Layers of Deceit, page 25
‘That’s illegal. I could take you to court!’
Cyril threw back his head and laughed. ‘I would strongly advise against it. It’s your choice, of course. I should imagine the legal costs would be quite considerable.’
‘You vindictive old bastard!’ said Nathan. ‘I did not try to defraud Dad, or you! I hope you do get dementia and have a miserable life.’
‘Charming. I must say you aren’t showing yourself in a good light today.’
‘Nor are you. Pretending to be ill. Making out I was tricking you!’
Cyril sniffed, ‘I’ve one last question. Did you drug Ralph that last night when he crashed his car?’ said Cyril.
Nathan looked at his uncle. ‘What? No, I didn’t. Jeez! What are you trying to accuse me of now?’
‘It’s a simple question,’ replied Cyril.
‘No, I did not!’ said Nathan emphatically. ‘Any substances in Dad’s body were self-administered. He didn’t need any help on that front.’
Whatever had happened, there was no way of proving it one way or another. The air in Cyril’s lounge was becoming stifling. I felt claustrophobic, and my head was pounding. The mention of drugging someone in the last hours of his life struck a chord with me, and I had a flashback to David’s death when Joe had plied him with alcohol and tranquillisers.
‘I need some air,’ I said as I left the room. ‘I just need to cool down a bit!’ I called. I went to stand at the front door, where a sea breeze provided some relief. I pulled my shirt away from my back and wiped my face on my sleeve. Although tensions had calmed somewhat, I knew that we couldn’t leave Cyril and Nathan unchaperoned, nor should we call the police. Each man was as guilty as the other but in different ways. I hoped Craig held the same view as me, and I wanted to discuss matters with him in private.
I went to get a glass of water, then went to rejoin the three men, who were sitting in silence. So much had been said, I doubted there was much more to thrash out, although we needed to find a path forward.
‘Craig, can I just have a quick word?’ I said, remaining standing. Craig got up and followed me out into the hallway, but left the door open. I whispered my concerns to Craig, who nodded in agreement and put his arms around my shoulders to comfort me.
‘Right, guys. Well, you, Nathan, need to move out. There’s too much animosity, and we can’t trust you two to be alone together. So, have you got any friends you can stay with?’
‘I might have, but not just like that. I’ll have to contact some and see what they say!’
‘Well, you need to stay in a hotel tonight then,’ Craig suggested.
‘But it’s Saturday night! It will cost a fortune, and I’m maxed out on my credit card,’ he said with a note of panic.
‘What about that budget one in Ramsgate? That can’t be too expensive,’ I said.
Nathan took out his phone and looked it up. ‘It’s full. Wait a minute I’ll check some others.’
Craig and I sat down, whilst he looked up local hotels. I closed my eyes and continued to hold my head which helped to quell the throbbing pain.
‘Christ! The main hotel in Broadstairs, is very expensive. I can’t afford that!’ said Nathan. ‘I’ll look at Canterbury, but that’s probably dearer.’
A wave of nausea washed over me, and I felt some tea start to make its way up my gullet. I swallowed hard, hoping that I could avoid being sick. I just wanted an end to this painful interlude. My shallow breathing was making me feel more anxious and that in turn, triggered another horrible hot flush. I needed the comfort of my bed and without any further delay.
‘You can stay in our spare room tonight, Nathan,’ I said quietly, even speaking was a trial. ‘But I want you to find somewhere else from tomorrow.’
Craig looked rather surprised at my suggestion as did Nathan, who replied, ‘Oh, well, that’s very kind of you. I don’t want to be any trouble, are you sure?’
‘Just pack a bag for tonight, then tomorrow, you can come and get the rest of your things,’ I replied.
‘And I’ll have my keys back, thank you,’ said Cyril.
‘Don’t you trust me?’ said Nathan sarcastically.
‘Not hugely, no,’ said Cyril. ‘Sarah and Craig, I suggest if you have any valuable items, you lock them away. You never know, Nathan might try to sell them!’
‘Ha, bloody ha!’ said Nathan. ‘So funny. I’ll really miss your humour.’
