The Legacy: Trouble Comes Disguised As Family (Unspoken Book 2) T. Belshaw (management books to read .txt) 📖

‘I’ve got an I.T. man, Wade, he set up my Wi-Fi and the new outdoor security camera software on my computer.’

‘Do you trust him?’

‘He’s the one that pointed out that I had tracking software on my laptop. I gave Calvin a piece of my mind straight afterwards. He’ll have deleted it from his computer now just in case I go to the police.’

‘Well, it’s up to you, Jess, but I’d get Wade to give your machine a good going over, just in case.’

‘I’ll ring him tomorrow,’ Jess promised.

Bradley pulled on his trousers and reached for his shoes as Jess slipped on her dress and fastened a few of the buttons at the waist.

‘I’d load spyware on your computer myself if it meant I could see you dressed like that now and again.’ He reached out his hand and pulled the top of her dress apart.

Jess slapped his hand. ‘Stop it,’ she said, laughing.

Bradley stretched, then tucked his shirt into his trousers.

‘I’d better be going. Thank you for a wonderful evening.’

Jess stepped towards him and put the palms of her hands on his chest. ‘Do you have to go?’ she pouted.

Bradley held her face in his hands. ‘I don’t have an appointment until ten…’

Jess took his hand and led him towards the stairs, flicking the light switch off as she stepped into the hall.

‘I’ll make sure you’re up,’ she said, huskily.

‘I can’t see that being a problem,’ he replied with a wink.

Chapter 28

At seven o’clock on Wednesday morning, Marjorie surprised Martha by bringing a letter into her bedroom instead of the expected breakfast.

‘What’s this? I can’t eat an envelope.’

‘It’s my letter, Martha, it came about six weeks ago.’ Marjorie nervously turned the envelope over in her hands.

‘I don’t remember you getting a letter.’ Martha looked puzzled.

‘I hid it.’

‘You hid it.’ Martha shook her head. ‘For pity’s sake, Marjorie, you aren’t five years old. Why did you hide it?’

‘Because it’s from the dentist and you know I’m frightened of the dentist. I hoped they’d just forget about me if I didn’t turn up.’

Martha sighed. ‘When are you supposed to turn up?’

‘Today, at eleven. I don’t want to go, but…’

‘But what?’ Martha looked exasperated.

‘I’ve got a bit of a pain in my back tooth.’

‘How long have you had the pain?’

‘A couple of weeks. I took an aspirin when it got bad.’

‘Marjorie!’

Her younger sister hopped from foot to foot. ‘I’m sorry, Martha, I know I should have told you but you would have taken me to the dentist. I just hoped the pain would stop on its own, but it hasn’t.’

‘How bad is the pain?’

‘Not too bad. I can bear it easily enough.’

Martha slipped out of bed and pulled on her dressing gown.

‘You do realise how inconvenient this is, don’t you, Marjorie? I was going to try to talk sense into Jessica today. She was supposed to pick me up… do you know what time she was meant to arrive?’

‘Eleven?’

‘Eleven,’ Martha repeated. ‘Well, that’s out of the window now, isn’t it?’

‘I don’t have to go, Martha, I can put up with it.’

‘Listen, Marjorie. If you leave it, your tooth will decay, then it will turn black, the pain will be excruciating, and it might well spread to nearby teeth. You don’t want them to fall out, do you? You’ve managed to keep them for seventy-six years. Do you really want a set of plastic dentures?’

Marjorie shook her head. ‘No, Martha.’

‘Then, you’re going to keep your appointment.’

‘Yes, Martha, will you come with me, I can’t go in on my—’

‘Look at yourself, shaking like you’ve got the palsy. I don’t really have a choice, do I?’

Marjorie began to wring her hands. Her appointment reminder fell to the carpet.

‘Thank you, Martha. Shall I get your breakfast now?’

‘No, I’ve lost my appetite, just run my bath while I call Jessica. Maybe we can have our chat a little earlier than planned.’

Although she owned a mobile phone, Martha wasn’t a fan and didn’t really understand the technology at all. She only ever used hers to receive calls if she was out and about so, leaving her Samsung mobile on the table, she picked up her landline handset, and flicking through her little black book of important telephone numbers, picked out Jess’s mobile number and tapped it out on the keypad. The phone rang but no one replied. Thinking she might have misdialled, Martha tried again with the same result. Frustrated, she slammed down the receiver and searched the black book for Nicola’s number.

‘Nicola? Good, now listen. I want you to pick me up and drive me over to the farm.’

‘The farm? look, Mum, I—'

‘Yes, Nicola, THE FARM, you know, the one I’d own if there was any justice?’

‘Mum, I can’t drive you, I’m at work. It’s my early start today.’

‘Can’t you take a couple of hours off?’

‘No, Mum, Mrs Kaur is going to the wholesaler. I have to watch the shop.’

‘Damnation!’ Martha slammed the receiver down again.

‘Is something the matter, Martha?’ Marjorie stepped into the kitchen drying her hands on a flannel.

Martha ignored her and searched the book for a local taxi firm. After being told her cab would be there in twenty minutes, Martha stormed past her sister and stomped her way up the stairs.

‘Have your bath now, Marjorie, then get ready for the dentist. I’ll be back at about ten-thirty.’

‘But…’

‘No buts, just do as you’re told for once. I’m going to call in on my granddaughter and give her a piece of my mind. What use is all this modern technology if it doesn’t work?’

The taxi driver was two minutes late and although Martha was dressed and ready to leave when he pulled up at the end of her drive, she still berated him for his tardiness as she climbed into the back seat of the cab and slammed the door shut.

‘I’m sorry, love, but there’s a fair bit of traffic around this morning.’

‘Firstly, I’m not your love, and secondly, you should have known all about