'On the contrary, Kate, you look lovely and relaxed. A perfect picture to accompany the article you’re going to write about your new found life,' she winked.
'I’m writing an article about what?' I asked.
'Well, don’t you think it would be a great feature for our ‘Real People’ section? An ‘It Could Happen To You’ type thing? I think it would be wonderful. Of course you’ll write it, won’t you Kate?' she asked with her eyes open wide and one finger on her lips.
I shook my head vehemently. 'No way.'
I didn’t want the world and its wife to know about my fortune. That would be a nightmare. Unless, of course, I wrote it anonymously.
As if reading my mind, Carly suggested the very same thing.
'It would make superb reading and it could be anonymous, if you really don't want your name on it,' Julianne pouted.
'I’ll think about it. Now, are you coming for a swim?'
CHAPTER ELEVEN
After my first day of relaxation in the sun, we’d had a lovely long night's sleep, chilled out the next day and then gone out clubbing until the early hours of the following morning.
Jo didn’t want to leave Carly alone at the hotel, so we carefully dressed her and did her hair and makeup. In the end, she looked about seventeen, not the youthful thirteen that she was. Jo was so amazed at the transformation that she actually cried, muttering something about her baby no longer being a baby anymore. It was both amusing and touching.
The club some of us had ended up staying in until 4am was actually a strip club. Not a tacky one, I might add, but a tasteful one. Yes, the strippers were all female, but there was a great atmosphere. Anna hadn’t been too keen on going. She’d whispered to me that she really didn't like things like that, so John suggested that they head back to the hotel.
Julianne took Carly back too. She might have looked seventeen but she had a few years to go yet.
The following day, we’d all gone sightseeing together. We’d visited a beautiful palace in the hills, called Sintra. It was stunning. Lovely and cool, a refreshing change from the hot sun outside.
The mood soon changed though, as Liz started getting nervous about the upcoming plane ride to the islands. In fact the night before, she'd barely slept, downing a couple of large brandies while the rest of us drank coffee the next morning. As we boarded the flight to head for the islands, all our attempts to calm her failed miserably when she saw that the aeroplane being used to take us there was quite a bit smaller than the one we’d travelled on from London.
'I can’t get on that,' she screeched, 'It’s just… a… a… toy. We’re all going to die,' she sobbed.
I felt the eyes of all the other passengers descend on us heavily, as we repeatedly asked her to calm down, but to no avail.
'I don’t suppose you’ve got any strong tranquillisers on this plane, do you? You know, the ones used to knock out elephants?' I joked to the flight attendant with an embarrassed grin.
She clearly wasn’t amused.
'Madam, you’re going to have to calm down. There are children on board who can hear you,' she said crossly, 'Let me get you a blanket – maybe that will help.'
She turned to me and whispered from the corner of her mouth, 'I think she’s frightening them.'
Looking around, I noticed a couple of youngsters on the verge of tears.
'Liz, sweetie, this is a perfectly safe plane – think how much lighter we must be than the big plane we were on the other day. Surely that must mean we’ve got a better chance of staying airborne,' I said, desperately trying to think of something, anything, that might shut her up.
Clearly she wasn’t quite that naïve, as she gave me a sarcastic look before turning to look at the stricken little girls. Seeing how frightened she'd made them seemed to do the trick. She smiled, somewhat falsely, at them and turned back around.
'Sorry,' she mouthed to the attendant as she was handed a small blanket and a pillow which she took and clung onto.
Take-off was clearly very difficult for her as she gripped poor Carly’s hand again until it was white. Within fifteen minutes of take-off, Liz was snoring like a trooper with her mouth wide open. Good job there were no flies onboard.
The rest of us breathed a sigh of relief as we sat back to enjoy the few hours' journey in peace. Little did we know that we were heading to paradise.
CHAPTER TWELVE
We were so relieved that Liz slept through the entire flight because on our approach to the island, even we were astounded at the apparent length (or lack thereof) of the runway. If she'd been awake, she would have screamed blue murder. What appeared to be a runway looked more like a short, little country lane that dropped straight off into the vast ocean beyond.
