Ben blushed and sat down at the table.
‘Are we eating or what?’ Trevor said. ‘I mean it’s lovely and all that, but our breakfast’s getting cold.’
‘I’ll dish up,’ Angie said. ‘Sit back down, Maddy. You can open the rest of your presents after brekkie.’
Maddy still had to go to work, even on her birthday, but she hadn’t expected anything otherwise. She opened Angie and Trevor’s presents which turned out to be some fairly awful perfume and a box of chocolates.
‘Sorry it’s nothing more exciting, love, but you know we’re a bit strapped at the moment. We’ll get you something better when Trevor’s back at work again.’
‘No, no it’s nice of you to have got me anything. Thank you.’
She knew everyone had been making a real effort, but she just felt really down. On her birthday, she always ended up thinking of her mum and what it might have been like if she hadn’t died. She couldn’t even remember their father. He’d done a runner when she was only three, when her mum had got pregnant with Ben.
Her mum had died from a brain haemorrhage when Maddy was eight and Ben only four. They had no other relatives and her dad had been untraceable, and so began their journey through the care system - a catalogue of misery and instability.
For years she’d refused to believe her mum was really dead. Madison hadn’t actually seen the body or even attended the funeral, so she’d convinced herself there’d been a mix up at the hospital. Like most of the children she’d met in care, Maddy harboured a secret hope her mother would eventually come to claim her, but it had never happened. As Madison grew up and toughened up, she realised she’d been clinging to a stupid fairytale dream. Her mother wasn’t any more real than Father Christmas or the Tooth Fairy.
She had to accept this was her life and it was up to her to keep the two of them safe. So she had badgered and bullied her support worker for months and months until the wheels of bureaucracy finally started turning in the right direction. Not until Ben and Madison were placed together at the Johnsons, did things start to get a bit better. But Maddy still couldn’t let herself fully trust anyone, nor could she shake the constant insecurity that gnawed in her guts.
Later that day, after her lunch break, Maddy was given the exciting task of restocking tinned soups. But she didn’t mind. She actually found the job quite soothing and monotonous. Madison allowed herself to concentrate on the labels without thinking about anything else: pea and ham, carrot and coriander, chicken noodle, tomato, the list went on. It irritated her when a customer came to buy from the section she was working on - she’d be forced to stop and move out of the way, breaking her calm concentration.
Now, out of the corner of her eye, she saw one of the cashiers giving directions to a customer - a tall man in a dark grey suit. The man was heading her way. She hadn’t quite finished restocking country vegetable, when he approached and asked her something.
‘What?’
‘Are you Madison Greene?’ he repeated
She looked the man up and down. He looked to be somewhere over thirty, but not as old as fifty. As far as she was concerned, anyone over the age of twenty was ‘old’. He looked like he had a good job, not the usual class of customer they got in here. Maybe he’d come from school, something to do with her suspension. He didn’t look like anyone from social services - he was far too well dressed and smelt of something expensive. Madison prided herself on being able to spot a social worker at fifty paces.
‘Who wants to know?’ she asked.
‘My name is Robert Vasey-Smith and I represent a firm of solicitors called Hamilton Blythe.’ He had a strong voice with no discernible accent.
Maddy felt unsettled. What would a solicitor want with her? Had she done something wrong? Was she in trouble again? Great birthday this was turning out to be.
‘What do you want?’
‘I need to confirm you are Madison Greene, daughter of Sally-Anne Hathaway.’
Madison didn’t know whether or not to answer. How did he know her mum’s name? She saw Angie walking up the aisle towards them.
‘You okay, Maddy? Does this gentleman need any help?’
‘He wants to know if I’m Madison Greene.’
‘Who are you then?’ Angie took on a defensive posture, crossing her arms over her wide chest and staring hard at him.’
‘My name is Robert Vasey-Smith and I represent a firm of solicitors called Hamilton Blythe. I have some important information for Miss Greene.’
‘Well I’m her foster mum, you can tell it to me.’
‘I’m afraid I’m not authorised to speak to anyone other than Miss Greene herself.’ He turned to Madison. ‘I take it you are Madison Greene?’
