant had not prepared his case with sufficient thoroughness to be able to respond satisfactorily to the question. ‘I intend to work the mine for tin,’ he replied lamely.
‘You clearly know that the mine closed many times before because of the cyclical price of tin. Subsequently, it may not make a profit. You have no control over it viability. I suggest your intended investment may be coloured by your desire to retrieve a family heirloom.’
James appeared somewhat embarrassed by the comment which was clearly true but he did not waver. ‘I’m a mining consultant!’ he retorted confidently. ‘If anyone can find minerals of commercial value at Botallack, I’m the one to do it. I also know some fine professional people capable of managing and running the mine for me. Don’t forget there’s copper and arsenic there too apart from other kinds of quartz. It may even be possible to extract quartz in different shapes and sizes to sell to retailers.’
‘The bank prefers to view applications with a planned programme of operations,’ returned Sadler coldly. ‘Your presentation, if I may be so bold, is rather flimsy. You have a dubious case to be heard in Stannary Court. It’s not very solid, is it?’
‘I’m only asking for the loan in principle until the decision of the Stannary Court goes in my favour. I want to be certain I have the funds available for the mine and the equipment required.’
‘What period of time are we talking about?’ asked the bank manager.
‘Anything between three to six months.’
‘You’ll need a rational business plan with a cash-flow forecast and proof that the mine will be profitable within five years. I sympathise that you want to take control of the mine back for your family but it has to be viable.’ He paused for a moment to introduce his plan. ‘However there is an alternative. I know a group of businessmen looking for an investment in a good mine. They would put up a great deal of the money which wouldn’t need to be repaid.’
The mining consultant shifted uneasily in his chair. ‘What stake would they require?’
It was the banker’s turn to think hard. He almost made the mistake of saying fifty per cent, equating the deal struck with Morris. Then ambition and greed overtook him and he decided to go the whole hog. ‘The group requires one hundred per cent leaving you to manage the mind and take a salary according to the profits.’
James turned up his nose at the idea as expected. ‘Not worth my while,’ he sniffed distastefully. ‘Why should I trouble to make a group of rich businessmen even richer by my efforts?’
Sadler nodded slowly. ‘Let me see what I can do,’ he suggested. ‘It’s all up for grabs with the right negotiations. ‘How would you feel about twenty per cent?’
The mining consultant shrugged his shoulders. ‘I might go for that if the price is right,’ he returned, ‘but it wouldn’t stop me from progressing through the Stannary Court.’
‘Of course no
t,’ echoed Sadler meaninglessly.
‘I would also require a special option if I accepted those terms. I’d want a clause written into the sale that after five years I have the option of buying the rest of the shares at double the price paid for them originally.’
‘My... you’re very confident of making a profit. Haven’t you considered the risk?’
‘There’s only one risk at the start, Mr. Sadler. First buy your mine!
Sadler stared at the other man’s face closely and smiled. The situation was bizarre. Two men were facing each other across a desk, both fighting for an investment in the same mine for entirely different reasons. The banker was willing to risk imprisonment to grasp the riches he hoped that the mine would provide. James was willing to become debt-ridden for the sake of family honour. The banker dithered for a moment as his loyalties began to change. In the cold light of day, the deal with the mining consultant was far better than the one struck with Morris. He could send Baker to London to negotiate a contract with the mandarins at Whitehall. The problem was to find a means by which he could wrest the mine away from the fat man For a moment, he considered offering Hunkin a higher price for the mine although he knew it wasn’t possible because the debt was a matter of honour.. How ridiculous! A debt of honour resulting from a poker game... but that’s how it stood!
‘What are the chances of getting hold of the deeds of the mine.’ advanced Sadler trying a new tack, although he knew that if they were found he would be out of the picture entirely.
‘Not a chance,’ declared James, shaking his head slowly. ‘It would be helpful if we could find one of the leases. One started in 1895 and ended in1914 at the start of the First World War. Miners were turned into soldiers to fight in Europe.
‘Pity!’ uttered the banker drumming his fingers on the desk. ‘Would you have any objections to partners in the venture?’
‘I’d rather own the mine outright but beggars can’t be choosers. I’ll take anything I can get.’