Blood Rights (A Jack Le Claire Mystery) Page 8

  Armstrong spoke first, “I don’t believe I will have much of value to add to the discussions. My relationship with Kurt was purely professional. I found him to be a man of decided opinions in that he knew what he wanted and what he was willing to risk to achieve it. I mainly worked alongside Ian to ensure that Kurt’s private affairs followed Jersey law.”

  Le Claire said, “And what about the dispute over the right-of-way?”

  “That was dealt with by our litigation department, and I had no dealings in the matter. If needed, I can bring in my colleague who was heading the case.”

  “Thanks.” Le Claire turned to Balfour. “Tell me about Englebrook. Build a picture for me.”

  Balfour puffed out a breath of air, closed his eyes for a moment and smiled.

  “Kurt and I go back a long way. He was a good friend. I didn’t always approve of what he did, and sometimes I didn’t even like him. He had a magnetism; he commanded a room with his presence. And, in the right mood, men wanted to be him, and women would do anything for him. On the flip side, Kurt did not like to be bested, and revenge is a dish he often partook of. He was a successful businessman and made a great deal of money. Add all that together, and you get a man who made some enemies.”

  “Anyone in particular?”

  “From a business perspective, I wouldn’t even know where to start. From a personal focus, I wouldn’t know where to stop.”

  “You better get started on the personal enemies. I’m all ears.”

  “Well, we have the current wife. I say current as I always assumed she wouldn’t be the last. Kurt loved the chase, although I never thought he would leave Eva. She understood him and put up with him.”

  “Why did he leave her?”

  “Jessica turned up. She wasn’t only beautiful but smart too. She kept Kurt at a distance. Didn’t fall into bed with him straight away, unlike all the others. He was mad for her, blinded to anything else. He was a fool.”

  Dewar said, “I know you said he was your friend, but you’re not exactly complimentary about him.”

  “Kurt was a difficult man but a charismatic one. I did some good business with him over the years and enjoyed some fine social times as well. But I knew that if I crossed him, that would be the end of our relationship and he would take his revenge at some point.”

  Le Claire said, “Was revenge a recurring theme?”

  “Kurt worked hard to build his business. He came from nothing. And there was a sensitivity around that, a chip on his shoulder if you like. If he felt that anyone slighted him, he wouldn’t let it rest no matter how insignificant the issue. He had power and patience. I know I make him sound like a terrible man. I don’t mean to, but I do want you to find out what happened, and the only way I can help is by being brutally honest.”

  “Tell me about his personal enemies.”

  “I don’t know if I’d say they were enemies exactly. He had an increasingly difficult marriage with Jessica. There had been arguments for some time, and I believe Kurt suspected she was having an affair.”

  “Who with?”

  “I’m afraid he didn’t give me that information. He was also a proud man. He wouldn’t want something like that to be common knowledge. For example, he wouldn’t have wanted Eva to know that he was being cheated on by the woman he’d left her for.”

  “Was it an acrimonious split with the first wife?”

  “Extremely. Eva loved Kurt. I always wondered if Kurt regretted leaving her.”

  “And the sons. What was his relationship like with them?”

  There was a pause. “Rudy is like his father in many ways, but he obviously wants to make his own mark. Kurt liked to be in control. He wasn’t that good at letting his sons spread their wings.

  “And Nils?”

  “Nils and his father had their own issues. I don’t know the ins and outs, and it’s not up to me to speculate.”

  “There was an inference that Nils was taking drugs. Can you speculate on that?” Le Claire was convinced that Balfour knew more than he was saying about this family’s affairs. “I’d hate to find out you were deliberately obstructing my investigation.”

  Balfour’s face was set. Obviously, he was a man who was used to being in a position of knowledge and power and wielding it with discretion. He sighed. “Very well. Nils was a lonely kid with too much money. Eva was busy with her art and fundraisers, and Kurt was making money. Rudy was into sport and never around. The first major incident was when Nils was at university in England. He ran up debts with some unsavoury characters who, not unsurprisingly, wanted to be paid for the illegal substances they provided. The boy was hooked, couldn’t pay, and when Nils was roughed up, he went cap in hand to his father.”

