The House

by A. O'Connor

  He looked up at the house. “It’s been in my family for nearly a hundred and seventy years – I’d like to see it go to a good home.”

  “It’s not an unwanted pet, Nico, it’s a house – and it will take somebody with the Fallons’ money to turnit into a good home.”

  The peace of the countryside was suddenly disturbed by the thundering engine of a helicopter.

  “Oh, here we go!” moaned Nico as he looked up at the helicopter circulate in the air above the house and he saw the words ‘Fallon Enterprises’ printed on the side of it.

  “What an entrance!” declared Janet excitedly.

  Kate and Tony peered down at the house as the pilot continued to circle above it.

  “It’s fabulous!” squealed Kate.

  “It’s a fucking dump!” declared Tony. “One of the fucking chimneys is collapsed, from what I can see.”

  “Fabulous!” repeated Kate excitedly.

  Nico and Janet looked on as the helicopter descended and landed in what used to be the gardens of the house.

  “Come on,” said Janet as she rushed towards them. “You can meet them, and help show them around.”

  “I don’t really want to,” he objected. “I just wanted to have a look – possibly a last look – at the house.”

  She grabbed the sleeve of his Barbour coat and pulled him along with her. “Yes, you do! There’s nothing like the personal touch.”

  As the blades of the helicopter slowed to a halt, the doors opened and the Fallonsclimbed out and walked quickly towards Janet and Nico.

  “Mr and Mrs Fallon, a pleasure!” Janet put out her hand and they both shook it. Nico thought for a second that Janet might make a curtsey.

  “Sorry, I think we’re a bit late,” apologised Kate.

  “Not at all! Not at all!” gushed Janet.

  “Was the traffic a bit heavy coming out of Dublin then?” smirked Nico as he nodded over to the helicopter.

  “Well, it was a bit heavy getting to the heliport,” said Tony.

  “You should get him to put one in your back garden then,” smirked Nico to Kate.

  “I’m working on it,” nodded Kate with a smile.

  Janet looked at them, not enjoying the banter. “May I introduce Nicholas Armstrong-Collins, the seller, who made the journey all the way from Dublin to help show you around.”

  Nico threw Janet a disbelieving look at her usage of a non-existent double-barrelled name and the fib about his presence, then shook both their hands. “Please call me Nico.”

  The four walked away from the helicopter and to the front of the house.

  “The view is amazing!” said Kate as she looked down the hill to the lake.

  “It is until you look that way,” said Tony, pointing up at the house.

  “How much land is going with it?” asked Kate.

  “Fifteen acres, a boutique farm!” said Janet. “Including the land going down to the lake and the property has its own lake frontage.”

  Kate walked over to the balustrade of the forecourt and looked down.

  “Those used to be fabulous gardens, believe it or not,” said Nico as he followed her over.

  Kate looked at the terrace walls that had collapsed in places, withthe ornamental bowls and statues knocked over.

  “Sad how it was left to get into this state,” she said.

  Nico looked at her, somewhat affronted. “Well, no doubt somebody like you will manage to restore it.”

  “Will we go inside?” Kate glanced at him momentarily as she walked past him.

  They all walked up the steps to the metal door that had been placed there.

  Tony knocked on the metal door. “I’m guessing early Victorian?” he said and laughed mockingly.

  “The original door was destroyed as were most of the front windows in the fire,” explained Nico.

  “And when was that?” asked Kate.

  “Ninety odd years ago. The War of Independence or the Civil War, I can’t remember which,” said Nico.

  “Yes, there was a small fire,” said Janet as she pushed the door open.

  “Small fire! That’s a bit of an understatement, isn’t it?” said Tony as they walked through the hallway, seeing the rooms at the front of the house were badly burned.

  “The fire damage is only to the front of the house, the rest is fine,” said Janet quickly. “Luckily the fire went out or was put out before it gutted the place, as was often the case in those days. The arsonists must have been stopped or had to leave for some reason before they finished the job.” Janet was improvising. She had no idea what had actually happened, nor had Nico as there had been no family lore on the matter.

  Tony looked up and saw a part of the floor above his head was missing and he could see through to the sky through the missing roof. He looked at Kate and shook his head in dismay.

  “Nico has owned the house for nearly a hundred and seventy years,” said Janet as they walked intothe drawing room which again was burnt out.

  “Not personally, may I say,” said Nico.

  “I was going to say – you’re wearing well!” said Kate with smirk.

  They moved to the back of the house and went into the ballroom. All the French windows were boarded up apart from the arches at the top that let in the light.

  The room was filled with old furniture and boxes.

  “As you can see most of this room escaped any fire damage, and the attention to detail is amazing,” said Janet as she pointed out the elaborate carved roof.

  “The trouble is – the ceiling looks as if it’s about to fall down,” said Tony.

  “No, I’m an architect, and I can assure you that ceiling is quite safe. Can’t say the same for the rest of the house though,” said Nico and Janet gave him a warning look.

  Kate started examining the furniture and boxes.

  “That’s family stuff and is not included in the sale,” said Nico.

  “Thank heaven for that!” said Tony.

  “I have to sift through it. But I’ll have it all removed before I do.”