Of course there was nothing to fear as the landing was perfect, without a single bump.
As we exited the aircraft, the smell of the hot summer sun gently enveloped us, giving us that wonderful feeling of relaxation that can only be achieved on holiday, when you can finally leave all your troubles behind. I took a deep breath and looked around. A tiny arrivals lounge awaited to one side and everywhere else were the most stunning sea and mountain views. There wasn’t a single cloud in the sky. Strangely, I felt at home, even though I’d never stepped foot on the island before.
Wow, my life was almost unrecognisable.
Jo patted me on the back and smiled, as if reading my thoughts.
'Come on, Kate, your new house beckons.'
I linked arms with her on one side and Carly on the other and we almost skipped into the airport, following the rest of the gang who had eagerly already entered the building. Liz was the first, of course, the further she was from the plane, the better.
Once we’d collected our luggage, we headed straight to the car hire desk where we picked up two jeeps. Tony drove one and John the other as we headed in the direction of my new house. Butterflies bubbled in my stomach. It was such a strange sensation knowing that the house belonged to me, even though I’d never been there before. What would it be like? Would it be huge? Would it be small? Was there a pool? Honestly, though, it wouldn’t have mattered if it was just a shack; the island was so beautiful, I could imagine never wanting to leave.
I did have a slight inkling as to the size of it though, because Tony had assured us there was room enough for us all to stay there. He’d said he'd stay in a nearby hotel, but I was adamant he would do no such thing. He was becoming more of a friend than your typical solicitor and I’d made it quite clear he was welcome to stay with us. In fact, I’d insisted on it.
As we drove through tiny white-washed villages, with little hill-top churches and barely a soul to be seen, the group began to get into the holiday spirit.
'Wow, isn’t it the most gorgeous place? Talk about a world away from London,' yelled John, above the sound of the wind rushing through our hair. Tony’s idea of hiring open-topped jeeps was just fantastic.
'It’s incredible,' shouted Anna as she squeezed his hand tightly.
I smiled fondly at the couple as I took in the wonderful vistas all around, barely able to believe this could be my future home – or one of them, at least! But not in the very near future. Even though I was rich beyond my wildest dreams, I had no intention of leaving England. I loved living in London and couldn't imagine living anywhere else.
I also had no plans to stop working at Liberty either, especially now it had just started to become exciting. I realised that having this much money could entitle me to live the most exciting life possible, but, apart from my lack of Fred, my life had been pretty good up until then. I didn’t want to change it that much and I’d read so many stories about people who'd won the lottery and whose lives had changed, beyond recognition, and not in a positive way, either. I would try and avoid that happening, at all costs. At least I hoped it wouldn’t change me. I sighed quietly to myself. It was the strangest thing, this feeling of not quite being me anymore. No matter how much I didn’t want to change, I just felt different. And not in
a way I could explain.
Before I could dwell on my strange thoughts any longer, we stopped in front of a massive black gate, made from the most intricately designed wrought iron. It must have weighed a tonne. Beyond it was a long, twisting avenue, dotted on either side by huge green palm trees. When Tony stopped the engine and hopped out of the jeep in front, we pulled up alongside him and climbed out.
'Well, this is it. Welcome to Casa Linda. I believe he re-named the house after a lady he once knew,' said Tony as he looked at me knowingly. Linda was my mother’s middle name. 'It also means 'beautiful' and I'm sure you're about to understand why,' he added.
Anna was practically bouncing up and down with excitement as the others peered through the gate, clearly astonished at the impressive entrance.
'Can we go in, can we go in?!' exclaimed Carly.
Tony nodded his head and said, 'Yes, we’re meeting someone here who has the remote controls to open the gate. He should be here any minute now.'