  “And now?”

  “He’s been in and out of rehab for years. One of those family secrets no one talks about. He has apparently been clean for some time now.”

  “Talking of family, I note that you married Kurt’s sister-in-law, Sara.”

  “That’s correct. Jan died young. Sara and I have been married for longer than she was with Jan, not that this made any difference to Kurt.”

  “What do you mean by that?”

  “Kurt idolised his brother. Jan was a year or so the younger. He had a heart defect that no one knew about until it was too late. Damn shame. They’d have been able to do something about it with today’s medical advances. I have been Sara’s husband for over twenty years, but Kurt brushed that aside. He treated me as a friend, respected me as a lawyer but merely tolerated me as Sara’s husband.”

  “Okay, thanks. We may have to speak to your wife at some point.”

  “Of course, but neither of us was in Jersey when Kurt was killed. We live in London and keep a certain distance from the family.”

  Armstrong said, “Of course, there is the issue with Riley Jones. I understand that threats were made, and matters could quickly get out of hand if they were in each other’s company.”

  “Do you have any examples?”

  “Yes. The first court case found in Kurt’s favour. The decision was that the land was an intrinsic part of the manor and that for the privacy and protection of those living on the estate, it wasn’t appropriate to maintain the right-of-way. Kurt was obviously jubilant and organised a fancy celebratory lunch in town for his family, some friends and the legal team. I wasn’t there. But apparently Riley Jones turned up, and there was a nasty argument at the restaurant. Some of Riley’s friends took him off before things got out of hand.”

  Dewar said, “One thing I’m not clear about was why Mr Englebrook was so anxious not to allow the right-of-way. The house is separated from the access route by woodland and meadows. I’m sure it would have been relatively simple to make sure that the appropriate protection was in place.”

  Balfour was silent for a moment. Then he said, “You’re right, of course. The woods and meadow did create an area of separation. Even if you left the woods as they are, the area covered by the meadow is a substantial piece of land. And on an island, land always goes at a premium. Especially land that doesn’t have any strange covenants or right-of-way access to the general public.”

  Le Claire said, “So Kurt wanted to abolish the right-of-way to increase the value of the land? It was all about money?”

  “If the right-of-way were permanently removed, the value of the land would dramatically shoot up. It would be of special interest to developers. Can you imagine the luxury apartments you could build with magnificent sea views, plenty of space to have manicured gardens and a swimming pool? The inland views would be of the woods. And those apartments would sell at a premium.”

  “Englebrook was going to sell the land?”

  “Some discussions have taken place. I wasn’t close to the situation. But Kurt did say in passing that it was an opportunity he couldn’t miss. He would probably have worked in partnership with a developer. Obviously, the right-of-way would have to be lifted first. Kurt would have to have decided whether he genuinely wanted to bre
ak up the estate.”

  “Yet he has done that, hasn’t he? The house is left to his ex-wife, although I suppose that means it will probably end up with his sons eventually. But the land is out of the family now. And I don’t get why he would leave land under dispute to the mother of the person waging the argument against him. It doesn’t make sense.”

  “I agree, but Kurt always had plausible reasons for his actions—at least that’s how it seemed. I had no idea he had transferred the title.”

  Armstrong said, “Our conveyancing department handle the change of title. It would have been a routine matter for us. Many people hold parcels of land in corporate vehicles. We weren’t privy to the rationale for doing so in this situation.”

  “And that’s what we need to understand. It all comes back to money in the end.” Le Claire stood. “Thank you for your time, gentlemen.” He turned to Balfour. “Are you staying on the island long?

  “Only for a few days. But I will be back and forth over the next few months until everything is finalised.”

