He seemed to sigh, and his shoulders looked heavy, as though the world was pressing down on them.
‘It concerns you,’ he said. ‘Some of it, at least.’ He thought for a moment, his brows drawn in a frown. ‘I think I’d better tell you everything, but I must ask you to keep it to yourself for now. Absolute discretion. Can I trust you?’
‘Yes,’ she said, and meant so much more than he had asked.
He sat down opposite her, gathered his thoughts, and said, ‘You may remember I said to you once that the estate ought to be doing better than it was.’
‘I remember,’ she said.
‘I’ve been looking into the books of the estate and the factory. I really should have been much more hands-on than I have been lately, but with my firm in London taking up my time – and then, of course, I trusted Phil Kingdon. Jack’s nominally in charge of the factory, but I’ve always been realistic about how much he really knows, or notices, about the day-to-day running.’
‘You’ve found something wrong?’ she asked, to help him along.
‘Yes,’ he said. ‘I’ve found serious anomalies. Money going missing. Profits misstated, expenses double entered. I think – this is why I have to ask you to keep it to yourself – that there may be criminal action taken.’
‘Against—?’
He met her eyes, and saw she had guessed. ‘Yes, against Phil Kingdon. Did you know something?’
She shook her head. ‘Sheerest woman’s instinct – I just didn’t like him.’
‘Camilla did,’ he said tiredly.
‘No, she didn’t,’ Kate said quickly. ‘She just found him useful.’
‘Very useful,’ Ed said. ‘You may have heard she sold several pictures out of the house to give herself more pocket money. In fact, she sold them to Phil, or through him. He told her he’d find a buyer, but of course a large part of the funds went into his pocket. One of the things I’ve been doing on the computer is tracing them so I could match what was paid for them and what she ended up with. There is a large discrepancy.’
‘Oh dear,’ Kate said. ‘But I’m sure she didn’t know – I mean, she’s not in league with him or anything. She really doesn’t like him.’
‘I believe you,’ Ed said. ‘I might not have yesterday, but today – the woman who values Harry Mainwaring properly can’t be all bad.’
‘I’m glad you think so,’ Kate said. ‘But you said it concerned me?’
‘It was Phil who suggested to Camilla she sell Little’s to get hold of some more cash.’
‘Yes, she told me,’ Kate said. ‘She said he was annoyed that she sold it on the market, that he’d meant her to sell it to him.’
‘Yes,’ he said. ‘But this went a little further than him taking a slice of the price. Which is why, once he found you’d bought it, he was so anxious to get you out.’
‘So it was him at the bottom of those incidents!’ Kate exclaimed. ‘But why did he want to get hold of Little’s? It’s not much of a cottage. Unless it was the five acres? But I can’t think what use those would be.’
Ed looked grim. ‘You come very neatly to the point. Those five acres are right in the middle of Lar Common, and the only flat part of it.’
‘I did notice that.’
‘Ideal for the erection of wind turbines,’ Ed concluded.
Kate looked aghast. ‘Wind turbines?’ She stared, visualizing it. ‘But that would be a monstrous eyesore! In a place like that? It would simply ruin the place.’
‘Quite, and Phil knew I would never agree to it. Hence the urgency of getting Camilla to sell it to him. He’d met up with Tony Rylance – who, I’ve discovered from my Google searches, is very much involved in developing wind farms – and talked with him about viable sites. The money involved would have come in quite handy. You could get five turbines on that piece of land, which would mean an income for the landowner of around two hundred thousand pounds a year.’
‘Two h—?’ Kate was flabbergasted.
‘Index-linked.’ Ed shrugged. ‘The developer would be making one point two, one point three million a year.’
‘I had no idea,’ Kate said slowly. ‘No wonder people are willing to have them on their land. But surely,’ she thought suddenly, ‘you would never get planning permission, in the middle of a National Park?’
He shook his head, and she saw the greyness of betrayal in his face. ‘You can always get permission for wind farms. The government is committed to them. Part of their green policy, cutting carbon emissions and so on. They simply override any local objections, and any other legislation or protections.’
‘It’s monstrous!’ she exclaimed hotly.
He shrugged. ‘It’s a political commitment, and politics trumps people every time.’
There was a silence while she thought angry thoughts. He said after a pause, ‘The one good thing is that you were never in any personal danger.’
‘How come?’
‘I mean he couldn’t kill you, or the property would have gone to your next of kin and he’d have lost his chance. The only way was to scare you into selling privately to him.’
‘Yes, I see.’