I wandered up to the gate and gently stroked my hand along the wrought iron. I almost felt like I was on another planet. I wondered what was beyond that point. Where did the palm trees lead? Had Sam designed this place? Had it been his favourite home or had he lived most of his time in Skegness, New York or Toronto? I wished I could find out more about him. The man had given me so much and I had no way of even thanking him.
He must be buried somewhere, I thought, making a mental note to ask Tony some questions before we returned home. The least I could do was visit Sam’s grave and tell him - well, his spirit - how grateful I was. I wish he’d have got in touch with me while he was still alive. I wondered if he actually knew anything about me. Had he tried to find me? Had he tried to at least find out about me? An overwhelming feeling of sorrow engulfed me as I stood there, both hands on the gate, peering up that long tree-lined avenue. Oh Sam, I thought sadly.
Suddenly the faint sound of bells tickled my ears. Turning around, I spotted a little old man on a white donkey coming up the road towards us. The bells were dangling from the animal’s neck, jingling as he moved from side to side.
'Ora bom dia,' yelled the friendly-looking man with the biggest grin on his face.
We nodded, laughed and saluted him, not knowing how to greet the man in his own language. He struggled to get down from the animal but wouldn’t accept any assistance from John or Tony.
His jolly, rotund face was covered in wrinkles that had no doubt developed from years in the hot sun. His eyes were of the brightest blue and they twinkled naughtily. It was easy to see he had probably once been very handsome, in a cheeky sort of way. He rambled on for a little while to us all, but he soon realised we had absolutely no idea what he was talking about so he focussed all his attention on Tony, who smiled and returned his questions fluently. It was fascinating to listen to – almost musical.
'Wouldn’t it be great to actually be able to understand?' said Liz as she giggled flirtatiously at the old man.
We nodded at the thought of learning a new language. Maybe I would. Especially now I had a perfectly good reason to.
After struggling to get back on the donkey and yelling his goodbyes (or so we were told), he didn’t turn around to go the same way he had come, but carried on up the hill in the opposite direction.
'His name is Manuel. He used to be the gardener here,' said Tony, 'but when Sam died, he decided to finally retire. He is nearly ninety years old. Remarkable, isn’t he?'
I was flabbergasted. Goodness, I hoped I would look that good at that age. I hoped I was still alive at that age!
'Wow, does this place hold the secret to eternal youth or something? Maybe we should immigrate here, John,' laughed Anna.
'No need for that sweetheart, you will always be young and beautiful,' he said as he hopped back into the driver’s seat. 'After you, Tony,' he yelled.
The rest of us got back into the jeeps as the gates creaked and slowly opened, reminding me of the great entrance to Aladdin’s cave.
'It’s actually like something out of a horror film or something, isn’t it?' Carly exclaimed, more to herself than to anyone else.
'I certainly hope not,' I whispered to myself with a grin.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
That long twisted avenue, lined with those stunning huge palm trees, couldn’t possibly be the driveway to just one house, could it? It was more like the road to a five star resort or something. After what seemed like ages, we turned the final bend and the house appeared in front of us. And my…what a house it was.
Nobody said a word and I couldn’t even bring myself to get out of the jeep. Like everyone else, I just sat and stared at the magnificent building.
After a couple of minutes, Tony laughed beside me, 'It really is something special, isn’t it?'
I nodded; my mouth felt like it must have been hanging beneath my knees.
'Come on, we can’t sit here all day,' he said as he slid out of the jeep to go and chat to the others while they waited for me to compose myself, if that was at all possible.
I slowly stepped out of the jeep and looked up at the massive property in front of us. The long, winding driveway had culminated at a large paved area, surrounding an impressive circular fountain. In the centre was a beautiful naked woman made of stone. She was holding a large pot from where, presumably, water would pour when the fountain was turned on.
To stare at the house itself, sunglasses were a necessity as it was painted such a bright shade of white. Four tall, Romanesque columns stood either side of a large Oak front door.
'Well, what are you waiting for?' asked Tony, grinning as he handed me a set of heavy keys. 'This one here is for the front door.'
