“What did you find when you opened the door, Mr. Vaughan?”

“A messenger handed me an envelope containing a banker’s draft for one hundred and sixty-one thousand pounds.”

“The ten percent required to close the transaction. What time do you make it now, Mr. Vaughan?”

“Two minutes past five.”

“Then the deal is closed. And as long as I pay the remaining ninety percent within thirty days, Shifnal Farm is mine.”

“It most certainly is,” said Vaughan, unwilling to admit how much he was looking forward to telling Sloane that he’d lost the deal.

“Have a good weekend,” said Kaufman as he placed the black phone back on its cradle and returned to the red one.

“Mr. Sloane, I want to invest two million pounds in this most exciting project.” Kaufman wished he could see the look on Sloane’s face. “But unfortunately I couldn’t get my colleagues to agree with me, so sadly I’ll have to withdraw my offer. As you assured me the majority of the shares have already been taken up, I don’t suppose that will cause you too much of a problem.”

Chapter 14

14

SEBASTIAN DIDN’T TELL Samantha the tactics Mr. Kaufman had resorted to in order to close the Shifnal Farm deal, because he knew she wouldn’t approve, even though it was Sloane who’d lost out. What he did tell her was that Kaufman had offered him a job.

“But I thought his bank didn’t have a property division.”

“It does now,” said Seb. “He’s asked me to set up my own department. Small transactions to begin with, but with a view to expanding, if I prove myself.”

“That’s wonderful news,” said Sam, giving him a hug.

“And it shouldn’t be too difficult to pick up good staff, since Sloane’s sacked my entire team, not to mention several others who’ve resigned, including Rachel.”

“Rachel?”

“She used to be Cedric’s secretary, but she only lasted a week under the new regime. I’ve asked her to join me. We start on Monday with a clean sheet. Well, not exactly a clean sheet, because Sloane sacked my assistant, and ordered him to remove everything from the office that even hinted of me, so he gathered up all the files I was working on, walked across to Cheapside, and handed them to me.”

“Is that legal?”

“Who gives a damn, when Sloane’s never going to find out?”

“Farthings Bank is not just Adrian Sloane, and you still have an obligation to it.”

“After the way Sloane treated me?”

“No, after the way Cedric treated you.”

“But that doesn’t apply to Shifnal Farm, because Sloane was working behind Cedric’s back on that deal.”

“And now you’re working behind his.”

“You bet I am, if it’s going to make it possible for us to buy a flat in Chelsea.”