‘Yeah,’ she said, feeling nervous now.
‘Everything okay over here, Mrs Johnson? Miss Greene?’ The supermarket manager came up the aisle. ‘Are you alright, sir? Do you need some assistance?’
‘It’s okay, Colin,’ Angie replied. ‘Just a personal matter, we’ll have it sorted in a mo.’
‘There’s no need for me to remind you what the policy is on personal conversations in the workplace.’ He frowned. ‘Sort it out quickly please, girls.’ And he strode off in the direction of Dairy Products.
‘You heard the man,’ Angie said. ‘We’ll be getting grief off him now.’
‘I apologise,’ the solicitor said. ‘Is there a good time when I could speak to you uninterrupted, Miss Greene? Are there any cafés near here where I could meet you after work?’
‘I don’t care if you’re a solicitor or the King of Timbuktu, you won’t be going anywhere with this barely sixteen-year-old girl without me.’ Angie put her hands on her hips and glared at Mr Vasey-Smith.
‘Angie’ll come with me,’ Maddy agreed.
‘Very well.’
‘Ali’s Caf on the High Street at four thirty,’ Angie said. ‘Now you better leave before you lose us our jobs.’
He nodded and left. Angie and Madison stared wide-eyed at each other.
‘What’s all that about then?’ Angie asked. ‘I hope for your sake you haven’t done anything you shouldn’t have. Trevor isn’t in the mood for any more of your troublemaking. It’ll be the last straw, Maddy. He’s got no more patience.’
‘We better get on with our work, Angie. Colin’ll be on the warpath.’
‘Hmmm.’ Angie walked back to the checkouts, glancing back at Madison.
Maddy’s mind whirred and clicked. She wished she knew what it was all about. How had he known her and where she worked? And he’d mentioned her mum, that was the weirdest part. Her heart felt too big for her ribcage and she couldn’t concentrate. Who cared about country vegetable soup at a time like this?
*
Ali’s Caf was packed to its grease-stained ceiling, mainly with school kids, and it didn’t take Madison and Angie any time at all to spot the solicitor. He didn’t quite fit the usual customer profile. He sat, straight-backed, in the far corner with his briefcase on the table.
Madison followed Angie, who wove her way purposefully past the other customers towards him. They sat down on the sticky plastic chairs and he asked if he could get them a drink.
‘Coke please,’ said Madison.
‘I’ll have the same,’ said Angie.
He turned around and asked the man behind the counter for two cokes, a cup of tea and a plate of sandwiches.
‘We’re intrigued, Mr ... Vasey-Smith is it?’ Angie said. ‘What’s it all about?’
‘I have some interesting news for you, Madison. You’ve been very difficult to track down.’
‘How d’you know my mum?’
‘We’ll get to all that. Will you permit me to tell you what I need to? And then you can ask me any questions you might have and I’ll do my best to answer them.’
The cokes arrived on the table and Angie patted her hair and took a couple of delicate sips. ‘Let’s let the man speak, Maddy.’
‘Our client is deceased, but before his death he
spent much time and considerable funds in trying to trace any living relatives. Alas, he found none, but remained convinced he had someone somewhere, no matter how far removed.
‘After his death, he entrusted my firm with the task of carrying on this search for the time span of one hundred years. After which time, if no descendant had been found, his estate was to be gifted to a specific charity of his choosing. Our firm has been engaged in this search for ninety six years, but we believe we have now found not one, but two living descendants: You, Madison, and your brother, Ben.
Maddy chewed the skin on the back of her forefinger, her glass of coke sat untouched on the table. A girl plonked a mug of tea in front of Mr Vasey-Smith and put a large plate of cheese and tomato sandwiches in the middle of the table.
‘We ‘found’ you, so to speak, three and a half years ago, but, as per the terms of the will, were unable to initiate contact until your sixteenth birthday. We’ve been waiting for today.’
‘This relation, was he rich then?’ Angie asked. ‘Has he left Maddy some money?’
‘His estate has been willed to you, Madison, but there are some conditions.’
Maddy stayed silent, but Angie’s mouth opened and closed. ‘Oh, Maddy, you could be rich! Imagine.’
