by Amy M. Reade
“Let’s wait,” I suggested. “I have a feeling we’ll know soon enough.”
Indeed, we didn’t have to wait long before we heard a door slam somewhere on an upper floor. We all exchanged glances, then I pushed away from the table. “You two stay down here, out of the line of fire. I’ll see what I can find out.” They nodded and Maisie crossed her fingers.
By the time I reached the drawing room, only the police and Mr. Hadley were left. The family members had already scattered.
“Good afternoon, Eilidh,” Mr. Hadley said, reaching out to shake my hand. He shook his head. “That’s a volatile group you have here.”
I smiled knowingly. “I agree. Is there anything you can tell me about the will?”
“It’s public knowledge now, so I suppose I can tell you that Hugh and Rhisiart are to split the value of the estate with Sian’s unborn baby, one-third each. Andreas would have received a third upon Annabel’s passing, but since he predeceased her Annabel’s wish was that his share of the estate will pass to his child. I believe Sian is to make decisions on behalf of the child until he or she reaches the age of majority.”
“What does that mean for everyone here?”
“It means, of course, that Annabel’s two sons are, shall we say, displeased that they have to share the estate with Sian’s baby. And until the two sons, and Sian on the child’s behalf, decide what they want to do in the future, I don’t know that it means anything for anyone who worked here in the castle for Annabel.”
“So should we just keep doing what we’ve been doing?”
“Annabel’s cook and housekeeper can continue with their duties as long as Hugh and Rhisiart and Sian agree, because people need to eat and live in a clean home. But I don’t know about you. You were the one who handled the accounts for the castle, and whether you continue in that capacity is going to depend on the direction those three decide to take with the castle.”
“But there are still going to be bills that have to be paid,” I said, “including paychecks for Maisie, Brenda, Griff, and the other men who work in the stables part-time.”
“I will approach Annabel’s heirs about the issue,” Mr. Hadley said. “They’ve agreed to retain my services for the duration of the estate proceedings. After that I may be looking for a new client.”
I hadn’t thought about that. Between her financial investments and her substantial land holdings in the county and in Cardiff, Annabel had been one of Mr. Hadley’s best clients. There was always legal work for him to do. Now he might have to find another client as loyal as Annabel, or perhaps a number of clients whose combined work would equal that of Annabel’s. A daunting prospect, I was sure.
The police officer had been silent during our brief conversation, but I was quite sure he had missed nothing. I wondered if he had heard anything about Annabel’s autopsy.
We all turned toward the main hall when we heard shouting. It sounded like a man and a woman. We all walked to the doorway and peered down the dim corridor.
Indeed, it was Hugh and Cadi, yelling at each other while Cadi pulled on a long overcoat.
“That’s ridiculous!” Cadi shouted.
“How could I have known?” Hugh asked. “I didn’t make out the bloody will!”
“She gave her money to a baby? That’s insane!”
“How many times do I have to tell you?” Hugh yelled. Then his voice quieted a bit. We could still hear him, though. “Andreas was supposed to get a third, but the will provided for his children, including unborn children, to inherit in the event he died before Mum.”
“How much is there?” Cadi asked angrily.
“We have no idea.”
“Well, find out. I’m going back to London whether you like it or not. I’ll be back for the funeral.” She picked up a large satchel that sat on the floor by her feet and swept out the front door before slamming it behind her. Hugh clenched his fists and let out an expletive. Then he looked in our direction, noticing for the first time that he and Cadi had had an audience.
“What are you looking at?” he snarled.
“Nothing,” the officer replied calmly. “Nothing at all.” We drew back into the room and looked at each other for a moment. Life in the castle was about to change drastically. Somehow Hugh and Rhisiart and Sian were going to have to cooperate in order to move the castle into the future. I wondered what that meant for Griff, too, if Rhisiart got his way and expanded the stables for racing horses.
It was then I remembered Griff’s invitation to go riding. I excused myself from the drawing room and put on a coat, then walked over to the coach house to see what Sylvie was up to. She was reading in front of the fireplace.
“What’s going on?” I asked.
“Not much,” she said with a sweep of her hand. “Just some holiday down time. Have a seat.”
“Do you have plans for this afternoon?” I asked.
“Not really. I thought I’d take my camera and get some shots in the village and around the castle. Want to go with me?” she asked. “Or do you have something else you need to do?”
“I might go,” I answered. “I was wondering because a friend asked me to go riding for a little while this afternoon.”
“You can go with me anytime to take pictures. Go with your friend and have fun. You don’t have to entertain me.” Her eyes twinkled. “Who is this friend?” she asked with a grin.
I smiled self-consciously. “Griff, the groom, asked me this morning.”
“He’s cute!” Sylvie squealed. “He’s so rugged!”
“Calm down. You’re married, remember?” I said.
“Yeah, but you’re not,” she pointed out. “And Griff seems nice. And he’s a groom, get it?” She giggled. I ignored her reference to marriage.
“I thought the last man I dated was nice, too, remember? And now we’re divorced.”
“That was just bad luck,” Sylvie answered.
