Defying Drakon

‘I don’t know, and I don’t particularly care,’ he rasped. ‘Admittedly it would have been better for all concerned if your father had gone to his lawyers and left the signed will with them, but perhaps he believed a private will, with the signature of two members of his household as witnesses, would be a safer way of dealing with the matter.’

‘Less obvious to the eagle-eyed Angela, you mean?’ Gemini guessed. ‘Yes, I’m sure you’re right. Although she obviously found the new will anyway, after Daddy died so suddenly.’

‘Unfortunately, yes,’ he agreed. ‘Max has also ascertained this morning that she dismissed the two witnesses to the will from their employment at Bartholomew House shortly after your father’s death. In an effort, no doubt, to prevent them from stepping forward with knowledge of the existence of a new will.’

‘Knowing Daddy, they wouldn’t have been aware of the exact contents of the will anyway,’ she said. ‘It was really in the safe at Bartholomew House all this time, then?’

‘Yes.’

She glanced across at the stony-faced Max where he still stood in front of the window. ‘And you were the one who…found it there?’

He grimaced. ‘I think I’ll take the fifth on that one, if you don’t mind.’

Gemini knew that was the only admission she was likely to get that he had indeed been the one to enter Bartholomew House the previous evening.

She stood up to cross the room and throw her arms around his waist. ‘Thank you, Max!’ She hugged him tight. ‘Thank you so much!’

He stood uncomfortably in her arms for several seconds. ‘I think your hug is misdirected, lass,’ he finally murmured gruffly, and patted her back awkwardly.

Gemini knew exactly who she had to thank for her sudden change of fortune—knew perfectly well that Max had been acting directly under Drakon’s orders.

She gave Max another brief hug before turning to face Drakon, knowing that what he had done, what he had asked Max to do, was going to cause him and Lyonedes Enterprises serious problems.

The new will proved Angela a liar and a cheat. And because of that Lyonedes Enterprises would no longer acquire the much-coveted site in London on which it had intended building a hotel complex. Drakon himself could come in for serious legal ramifications if Angela decided to go to the authorities after all. In fact, the only one to benefit from the actions of the past twelve hours would appear to be Gemini herself…

‘I don’t know how to thank you—’

‘No thanks are necessary,’ he assured her stiffly.

She threw Max an amused glance. ‘Now you know why I thanked you first,’ she murmured exasperatedly.

‘Don’t bring me into this.’ The older man held up his hands in mock protest before turning back towards the window. ‘Uh-oh—I believe trouble has arrived,’ he announced.

‘Angela?’ Gemini said knowingly.

‘Oh, yes,’ Max confirmed as he turned back to look at Drakon. ‘Do you want me to go down and—’

‘Let her come up.’ Gemini was the one to answer him. ‘Drakon, if Angela has somehow worked out who was responsible for the break-in at Bartholomew House last night then we’d only be delaying this confrontation by ignoring her now,’ she reasoned, just as he was about to issue instructions to Max.

Drakon’s admiration for Gemini grew by the minute, it seemed. Admittedly she had fainted once she knew of her father’s more recent will, and realised she was the owner of Bartholomew House after all, but that had been understandable. Her stoicism since then had been indomitable.

As he had told Max earlier, Gemini truly was a woman like no other…

The intercom buzzed in announcement of Angela’s presence downstairs.

Drakon sighed. ‘Gemini is right, Max. We might as well get this over with now.’

‘I think that’s best.’ Gemini walked over to the speaker on the intercom. ‘Come up, Angela,’ she instructed the other woman coldly, and pressed the button to open the external door.

Drakon frowned. ‘Gemini—’

‘Don’t worry, Drakon,’ she said as her stepmother could be heard coming up the stairs. ‘Now that I know the truth I’m more than capable of handling her.’

Drakon was sure that she was; he only feared what further emotional damage Angela might do to her in the meantime…

The older woman’s expression was contemptuous as she entered the room. ‘I should have known that you would be here too.’ She gave Drakon a scathing glance. ‘And no doubt this is one of your henchman!’ she said, glaring at Max.

‘Mrs Bartholomew.’ Max gave a terse nod, his steely gaze narrowed in warning.