I had been hoping for a quiet evening, but now we had a house-guest. What an unexpected turn of events for us, and I hoped that I hadn’t made a foolish offer of hospitality.
Chapter 60
Although I wasn’t exactly pleased about having Nathan to stay with us, I was annoyed with Cyril for duping Nathan into thinking that he was losing his mind, which in turn had caused me to worry about him unnecessarily.
Craig stayed behind to wait for Nathan to pack his bag, and I went home to take painkillers and lie down. Although the spare bed wasn’t made up, the clean sheets were in the room and Nathan would have to make up the bed himself. I was doing him a favour, so I didn’t feel obligated to wait on him.
‘Hi,’ said Craig tiptoeing into our bedroom. ‘How are you?’
‘Crap,’ I replied. ‘My head is thumping. I feel sick. I’m waiting for the pills to kick in.’
‘Nathan is sorting out the spare room,’ whispered Craig. ‘He’s going to go out and make some calls in private to his friends.’
‘God, what an afternoon. I’m trying to get my head around it all. I’m furious with Cyril. He played us for fools.’
‘Don’t think about it now. Try to go to sleep. Do you need anything?’
‘Can you get me a bowl in case I need to be sick. Hopefully, I won’t, but it will stop me worrying about it. I’ll try to have a nap.’
Craig returned with a plastic washing up bowl, then kissed me, and drew the curtains. I tried to relax my muscles starting with my toes, ankles, calves and moving up through my body, and I realised how much tension I had pent-up in my anatomy. Gradually, I felt my heart slowing down, but I was teetering on the edge of sleep, willing myself to take that final step into oblivion.
**
When I awoke, the bedroom was almost in darkness. For a few moments, I was confused. Was it morning or evening? Then I looked at the bedside clock and saw it was just after seven in the evening. I had been asleep for three hours. I listened carefully, but the house was silent. My headache was a lot better, not completely gone, but no longer disabling. I lay for a while, enjoying the comfort of my bed.
I stretched and slowly dragged myself to an upright position, not wanting to risk any sudden movements, in case they enticed my headache to return. After washing my face, I went downstairs to find Craig, who was watching the news on TV.
‘Hello. I’m back in the land of the living. Have you eaten?’ I said.
‘No, I was waiting to see what you felt you could manage. I’ll make us something.’
‘Oh, I don’t know. I’m not that hungry, but I suppose I should eat something.’
‘What about some pasta and pesto? That’s quick and easy?’
‘Sounds perfect. Thank you. I think there’s a bag of salad in the fridge, and some tomatoes and cucumber.’
‘You sit there, and I’ll rustle it up.’
I smiled at Craig and stretched out on the sofa. The news was depressing, so I flicked through the channels, but as it was Saturday evening, I could find little of interest. I could hear Craig being busy in the kitchen, humming away to some tune that I couldn’t quite make out.
‘Right, the pasta is boiling, so we should be ready in ten minutes. Nathan is still at large, so we don’t have to cook for him!’ joked Craig.
‘Perhaps he’s drowning his sorrows somewhere?’
‘I hope not as he went out in his car,’ said Craig. ‘We don’t want him to go the same way as his father!’
‘True. Oh, don’t remind me about this afternoon, it was excruciating.’
‘I know. I felt so awkward, listening to all their grievances, but we couldn’t leave them alone. God knows what might have happened.’
‘All the years I’ve lived next to Cyril, and I thought he was so....,’ I paused, ‘well, ordinary. I’d even go as far as to say boring, although that seems unkind, then he gets involved in some sort of psychological game with his nephew.’
‘Oops, is that the water?’ said Craig, running back to the kitchen.
‘Damn!’ I heard him shout. ‘Why did you have to fucking boil over? You bastard pasta!’
I chuckled to myself and wandered into the kitchen. ‘Never mind, I’ll clear it up later.’
‘No, you won’t. I made the mess, so I’ll clear it up. Sit down. It won’t be long now.’
I nibbled some pieces of salad whilst I waited for Craig to finish making the pasta. I loved the smell of basil and pine kernels as it transported me back to holidays in Italy.
‘Oh, lovely. Grazie!’ I said as Craig spooned the pasta on to my plate.
‘Buon appetito!’ he replied.