“Bad luck? I would say it was more than that,” I replied. “Bad luck is having a flat tire when you’re in a hurry to get somewhere. Bad luck is not marrying someone you had no idea was a criminal.”
I went back to the castle and texted Griff on my way. He told me he’d have Penelope ready for me after lunch.
Maisie had made a delicious meal of thick chicken soup for those of us who remained in the castle, and we gathered in the dining room for lunch with somber faces. I realized that I was lunching with the three new owners of the castle and I was suddenly uncomfortable.
Maisie came into the dining room bearing a tray of fruit. Facing away from the others, she winked at me and rolled her eyes. I had to bite my lip to keep from giggling. She liked Annabel’s family about as much as I did.
I ate quickly so I could get out of the dining room and away from the sour faces around the table. A tiny trill of excitement had found its way into my mood and I was happy to get outdoors and talk to Griff.
Dressed warmly, I walked briskly to the stables and found Penelope ready to go. Griff had also saddled Caesar and walked out of the stable office with a handful of carrots. “We’ll take these with us,” he said. “We’ll stop halfway and give them a snack.”
He gave me a boost onto Penelope’s back and swung up onto Caesar, then we set off in the opposite direction from where we had gone on our first ride. We went round to the front of the castle and continued across the land between the castle and the main road leading to the village.
“Where are we going?” I called out to Griff. Caesar was leading the way and Penelope was taking her time following.
“A place I think you probably haven’t seen,” he called back. He reined in Caesar to wait for me, and after that our horses ambled side-by-side across the uneven ground.
When we came to the road leading into the village we turned to the left and began moving along the low stone wall that marked the edge of the land belongin
g to the castle. Eventually we reached a break in the wall; we passed through it and I found myself in a verdant glen populated with thousands of evergreen trees. The gray from the sky dappled the graceful branches and pine needles underfoot softened the sounds of the horses’ hooves. Fronds from the crispy-looking ferns, quite brown by this time in the season, swayed in the gentle breeze. The earthy scent of the pine needles almost immediately transported me back to Christmas as a child in Scotland. I breathed deeply and exhaled. Griff turned to look at me. “Smells wonderful, doesn’t it?”
“I love it,” I said softly, almost afraid that talking in a normal tone would break the spell of the place.
“Have you ever been over here?” he asked.
“No, I’ve seen the woods from the house, obviously, but I’ve never ventured over here.”
“Then I’m glad I brought you. I thought you’d enjoy it. It’s peaceful, don’t you think?”
“Heavenly,” I replied. The horses kept walking, as if they knew the way. A narrow path had been worn across the ground and their steps took us farther into the woods. “Who owns this property?” I asked.
“It’s village land. Occasionally I see other people while I’m riding through the glen, but mostly no one comes here.”
“If I had known about it, I would have been out here all the time,” I said. “Thanks for bringing me.”
“It’s my pleasure,” he said, turning and smiling at me. “Just wait—it gets even better.”
Penelope followed Caesar along the uphill path while I tried to take in every detail around me. It was nice to leave the walking to the horse so I could focus on my breathtaking surroundings. It wasn’t long before I heard the sound of rushing water. It reminded me of the last time Griff and I had gone riding, when he showed me the stream in the woods. I experienced a moment of hesitation, recalling that Rhisiart had met us on our ride and interrupted a pleasant afternoon.
“What’s up ahead?” I asked, noting the sound of the water getting louder.
“You’ll see,” Griff replied.
We rounded a bend in the path and the horses stopped suddenly. In front of us was a huge waterfall. Bright, clear water tumbled from a perch high above us, spilling over rocks and pooling into swirling eddies at the base of the fall.
Chapter 11
I swung off Penelope’s back and tied her to a tree without waiting to see if Griff was getting off Caesar. I laughed as I dipped my hands into the pool again and again, feeling the cold water tingle my skin. Griff walked up behind me, a wide smile on his face. “You like it, eh?” he asked.
“It’s amazing! I had no idea this was here!”
“For the few people who come into these woods, even fewer of them know about the falls. It’s pretty far back along the trail.”
“Thank you for bringing me here,” I said again. “How could I live so close and not realize this is here?”
“You need time if you’re going to explore, and I don’t think you’ve had lots of time to do that,” he said.
“And now with Annabel gone…” My voice trailed off.
“Any word on what’s happening with the castle? And the employees?” he asked.
“Only that Hugh, Rhisiart, and Andreas’s baby are going to own the castle together. And Sian is making decisions on the baby’s behalf.”
Griff whistled. “That promises to be ugly,” he said, shaking his head. “They don’t get along on a good day.”
“I know. I ate lunch with all three of them earlier and there wasn’t much conversation. And Cadi is furious. She’s gone back to London until the funeral.”
“Why is she mad?”
“She’s always mad about something. But this time it’s because she can’t believe a third of the property was left to an unborn baby and that Sian will be making decisions on the baby’s behalf. I suspect she’s mad because she and Sian are both Annabel’s daughters-in-law, but only Sian will be able to participate in making decisions about the castle.”