‘To which end, he persuaded Jack to befriend you. I’m sorry.’
‘Oh,’ said Kate.
Ed watched her face. ‘In his defence, I’m sure he liked you anyway. Especially as you’d saved Chewy. I mean, knowing Jack, it probably would have happened anyway.’
‘He’d have a crack at any new female in the area,’ she said wryly.
‘I didn’t say that.’
‘But that’s what you meant.’
‘But look here, it wouldn’t have worked if you hadn’t been who you are, and if we hadn’t all liked you so much. You’ve become so much a part of the household these last couple of weeks – in an ironic sort of way, you’ve been doing Phil’s work for him.’
‘Very ironic,’ she said. ‘But it didn’t work, did it, because in the end I offered to sell it to you, not him.’
‘Yes,’ said Ed, and his face became very still. ‘Which was why I didn’t accept your offer when you made it. Why I asked you to hold on. I already had an idea about where this was leading, but I wanted to get the whole story first.’
‘Why?’ Kate asked bluntly.
‘Because, don’t you see, you could now do the deal with Rylance. He won’t care that you’re not Phil. You could go ahead with the turbines and collect the income.’
‘But—’ She was shocked into silence. It was an immense sum of money. As an income, it would mean she would never have to work again. She could buy herself another place, anywhere she wanted. Live the high life. My God, that was a return on Gaga’s investment all right!
Ed was watching her face, as if he could read all the thoughts passing through her head in a fevered rush. She stared, realizing what he had done. He could have taken the chance she offered, bought back the land leaving her in ignorance, but he had not. He had told her the whole story, placed himself and everything he valued in her hands.
It would break his heart if they built turbines on the Blackmore Estate, despoiled this area of such great natural beauty, ruined what his father had left to him and what he had struggled so valiantly to preserve. She knew, without having to ask, that if she had sold it to him, he would not do the deal with Rylance. Two hundred thousand a year – index linked – would make all the difference to the estate. It would take the struggle out of all their lives. He could do all the things he had long wanted to do. But he would never do it. She knew that as surely as she knew her own name.
‘You told me,’ said she at last. ‘You hardly know me, but you trusted me.’
‘I know you,’ he said. He added in a low voice, ‘I know you better than I’ve known anyone in ten years – maybe ever.’
‘But,’ she protested wildly, ‘it’s a huge amount of money! How could you be sure I wouldn’t take it? Anyone would be mad not to take it! God, I don’t know even now if I can really turn my back on it – I mean, really?�
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‘If you’d wanted to take it, we wouldn’t be having this conversation,’ he said; and she saw that, somehow, something she had said had reassured him. He looked happy, happier than she had ever seen him. ‘It’s an appalling thing to ask, and if I had to ask, I couldn’t do it. The only thing that beats money is love, and you love this place. I know that now.’
‘I do,’ she said, low and painfully. Because she’d just remembered that she was not going to be staying here. She would be selling up and going away. It made it all the more imperative that she sold to Ed and no-one else. ‘I’m glad I’ll be able to trust you to do the right thing,’ she said, and the words were pulled out of her with pain. ‘You will buy Little’s, won’t you? I want it to be safe.’
‘If you want to sell. But do you really want to go back to London?’
‘No,’ she said. ‘Not really. Not at all. I want to stay here. But –’ she gave a snort of ironic laughter – ‘if I give up an income of two hundred thousand a year, how can I?’
‘I know what a fortune like that could mean to you,’ he said. ‘I could never make it up to you, not in money terms. But love does beat money – don’t you think?’
‘Love?’ she said falteringly. The expression on his face suggested he wasn’t talking about love of the land any more.
He slipped off the chair he was sitting in, and sat down on the sofa next to her. She could feel the heat of his big body as though he were a radiator. His adored face was close; she could smell the scent of his skin, which seemed to be something she had always known. She looked at his mouth, and felt faint.
‘I can’t offer you a fortune,’ he said, ‘but I could offer you this: a share in a great estate. Now the parasite’s been removed, I mean to make it great again.’ He took her hands. She felt how cold hers were as his strong warm ones engulfed them. ‘I have that to offer you, if you could think it was enough. We could work together – it could be our life, building up the estate for the next generation. And all the generations.’
‘That’s a life’s work,’ she said faintly. ‘And it’s quite a fortune to offer. But – but you haven’t said …’
She looked anxiously into his eyes, and he understood her. ‘I was afraid you might not feel the same. But I’ve been in love with you since the first moment I saw you.’