  “I mean, if there’s anything that takes your eye, I’m sure Nico will include it in the sale,” said Janet quickly. “It would be nice to have some original furniture in the house when it’s restored. It could be a treasure trove!”

  Tony looked at the furniture in disgust. “One man’s treasure is another man’s junk. No, thanks! And no offence, Nico.”

  Nico shrugged.

  “Shall we move on?” suggested Janet.

  They looked around the rest of the rooms downstairs.

  Then, as Kate went to walk up the main staircase Janet shouted, “Stop! I’m sorry, but it’s not safe. We have to use the servants’ stairs around the back.”

  She led them around to the back of the stairs and through a door that led down a passageway to the kitchens and sculleries. These were in a semi-basement with only the top halves of their windows on a level with the back yard and what used to be the walled kitchen gardens. Katefrowned when she realised the room was half below ground level. Tony spent a lot of his leisure time in the kitchen as he loved to cook and entertain while he did so. Yes, this room would need serious renovation . . . perhaps the level of the back yard could be lowered . . . then it could form a patio outside . . .

  “A lot of the servants’ quarters is remarkably well preserved,” said Janet, startling Kate out of her reverie.

  “Pity it’s just basic rooms though, isn’t it? All the ornate detail was obviously in the main part of the house,” said Kate.

  Janet then led them outside to the back yard and showed them the stables and carriage houses which she presented as an exciting extra opportunity for renovation. Tony looked incredulous but Kate was enthusiastic.

  Back inside, they went up the servants’ stairs and exited onto the first floor of the house. As theyviewed some of the rooms at that end of the house they observed they were smoke-damaged and in a dilapidated state.

  “I’m sorry we can’t go any further,
” said Janet. “Health and Safety. The floors to the front of the house are fragile and might not take the weight.”

  “You trying to say I’m fat?” said Tony accusingly.

  “No, Mr, Fallon! Of course not!”

  Tony roared with the laughter. “I’m only joking ya!”

  “I see!” Janet smiled and tried to laugh. “Veryfunny!”

  They came out of the front door and looked up at the house.

  “Well, thank you for showing us around,” said Kate.

  “So what do you think?” asked Janet.

  “It’s certainly interesting,” said Tony, looking unimpressed.

  “Will we see you at the auction next week?” pushed Janet.

  “We’ve a lot to discuss,” said Kate, smiling at Tony. She looked at Nico. “You’ll miss the house when it’s gone?”

  “I guess. I still own Hunter’s Farm – it’s a small house down the road. The family has always used it as a holiday home since the main house was fire-damaged.”

  “So there will still be an Armstrong presence in the area,” said Kate.

  “We’d better fly! Literally!” said Tony. “I’ve a shopping centre to build. Thanks for everything!” He shook their hands quickly. Then he and Kate held hands and headed back to the helicopter.

  They climbed in, the pilot started the engine and the blades began to swirl.

  “‘I’ve a shopping centre to build’!” Nico mimicked Tony’s voice.

  “I don’t know if you were more of a hindrance than a help with the house viewing,” said Janet as they watched the helicopter take off.

  “Come on, Janet! They aren’t serious buyers. He hated the place.”

  “Hmmm, but she didn’t,” said Janet.

  Nico had got back to Dublin by the early evening and had just opened the door to his rented apartment in the Docklands when the intercom rang. He knew it was his ex-wife Susan dropping in their daughter Alex for the weekend. He pressed the button and let them in.

  A minute later, eleven-year-old Alex came bounding in and gave him a hug, followed by Susan.

  “Janet told me you met her down at the house,” said Susan.

  “She’s quite the little spy, isn’t she?She was busy showing lots of prospective buyers around, you’ll be glad to know.” He couldn’t leave the bitterness out of his voice.

  Alex had gone running off to her room.

  “Janet said Tony and Kate Fallon were down looking at it,” she said brightly.

  “Hmmm, my mother would be turning in her grave at the thought of that type living in Armstrong House.”

  “Jacqueline would be turning in her grave twice as fast at the thought of what would happen to her precious son and granddaughter if we didn’t sell it – rented flat for you, sellingAlex’s home –”

  “I know, I know, we’ve been through all this before,” he said crossly. “You’ve got what you want – we’re selling it, aren’t we?”

  She sighed, looking at his upset face. “I thought you agreed this was the best thing for us all.”

  “I have. Doesn’t mean I’m happy about it though.”

  Alex came out of the bedroom and Susan gave her a kiss and a hug. “Right, I’ll leave you to it. See you Sunday.”

  Chapter eighty-nine

  It was approaching midnight when Tony pulled intothe gateway of their house in Dublin. He pressed a zapper and the electric gates opened. He drove in and parked outside the white modern house. He glanced at Kate beside him. They had been at a function all night.

  They both got out of the car and walked in silence to the front door and let themselves in. Tony pressed the code into the alarm panel to turn it off while Kate walked upstairsto their bedroom where she changed intoa silk nightdress, got intobed and started leafing through a magazine. She stopped to scrutinise a photo of herself in the society pages. A few minutes later, Tony came in.

