[4:30pm in a City of London Dealing room]
“Coming for a drink Bill?” asked one of the Dealers to another.
“It is Friday and we’ve had a very good week plus it is Henley finals weekend. A bunch of us have wangled passes into the Leander tent. Lots of lovely fillies on show. There’s one with your name on it if you want it.” He added.
“A filly or a pass?” asked a half interested Bill who was gazing out of the office window at the river Thames and Tower Bridge.
“Both if you have a mind…”
“Sorry Tony, I would love to but I’ve been summoned,” replied Bill with a sigh.
“Summoned? I guess it’s not to court as it is Friday. Parents?”
“Nah. My parents are probably somewhere in the Pacific on their boat. The summoner is my Godfather.”
“That bad?”
“Depends. Harry is a strange man. He was a top dealer here and then he gave it up almost overnight.”
Tony thought for a second. Then he smiled and asked,
“That’s not Harry Winchester by any chance?”
“That’s him. You got it in one.”
“Man, that guy is a mega and I mean mega legend here. Apparently, he made a fortune on Black Wednesday while the rest of the market tanked around him.”
“That’s him and yes he did exactly that. Apparently, he saw it coming and put a load of options in place. Then bang, he made a killing while as you say, the market tanked. He was the only trader to come out on top that week.”
Bill then added,
“That’s all in the past. He runs a smallholding in deepest Sussex. A far cry from life here.”
As the pair left the office, the sun broke out for the first time in days.
The noise of the V-12 engine must have broadcast his pending arrival as his Godfather was waiting for him outside the house.
“Hello Harry,” said Bill as he extracted himself from the car.
“Nice wheels. You made it up the track ok then?”
“Just about?” replied Bill as they shook hands and went inside the house.
“You are staying the weekend, aren’t you?” asked Harry as he handed Bill a pint of his Cider.
Bill smiled.
“If I have too much of this, I’ll be staying longer than that,” quipped Bill.
Harry just grinned as they sat down in the large kitchen.
After downing some of the excellent Cider, Bill asked,
“Ok Harry, out with it. Why did you drag me down here as such short notice like this?”
“Direct as always eh Bill.”
“I was taught to be like that by who? Oh yes, you.”
They both raised a glass and laughed.
“The short version of a long story is that I’ve not long for this earth. Well, unless I can get a new ticker in the next few weeks or so that is. The stress of all those years of wheeling and dealing has finally caught up with me. The Docs told me on Monday. Get your affairs in order they said. Six months at the outside.”
Bill went ashen faced at the news. He’d always viewed Harry as indestructible.
“Don’t fret Bill. I’ve known this was on the cards for some considerable time. I just didn’t expect it to be so quick. If I don’t get a new heart within the next month to six weeks then I’ll be too weak to accept the new one after that.”
“So, I’m getting my affairs in order.”
“What’s that got to do with me?”
“This. This place is all yours.”
“Me? I know sod all about running a smallholding. I’m a City boy. Born like Del Boy in Peckham and I’ve lived within three miles of the river all my life. You should know that.”
Harry smiled.
“Neither did I when I bought this place. Like you I was a city boy.”
“But…”
“Nonsense. I know that you have made a pretty packet in the City. How much was the Ferrari then? One hundred grand or was it more than that? Time for you to bow out and enjoy life. You really don’t need much more dosh now do you?”
“Pah. Getting up at the crack of dawn to run this place is not my idea of fun.”
Harry laughed.
“Let me explain the situation.”
Bill took another large swig of the cider and sat back to hear the bad news.
“Firstly, I made you a joint owner of this place more than 10 years ago. So, when I go it is yours with zero tax liabilities. Then there is my money. After Inheritance tax and the like, there will be a shade over eight figures coming your way.”
Bill looked shocked.
“Don’t look so shocked. I’ve been tracking your investments for the past five years. You are dammed good at what you do. In many respects you are better at it than I ever was. As a result, I’ve made a lot of money over the years but especially from your moves since '13. It is only fair that you get your share of it when the time comes.”
“Harry, I know you. You never give a penny to anyone or anything without getting some return back. So, what’s the catch eh?”
Harry grinned.
“You have to run this place for a minimum of five years. Full time. Oh, and you can’t just get someone in to manage it for you either. This place has to succeed or fail on your work alone.”
Bill groaned. He should have seen this coming.
“Why? Why five years?”
“To get you out of that toxic environment before it kills you. I’ll wager you all the cash you have on you that your BP is well over the average. I can tell from your whole body that you are stressed.”
Harry looked at Bill for some acknowledgement of his words but none was forthcoming so Harry carried on.
“I can see the signs in you because that was me back in the day. I started to get these pains but ignored them until one day I could hardly walk so I went to the Doc’s. He sent me off to the Hospital for a load of tests. Stress induced Angina they called it but with early signs of my ticker wearing out. They also said that it was a warning. So, I quit, came down here and have been running this place for the past twenty-two years.”
“Are you with me so far?”
Bill still remained silent.
Harry sat back and carried in a soft voice.
“Now it is time for me to meet my maker. Since the Doc’s gave me the thumbs down, I’ve done some research. Almost three quarters of the traders I knew from back then are already pushing up the daisies. As far as I know, two of them even died at their desks. I don’t want that to happen to you. After all what is the use of having all that money if you are dead and can’t spend it eh?”
Bill had been knocked six ways from seven by what Harry had said.
“Drink up and then I’ll show you around. You need to know what ticks at least superficially before you take over.”
“Who….” Bill started to object but Harry was already walking out of the door and into the small kitchen garden.
As he followed Harry, a feeling of inevitability started to come over him.
An hour later the two men returned to the kitchen.
“I’ll rustle up some food. Rabbit ok? I shot a couple a few days ago,” said Harry.
“Rabbit is fine,” replied a less than enthusiastic Bill.
“Good. Go and get your things from your car. Your room is as usual, left at the top of the stairs.”
After dinner and an excellent bottle of local wine, most of which was drunk by Bill, the two men relaxed.
“What do you think of my little domain now that you have had the short form tour?”
“It’s hardly little.”
“Sixteen acres in old money is pretty small.”
“What is your bottom line like?” asked Bill.
Harry smiled.
“I make enough to keep the place solvent but that’s not the main goal.”
“If making money is not the main goal then what is?” asked a slightly bewildered Bill.
“Living the ‘Good Life’.”
“Life isn’t a TV series you know?”
Harry laughed.
“It is based upon some very real premises despite it being a work of Fiction. Life here is good. Doing what I’ve done for years is positively anti-stress. Here you Eat the food that you grow and cook yourself, not being in that polluted air of London and I don’t just mean the Diesel fumes. There is the noise and people… far too many people. That’s something I didn’t realise until I’d been down here for a few months. All those people and none of them speak to each other unless they really, really have to. Down here, I know all my neighbours and strangely enough, we talk to each other.”
Bill didn’t answer so Harry reached over to a shelf and took down a volume of photos.
“Remember this?” asked Harry as he passed it to Bill after opening it up at a pre-marked page.
Bill saw the picture and went red in the face.
“I didn’t know anyone else knew?”
“Your Mother took it and gave it to me.”
“Why you?”
“Turn over the page and you will see why.”
Bill turned over the page and saw a picture of his Mother with another woman. After a second or so, he recognised Harry. Harry was fully dressed as a woman.
