A High Price to Pay Read Free

.' Alison began, but Mel gave her a little shake.
    'Oh, don't be pompous, Ally! Tall and dark, with eyes like Paul
    Newman's. I saw him arrive.'
    'You would,' Alison sighed. 'Well, his name's Nicholas Bristow, and
    he seems to be here on business.'
    Melanie rolled her eyes in mock-lasciviousness. 'Do you think he'd
    do a deal with me?' She caught Alison's eye, and subsided. 'I'm sorry,
    Ally,' she muttered reluctantly. 'I know I shouldn't be making jokes at
    a time like this, but everything's so—so bloody!'
    Alison put her arm round her sister's shoulders and gave her a swift
    hug. 'Yes, it is,' she said fiercely. 'And you make all the jokes you
    want. Now, I've got to talk to Uncle Hugh.'
    'Hullo, my dear.' His voice was awkward. 'May I get you a drink?'
    She shook her head. 'I'm not thirsty. I just want to know what's going
    on. Nicholas Bristow tells me you invited him here.'
    'Well, it was Liddell's idea really.' He didn't meet her gaze. 'He felt it
    might make things— easier.'
    'What things?' Alison's eyes narrowed. 'Uncle Hugh, you can't keep
    dropping hints like this. You've got to tell me!'

    There was a silence, then he sighed heavily. 'Perhaps you have the
    right. I just don't know any more. And together, we might be able to
    cushion your mother . ..' He paused again. 'Did your father ever talk to
    you about money?'
    She shook her head. 'I used to ask him, from time to time, especially
    about the works—if the company was being affected by the
    recession, but he always said everything was fine.'
    He pulled her into a corner. 'Well, it wasn't fine,' he muttered. 'In fact,
    Ally, it was just about as bad as it could be. For the last two years he
    was pouring every penny he could raise into the firm, but it was never
    enough. Oh, he could have cut back, I suppose, but it would have
    meant laying men off, and he wouldn't do that. Said it was a bad sign,
    and reduced public confidence. Said he felt—responsible.'
    Alison nodded. 'He did. Mortimers has always been a family
    company. Daddy hated the idea of redundancies. He felt it was a
    betrayal of people who trusted him.' She smiled sadly. 'A rather
    patriarchal attitude, I'm afraid.'
    'A rather naive one in this economic climate,' her uncle said grimly.
    'And there was this house, of course, and your mother's—expenses.'
    Alison hands clenched into fists at her side and she looked at him
    levelly. 'Uncle Hugh, are you trying to tell me that Daddy was broke?'
    Unwillingly, he nodded. 'There's your mother's annuity, of course,
    that's safe. But as for the rest of it...'
    'Oh, God!' Alison felt dazed, but she made herself think. 'But there are
    his shares in Mortimers, they must be worth something.'
    'Only if the company itself has any value,' Colonel Bosworth said
    gloomily. 'And there's every chance of a receiver being put in.'

    She bit her lip. 'Well—there's this house. I know it's big, and
    inconvenient, but Daddy had it valued not long ago, and if we sold it,
    and found somewhere smaller ...'
    He. was shaking his head. 'That's what I'm trying to tell you, my dear.'
    His voice was awkward with compassion. 'The house, I'm afraid, he
    used as security for a considerable loan. Mortimers needed new
    machinery for a potential order from China—engineering
    components, I understand. It could have been the salvation of the
    place, and Anthony gambled everything on getting it.' He looked very
    old suddenly. 'Only he didn't. He got the news just before—just
    before . ..'
    'His attack,' Alison said. She felt very cold, her body trembling
    uncontrollably. 'I—see. So— Ladymead doesn't belong to us any
    more. I—I can't quite believe it.' She closed her eyes for a moment.
    'Poor Mummy? Where can she go? What can she do?'
    'That is something we all have to discuss. But there need be no hasty
    decisions. I'm sure she'll be treated with every consideration by
    the—er—new owner.'
    'New owner?' Her bewildered eyes searched his face. 'But you said
    the house had