Conscious Revenge Read online

  The police would tell me, not just someone spreading rumours. I made a decision there and then that I would check in with the police and explained to James what I intended to do. He was polite and said goodnight, but I still had a strange feeling he was the one looking to see if I had any news of William and not the other way round, what business was it of his?

  I rang the number that the officer in charge, Sergeant Steve Briggs, had given me to phone anytime I was the least bit concerned about anything regarding William’s disappearance. He was not available at the moment but the officer offered to help me although I doubted she could. I explained the strange scenario that had just taken place, after checking she said that as far as the police were concerned there was no change to the situation, the file was the same and no messages on the action board, so she had no idea what James Hollingsworth was talking about.

  Part of me wanted to ask him why he was spreading these rumours, but would not dignify the situation. He obviously had his own agenda. He probably wanted William’s job or something of that kind. I would put him straight the next time I saw him make no mistake about that.

  Chapter Eleven

  Taking everything into account we considered it was time to filter a sum to be determined from the Bank accounts that I had set up to receive the now $15 million plus, into the account I had just set up with Mr Landau, my new bank manager. Just a small amount to start with to prevent raising suspicion, once a precedence had been established we would increase the amount slowly.

  It had crossed my mind that maybe we should be looking for a new place to stay, not only because the condo was well sought after by the sick which made me feel guilty but, if anyone was getting closer to discovering our whereabouts, a change may just put them off the scent.

  Paul decided it may be more prudent for him to look for our new and very secluded apartment. He would pretend to be writing a book and needed the privacy, ‘Soon Paul would have to join the actors union alongside myself’. I wondered if he would fit into my Oxfam suit but I doubted it, the thought made me laugh out loud. Paul’s eyebrows lifted wondering what scam I had in mind this time. They say necessity is the mother of invention, well I was getting better at invention than James Alexander Bell ‘whatever would Lorna make of me now?’ No time for reminiscing, the sooner this was over the sooner I could work on retrieving my family.

  We agreed he would start looking in the property agents tomorrow. Hopefully, by the time he found the ideal place, the money would be flowing in on a regular basis. For now though we would have to make sure extra money was transferred to cover any rent we may need.

  Using the internet banking system, we went about making the transfers. Money would be needed not only for rent but new mobile phones also additional software to help quicken the search, decent food and drink and, after a while, maybe a small car. The idea of ditching the bus filled me with euphoria. Surprising what small things make me happy these days.

  Paul had left on his journey to explore the local Estate Agents and I was in charge of checking the lists. The sudden ping of Paul’s mobile phone made me jump. I didn’t know he had forgotten it. I felt uneasy as no one should be texting on his office phone, he was using it for outgoing calls only, or so I thought. Why am I so edgy it’s probably only the Phone Company trying to sell him tickets for something?

  I carried on with the task in hand but was feeling increasingly uneasy about the text, I really shouldn’t look at his private texts but was worried someone had an urgent need to contact him, a dilemma what to do?

  I looked at the computer but found my concentration slipping away as the text seemed to get more and more important by the second. If I don’t check the text I won’t be able to carry on with the job in hand, if I do look Paul will know and it may be hard to explain away why I needed to check his private message. I managed to convinced myself that if it was urgent and they needed him, he would be grateful that I had looked as I could stall the sender should needs be with a cryptic message until he got back.

  Who was I trying to kid? I was becoming paranoid and needed to look. When I finally succumbed and began reading, my stomach lurched as it gradually sunk in, ‘Lorna’ my Lorna, what? Why would Lorna have his private work phone number and, if someone had given it to her, why and who? All of these questions raced through my head at the same time, it took me some time to stop my brain from running away with all sorts of ifs and buts, I must be rational here, but the thought of Lorna on the other end of the phone was almost unbearable. I wanted to pick it up and ring her back to let her know how much I loved her and the kids and how sorry I was for the devastation I had created.

  I sat for a while with my head in my hands. If I did ring her back how could I ever explain away the pain I had caused her with my reckless behaviour, no matter how good the intentions may have been. I could lose her for good with one wrong word, I felt desperate, how had I allowed this to happen to us, how could I explain away what had happened to me in one phone call? I had to come to terms with the fact that I couldn’t even begin to speak let alone give her chapter and verse of the past months.

  The sweat ran into my eyes and I wished I could take back that one temptation to look at someone else’s phone. I must have been sitting in the corner for what seemed to be hours, my mind numb from the experience of being so close to Lorna for the first time in what seemed like forever and not being able to tell her how much I wanted to hold her and never let her go again.

  It had started to get darker outside and Paul would be back soon, I then had some explaining on two fronts, one why I had read his phone message and two why I felt jealous that he was able to contact Lorna and I could not. The problem was my mind could not concentrate on anything right now, so any excuses I may have found in the past deluded me right now. I would have to play it by ear and hope something off the cuff would occur to me when he got back. I doubted it would so I tried to ignore the whole scenario and wait until he spotted the text in his in box.