“Meet Penny, my not so occasional alter-ego”
At that moment, Bill knew the reason for Harry giving him the farm.
“You can be yourself here. No interruptions and prying eyes.”
All of the things that Bill had buried deep at the back of his mind for so long came to the front in a great tidal wave of emotion. He started to cry.
Harry came and sat next to his Godson.
“It is time for Simone to live don’t you think? And I mean properly live on her own terms!”
Between wiping his eyes and trying to speak, he nodded back at Harry.
Harry went on to say,
“I wanted to be successful just to prove that I was not a failure. In the end, it got me right here,” he said putting his hand over his heart.
“The docs at St Thomas’s gave me two years at most if I didn’t quit there and then. I went away twenty-two years ago this very weekend to Henley. Got totally rat arsed, thrown in the river and woke up on the Monday morning feeling like shit and looking like crap. I threw a sickie that day as I tried to put my life into perspective. I had no family apart from you and your parents. All I seemed to live for was my job, making other people shedloads of money and getting pissed on a far too frequent basis. That Monday, I took the decision to quit there and then so went into the office very early that Tuesday and cleared my desk. I left letters of explanation for all those that mattered and walked out before the early boys came in. Never went back. Bought this place and been here ever since. That two to three years turned into more than twenty.”
Bill was sitting motionless trying to take in what Harry was saying.
“We are very similar, you and me. You live for the job as did I back then. Would you be getting pissed on Pimms this weekend at Henley if you weren’t here? I bet you would. Does what happened to me seem familiar to you?”
Bill nodded his head.
“Well, I got out and lived another life. My legacy to you is to do the same. What was your bonus last year? One hundred Grand at least if not more? After tax, what did you spend it on apart from that yellow blob out there, a bigger apartment in Docklands?”
Harry let that sink in.
“What is your aim in life? You already have more money than most people earn in a lifetime. Take my advice and get out before it kills you.”
“That picture? How?”
Harry chuckled.
“Lets’ say that fate conspired for your mother to tell me all about you before they took off on their trip. What was that? Almost three or is it four years ago? Anyway, it is time to be yourself. She told me that it was as if you were a different person when you left your female side come out. She didn’t like what you had become in the City but she understood why. She made me promise to do this before agreed to go on the trip let alone actually going. Well, I’m doing it and that is it. My bucket list is now complete. I can go to my grave with a happy heart.”
Bill knew that Harry was only telling part of the story but Harry was like that, always had been and always would be even it that was not for much longer.
That night in bed and with only a few owls calling for company Bill knew that what Harry had been telling him about his lifestyle was so very true. He was literally killing himself. There had been a fair number of Weekends in the not too distant past where he’d not gone home from leaving work on a Friday until the following Monday evening. He’d gone into work direct from wherever or whoever’s pad he’d crashed out at on the Sunday night. He’d even taken to having a couple of changes of clothes in the Office for those very situations.
The awful truth was that his current lifestyle would probably kill him. He fell asleep unsure if he had the nerve to take the next step.
In the end Bill had to get up and face his Godfather. It was decision time.
Harry on the other hand had other ideas.
“Not yet. Stay here for the weekend. Tell me before you leave on the Sunday. Now get dressed and ready to go out. We have a stall to run at a Farmers Market.”
Bill only had time for a quick cup of tea. That was all Harry offered.
“We don’t do Coffee here. Bad for the old ticker you know,” replied Harry when asked.
Harry’s stall sold produce that he’d picked the previous day before Bill arrived. From Early Potatoes to Broad Beans, Peas and Raspberries. Whatever was in season, he took to market. Bill was like a fish out of water to begin with but by the time they’d sold pretty well everything, he was getting used to how things worked.
In the pub afterwards, Harry introduced him to a number of other traders.
They were all pleased to see him. Bill was not so pleased with Harry suggesting that Bill was going to take over from him. It was evident that Harry was trying to paint Bill into a corner where he had no other option but to accept.
“I really don’t know Harry. Can I come back next weekend and tell you?”
Harry smiled and shook his Godsons hand.
“Deal. Just don’t short me eh? The time to my last settlement is not far off.”
“I won’t Harry. I promise you that.”
[to be continued in part 2 of 4]
Bill’s mind was not really on work the following week. One of his colleagues John Arbuthnot noticed it.
“Ok Bill. Who is she and do we know her or more importantly, have I known her?”
“Eh?”
“You are clearly going through the motions this week. You messed up a trade yesterday. It was lucky that I spotted it otherwise your position would have been down by a mere trifle of three million quid. So, once again, who is she and do we, your partners in crime know her?”
“Sorry to disappoint you John, it is not a she. It is a thing and I have to decide by the end of the week.”
“Hey man, are you selling that lovely set of wheels already? Didn’t you have to wait more than six months to get them in the first place.”
“No, it is not the Ferrari but if things go in one direction then I’ll be selling it. Are you interested in one slightly used Yellow Peril on wheels?”
“Mates discount?”
Bill managed a smile.
“Yeah. I’ll find out what a dealer would give me in cash for it and its yours for the same. Not a trade in.”
“Fair enough but what will you do for wheels? You gotta have something to attract the ‘Fillies’. The Lambo I rented for Henley weekend, got me three dates this week.”
Bill laughed.
“No second date chances then?”
“Maybe. You never know eh?”
“Well, I promise to give you first refusal if I decide to sell the car. Deal?”
“Deal.”
John went off with a big smile on his face. He was a confirmed petrol-head but his last car, an Aston Martin DB9 was stolen and nearly written off by the thief. He never drove it after it was repaired as he said that it had been contaminated by the Thief. Since he sold it, he’d rented any cars he’d needed to pull women for dates.
Bill took time that week to review his life and how he was living. His flat was pristine. Well, it should be as he really only slept there and had a cleaner come in twice a week. As far as he could remember, he’d never cooked anything other than in the microwave in the four years he’d owned the place.
By the time Friday came around again, he’d realised that his life was ‘vacuous’. There was no substance to it apart from work and parties at the weekend that were occasionally spiced up with a nice woman and some drugs. Harry was right, he needed to escape before it was too late.
Bill phoned Harry that evening,
“You were right Harry. I need to get out. I’ll quit on Monday.”
“Don’t leave it too long. The sands in my timer are running out,” replied Harry in a very matter of fact way.
“Don’t worry Harry. I’ll be there before the end of the month. Fuck the three months’ notice in my contract. When I tell them, they’d take me off the floor and let me kick my heels. They’ll only be too glad to let me go especially as I’m not going to the competition and not have to pay me to sit at home on gardening leave.”
“Glad to hear it.”
“See you soon Harry.”
“Not Harry. I’m going out as Penny. Sod the comments but that is how I want to be buried. I’ve already started the process. Just a few formalities to go and the deal will be done.”
“Ok Penny.”
“Don’t be late on Saturday. There is someone you need to meet.”
“Who?”
“You will find out on Saturday.”
Bill knew that Harry/Penny would not budge.
“Ok. Penny. You win.”
“Naturally.”
Monday was going to be a dull day. The US Markets were closed and so was Tokyo. It was the perfect setting for telling people that he was going from the trading floor. Thankfully he didn’t have a position to keep because the Friday before was a settlement day. It was the perfect time to bow out. It was almost as if Harry had engineered it but he hadn't.
