Read Online Murder by Mistake by Veronica Heley - Free Book Online Page A

when the man arrived, he had seated himself at one end of the long table, laid out his papers, and proceeded to inform her of her duties with regard to himself and her inheritance. In a tone of reproach he pointed out that he’d been put to considerable inconvenience by her absence. He’d spent both time and money – remembering that time was money – trying to trace her whereabouts, all of which he would be forced to recoup from the estate. Now she had made up her mind to surface from wherever she’d been hiding, she should pay attention to what he had to say and, naturally and of course, follow his advice.
    Mia said, ‘What happened to his cat?’
    He smoothed out a piece of paper. ‘I have no idea. I assume it was taken by the Cats Protection League when the house was cleared. Now, as sole executor for my client, I’ve carried out his instructions, obtained probate, and am now ready to hand over to you, subject to deduction of any fees accruing. Do you understand?’
    Ellie and Rose exchanged glances. Mia had insisted they stay in the room, and they’d been curious enough to do so. Mia didn’t seem to have any curiosity at all. She had put her head in her hands and was idly twirling a tress of dark hair round a finger like a schoolgirl, showing by her body language that she didn’t care what was being said to her.
    The solicitor cleared his throat. Ellie was amazed that he didn’t shoot his cuffs as he picked a paper up off the pile in front of him. He shot his cuffs. She tried not to meet Rose’s eye, tried not to giggle, told herself that this was serious, grown up stuff and that she should pay attention. Wished Thomas were there to appreciate their visitor’s eccentricities.
    It didn’t look as if Mia were listening as he started to read out a statement of her financial position. Ellie tried to follow, but got lost in the detail. Rose’s eyes glazed over.
    ‘That’s enough,’ said Mia, lifting her head. ‘If I’ve understood what you’ve been saying, he left his house to me with instructions that you should clear it, bank the proceeds, and put it up for sale. Has it been sold?’
    ‘As I was trying to—’
    ‘Yes or no.’
    He sniffed, indicating annoyance. ‘We have had a reasonable offer, which awaits your approval.’
    ‘Well, I wouldn’t want to live there, would I? Close the sale. What about the business?’
    ‘In this day and age, the recession . . . There is a manager, of course, but he lacks, if I may say so, some of the flair which my client—’
    ‘Going down the tubes?’
    Ellie was surprised how sharp Mia could be. But then, she’d been an intelligent, lively-minded university student once, hadn’t she?
    He sniffed again. It seemed to be his way of expressing frustration. ‘I wouldn’t say that, exactly. It has some orders from old clients to keep them going, but yes, there have been some redundancies. It is still a nice little business, but perhaps—’
    ‘No longer a “nice little earner”? Hasn’t moved with the times, invested in new machinery, addressed new markets?’
    ‘I really don’t—’
    ‘Is there a buyer for it, at a reasonable price?’
    ‘Well, not as such, no. Early days, and in this present time it is a little too much to expect . . . but of course, given time, that is the route I would advise you to take.’
    ‘Sell everything and invest according to your advice? I don’t think so.’
    He excavated a pristine handkerchief from his pocket and sniffed into it. His eyelids fluttered. ‘I’m not sure—’
    ‘Good,’ said Mia, getting to her feet. ‘That’s better. You may or may not have heard what I’ve been through this last year. I don’t care whether you have or not. But let me tell you this; I can’t afford to waste what time I have left. They may get me tomorrow or next week, and in a way I would welcome it. End the uncertainty. As for the inheritance, if I live long enough you should dump the lot in my bank account. If I still