‘When you thought I was a boy,’ she reminded him, humour returning with the hot blood that was suddenly coursing through her.
‘All right, the second moment I saw you,’ he corrected, getting his humour back too. ‘But first there was Jack, then there was Addison, and everything was muddled up, and—’
‘A comedy of errors, in fact,’ she concluded.
‘And now you haven’t said it,’ he pointed out urgently.
‘Oh yes,’ she said. ‘I’ve been in love with you, too, all along. But first there was Jack, and then there was Addison …’
He pressed her hands. ‘I know it’s rather sudden, but – will you marry me?’
She didn’t need to think. ‘Oh, yes,’ she said. ‘I love you. And I can’t think of anything more wonderful than to share the estate with you and bring it back to glory.’
And then the impossibly wonderful thing was happening, and she was kissing him; and it was just as blissful as she had never allowed herself to imagine. It went on for a gloriously long time, not even interrupted by the dogs rushing into the room and shoving their noses between them to find out what was happening.
When she hobbled down to dinner that evening, she was walking on air and a winged walking-stick. Apart from her own euphoria, it was good to know she was going to give so much pleasure to so many people. Gaga, who would simply love the whole thing – what a return on her investment! Jess and Lauren – to go from scraping the crud off a tatty old cottage to being lady of the manor would seem like real progress to them. She’d be able to have them to stay! Kay and Darren – Kay would be ecstatic, though Dommie might not approve – he might throw her out of the Power Rangers. Jocasta – she was pretty sure Jocasta would be thrilled, and she’d be in a good position to lobby for her for Comyns. Mrs B – no more fear of mung beans, spelt flour and low-fat spread …
Thinking happy thoughts, she reached ground level and found Jack alone in the drawing room, looking like a dog with his ears down.
‘I understand Ed’s told you about my ignominious part in this,’ he said.
‘That you pursued me on Phil Kingdon’s instruction?’ she said sternly.
‘I’m sorry. I’m really sorry. But, you know, it wasn’t anything I wouldn’t have done anyway. I meant everything I ever said to you. You are a gorgeous girl, and I really, really like you.’
‘I like you, too. And I forgive you.’
‘This whole scam – Phil Kingdon – everything,’ he went on, determined to get all the scourging out of the way at once, ‘Ed’s told you? It was him all along. Ed said we shouldn’t talk about it until we know if it’s a police case, but I want you to know I didn’t know anything about it.’
‘I believe you,’ Kate said. ‘Let’s drop the subject. There’s some happier news now, isn’t there? We should be celebrating.’
‘You mean about Camilla? Or about me?’
‘I meant Camilla and Harry. I think it’s wonderful.’
‘So do I. He’ll take up her slack all right. She’ll be much happier married again, especially to him.’
‘But what’s this about you? What’s happened?’
‘Flick and I – she’s agreed to give me another chance.’
‘Oh, that’s wonderful!’ Kate cried. ‘You looked so happy together at Buscombe. Like a family.’
‘It’ll be great for Theo if we can make a go of it. Of course, we’ll probably quarrel like stink, but it’ll be worth it. We’re going to take it very slowly at first. She wants me to court her – take her on proper dates.’
‘Every woman deserves that.’
‘I must say, I’m quite looking forward to it. It’ll be – kind of sexy, pretending I don’t know her,’ he said, grinning. ‘Trying to get into a strange woman’s pants – it’s what I do best.’
‘Yes, but you do know there’s to be no more of that: strange women’s pants? Not if you want it to work?’
‘Of course I do – what do you take me for?’ he said indignantly. ‘Actually, I’d already got tired of all the totty – the empty bits of fluff. I have you to thank for that, partly.’
‘Me?’
‘You reminded me what an intelligent companion was like – someone you feel at ease with, someone you can talk about anything to.’ He laid a hand on her forearm. ‘I’m sorry it didn’t work out for us. But I’m really glad about getting back with Flick.’
‘I’m glad too,’ Kate said. ‘So, is that all?’
‘All what?’
‘No other happy news?’
‘Isn’t it enough?’ Jack said, puzzled.
‘You mean, Ed hasn’t told you?’
‘Ed hasn’t told me what?’ Jack asked patiently. Ed came into the room at that moment, carrying a bottle of champagne and glasses on a tray. Jack turned to him. ‘What haven’t you told me, big bro?’
‘I was waiting until we were all together,’ Ed said. He looked across the room and met Kate’s eyes, and her knees went weak; because now, at last, she saw what he looked like when he really smiled, and it was sensational!
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