Bill got into the office early and sat at his desk with his feet up and a large Coffee in his hand ostensibly waiting for the markets to open at 08:00.
Gradually, the rest of the dealers arrived as the time to the opening of the market counted down. When the market opened Bill just sat there and waited for someone to notice.
The first to do so was John Arbuthnot.
“Hey Bill, are you on Holiday today?”
“Nah. I’ve resigned as of now.”
John did a double and then a triple take.
"Spread the word there a good chap. I've already put me letter of resignation on the desk of the head of HR."
After a lot of stuttering John disappeared to do the good deed.
Within a few minutes, the ripple of gossip on the floor was clearly audible. Soon it was out on the wires where it even drowned out the latest profits warning and store closures from a High Street Retailer. That is how their community works. Everyone knows everyone else so a sudden departure like Bill's was going to create ripples well beyond the City of London.
A little after 09:30 his phone rang. He’d been expecting this call.
“Hello?”
“Yes. When?”
“Ok, I’m on my way.”
With a sigh, he put the phone down and left his desk and made his way off the floor possibly for the last time. He’d already packed what things he wanted to take with him into a decidedly tatty M&S bag. He carried this with him hoping that he’d be shown the door that very morning.
He’d been summoned to the Chief Operating Officer’s Office. His letter of resignation had quickly made its way from HR to the highest Executive level withing the company. He’d never been up this high in the building before. This would be his first and last time.
Bill took a deep breath and walked into the COO’s office.
“Ah Bill, please take a seat,” said Tony McPherson, the COO. He was sitting at his desk flanked by three other people.
Bill sat and waited for someone to say something.
“Bill, care to explain why the sudden departure? Who are you going to work for? We do have client confidentiality to consider.”
“Well, Mr McPherson, on that last part, you don’t have to worry about that. As for who I’m going to work for? Well, it is a long story but suffice to say, it will be with my Godfather, Harry Winchester.”
At the mention of Harry’s name two of those present went white in the face. Bill thought it prudent to add a little more detail.
“As you know, Harry left the City some twenty odd years ago. I won’t go into the detail but he is seriously ill and has only a few months to live. I’m going to help him see out his final days and then take over his business. However, I would appreciate that the information about Harry’s health remains within this room.”
There was silence for several seconds. Ms Chandler, head of group HR asked the next question. She was well known for being a know-it-all who knew close to nothing.
“What sort of business is it? Does it compete with us?”
The other two who’d gone white in the face at the mention of Harry’s name rolled their eyes. They were old enough to have been in the City when he quit.
“Harry runs a smallholding deep in the countryside. Vegetables, Fruit and some Poultry. I don’t see any competition issues there, do you?”
The two who’d rolled their eyes now smiled back at Bill.
“So yes, I’m following my Godfather out of the city. No, I won’t reconsider and no, I won’t be coming back,” said Bill gaining confidence.
“I’d like to leave today if possible. I don’t have a market position to reconcile so it is as good time as any to get out. I’ll sign any forms you want. My Financial Advisor will be in touch regarding my Bonus and Pension.”
Bill smiled at the people in front of him. He’d found it surprisingly easy to tell the boss that he was leaving. He felt that his stress levels were already declining.
“Well?” asked Bill.
“Am I good to go?”
“Leaving without notice is highly irregular,” commented Ms Chandler.
“You should serve your contracted term of three months.”
Bill smiled.
“Fine, I’ll take it as Gardening Leave starting today then?”
“Ms Chandler, I think we should let Bill go now,” said the COO.
“He’s not going to be a business risk to us so it would be better for everyone to let him leave now. Any dissentions?” asked the COO.
Ms Chandler was about to raise her hand but realised that none of the others would support her so she said and did nothing.
The COO Stood up, came out from behind his desk and went to shake Bill’s hand.
“Give my regards to Harry and remind him that he owes me £50 for the bet on the Rugby World cup back in ’03.”
“I will,” replied a smiling Bill.
The COO turned to Ms Chandler.
“Please make sure that all the paperwork is done today.”
Her face turned sour.
After a moment’s reflection he added,
“Make that within the hour.”
Ms Chandler was clearly not happy at being steamrollered but she had no choice buy to go along with it. Bill smiled. There was a rumour that she was the Mistress of the COO which might explain a lot.
Bill walked out of the building for the last time exactly 93 minutes and 20 seconds after the phone call he’d received at his now former desk. His mind was already occupied with other things. He felt a free man again.
By the end of the week, Bill had put his apartment on the market and accepted the offer from his colleague to buy his Ferrari. He was sad to see it go but it was a symbol of his past life and not the new Bill. He’d also sold most of his furniture to another apartment holder in his block. He’d lost quite a bit of money on the deal but he just wanted rid of it.
On the Friday, Bill took delivery of a six-year old Land Rover Discovery. He hoped that it was not too upmarket for Harry who drove an ancient Shogun that had most definitely seen better days. The transmission on the Shogun was clearly on its last legs if the whine was anything to go by so Bill was not taking any chances.
Bill found Harry looking very tired and ashen faced but nevertheless, he was in full flow serving customers.
“I’m here Harry. You go take a rest. I’ll finish up.”
“Thanks Bill. I’ll be in the Café around the corner. That person I wanted you to meet will be there at 1pm.”
Before Bill could challenge Harry, he’d left Bill to run the store.
Just before the allotted time and with almost everything that could be sold, sold and the stall all packed up and loaded into Harry’s Shogun Bill made his way to the Café.
Harry was sitting right by the window tucking into a plate of food. His colour had returned which made Bill feel a lot better.
“Everything’s packed away,” said Bill as he sat down opposite Harry.
“Good,” said Harry between mouthfuls.
“Should you be eating that?” asked Bill as he looked at the plate of Ham, Egg and Chips that Harry was scoffing.
“The Doc says it really does not matter now so I’m going to enjoy what little time I have left. Are you going to deny a condemned man some last pleasures?”
Bill could not argue with that. He ordered the same food as Harry plus a large mug of Tea.
As he did so, he realised that Harry was indeed resigned to die pretty soon. He’d not twigged before when Harry had told him about ‘going out as Penny. Seeing it right before his very eyes made it all too real.
Bill had just finished his food when the visitor arrived. Harry spotted her as she came into the Café. She smiled when she saw Harry. When she'd sat down at the table, Harry said,
“Bill, meet Constance or Connie for short.”
The woman who was about Bill’s age was wearing a well-used Barbour jacket with overalls underneath sat down next to Harry.
“What lies has Harry been telling about me?” she joked.
Bills face went blank.
“Er… nothing. All he’d say was that there was someone he wanted me to meet.”
Connie rolled her eyes.
“That’s my Harry.”
“Your Harry?” asked a puzzled if not confused Bill.
“Bill, Connie is my Daughter.”
If Bill had been standing up you could have knocked him down with a feather.
“I…. I didn’t know,” he stuttered.
Connie smiled.
“Harry and my mother had a brief fling. When Dad found out about me being on the way, he offered to marry mum but she said no. Harry made sure that we were ok with money and well, he’d been a big part of my life for as long as I can remember.”
A beaming Harry joined in,
“Connie is a Vet. She works at a practice here. Her speciality is Farm Animals.”
Bill began to understand her clothes.