‘Well, this is cheaper than going to Italy,’ I joked. ‘I wish Cyril would move to Italy so I don’t have to see him!’
‘I don’t know what he was playing at. I think Nathan was right, all those years of living alone and he’s gone a bit strange.’
‘I got so tired of them both accusing each other of things. For a while, I didn’t know who to believe. It was like a tennis match, back and forth,’ I said.
‘I can’t see the point of it, other than humiliating Nathan. It was like Cyril lured Nathan into his web and toyed with him. Surely Nathan didn’t take the money out of the envelope without asking?’ said Craig.
‘Who knows? I feel very grateful that my family was quite normal after the spectacle we witnessed this afternoon.’
‘Me too. I know Micky strayed a bit, but I don’t think he would lie to me.’
‘I felt I was back at QexChem listening to Abigail and the grievances between her and Joshua. I never expected to have to experience the same thing right on our doorstep.’
‘Well, it’s not quite over yet,’ said Craig. ‘Nathan will come back, and you need to decide whether you want to invite him into the lounge to have a chat.’
Chapter 61
After dinner, I had a quick shower and put on some clean clothes. We were reflecting on this afternoon’s events with some calming music playing in the background. I stretched out on the sofa with my legs on Craig’s lap.
‘I was just thinking that Cyril was playing such a dangerous game. He was taking quite a risk,’ I said.
‘I agree. Nathan showed us his temper when he had Cyril pinned up against the wall. Although, I don’t think he would have injured Cyril, what if he’d brought on a heart attack or something?’
‘Well, yes, it was a bit like what happened at QexChem. Cyril could have had an accident and well, who knows what might have happened,’ I said.
‘Cyril was so stupid. He got carried away with his plan, thinking he was so clever, but it could easily have backfired. He didn’t know much about Nathan when he invited him to stay.’
‘Also, I hope Cyril didn’t injure himself deliberately that Saturday afternoon,’ I said.
Craig frowned. ‘Oh, yes, but surely he wouldn’t have done that to himself. Would he? That was a nasty cut on his head. ’
‘Who knows? I’ll have trouble believing anything he says from now on.’
‘I hope Cyril apologises to you properly. Perhaps when he’s on his own again, he will have time to think about his behaviour.’
‘Just going back to that afternoon up at the hospital when I spoke to Cyril in A&E, he was perfectly lucid, then when Nathan arrived, he called you Charlie, instead of Craig. I believed Nathan too easily that Cyril was becoming forgetful.’
‘Don’t blame yourself. Cyril was the one playing games. He lost his loppers, then his keys. How were you supposed to know what he was doing.’ Craig thought for a few moments. ‘It sounds like Ralph or Rafe was very clever but just couldn’t find his niche.’
‘It’s not uncommon, I guess,’ I replied. ‘All the same, it’s a pity Rafe descended into alcoholism.’
‘I wonder when Nathan will come back?’ said Craig.
I shrugged and closed my eyes as I listened to the music. After about ten minutes, the doorbell rang.
‘Talk of the devil,’ said Craig, going to answer the door.
I swung my legs off the sofa and sat up. I could hear Craig inviting Nathan through, but I stayed seated in the lounge.
‘Sarah, hi,’ said Nathan, contritely. ‘I called in at the off-licence and got these as a thank you for putting me up. I wasn’t sure which you preferred, so I got both.’
‘Oh, that’s very kind of you. Would you like a glass?’ I said.
‘I don’t want to intrude. I can go to my room,’ said Nathan.
‘It’s fine if you’d like to join us,’ I replied. ‘Please, take a seat.’
‘So, red or white?’ asked Craig.
‘Er, white, please. It’s chilled,’ said Nathan.
‘Just a small glass for me,’ I said. Thankfully, I was feeling considerably better than when we had left Cyril’s. The painkillers and a nap had fought off my headache.
Nathan looked nervous and clasped his hands in his lap. ‘I’ve contacted a mate in Canterbury, and he’s agreed to put me up for a few weeks. So, tomorrow morning, I’ll go and get my stuff and get out of your hair. Then on Monday, I’ll see what’s available for rent. My mate has also offered to lend me the deposit if I can find somewhere. He’s been very kind.’