“But Sian wouldn’t be making any decisions if Andreas hadn’t died.”
“I know that, and you know that, but Cadi doesn’t often listen to reason.”
“What does Hugh have to say about it?”
“Not much, at least so far. He was just listening to Cadi’s harangue right before she left for London, and I haven’t heard him say anything about it since then.”
“So any word about your job? And everyone else’s?”
“Not yet. I imagine we’ll hear something soon. They can’t keep us in the dark forever. Mr. Hadley, the barrister, thinks Maisie and Brenda should just go on as they’ve been doing because the family will want the castle to be clean and they need to eat. But as for me, he said I’ll have to wait to see what the family decides about the castle’s future, since I’m the one who pays the bills, answers letters, that sort of thing. And I don’t know about you and the stable hands—I would think you’re rather like Maisie and Brenda. If they want to have horses, they need grooms.”
“But Rhisiart wants racehorses, and I want nothing to do with them,” he answered, an edge of anger creeping into his voice.
“I guess we’ll have to wait and see what happens. But in the meantime, even if they want to sell the horses, they still need someone to feed them and care for them until that time comes.”
“I guess you’re right. Sounds like I don’t need to pack my bags tonight, but I won’t be surprised if it happens in the near future.” He stroked Caesar’s muzzle. “I’d buy Caesar, no doubt, if Rhisiart wanted to get rid of him. Heck, I’d try to buy all the horses. But I certainly don’t have that kind of money and I don’t have a place to keep them. I’d hate to see these horses get sold off.”
“Me, too. If I could scrape enough money together I’d buy Penelope. But maybe Rhisiart will want to keep the horses that are in the stables now, even if he does want to expand to include race horses.”
Griff cocked an eyebrow at me. “Maybe, but I doubt it.”
Griff had brought a snack in a saddle bag and we ate sitting on a big boulder by the side of the pool, watching the water cascade into it. The rushing sound it made was simultaneously soothing and enervating. Griff had sliced vegetables and brought a jar of homemade hummus, and it was just what I needed after the ride. We fed the remaining vegetables, as well as the carrots Griff had brought with him, to the horses after we finished eating and the horses seemed to enjoy their snack as much as I did.
“Do you live in the village?” I asked, suddenly realizing I didn’t know much about Griff personally.
He nodded. “I have a small cottage on the road leading out of the village. You’ll have to come by sometime.”
“I have a lot more time to do things like that now that Annabel’s gone,” I said ruefully.
“Any word on when her funeral is going to be?”
“No. I suppose that’ll depend on how long the autopsy takes.”
“Do I need to ask…” he began.
“No. The ambulance driver who took her to the medical examiner’s office told me it depends on the complexity of the autopsy.”
“So we’re in a holding pattern right now,” he stated.
“Yes.”
“Come on over here. I want to show you something,” he said, beckoning me near him. I walked over to where he stood and looked where he was pointing. There was a mossy log lying on the ground, and nestled inside a knot in the log was a tiny gold star. It was made of metal; the elements—the wind, the rain, and spray from the waterfall—had deadened its gleam, but it was enchanting.
“Oh!” I exclaimed. “It’s beautiful! Someone must have left it here,” I said, stating the obvious.
“There’s a belief among the villagers that if visitors to the falls leave something shiny for the fairies, the fairies will keep the water in the forest clean and in good supply.”
“What a lovely story,” I said. Then, looking around, I began to notice more gold baubles I hadn’t seen before. There was a string of gold beads looped around the branches of a tree overhanging the falls, a group of gold trinkets scattered about the ground, and a once-sparkly Christmas ornament hanging from another tree nearby. I patted my pockets. “I wonder if I brought anything sparkly with me.”
“Here, I’ve got something,” he said, fishing in his coat pocket. He held up a one-pound piece. “Leave this for the fairies,” he said, handing it to me.
“Thank you! I don’t have anything shiny on me,” I said, taking the coin from him. “Where should we leave it?” I looked around, hunting for a good spot.
“Over here,” he said. There was another log lying on the ground near his foot. He took a sharp stick and carved a tiny slice in the soft log. “Put the coin right in that slice,” he suggested. “It should be secure in there.”
I placed the coin in the log and stood back to admire our handiwork. “We’ll have to come back here again sometime to make sure the coin is still there,” I said.
“I’ve never known anything to be stolen from this place,” he replied.
“Do you bring all the girls here?” I teased.
“No, just you,” he said, smiling. I felt a funny tingle and I could feel my face flushing.
He had been standing near me when I bent down to put the coin in the log. When I straightened up he reached for my hand to help me, though I didn’t need the help. His hand was warm. He pulled me close to him and kissed my lips, then held me away from him and looked at me intently. “I’ve wanted to do that for a long time, Eilidh. Do you mind?”
I knew I was blushing. More than anything I wanted him to do it again. “I don’t mind at all,” I said with a smile. “You can do that anytime you want!”
He obliged, kissing me again, then we walked over to where the horses were tethered. “I suppose we should be getting back, though I wish we could spend hours here.”