I took it, laughing, and rushed up to the entrance. My hands shook as I took a deep breath and placed the key into the keyhole. I turned back and looked at the others anxiously.
'Go on then, Kate. Open it. Open it!' they shouted as if I were opening the best ever Christmas present.
I laughed and pushed open the door to what felt like a whole new life.
I gasped. I'd never seen luxury like it. The front door opened onto a large round entrance hall, where a grand staircase beckoned upwards. I felt as if I’d just stepped into one of those old style musicals, expecting a multitude of feather-clad dancers to appear, dancing around me and hiding me from the audience with their huge fan-shaped feather boas. I had visions of little orphan Annie sliding down the banister with Daddy Warbuck in tow.
'Oh. My. God. It’s awesome,' said Carly, snapping me out of my trance.
'It’s bigger and more impressive than any five star hotel I’ve ever stayed in,' exclaimed Julianne, 'It’s unbelievable. Wow, this will make the most fabulous set for many of our shoots.'
I looked at her sideways and she laughed.
'Did I just say that out loud?' she giggled.
'Of course, you’d have to pay big bucks to use this place for a high fashion photo shoot,' I replied, momentarily forgetting I actually owned it.
'Well, of course you'd get paid. I just hope you’d give us a good discount.'
Smirking, I hugged her. 'You can use it any time you want and it won't cost you a penny.'
Keen to continue looking around, I left everybody inspecting the intricately-designed entrance hall and headed deeper into the house. The first door I came to led into a vast sitting room, furnished with ornate dark wooden furniture. Not to my taste, but it was very fetching in its rightful place nonetheless. A huge marble fireplace was the room’s focal point, above which hung a large framed painting of a beautiful dark haired woman. I stepped back, thinking she looked rather familiar. Turning my head to one side and squinting my eyes, it suddenly dawned on me who it was. Mum. It wasn't a true likeness, but she was recognisable.
Goodness, this man must have been obsessed with her. They really should have got together after Dad left. I sighed. Uncle Sam was clearly besotted with her. But then, Mum wouldn’t have such a wonderful life with Nick now, would she?
St
arting to feel a little uneasy, my knees gave way and I stumbled, holding on to the nearest chair for support. I caught my breath and decided I needed some air so I pushed apart the heavy velvet curtains and opened the closest sliding door. It led out onto a covered terrace and as I looked up, I lost my breath once again. The view was spectacular. The tree-lined driveway up to the house had hidden the fact that we were perched on the edge of a cliff and I was surprised to see a vast green overgrown lawn, literally disappearing into the deep blue ocean beyond.
It was so beautiful that I cried, literally cried. And I couldn’t stop. The tears fell and fell. I don’t think they just fell for the view, of course, they fell for Sam, they fell for my mum; they fell for a relationship that may or may not have worked. I was confused. I was so happy, yet so sad at the same time.
I don’t know for how many minutes I sat there crying my heart out, but when I turned around to go back inside, I noticed everybody standing sadly behind me.
Taking my hand in hers, Carly pulled me inside. 'Don’t be sad. Sam really wanted you to have this,' she whispered.
For such a young girl, Carly often surprised me with her words of wisdom. Losing her father so young had given her something you don’t often see in people her age, a maturity that you don’t even see in some adults.
'Sorry, everyone,' I smiled, a little embarrassed, 'just got a bit emotional for a minute there.'
'Don’t be sorry, it’s completely natural. Never be sorry for that,' Anna said, as John patted me on the back kindly.
Pulling myself together, we had a proper look around. We found more and more huge stunning rooms and each had the most awe-inspiring view to go with it.
My favourite room though, was the kitchen. It seemed to be a little more traditional Portuguese than the rest, even though its size could only be described as huge. A large Aga-type oven sparkled to one side; it looked like it had never been used. There were plenty of free-standing wooden cupboards along each wall and a huge stainless steel fridge loomed above everything else.