  “I would ask that you not leave the island without letting us know of your whereabouts.”

  The affronted look on Balfour’s face was quite amusing.

  ◆◆◆

  Rudy and Nils were alone. Their mother had gone to sit with a glass of wine while she looked at her art collection. Angela had returned to her gallery, and Susan Jones had no doubt disappeared to give her toe-rag of a son the good news.

  Nils was on edge, and Rudy examined his eyes. They had that frantic look. Nils didn’t cope with stress well. “Are you all right? Your hands are shaking.”

  “Don’t start. It’s been stressful. In days past, I’d be getting a little something to calm me down. Let me get through this my way.”

  Rudy knew better than to open that Pandora’s box, and quickly changed the subject. “Dad continues to surprise, even after he’s gone. What the hell are we going to do?”

  “We’re screwed. We’ve lost the art collection. I doubt Mum would ever sell it. It will probably be ours one day, but that could be decades from now. Mum has the house, and bloody Susan Jones has the land. We must see if we can contest the will. Harry Vautier won’t wait forever.”

  “It is something we can explore, but we have more immediate concerns. The business needs shoring up. We can’t go to the investors. Dad was blinded to the problems.”

  Nils grimaced. “He obviously thought he could cover it up by loaning more and more money to the company. Why didn’t he sell some of the art?”

  “He was always funny about keeping it, plus he wouldn’t have been able to offload any of those pieces on the quiet. Anyway, you know what he could be like. I bet he agreed to those terms in the divorce so he could spite Mum. He became renowned as the big collector, and she had to start over from scratch.”

  “And without the money to do it. But she has it now. Mum could sell the house.”

  “We may be glad of that when the right-of-way is enforced.”

  “So, Riley Jones gets his way. The land is his—well, his mother’s, but he’ll twist her around his finger.”

  Rudy frowned. “We need to talk to Balfour and that Armstrong guy. Dad had no business splitting the estate or leaving that land to Susan.”

  “The main question is: Why the hell did he leave it to her in the first place?”

  Rudy’s mobile rang. He checked the caller ID and sighed. He’d been expecting the call at some point, but this was quick. He glanced at Nils. “It’s Harry Vautier. I should take it.”

  Nils muttered and flopped onto the couch, his body apparently relaxed but his eyes tense, waiting.

  Harry Vautier was a big-shot developer. A Jersey boy made good, he was behind some of the most successful developments on the island. He excelled at the high-end stuff. And Rudy had no idea how he was going to explain this latest setback to him.

  “Hi, Harry. How are you?”

  “I’m fine. I’m sorry to hear about your dad. What a shocker.”

  “Thanks. Yes, it is.” Rudy paused, unsure of what to say next. Perhaps Harry had only called to offer condolences. “Thanks for your call.”

  “No problem, son. That was a terrible accident.”

  “The police suspect the fire may have been started deliberately.” It was Jersey. News of what the police thought or did, together with Joe Public’s speculations, would be rife on social media already. Facebook would have blown up; firstly, with sympathetic comments, and then the trolling would begin.

  “Christ, that is awful. Is the tower badly damaged?” The tone was solicitous, and from anyone else, he would have thought it was a general question.

  “Actually, I walked up there early this morning. I couldn’t see the inside, which I assume is gutted, as access is cordoned off. Externally, it looks fine.”

  “Good. Good. I assume it’s you and Nils I’ll be dealing with now? When everything quietens down, we better have a chat. I don’t mean to be indelicate, but I’ve spent a fair bit already, and I’d like to get a move on. I imagine all is on track with the lawyers. Their last report on the appeal defence sounded positive.”

  Rudy’s mind was jumbled by fragments of a dozen possible lies and excuses. The news of Kurt’s will would spread before long, and he didn’t want to be at the receiving end of Harry’s wrath if he found out second-hand. This was an island, and secrets had a habit of spreading through the offices and bars.

  He inhaled, stiffened his spine and let the truth tumble out. “We have a problem. Dad didn’t leave us the land.”