“I was working this morning. TB testing at a farm about 10 miles away. But I could not ignore Dad’s summons.”
Connie reached over and held out her hand.
“I’ve heard a lot about you Bill. Pleased to meet you at last.”
Bill took her hand and as was his norm, he noticed that she was not wearing a ring on her ‘ring’ finger. He bit his lip and hoped that his glance had not been noticed. That was something the old Bill would do when meeting a pretty woman for the first time yet despite his determination to break that 'city' habbit he'd reverted to normal. He hated himself for it.
“The same here even though this is a bit of a shock for me. Until just now, I didn’t know you existed.”
“Yeah. That’s Harry through and through. When I graduated Vet Colleger, he just stood at the back and smiled while all the other parents were taking photos and celebrating, Harry just kept out of the limelight. All I needed to know was that he was there supporting me.”
“Your mother? Does she live around here?”
“Mum? Haven’t a clue where she is. Upped sticks and left home the day after I turned eighteen. Left me with a huge amount of debt as well. Harry came to the rescue and sorted everything out. Then he put me through Vet School.”
Connie put her arm around Harry who’d gone pretty red in the face.
After giving her father a quick peck on the cheek, Connie got up from the table.
“Still on for lunch tomorrow?”
“Naturally,” replied Harry who was grinning with obvious pride.
“Ok. I’ll walk over about one.”
With that, she was gone.
“Walk over?”
“Oh, didn’t I say, she lives next door to us. She lives in the Sussex Cob Cottage down the lane from my place.”
As Bill followed Harry back to the smallholding, Bill could not help but think that Harry was trying to set him up with Connie.
“But, why would she be interested in a complete idiot when it came to living in the country like him? Why would she?”
[to be continued in Part 3]
Once they were both back at Harry’s and Bill had unloaded the Market Stall bits and pieces, he went in search of Harry.
He found him fast asleep in a chair by the range in the Kitchen. His snores told him that he was ok but he recalled his ashen face from earlier and realised that he was sicker than he was prepared to admit to Bill. Bill guessed that he didn’t have long to go but was willing to wait for Harry to tell him just how bad things were.
For the next few hours, Bill busied himself around the house.
By the time Harry came around, Bill had unloaded his car, put all his bits and pieces away and prepared a half decent meal for the evening.
“Welcome back Harry.”
“Eh? Was I asleep?” he said grinning.
“Well the snores I’ve been listening too for the past two hours told me that you were.”
“Pah.”
“Tea?”
“Yeah, I’m parched. But I should put the stall away.”
“All done and dusted.”
Bill put the kettle on to boil and sat down next to him.
“Ok Harry. Spill the beans on Connie and I want the whole story, understand?”
He sighed.
“I suppose so,” he replied with another sigh.
Harry spent the next hour telling Bill the full story of Connie, her mother and everything.
At the end, Bill asked,
“Why isn’t she inheriting everything?”
Harry smiled.
“Because right from the time she was old enough to understand, she knew that I wanted you to have this place and the business. Besides, she always wanted to be a Vet and running this place really does not interest her."
Bill took it and after seeing the label, he replied,
“Very good choice. That will go well with the meal.”
“Great. It smells nice. What is it?”
“Roast Beef with all the trimmings,” replied Bill proudly.
“Sounds great. Can I do anything?”
“You could go and find Harry. He was talking to the hens the last time I saw him.”
“He loves those birds. They know when he’s carrying food. Then they mob him.”
Bill chuckled.
“I know. He’s shown me how to look after them.”
“Tried to catch any yet?”
Bill laughed.
“Not yet. I have that bit of so called fun yet to experience. I’ll do it when no one is here to see me make a total and utter plonker of myself so don’t even think of trying to watch ok?”
A laughing Connie disappeared to find Harry while he dished up the meal.
After Lunch, Harry went upstairs for a sleep. This gave Bill a chance to talk to Connie about her father.
“He’s putting on a brave face, isn’t he?”
Connie nodded.
“Even getting him to go for a checkup was really hard. In the end, I had to threaten him with a tranquilizer dart and carrying him to the hospital.”
Bill paused before asking his next question.
“How long do you think he has left?”
“How long did he tell you?”
“Two to three months.”
Connie shook her head. Her face told him that his guess was right.
“It was that when his consultant told him. That was more than six weeks ago.”
“So, he’s really on borrowed time then?”
“Yes. He did ask me for a syringe of ketamine a while back but I refused.”
“Would he have used it?”
She shook her head.
“When it is time, he’ll probably just keel over and that will be that. His heart is far too damaged. I had a long conflab with his doctor totally off the record but he gave it to me straight.”
“He did mention a transplant.”
Connie shook her head.
“Too late for that. Six months ago, maybe it might have been possible if a donor became available, but he left it far too late to see the Docs.”
“Are you sad?”
Connie shook her head.
“He’s had a good life and we’ve been really close these past ten years. We’ve had a better relationship than most people do. He’s a good man. Sure, I’ll miss him but he’s always been open about the possibility of this time coming. I think it made us closer. You know knowing that his time was limited. This place saved him from an early death all those years ago and he hopes that it will do the same for you. He has proved that there really is life outside the bubble that is the City of London.”
That was the question that Bill had debated long and hard over before making the decision to quit his job.
“It is rather a daunting task. You know, taking over an established business. Harry had basically an empty site and no business.”
“What do you think of it so far?”
Bill sat back and smiled.
“Strange as it may seem, I feel at home here already. Sure, there is lots to get to grips with and not a lot of time to do it but I have some money behind me so I really don’t have to worry about getting an income from this place for quite a while.”
Connie returned a smile but didn’t say anything. Bill guessed that Harry had some more secrets to divulge when the time was right.
The following day, Harry and Bill got down to the handover for real. It didn’t take long before Bill realised the true financial position of the business.
“Harry, do you know how much you are losing every year?”
“Sure. Over the past twenty years, it works out at a little over sixty-nine thousand five hundred and a bit. That ain’t all that bad really. Just over three grand a year. Nothing really.”
“And you aren’t worried?”
“Not in the slightest. Life is more important than that.”
Harry’s words seemed to make it seem all right.
“You have some money behind you, don’t you?”
“Yes but…”
“Life is simple here. I spend around fifteen quid a week on groceries. My heat is from my own wood and the solar panels on the roof mean that my electric bill is twenty quid a quarter. My biggest monthly outgoings are Council Tax, the mobile phone and the Broadband. If I want to eat something like Pork, Beef or some really nice Trout, then I barter for it. Why do I need lots of money eh? Three hundred a month is about what I spend on average.”
Bill could not argue with that sort of logic. The numbers were really tiny. He recalled going to a restaurant in London and spending over three hundred quid on a meal for two less than six months earlier. When you are used to dealing in Millions then a few hundred is chicken feed. That would all have to change now.
“You are a sly bugger Harry. You’ve kept the size of your business under the VAT threshold,” said Bill as they ate Lunch.
“Exactly,” replied Harry with a justified smirk on his face.
“No VAT means a lot less paperwork. Besides, I can’t charge VAT on the food I sell so why put myself under the spotlight every month in order to get a small refund? I’d rather just keep the size of the business down and save all the heartache.”
Bill could not argue with that.
Then he chuckled to himself. He realised that he'd been saying that quite a bit recently. He realised that he was more like Harry than he'd realised.