  As if by magic, Paul arrived just as I had reached for a fourth beer. ‘Dutch courage’ I said to myself, hopefully it would not mean a loose tongue as blurting out about the phone would not be a good idea just at this moment.

  Waving lots of leaflets and with a smile on his face as if being let out had given him a new lease of life, I had forgotten how long he had been prisoner like in our condo. “I have lots of info for you to look at,” he said looking at the beer in my hand. “Had a hard day,” he said, “you look dreadful?” If only he knew.

  “Have a beer,” I said without turning a hair. It was a good job he couldn’t see inside my crazy head.

  “Sounds great,” he said still waving the papers in his hand. I took one look at him in that garb and laughed till I cried, I think it was hysteria, but as he twirled around saying, “Sorry, don’t you like it?” the fog in my head started to lift, what a great guy.

  Following several beers and mulling over the endless apartments with different degrees of security and rent we had difficulty in matching what we already had, but moving on was a must. He had found one he thought I should take a look at. It was close to the beach, a bit ramshackle but had many of the criteria we needed. It was cheap and very secluded.

  We decided to look at it first thing in the morning, Sunday was always a good day for these things as the owners were mostly available to show you around, much better than the agent, as they have no agenda other than to get a quick rental.

  “It must be secluded,” I said to Paul, we were having a job to find it, so maybe this would be the one. Then it came into view, how I managed not to laugh out loud I do not know, short of the castaways, I had not encountered much like it.

  Paul looked at me with a look only he can manage when trying to keep a straight face, we didn’t want to let the owner get the impression that we didn’t like it, but it was hysterical, the most dilapidated hovel we had ever encountered. He assured us it needed tidying up (an understatement) and if we didn’t mind holding off a whil
e he would get his men in to sort it out. I thought how many men had he got - an army? Nevertheless, the location was perfect and “it was not as if we had other places to rent with this view,” Paul said, giving me a sideways look.

  “No,” I said, “how long do you think?” I asked Joshua. The guy’s name was even from biblical times as well as his property. He assured us he would fix it up real nice, it would only take a week or two. We agreed to see him there in two weeks with the first two month’s rent.

  Monday saw me back at the chicken farm doing my counting, calculating the feed versus egg production, just another day another dime. Andy Crantock came to see me. He hoped I had got fixed up at the bank. I thanked him very much, If only he knew he had helped to make me a millionaire. With my new account at the bank, it wouldn’t be long before all of the cash I had accrued could be safely moved to a place where no one but Paul and myself could possibly know about. I may consider giving Andy a large tip for his help in all of this, a direct transfer into his bank account, which I had privy to, would do the trick. What a nice guy he was. Pity I hadn’t known him before, you forget how decent many people can be. If I had learned anything from this experience it was never to give up on people as they very often surprise you, especially in this neck of the woods.

  Back at the condo, Paul was getting through the list. How many accounts had I run for G&F plc. over the period of years I was employed prior to my lust for money began, the list seemed endless, but then they were one of the largest investment banks in the world. I wish I could have access to the list I had made but this was in my safety deposit box back home, even Lorna had no knowledge of it. I must stop thinking of Lorna as it made me remember the mess I had made by reading Paul’s text from her.

  I was so shocked by my thoughts at the time that I had almost forgotten the contents of the text, it was strange, something like “Where the hell are you, have you any idea what is going on here?” It sounded as if she knew something of what had happened to me, no it couldn’t be, I was looking into things that hadn’t taken place again. I must stop this, I’m becoming paranoid again, perhaps she meant with the search for me and the consequences to herself and the children.

  It still niggled me though, why would she confide in Paul? He was my friend at work and socially. It was only Paul and I that went out together, Lorna had no contact with him other than answering the phone to him occasionally. Maybe I was reading into it too closely or perhaps, when I went missing, they had got together trying to sort out where I was. If that was the case surely he would have mentioned something, I’m driving myself mad trying to get my head around it all, I’m sounding more and more like Sherlock Holmes every minute.

  I decided to put the past few days to the back of my mind. When this sorry state of affairs is over I will contact Lorna and we can have a cocktail on the beach in our own special condo (large condo), mustn’t forget the kids, as if I could, and when I lay bare the whole saga. I just hope she will find it in her heart to forgive me and we can put the past behind us. I know it’s a tall order after everything that has taken place, but I must cling on to every strand of hope.

  Chapter Twelve

  Lorna

  I wondered why Paul hadn’t got back to me. He had promised to assist me with the other things that were happening as I had enough to worry about looking after the children, namely the finances, which have never been my forte, and also any dealings with the police in their efforts to find William. I may not have seen much of William but his contribution with the practical things was now sorely missed and, with Paul still away I have begun to feel out of my depth.