‘Oh, that’s good,’ I replied.
Craig brought in the drinks and sat down next to me. We sipped our wine, and I hoped a drop of alcohol would break the ice a little. Nathan sat forward, looking tense, and I was worried about the stem on the wine glass in his vice-like grip.
‘I’m sorry you had to witness that awful display this afternoon. I shouldn’t have lost my temper with Uncle. It was unforgivable,’ said Nathan. ‘It’s just that he subjected me to a barrage of abuse about my spending, then accused me of stealing from him. I just lost it.’
‘Well, we heard the shouting and decided we had better come round. It was a shock to see you holding your uncle like that,’ I said.
‘Don’t remind me. Uncle started on yet again about my family, and I couldn’t stand it any longer. Still, I should have walked away instead of assaulting him.’
Craig and I remained silent, unsure what to reply, and Nathan carried on. ‘This isn’t easy for me. I did look after Cyril, you know. I mean, I really believed he was losing his memory. I wasn’t planning to do him any harm. Uncle initially gave me a hundred pounds for shopping and told me to take some more if I needed it. I wouldn’t have stolen from him. It was the same with the auction. He told me to sell those three items, then as soon as I returned he pretended he had noticed them missing and made a big fuss about it.’
‘Did you persuade your uncle to invest in your business?’ I said.
‘Yes. I suppose I was tempted when I saw he could afford it. I should have accepted his five hundred pounds with gratitude.’ Nathan sipped his wine before continuing. ‘Uncle kept telling me how well off he was, how he’d saved his money and so on, in contrast to my father. I had to listen to Uncle criticising him all the time. It upset me.’
‘Well, if it’s any consolation, I’m annoyed with your uncle for fooling you, and us about his memory. I’ve been worrying about him,’ I said.
‘I wish he had told me about the money my dad transferred to him. I would have respected his wishes. Honestly, I would,’ said Nathan. He took a large gulp of wine. ‘The thing is I’ve never been good with money, and my dad wasn’t a very good role model. It was hard living with an alcoholic.’
‘Do you have any brothers or sisters?’ I said.
‘No. I think that made it harder.’ Nathan continued to open up to us. ‘I’m tempted by expensive things, and.....,’ he shook his head. ‘I don’t know money just slips through my fingers.’
‘How’s the sale of your family house progressing?’ said Craig.
‘Yes, it’s going OK and fingers crossed it will all go through, although it’s never certain until the exchange of contracts. I should have enough to put down a deposit on a small place somewhere. Or I can use it to pay off my debts.’
‘That sounds like a good plan,’ said Craig. ‘Perhaps you need to get some good financial advice?’
‘Yes, I think I should do that. I used some of the money we borrowed against Dad’s house to buy my car. I borrowed more than we needed to, and as Dad didn’t know what was happening, he signed the forms.’ Nathan drained his glass. ‘I was an idiot spending forty grand on a car. Anyway, I can sell it and buy something cheaper.’
‘More wine?’ asked Craig.
‘Please,’ replied Nathan. ‘You’ve got a lovely house. And your garden looks great too.’
‘Oh, thank you.’ I topped up our glasses, including mine. I hadn’t intended to drink much, but the wine was helping, and my headache had almost gone.
Nathan filled the awkward silence. ‘Mum was ill for a long time. I was only eighteen when she died, and after that, Dad took to drink. It was awful to watch. I tried to stop him, but what can you do if someone is determined? I couldn’t watch him all the time. We argued a lot. He hit me once and gave me a black eye. Then he burst into tears and started hugging me.’
‘Any sort of addiction is awful,’ I said. ‘I hope that after this episode, you can start to enjoy life again.’
‘Thanks. I’m going to try. How’s your work going, Craig?’
I sat and listened as Craig updated Nathan about his journalism and his book and I wondered what Cyril was doing at this current moment. Tomorrow was Sunday and the start of a new week, and it couldn’t come quickly enough for me. The events at QexChem had been emotionally draining, and then I’d had to face a domestic drama, literally on my doorstep. I planned to devote the following week to walks, shopping and my garden. I simply couldn’t face anything more taxing.