By the end of the week, Bill had a good idea about the business and the basics of running a smallholding. His big worry was about the crops.
He’d never grown anything in his life. When he mentioned this to Harry, Harry just laughed.
“Neither had I before I came here. That first year and a half was a disaster. Some crops bolted, some never germinated and others got attacked by insects and as the Americans say, ‘a whole heap of critters’. Gradually, I got to grips with it. Over the years, things have got better, a lot better.”
Then Harry got up from the Kitchen Table and disappeared into another room. He soon returned with a stack of books. That bit of lifting had made him puff a lot. Even after this short a time, Bill had noticed how easily Harry was getting tired.
“These are my diaries. I wrote everything down warts and all. These will be invaluable to you in the forthcoming months.”
Bill took one look at the pile of diaries and inwardly groaned. There was just so much to learn and so little time.
“Now it is time for you to learn how to use the rotavator.”
Three hours later Bill raised the white flag and said,
“Isn’t there an easier way?”
Harry laughed.
“Oh, you mean using the small tractor that I have in the barn?”
Bill glared at Harry.
“You will thank me for today when you find that you need to use this on the small beds so this exercise won’t be wasted in the long run.”
Bill didn’t agree but started to clean the machine before heading off for a long hot bath.
“Harry?”
“Penny please.”
“Ok Penny. Why tonight?”
Penny looked rather sad.
“I have a feeling that I only have a few days left. So, from now on, Penny is it. Harry is dead and buried. I called my Solicitor while you were in the bath. He’s coming tomorrow to formalise the transfer of some investments to my Connie. Think of it as my last fling before I pop my heels.”
Three days later she died in her sleep. Bill found her in bed in the morning. His first thought was that everything seemed so peaceful that it would be a shame to disturb her.
His first call was to Connie who dropped everything and came over.
As Connie and Bill stood at the end of the bed, Connie slipped her hand into his. Bill let it go and instead put his arm around her. They stood together for several minutes in silence.
By lunchtime, the Doctor and the Funeral Directors had been and done their business. Penny had left detailed instructions for the funeral. Her body was going to be interred at a Woodland Burial site less than 10 miles from the smallholding. He’d already had made a carved wooden plaque using wood that came from the smallholding. The instructions covered every little detail including the catering for the ‘wake’.
Once Penny’s body had been interred, the small party returned to what was now Bills home for a small celebration. The special ‘reserve’ cider that was made from local apples went down a treat. It was just as well that the local Police Officer was one of those getting rather drunk or many of the locals would be soon without licenses. The send-off was just as Harry had planned.
When everyone had departed Bill and Connie had a chance to sit down and take stock.
“It might seem strange,” said Bill.
“But I’m going to miss the old bugger. He and his funny ways sort of grew on me.”
“It’s not strange. I will miss him as well,” said Connie as she nursed a half empty glass of wine.
Then she asked,
“What’s next?”
“Oh, the never ending task of weeding. Picking the next batch of Beans and Carrots. Feed the Hens.”
“That’s not what I meant. This place? Are you going to keep it going or are you going to sell up and go back to London?”
Bill shook his head.
“I promised Harry that I would give this place a go and I’ll do that. Besides, I don’t have a home to go back to. I got a phone call last night with an offer on my apartment. I accepted it.”
Connie smiled.
“I’m pleased.”
“You know that Harry wanted to set us up?”
Connie smiled,
“I do. He had his moments did Harry. He’s also tried to set me up with the Doctor and the Police Inspector who lives near the crossroads.”
“A bit of fun then?”
“He would have loved to be the Mother of the Bride but I didn’t find anyone was even remotely interested in.”
“What did you say to him about me?”
“Oh, that I considered you more of a brother than anything. Did I do right?”
Bills hopes had been dashed, at least for the time being.
“I think so. Fate has thrown us together. I’m going to need a friend for the next few months and… well I for one don’t want anything to get in the way of me trying to keep this place going. It will be hard enough even to stem the losses.”
Connie laughed.
“Harry designed it that way. I would not bother trying.”
“Eh?”
“This place is designed to make a loss. After all those years of making money in the City he wanted to experience losing it for a change. After a while he got to like it. He said that it kept him sane. So, what if it loses a few grand a year. Harry said that was cheaper and more healthy than seeing a shrink. I think he lasted as long as he did because he didn’t worry about the losses. He had more than enough money to live very comfortably but he just lived simply and actually thrived.”
Bill smiled.
“I think I’m starting to understand him. He kept dropping hints that making a loss was by design but I just kept on looking for ways to make a profit. Habit I guess...”
“Can you sustain the losses?”
“I should be able to. When I see the full financials when the Accountant comes with all the formal books the day after tomorrow. I’ll be able to know a bit more.”
Connie laughed.
“Did you think leaving the City would be the end of you having to look at spreadsheets?”
Bill returned her laugh.
“I suppose I did. Now I know different eh? But, at least the numbers are not in the billions of at least ten different currencies.”
Then he added,
“And not making a profit is a good thing. That will take some getting used to.”
[to be continued in part 4 (of 4)]
WARNING
This part has some bits that some readers may find disturbing.
[one year after Penny died]
Connie and Bill decided to take some flowers to Penny’s grave on the anniversary of her death. It was a sad time for both of them.
They’d been up at the crack of dawn and out in one of the fields that Harry had turned into a Wildflower Meadow. As they picked the flowers they both heard a Skylark singing above them. Then a Cuckoo called from the small copse at the end of the field. Finally, a Corn Bunting chased them away from its nest. They smiled at each other. It seemed that all was right with the world just for a short time.
With the flowers sorted into two nice bunches, they travelled to Penny’s grave to pay their respects.
Connie tried hard but could not hold back the tears when they stood over the grave. Bill put his arm around her to comfort her. She looked up at him and then despite her watery eyes, she gave him a kiss.
Bill didn’t know what to do. He was about to break off when he thought better of it. This was a moment when Connie needed someone to lean on.
Penny had left instructions for the anniversary of his/her death. The pair were to spend the afternoon at Brighton Races or Epsom or Plumpton or Fontwell if there was no meeting at Brighton. As it happened, there was a meeting at Plumpton so that’s where they headed.
She’d left them each an envelope containing five hundred pounds. They were to enjoy themselves. If they made any money it was to be donated to a local charity. She’d even specified which charity was to get the money. As it was a local Animal Shelter, Connie knew that it would do a lot of good should there be any profit from the day.
The two of them had a lot of fun spending someone else’s money. Despite their enjoyment, and their efforts to not back winners, they’d both made a healthy profit on the afternoon.
The final instruction for the day was that they would go out to dinner in Brighton and afterwards toast his memory while standing on the beach. Once again, Penny had provided funds for the evening.
It was close to 11pm when the two braved the shingle beach and raised a final glass to Penny.
Bill really didn’t want the evening to end. The day that he’d spent with Connie was the first time he’d really felt… felt happy since he’d left London.
“It has been a great day,” said Connie when they started to walk up the beach towards Bill’s Discovery that was parked on Marine Drive.
“It has. It is a shame that it has to end,” he replied.
“Does it?” asked Connie in a soft voice.
“What do you mean?”
“I’d like to meet Simone.”
Bill took a step backwards and promptly fell over onto the shingle.