  “You were quiet tonight,” he said as he took off his tie.

  “Was I?” she said.

  “Anything the matter?” He sat down on the bed beside her.

  “No.”

  “I thought you said if I went to see that house you’d be happy?”

  She put down the magazine. “I would have been happy if you hadn’t made up your mind you disliked it before you had even seen it.”

  “Disliked it? I hated it! I’d like to take a big sweeping brush and sweep it intothe lake!”

  “Well, I love it!”

  “But why?”

  “I just do!” She jumped out of the bed and started to pace the floor. “Look, we need a place like that.”

  “Why? We have a beautiful house here that has almost everything we need.”

  “No, Tony, everything you need. I’ve been trying to tell you for a long time. I want a fresh start somewhere.”

  He looked at her as if she were mad. “A fresh start! What more do you want? Most people would kill for the life you have.”

  “Oh, yes, we have all the material things we could ever want. And our life is a whirl of parties and travel. But I want more than just that . . . I feel life is passing us by. Monday, New York. Friday, London. Sunday, Rome. We’ve no time for ourselves anymore. You’re always in meetings. I’m always following you around to meetings. I want somewhere for us, just us. Somewhere that can be our home, just for us.”

  “This is our home!”

  “This is a place we pass through to on our way to the next meeting or event. It’s no better than a hotel.”

  He sat in silence for a while. “I didn’t realise you felt so strongly about that damned house.”

  She sat down beside him. “I feel that strongly about our lives. There has to be more to life than the next deal, the next shopping centre. We’re living our lives for other people, not for us. I want us to find a place where we can just relax and get to know each other again.”

  “I thought we did know each other.”

  “When was the last time we talked? I mean really talked about anything else other than business and what party we’re going to? And there are always so many people around. Every time I come back the house is filled with your work people. We need somewhere like that house. Somewhere we can be alone and see where we really want to go in life.”

  “And why that house? Out of all the houses we could buy?”

  “I grew up in the town near there, Castlewest, before we emigrated to New York. I spent a lot of time playing around that house growing up. We used to cycle there. We weren’t supposed to be on the property, but we went in anyway. Nobody was there to spot us. I’ve always loved it, and I would love to own it and restore it.”

  He looked at her for a long while. “Okay – you can buy it. Go to the auction next week and buy the house, doesn’t matter how much it costs.”

  Kate suddenly screamed with delight andjumped on top of him.

  “Will you stop!” he said laughing loudly as she hugged him tightly. “Now listen to me! This is on condition that you take care of the whole rebuilding. Do you understand me?”

  “Yes! Yes!” Kate agreed excitedly.

  “I want nothing to do with it – I’ll be too busy with the shopping centre. So don’t come to me if you have any problems with it. Okay?”

  “Deal!”

  Nico looked around the packed auction room at the Shelbourne Hotel.

  “There’s been a huge amount of interest,” Janet informed him. “I think we may get the asking price.”

  “Hopefully,” nodded Nico.

  “Or maybe even more! Look who’s just arrived in!” squealed Janet as Kate Fallon walked intothe room, dressed immaculately in a cream suit, her hair beautifully styled, diamonds sparkling at her neck and wrist.

  “And she’s without him, that’s a good sign,” said Janet as Kate walked to the top of the room and sat down.

  “But he’s the one with the money,” said Nico.

  “Yes, but women are much better at auctions than men. She’ll always follow her heart when push comes to shove,
but he’d get scared and follow his head. Anyway, I’d better get going. Wish me luck!”

  “Indeed!” said Nico as Janet walked to the auctioneer’s stand at the top of the room.

  “Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Shelbourne and today’s auction with DolansAuctioneers. Today we are opening the auction with Armstrong House. This stunning period property in need of refurbishment is a unique sale to the discerning eye. I’m starting the bidding today for this property at a cool one million. Who bids me one million? Thank you, sir.”

  As the bidding got under way Nico could only watch as one hundred and seventy years of his family history were auctioned away. What amazed him was how quick it was and it seemed no time until anow overexcited Janet was practically screaming, “Sold! To Mrs Kate Fallon, ladies and gentlemen!”

  Kate was swamped with people wishing her congratulations in the Shelbourne after the auction. Nico looked on as a couple of journalists descended on her for an interview about her latest purchase. He watched her as she laughed with them and delivered witty lines to the journalists, like the seasoned actress she was. When the press photographer asked for a photo, Kate hopped up on the grand piano, crossed her legs, struck a pose and flashed a smile for him. Nico raised his eyes to heaven as he went to seek out Janet.

  Kate escaped to the restrooms and grinned at herself in the mirror, thrilled she had got what she wanted. She left the restrooms and walked towards the bar where she had organised to celebrate with a few friends. Suddenly she heard the unmistakable voice of Janet Dolan speaking to Nico on the other side of a pillar, and she stopped to listen in.

  “You must be delighted, Nico! One and a half million! It got even more than I expected.”

  “Yes, not that I’ll be seeing any of it. It’ll all be going to pay off those Armstrong debts that have been passed on through the generations, not to mention my ex-wife’s mortgage, not to mention her lawyer, not to mention my lawyer.”