The Legacy of Hope House Read Free Page A

of your own, the estate would eventually pass to them.’
    He picked up the document and brandished it vigorously. ‘But, in the event of the family line dying out, the estate must pass to a worthy cause that will care for, and preserve it. Originally that meant it would go to the local community. Today, it means it would be gifted to The National Trust in Wales.’
    ‘Ah, yes,’ he murmured softly, as he flicked over a page. ‘But this occurs only if there are no other living descendants of the Williams family, legitimate or otherwise.’
    Grimacing slightly as he stared through the window, deep in thought for several moments, he drummed his fingers on the desk, then looked at Anna. ‘It’s difficult to advise you about what to do, but that’s not why you’re here today.’ He dismissed what he had been saying with a flick of his wrist, then gave a nervous little cough before continuing.
    ‘Miss Williams, if you fail to cope with it, you have two options. The first is to hang onto the money, and let the house fall into such a bad state that it would become a total ruin.’ There was a pause while he gave Anna a few moments to consider his statement. ‘That would be a shame, but taking such a course could solve the problem for you.’ He gave a twisted smile and lapsed into a brief silence again before going on. ‘The second option is to declare that you wish to be totally relieved of the responsibility, and be done with it. The property would then go to The Trust, providing, of course, that no legal claim is made on it by another legal descendant, legitimate or otherwise.’
    He looked her straight in the eye. ‘At least, then you would have the money to do with as you please. It could buy you a very nice little home, and leave some cash over as well.’ As he sat watching her, the man continued to drum his fingers on the desk, but Anna was careful not to show any visible reaction to his words.
    ‘Now, Miss Williams, do not be influenced by what I have said, for the final decision is yours.’
    After another brief wait, during which time Anna tried to mentally recap what he had said, the solicitor pushed some documents across the desk and requested her signature where the crosses were marked. The man looked up from the papers and addressed her pointedly. ‘I think you’ll find the stories about your family most fascinating.
    I often played golf with your uncle and he loved to talk about his family history. There’s a great deal of information in these documents for you to go through; there are old wills, inventories, deeds, and letters, all full of interesting stuff for you to study. They’ve survived for over two hundred years and you are indeed fortunate to have them. The Colonel obviously brought them with him when he came to live in Wales in 1798.’
    ‘Are they original documents?’ Anna asked, doing her best to pose a question again.
    The solicitor waved them in the air. ‘Yes, they are, and they’ll give you all the family history. If you read them carefully you’ll learn a lot about your ancestors, but for greater detail, you’ll have to delve into family history research in the normal way, I’m afraid.’
    Then he gave her his stage smile again. ‘Your family was once extremely wealthy, Miss Williams. They lived in style in The West Indies, so I understand, er… such as style was, in that country, all that time ago.’ Mr James paused and gazed out through the window as he drummed his fingers on his desk again. ‘It would be interesting to know what became of the Colonel’s estates in Jamaica, but I suspect he sold them before leaving Jamaica.’ By now, his voice was so quiet he was almost talking to himself. ‘I know he owned three or four thriving sugar plantations, maybe more, and he gave all of them Welsh names.’
    He turned his gaze back to Anna. ‘A great deal of money was involved, which today would have put him in the billionaire class.’ Then, with a decisive dismissive