“Oh! I’m sorry Bill,” said Connie as she held out her hand to help him up.
“No Connie. It was just the surprise of you knowing about me… her… whatever.”
“Harry told me about her a few days after you came down in that Ferrari.”
Then she took hold of his hands.
“I’ve seen you change over the past year but there has always been something not quite right. You were always holding something back. Last week, I was in the middle of a difficult foaling when I remembered Bill talking about Simone.”
“That seems strange?”
Connie laughed.
“You have to think of something nice when you are up to your armpits inside an animal trying to sort of why their offspring has done the twist with their umbilical cord.”
Just then a breeze came in off the sea. Connie visibly shivered.
“Come on lets’ get out of here before you freeze to death,” said Bill.
Connie was not to be defeated no matter how much Bill tried to deflect her. Like Harry, she was a determined person. Once she set her mind on a course of action, there was very little anyone could do to deflect her.
Bill took a deep breath and began.
“Simone only came about because of my Father. He molested me as a child. In his eyes, I should have been born a girl. When I’d not long started school, Mum started to have real mental problems. These problems lasted for several years. The main thing was that to her having sex was wrong so she wouldn’t have sex with dad. As a result, he turned his attentions to me. He dressed me up as a little girl and … well you can guess the rest.”
“I’m so sorry. You, poor man! You, poor boy.”
“The worst thing was that one of the times that I was dressed as Simone, Harry came to call. He was worried about my mother. He met me and that was the start of his thinking that I was transgendered. I wasn’t trans. I was made to dress like that. It was a sham put on by my parents. That whole experience has made it next to impossible for me to have a long-term relationship with a woman. As soon as I get close, I get visions of him and me.”
Bill visibly shivered.
Connie tried to take hold of his hands but Bill moved them out of the way.
“I’m sorry Connie.”
“Don’t be sorry Bill. I won’t even pretend to understand. But why are you telling me this now?”
Bill picked up his phone. He showed Connie a text message.
“This came from Mum just over a week ago.”
“But it just says ‘ABD’?”
Bill nodded.
“Mum is saying that Dad is dead.”
Connie went cold.
“You mean she’s murdered him?”
“I don’t know. More like thrown him overboard to the sharks. One part of her hated Dad, another adored him and she worshiped the ground he stood on. After a few years, she realised that if she would let him have sex with her, he would leave me alone. She went along with it for years until Dad took early retirement about the same time I was finishing University at the time. About a year later and totally out of the blue, he suggested that they take their boat and sail around the world. Just before they left, Mum told me that he was going to meet with an accident somewhere on their voyage. It was payback for… well everything. The thing was… I believed her until I remembered everything else she’d done to support him when I was a child.”
“Where is she?”
“I have no idea. The last time I spoke with her they were in somewhere called Tuvalu but that was when Harry died. I called them to let them know he was gone.”
“Even though the call was not about me or them, it left a bad taste in my mouth. I never want to speak to her again.”
Connie sat quietly for some time.
“Why? She’s your mother?”
“Yeah and she did nothing to stop Dad from abusing me long after she’d recovered and was intimate with him again. At first, I thought she didn’t know but later I discovered that she was in on the whole thing. Mum is schizoid or bi-polar or something. She has at least three different personalities.”
“But he’s dead now.”
“But it does complicate things.”
“Eh? In what way?”
“She’ll probably want to sell the boat and come home. The problem is that she will have nowhere to live so she’ll want to come here. That’s the normal logical personality side of her. She can be like that for weeks and then something will trigger her to change to one of her other personality.”
Bill took a deep breath.
“I had a one bedroom studio apartment in London just so she could not come into my life again. Here, I have lots of room and I really don’t want her in my life again. She stood by him and did nothing to stop him and fuck her for having a mental illness towards the end, it was clear that she was enjoying it. Then a few days later she’d be all contrite and lovey-dovey but do nothing to stop dad. It was almost as if she was under his spell for most of the time…”
“But you were on the phone with her?”
“She was several thousand miles away and could not hurt me. I kept the call short and to the point. Then I hung up. Out of sight, out of mind. I had a job to do. If I hadn’t had to let them know about Harry then I’d never have made the call. The last thing I want is to have her under my feet all the time. Harry would not have wanted that either.”
Connie took hold of his hand and squeezed it gently.
“I’m sorry for suggesting… you know what.”
Bill smiled.
“Thanks Connie. I want to put that behind me. With my parents away, and being here, I… felt normal and alive. With even the possibility of her coming back… See, it is already fucking up my mind…”
Connie held Bill.
“Why would she come back and persecute you like that?”
Bill stiffened up.
“As I said, she stood by and watched him do his stuff. I didn’t know until later, very much later that she even took photos of it. How else do you think that they funded the trip? By selling them on the internet that’s how! There are thousands if not millions of photos of me wearing a dress and being fucked by my father out there… forever. That’s why I’ve never managed a proper relationship with a woman. The fear of her finding those porno shots of me always put the kybosh on any relationship.”
There was a silence between them that lasted several seconds. Then Connie said through watery eyes,
“I’m so sorry Bill. You know that I’m here for you, don’t you?”
“Thanks Connie.”
A little later, Connie asked.
“Do you have any evidence of what they did to you?”
“Eh? Why?”
“To take to the Police. That’s why.”
“I don’t want that to happen.”
Connie took hold of both of Bills hands and looked him right in the eye.
“And if you don’t do anything? She’ll be in your life forever. Can you live with that?”
Then she added,
“But why would she want to put you through all that again?”
“Because my dear Connie, according to my father, I was a better lover to her husband than she was. He repeated that loudly and often. A woman scorned and all that.”
He went through the motions with the smallholding. He even missed a Farmers Market. Connie tried but failed to get him out of his ‘fug’.
Part of him told him that is was his mother that he was wishing dead. Finally, another part of him said that he should go to the Police and let them deal with his mother.
Then one night or, rather in the hours just before dawn, Bill remembered something that Penny had said to him a few days before she died.
“If they should come back, go and see Roger Fawcett.”
Bill could not for the life of him recall anyone in his family by that name.
Bill tried hard but could not discover who this Roger Fawcett was. Searching on the internet had not revealed anyone by that name. In the end, there was nothing for it but to ask Connie. He took his chance that night and went over to Connie’s house.
Bill tried knocking but got no answer. He knew that she was in as her Vet’s 4x4 was there and here Mazda RX5 was visible in the garage.
In the end, he gave up and walked home none the wiser and sadder that the one person in his life that he felt he could talk to was ignoring him.
“I had this vague recollection that you came over yesterday?”
“Yes, I did but I got no reply.”
“I’m sorry if you did but I’d been up for nearly a whole twenty-four hours. I was at a very difficult birth. The calf was upside down and had the umbilical cord wrapped around its neck. In the end, I had to do a caesarean which is not an easy thing for someone on their own. In the end, I came home and crashed out. I was so tired that I didn’t even get undressed!”
“Oh, that’s all right Connie. I guess that is all part of your job. The highs and lows.”
“Did they both survive?”
“Yes, they did but this will be the last calf for this cow. She’s getting on a bit in cow years.”
Then Connie smiled and asked,
“Was there anything special for your visit yesterday?”
“Yes,” replied Bill.
“Do you know anyone named Roger Fawcett?”