  I had thought Paul and I had gotten closer since William had suddenly disappeared and in some ways we had, but now I wondered if I had read the signs wrong and he was only taking care of me out of his loyalty to William and not because he wanted to.

  Strange things have begun to happen to me, I’m sure someone is following me and I spotted the same person at the school the other day. Mrs Chilton assured me that no one would be allowed to take the children out of school without my permission first, which was a comfort, but I still feel uneasy and wished I could speak to Paul for reassurance. My message was done when I was spooked and must have worried him, but no response had been worse than telling me to pull myself together.

  Days went by with no word from Paul and this was to say the least disconcerting. I was tempted to contact the office to see if any news of him had filtered through; surely his Aunt must be getting better by now. Knowing how conscientious Paul usually was, it was hard to picture him as the carer for an old Aunt without contacting work to keep on top of things. With everything that had happened over the past months, I couldn’t help but feel concerned. We had never been really close as he was William’s friend, but since William’s disappearance, he had been more than helpful and I was sure we had many things in common, as did he and William.

  Mom said I worry too much, maybe she’s right!! Starting a new job helped to take my mind off my predicament just for a while. I had gained many skills in university and intended to use some of them to do a good job, this will not only help financially but also give my mind something to do other than brood over William and now Paul. I was still a little surprised when the Company rang to offer me the position, it must be someone Paul knows, as I have no idea who they are, but the bottom line is it couldn’t have come at a better time and I am very grateful to whoever had arranged it.

  The animation team I was to work with that produced cartoon films was nothing like I expected. They were organised and extremely dedicated to projects they worked on, sometimes several films at a time. The computers were state of the art, with every possible up-to-date software to create images that blew my mind. I couldn’t wait to start my training. My job was to assist the team of researchers that checked into books or scripts that had been chosen to be turned into films. The prospects of such interesting work, combined with the skills I would be learning, made me feel better than I had for a long time.

  Looking after the children and William was sometimes a challenge, but I had loved every moment of it. The time was now for me to move forward and not only earn, but have different outlets for my own well-being. I felt sure I had found not only one of these but, with the help of my family, a job that I could lose myself in.

  The thought of moving on in other directions scared me to death. With the not knowing what had really happened to William, it would be a long time before I could consider other relationships, I also had the children to consider and nothing would every happen that didn’t fit in with them.

  Chapter Thirteen

  We arrived at what would hopefully be our new abode, I had made a decision not to tell the care manager that I would not be needing the condo just yet, as we were still unsure if Joshua would be able to turn his shack into decent living accommodation that would meet our needs.

  He put out his hand and said, “Well, what do you think?” To be honest we were taken aback, although it was painted in various shades of pink he had certainly pulled out all the stops. On face value, we were impressed, now for the inside. It was not wall-to-wall carpeting but then this was the Caribbean, but with a wicker table and comfortable looking chairs, also a separate bedroom with two beds, although very narrow, good job we were not fat, everything looked really good. Water to be bought, toilet at the back, but other than that we decided there and then this would be our home for the foreseeable.

  We shook hands again and handed him the last bit of cash we could muster. I couldn’t wait for the real funds to come rolling in. Joshua seemed happy enough and suggested we join him in a few bevies to seal the deal. If we had any idea he was an expert in how to get drunk on rum, I am not sure we would have so readily accepted his offer. Although in our youth, we were not adverse to drinking in excess, this was something else. He knew everything there was to know about the sugar cane, the distilling, the aroma, the potency and consumption of every type of rum on the island. Before he had finish
ed our education on the subject we were well and truly wrecked.

  Getting back to the care condo was an experience. It was as much as we could do to stand, never mind navigate our way back, so we decided to bed down in the sand and sleep it off. If it rained so be it, we would have to get dry next day or the day after depending when we came back into the real world, good job it’s Saturday.

  Sunday seemed to pass without notice until about 8 o’clock in the evening. I had to make a decision to get washed and prepare for work the next day. Paul would continue to go through the client lists and together we would start to pack what few things we had. “Ten minutes should do it,” Paul laughed, after work I planned to see the care manager to explain I now had a job earning regularly and would be vacating the condo as soon as possible.

  Thanking him and his wonderful staff for putting me back together and the care I had received afterwards, I would not forget their kindness in a hurry. Part of me felt sad. I’m not sure why, I must be getting soft but I am truly grateful, I would make a donation when this is all over to show my appreciation.

  Carrying the few things we had, we followed the directions I had asked Joshua to prepare for us as I was sure following our heavy drinking session we would never find the pink condo again. The view was stunning, better than our last one if that’s possible, we would be comfortable here until a breakthrough was made in our mission. I just wished Lorna and the kids were here.

  We were getting restless now. It seemed like forever checking and more checking. We made a decision to remove the link between the client accounts and the bank accounts we had checked so far, with now almost 16.5 million dollars in high interest deposit accounts, we considered keeping the link open would be too risky. At least this way we could move forward without keep going back over old ground.