‘There is a large house in Gloucestershire, just outside the town of Tetbury. You will inherit this property on your twenty first birthday but can live in it from the age of sixteen, that is, today.’
‘A house …’ Maddy couldn’t comprehend what the man was telling her. She shook her head. ‘This is a wind-up, yeah? Oh very funny. ‘Madison Greene, delinquent waste of space inherits a house’. Ha, Ha, Mr Vasey-whatever your name is. Nice try, but I‘m not falling for that.’
‘Maddy, shhh,’ Angie interrupted. ‘Excuse her, she’s got a funny way of saying thank you.’
‘I know this is a lot to take in,’ he said. ‘But I can assure you this is not a joke. In addition to the property, there is a generous allowance to be dispensed monthly, until such time as you reach twenty-one-years-of-age or marry, whichever comes first. At that time, the remainder of the estate is to pass in its entirety to you, Miss Greene. The current value of this estate is sixty one million pounds.’
Madison couldn’t accept what she was hearing. Thoughts of school, Haggis, Ben, care homes, Angie and Trevor, flew through her mind along with the unfamiliar images of piles and piles of cash, flashy cars and, for some reason, very rich people in dark sunglasses.
‘What? Sorry?’
Mr Vasey-Smith had been speaking, but her mind had drifted off and she hadn’t heard what he’d said.
‘I know this is a shock for you. But I do trust it is a welcome one. I was just saying there are a number of stipulations regarding the settlement of the will and, to that end, I suggest we reconvene in my office, where we can go over the fine details more thoroughly. Shall we say ten thirty tomorrow morning, if that’s convenient? Here’s my card. Our offices are just a few minutes walk from Baker Street tube station.’
Madison clutched the card. ‘Is it really true? You’re on the level? Me and Ben are ... We’re rich?’
‘Yes, Miss Greene, it’s true.’
*
That evening, Angie and Trevor ordered a Chinese takeaway, letting Madison and Ben order whatever they wanted from the menu.
‘Well, it is your birthday,’ Trevor said, ruffling her hair. ‘Madison was amused and annoyed at his good mood. For days now, she’d been careful to keep out of his way, trying to avoid riling him and now it appeared she was completely forgiven. He and Angie were sunshine and happiness, laughing, joking and teasing.
When Madison had told Ben they were coming into some money, he’d got pretty excited.
‘Does that mean I can get a laptop and a DS?’
‘Hold on there, shortie!’ Madison laughed. ‘We’ve got to get the cash before we can spend it.’
‘So this relation of yours …’ Trevor asked through a mouthful of chicken chow mein, ‘… he died a hundred years ago?’
‘Mr Vasey-whatsit said they’d been looking for ninety six years, so nearly a hundred, yeah.’
‘Blimey. Lucky they found you then. Nice they found you settled and happy with us and not in some scabby care home. Your relation would’ve been pleased we gave you a home.’
‘Mmm.’ Madison felt uncomfortable at the direction the conversation was taking.
Angie looked at Trevor and then at Madison. ‘So, Maddy,’ she said. ‘What an interesting sixteenth birthday you’ve had. You’re not gonna forget today in a hurry.’ She looked at her husband again.
‘Trevor and me have agreed you can go out with your mates tonight if you want. But I wouldn’t mention what’s happened today to any of them. You know what people are like when money’s involved. I mean me and Trev, we’ve just got your best interests at heart, but … Well, you just don’t know how other people are going to react. They might try and take advantage. You need to be careful now, Maddy.’
‘Can I go out now then?’ Maddy rose to her feet.
‘Don’t you want to finish your takeaway?’
‘Not really that hungry, thanks.’
‘Go on then, love. Have a good time,’ Trevor said. ‘Me and Ben’ll finish yours, won’t we, lad? You need a bit of building up anyway.’ He squeezed Ben’s skinny bicep.
‘Not too late please. Big day tomorrow with that solicitor and everything.’ Angie stood up and kissed her cheek. ‘Happy Birthday, love.’
Maddy got changed and rushed downstairs, relieved to get out of the house into the evening air. Things had never felt stranger. She walked towards the park, texting Keisha and Lois on the way. They arranged to meet up in ten minutes time.