She thought for a few seconds.
“The only Fawcett I know used to be the landlord of the ‘Black Swan’. But he was always called Jack.”
Bill’s shoulders visibly sank at the news.
“He still lives over the pub. Why don’t we go over for a pint and we can see if he is in?”
Bill still didn’t seem very keen.
“Is it something to do with your parents?”
He nodded.
“I remembered something Penny said a day or so before she passed away.”
She let him speak.
“She said that if they ever come back I should go and see Roger Fawcett. The only problem is that I don’t know who he is and all my efforts at searching for him have drawn a blank.”
Connie could see that he was troubled. She as she’d done before, took hold of his hand and gently squeezed it.
Bill was ushered into the office of William Armitage. He hated the atmosphere of the place but Mr Armitage had been an old friend of Harry so it was his choice and he had to go along with it.
“Well, this is a surprise Bill. Are there problems with the Smallholding?”
“No, Mr Armitage, the Smallholding is running fine.”
Bill took a deep breath.
“Do you know a Roger Fawcett?”
The colour drained from the face of Mr Armitage.
“How do you know that name?”
“Harry mentioned the name. It is in relation to my parents. Beyond that I have no idea at all.”
Mr Armitage had gathered his thoughts.
“I am very glad that you came to see me. Harry left instructions for me. In the event of you coming to me with that name I am to turn over a file to you. I have no idea what is in it. If you will please give me a few minutes, I’ll go and get the file from the clients safe.”
Bill just nodded. Finding out about Roger Fawcett shouldn’t have been this easy.
Mr Armitage returned a few minutes later with a large envelope.
He sat down at his desk and opened it. Bill was a little concerned but that subsided when Mr Armitage pulled out another envelope and handed it to Bill.
“Can you sign this receipt please?” asked Mr Armitage.
Bill signed it without thinking.
He went to stand up but Mr Armitage waved him to sit down.
“You wanted to know who Roger Fawcett was and it is beholden of me to tell you.”
Bill sat down and waited.
“Harry and I attended the same Public School, back in the day. One of the others in our year was a boy called Roger Fawcett. He was a shy boy. He would only speak to someone if actually spoken too. Anyway, we all came back from Summer Break full of beans and looking forward to the new year. I say all but Roger was even more withdrawn than ever.”
He looked at Bill with a tear forming in the corner of one eye. Telling the tale was difficult for him.
“When we went to get changed for our first Cross-Country of the new term, Roger refused to undress. The Games Master, a big man by the name of Smart almost ripped Roger’s clothes off. Then he saw the reasons why Roger refused his command. He sent us all off on our run while he took Roger to the Infirmary.”
“When we returned from the five long miles in the rain and mud, there were three Police Cars at the School and an Ambulance. We never saw Roger again but about six months later the Games Master and the Headmaster had to take a few days off. One of the boys heard him talking about going up to London and more importantly giving evidence at the ‘Old Bailey’. Us boys being boys, we naturally wanted to know more so one of us phoned his big brother who was a legal clerk in a Barristers Chambers in London. What we found out shocked us all. Roger had been abused for years and his Father had beaten him when he’d refused to have sex with other men. Our Games Master was giving evidence about how he’d found all the injuries to Roger.”
“About a week later, we read in the paper that ten people had been found guilty of a large number of sex crimes with under age boys. The names of the victims were kept out of the press. That would be harder today with social media and everything.”
“We all expected to see Roger returning to school but shortly before the end of the school year we received the sad news that Roger had killed himself.”
Bill sat there digesting the story.
“Thank you, Mr Armitage. I now understand quite a bit more about the situation. I think I should go home and look at what it in the envelope before doing anything else.”
“Please do that. Harry was a canny man. He paid us a large sum of money oh, three or four years ago for this very event. What I’m trying to say is that he anticipated your visit and appointed us to represent you in any way we can in the future.”
“Eh?” said a surprised Bill.
“I don’t know the details of what is in the envelope but if it is anything like what Roger went through then I am here for you in any way I can help. I’ve made it my life’s work to help people like Roger. Harry helped fund a good few legal actions for which I and the victims will be eternally grateful.”
“Sorry? I am a bit confused.”
“Harry and I made a pact back when we were at school. It didn’t take a genius to realise that Roger had been abused and was not the only one. We decided that we’d help people like Roger to not only get justice in the eyes of the law and beyond. Therapy and everything else. Harry was always a natural at making money so it was perfect for him to go into the city. Once he’d become a trader and I was qualified as a lawyer, we started working abuse cases. In many of them, it was the parents who were doing the abusing so we’d fund the legal work or rather, Harry would fund it and I’d do the legal work. That continued until Harry left the City. When he retired down to Sussex he gave me his final years salary and all his bonus to continue the work.”
Bill was shocked at hearing about this side of Harry. One that he’d had no inkling about before that meeting with Mr Armitage.
“Are you doing that work today?” asked a clearly shocked Bill.
“Not really. I’m sort of semi-retired now.”
Then Mr Armitage smiled.
“But my Daughter is carrying on the crusade. She’s a one-woman firebrand. She has to only flutter her lashes and somehow there is money to fund cases.”
“Harry or Penny as she preferred to be called was quite a person. A genuine human being in my opinion.”
“I’m getting to understand that more every day. He or rather she has rather big shoes to fill.”
Mr Armitage shook his head.
“Harry was a one off, believe me. You don’t have to try to emulate things. He told me many times that people should live their own lives and not do what others expect of them because those others have done that. You aren’t him but I know that he wants you to live your own life and be happy. That’s why he insisted that you run the smallholding for five years. He reckoned that it would take that long to get the city out of your veins and by then you would know where your destiny lay.”
Bill didn’t respond. This visit had answered a few questions but had raised a whole load more.
Bill didn’t open the envelope until later that night. When he did, he was both shocked and surprised at what he’d found. It was shocking to find out that Harry knew exactly what his parents had done and that Harry had done nothing about it. He sat back and thought about it a bit more.
After a bit, he realised that this was Harry all over. Nothing with Harry and his life was simple.
At the bottom of the envelope there was a handwritten note from Harry.
“Bill, if you are reading this then things have come to a head with your parents. I hope that what you find in the package is enough to put them away for a long time for what they did to you. You probably already know about Roger Fawcett so I think you will know why I put this together for you.
I really did try to stop them from doing what they did but to my everlasting shame, I failed miserably. As a result, I decided to put this little cache of evidence together. Then I blackmailed them with it. The end result was that they went off on a trip. If you have this then it means that they are either coming back or are back. Your task, should you choose to accept it, is to go to the Police with this evidence and get them put away for a long time. I told them never to come back here or else. It appears that it is time for the ‘or else’ option. Go sock it to them Bill and take heart, there are some good people out there. I’m sure that you will find someone soon.”
Harry.
PS. Connie is not my biological daughter. I thought she was but a DNA test never lies now does it but by the time we’d found out about it, it was too late. She was already the daughter I never had and I was the only father she’d ever known...”
Bill sat looking at the package and the letter for several more hours.
In the end he just went out for a walk. The peace of the surrounding countryside calmed him down quite a bit.
His wandering took him past Connie’s Cottage. The lights were on downstairs which meant that she was up and around. That usually meant that she’d just got home or was about to go out on a call.