  He’d barely finished speaking when Harry replied, his voice sharp, all nicety gone. “What the hell do you mean? Did he leave it to Jessica? Shit, I’ll need to speak to her. Never mind, eh? Sorry about that, boys, but at least the money will kind of stay in the family.”

  Harry patently couldn’t care less who owned the land as long as they sold it to him. “No, Dad didn’t leave it to Jessica. He left it to Susan Jones.”

  “Susan? His financial adviser? What the hell did he do that for?”

  “Ah, that’s the question. Right now we have no idea, but that doesn’t matter. Susan controls the land. It’s owned by a company she inherited from Dad. We’re going to fight it, of course.”

  “Sure, sure. Because I know who her kid is, and we don’t want that little shit getting his hands on it.”

  “He is her only son, so unless she dies within thirty days of Dad, he definitely will inherit someday.”

  “Why thirty days?”

  “That is a general provision Dad had in any will of his. If someone died within thirty days of him, whatever they inherited goes back to the estate for the principal heirs.”

  “Interesting. I may do something similar with my own will. My lad’s a handsome boy and book smart too. He knows shit about women, though. Look, I better go. I’ll be in touch.”

  Rudy disconnected the call. Nils was by his side immediately. “Well? What did he say? How did he take it? Shit, we’re screwed. No art collection and no land.”

  “Calm down. He took it far too well. He’s probably tracking down Susan right now. All that matters to Harry is the kudos of the deal and the profit. He won’t care who he needs to go into partnership with. This isn’t finished. I’m not letting that land leave the family. Dad must’ve been going senile to leave something that valuable to his financial adviser. She must’ve coerced him in some way. Yes, that’ll be it.”

  Nils blew out a huff of breath. “I always thought Susan was on the straight up. I can’t see her being able to persuade Dad to do something he didn’t want to.”

  “Well, what else could it be? Shit, maybe she was blackmailing him.”

  “Or maybe it was one of Dad’s games. My head hurts with all this.”

  Rudy eyed his brother. His eyes were getting that frantic look. “Look, mate, you’ve done great recently.”

  Nils drew back, but Rudy carried on speaking. “We have to face up to this. I want you to know I am here to help you. We need to
work together and be strong.”

  “Yeah, can’t have the market knowing we have even more problems.”

  “I didn’t mean it that way.”

  “I bet. Let’s be frank. The company is overextended, we spent too much on the bloody US business, we don’t have access to the art collection or the land. How the hell are we going to pull this off?”

  “I don’t know. But we must, somehow.”

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  “You don’t look surprised, Riley.” Susan shivered, even though the room was warm, as icy tendrils clutched at her heart.

  “Of course, I’m surprised. I can’t take it in. I’m not saying you should be ungrateful, but why on earth would Kurt leave you the land?”

  She always knew when her son was lying. It was a mother’s superpower. She fixed him with a direct stare. “Don’t change the subject. You’ve been fighting for that right-of-way for ages. And now you find out I’ve inherited the land, which obviously means that it will belong to you one day and we can do what we want with it. But as I said, you don’t seem that surprised. Tell me, Riley. Tell me the truth.”

  He sighed and slumped farther into the chair. “I went to see Chloe a couple of months ago. The rest of the family were away. She went to get us some drinks. I looked into Kurt’s private study. I figured maybe I would see something about the court case and the appeal. And no, I’m not proud of myself, but I was driven by impulse.”

  “What did you see?” She was shocked at how calm her voice sounded, yet her heart hammered, the blood pounding through her ears.

  “It’s not what I saw. It’s what I overheard. Jessica took ill. She and Kurt came back early from London. I heard them arrive. Jessica headed upstairs, moaning about how sick she was. I panicked. I quickly went through the door into the small bathroom that runs off the study. And that’s when I heard Kurt on the phone. He said your name and that he wanted to leave you the shares in the company.”