As she walked across the tarmac, Maddy saw her friends were already there. They were easy to spot. Keisha, a half Afro-Caribbean, half English beauty, with long brown hair and a willowy figure. And Lois, with her streaked blonde hair, big boobs and an attitude radiating from every knock-off designer fibre.
When Maddy started at Collingstone, she’d slotted into their friendship easily and although the others had known each other since they were tots, it felt like the three of them had always been together.
Maddy ignored Angie’s advice and immediately told her friends what had happened with the solicitor.
‘You’re winding us up, right?’ Keisha raised a perfectly plucked eyebrow.
‘I know it sounds insane. But I’m totally serious.’
‘Girl, that isn’t something to go joking about.’
‘I’m not.’
‘But then … wow! You’re like, set for life. If you’re having a laugh, I’ll …’
‘I’m not!’
‘Mads, I can’t believe it.’ Lois threw her arms around her friend and hugged her. Then all three of them started jumping up and down, whooping and laughing.
‘Yeah!’ Lois screeched. ‘Don’t you go forgetting your friends though. You’ll be going out with film stars and partying with Paris and Lindsay while we’re stuck here getting jiggy with it, to Paul Mancini’s mobile disco.’
Mads and Keisha laughed at her intentionally crap dance moves.
‘Where is Gloucester anyway?’ Keisha asked. Is it in the country? You gonna have to move there?’
‘It’s Gloucestershire I think, some village called Tetbury or something. I dunno where it is and I ain’t moving to the country. Nothing going on there. Maybe I could buy a place in town and we could all move in together.’
‘Oh, Mads, you’re gonna live the dream.’
They spent the rest of the evening theoretically spending sixty one million pounds.
*
Trevor and Angie had made an effort for their trip into town. Trevor in a too-tight suit and Angie with flattened hair and a new skirt and blouse. They made Ben put on a shirt and tie, but Maddy wouldn’t be told what to wear and decided on faded stretch jeans, black wedges, a strappy vest and lots of jewellery. She pulled her black hair into two cute bunches and went
heavy on the eyeliner.
A warm breeze wafted a musty, oily scent into Maddy’s nostrils and she inhaled deeply as they descended the escalator. Their tube wasn’t too busy and they all got a seat.
‘You excited, Maddy?’ Angie asked.
‘Dunno. It’s a bit weird.’
‘Weird?’ Trevor scoffed. ‘It’s everybody’s dream come true, is what it is. Things like this just don’t happen. I’d say you’re the luckiest girl in Britain.’
Maddy shrugged her shoulders. Sure it was great and everything, but she certainly didn’t feel like the luckiest girl in Britain. She just felt ... weird.
After a couple of changes, they reached Baker Street and stepped out into the muggy warmth of central London. Outside the station Maddy saw a few stalls and shops selling the usual tat of policeman’s helmets, t shirts and postcards. The queue for Madame Tussauds and The Planetarium snaked along for what looked like half a mile up the road and the traffic roared past.
Trevor led the way and within minutes, they stood outside the impressive white mansion block that housed Hamilton Blythe Solicitors.
After taking the wrought iron lift up to the third floor, they found themselves in a plush reception area, a bit like the lobby of a five star hotel. Madison looked around, trying not to feel intimidated. She took in the pale marble floor, dark green pot plants and several groupings of subtly mismatched sofas and armchairs. Today’s newspapers and the latest glossy magazines adorned side tables and an indoor water feature provided a delicate tinkling sound, making Maddy want to pee.
They were greeted immediately by a smartly dressed young woman who asked them to please sit and make themselves comfortable for a few minutes. Mr Vasey-Smith would be with them very shortly. She took drinks orders and returned almost immediately with a tall jug of iced lemonade and a plate of freshly baked cakes and biscuits.
‘You better get used to this, Maddy,’ Trevor said, ‘now you’re a lady of means.’
‘It’s just lemonade and biscuits, Trevor.’
‘No pleasing some people.’
When Darkness Falls - Six Paranormal Novels in One Boxed Set Page 4