As he walked up the path towards her back door, it opened and Connie emerged. She got a fright when she saw someone but quickly realised it was Bill.
“Bill! What are you doing here at this ungodly time of night?”
“I couldn’t sleep and was out walking when I saw your lights.”
“I’m off on a call. A horse has got itself trapped in a gate.”
On the spur of the moment, Bill said,
“Can I tag along? I promise not to get in the way but I need something to take my mind off things?”
Connie hesitated for a moment.
“Ok. You might come in handy.”
Bill didn’t say much to Connie during their short journey to the other side of the village. Several times, Connie looked at him and saw that he was looking straight ahead and was gripping the door handle really tightly. She wanted to help but knew that it would have to wait. What she didn’t know was how long that wait would be.
The ‘Horse stuck in a gate’ turned out to be a colt that had investigated a walker’s gate and had indeed gotten stuck.
Bill just pitched in and while Connie and the colt’s owner kept the very frightened animal calm, he lifted the gate off its hinges and as soon as the colt realised it was free, it disappeared into the grey light of dawn.
It appeared to be unharmed by the event but Connie said to the owner,
“I’ll be back this afternoon and hopefully by then he’ll have calmed down so that I can give him a full check-over.”
The owner agreed and that was it. All done and dusted for the time being.
Bill replaced the gate and the two of them drove back to Connie’s home.
As she stopped the car outside her home Connie said,
“If you want to talk then great. If you don’t then there is a breakfast that needs cooking. In case you hadn’t noticed, that colt peed all over me so I need to have a shower and get changed…”
“Oh… Sorry Connie. I was miles away.”
He looked at her and sighed.
“Why don’t you get yourself sorted out and come over for breakfast. I have something that you need to see.”
“Is it that bad?” asked Connie who could tell the stress that Bill was under from his voice.
He just nodded.
Despite her smelling of horse urine, she gave him a big hug.
“That smells good,” she said trying to lighten the atmosphere.
“Thanks,” said Bill.
“I hope it tastes as good as it smells.”
He dished up a plate of Kedgeree for them both. The fish had come from a local trout farm. They’d also smoked it using oak chips from the smallholding so the fish had cost nothing thanks to the wonderful world of bartering.
Connie finished her plate and took it to the sink. She started to run the water for the washing up.
“Leave that for a bit,” said Bill.
Connie sat next to him at the table.
“Is this about your Mother?”
Bill nodded and started to cry. Connie had never seen him like this before. She held him for what seemed an eternity until he stopped.
“There is a folder on the table in the dining room. It explains everything.”
Connie retrieved the folder and sat down at the table next to Bill and went through it.
Her interest soon turned to anger and then revulsion at the images she saw. She knew now why Bill had been in a state ever since he’d found out that his mother could be returning to England.
“You poor thing. How did you get all this?”
“Harry. He collected it and… There is something else you need to see.”
Bill turned over the last page in the folder to reveal the letter from Harry.
Connie read it.
“Did you know about this last thing?”
“Yes, Harry and I had always wondered why I didn’t take after him or my Mother. We had a DNA test done but it didn’t change anything between us. Harry was the only father I’d ever known and I was his only daughter and no sodding DNA was going to stop us being father and daughter.”
Connie changed the subject.
“You parents were really something weren’t they. What are you going to do with this?”
“That’s the problem. I really don’t know. I should go to the police but I really don’t know if they will investigate it or not.”
“Then tell your mother that she is not welcome and remind her of the file that Harry put together.”
Bill shook his head.
“She’ll come back just to spite me. I know that in my bones.”
“Tell her that you have given the Police Harry’s file and if she returns she will be arrested for child abuse and trafficking in child porno. I don’t think she’d fancy a stretch in prison with those convictions.”
Neither of them said anything for a while. Connie just held Bill close to her.
“You are right. I have to take this to the Police. I’ll go back to Harry’s Solicitor. He’ll know the right person to speak to.”
Connie managed a smile. Bill was starting to think clearly again.
“You are not in this on your own you know. Harry basically told me that there could be something like this happening.”
“Thanks Connie. You are a rock you know.”
She squeezed his hand a bit tighter but her face gave the game away. It was obvious to anyone apart from Bill that she wanted a bit more.
She’d avoided them really discussing the bit in the letter from Harry about her not being his biological daughter. She knew that sooner or later they’d have to discuss it.
Bill went to see Mr Armitage two days later.
“How can I help you Bill?” asked the Solicitor.
“It is about the contents of the envelope you gave me.”
“Ah! I wondered if that is the case.”
Bill looked down at his hands. He always did that when he was very nervous.
“My parents abused me. The folder contained pictures of that abuse. Some of them were apparently taken by my Mother. There was also a note from Harry telling me that he told my parents never to darken these shores again or else he’d take that evidence to the Police.”
“I wasn’t expecting that.”
“The thing is I think that my Mother will think that now Dad is dead she can come back and all will be forgiven!”
“And you are not willing to forgive her I take it?”
“No, I’m not. Never in a million years.”
“Good. It is good that you are so certain.”
“Thanks. I get the feeling that Harry would have no second thoughts about going to the Police with the evidence. He would not have cared about any publicity.”
“That’s the Harry I knew for so many years all right. He would have gone to the Police and had no qualms about it. After the episode with Roger our attitudes changed. I am surprised that he didn’t go to the Police himself with all the evidence but as it is his brother, I fully understand his reticence. Giving them the ‘get out of town’ option is Harry down to a tee.”
“What do I do now? Do I go to the Police and let her come home or do I just threaten her with that and hope that she realises that the game is up?”
Mr Armitage thought for several seconds.
“If you go to the Police now then it will get out sooner rather than later even if she does not come home. I think that letting her know that the minute she appears back here, the evidence goes to the Police. That’s the ‘or else’ that Harry was on about isn’t it?”
“I think you are right. It is sort of what I had decided but after our previous conversation… Well, I think you know my concerns.”
He looked at Bill and smiled.
“I have to say that you are taking this very well… Considering.”
“Possibly but I had a lot of issues as a child.”
Bill rolled up his shirt sleeves. The scars of old wounds still very visible even after fifteen years.
Mr Armitage didn’t respond apart from a knowing nod of his head.
Bill wasted no time in texting his Mother.
“Do not come home. You are NOT welcome. I have Harry’s pictures of you know what. You are just as guilty as he was. Get lost and stay away or ELSE. I will go to the Police if you come home. Even if you silence me, others know what you did. Keep away!”
Then he went home in a much better frame of mind.
That evening, Connie was eager to know what had happened. Bill simply showed her the text he’d sent to his Mother.
Connie smiled and gave him a big hug.
“Do you think that she will come home?”
“Why would she? There is only a prison cell waiting for her here.”
Connie didn’t leave that him alone that night or for the next week.
Eventually Connie moved in with Bill and after a year or so, she even got to meet Simone on a few special occasions because despite all the
pain of the past, Simone was part of Bill and would always be so.
Despite all this, Bill kept thinking, ‘why on earth could she be in love with someone as damaged as me?’
The arrival of a daughter finally allowed those ‘why would she?’ doubts to disappear from Bill’s mind especially, as that year, the smallholding actually made a small profit despite his efforts to carry on in the tradition of Harry and make a loss.
The End.
{For readers in the USA, we do not have a statute of limitations on criminal offences here in the UK.}