Chapter 14
14
L ater that day after eating their lunch sitting out overlooking the grounds of Lovely Manor, Nina led Cally down one of the long corridors in the east wing to a room that had clearly seen better days. The door creaked as it opened, revealing a space crammed with boxes, a desk buried under papers, and vintage filing cabinets standing against the walls, their drawers bulging with documents.
‘Another room full of old stuff. Looks like this is yet another one that has been neglected for far too long,’ Nina said with wide eyes. ‘I only briefly looked in here before. It’s mind-boggling how many rooms there are.’
Cally surveyed the scene. ‘Wow, there’s a lot to go through. Any idea what’s in all these boxes?’
‘I had a quick look through when I scoped the job. Mostly old files, paperwork from years back. Some of it might be important, but honestly, Cecilia said that nothing in here is that important.’ Nina shook her head and lowered her voice. ‘Not that I think she has a clue what’s important or not anyway.’
Cally nodded. She wasn’t going to start giving her opinion about Cecilia, Logan’s aunt, but, truth be told, she was with Nina all the way to the bank. ‘Alright. First things first, I’ll need to go through everything and sort it into categories. It’ll help to know what we’re dealing with. Yeah?’
Nina looked relieved. ‘I reckon. If you need me, I’ll be down the hall. Just shout if you find anything interesting or need any help.’
‘Will do.’
As the door clicked shut behind her, Cally took a deep breath and began the task at hand. She started with a floor-to-ceiling pile of cardboard filing boxes, pulling them down one by one and sifting through the contents. Old invoices, receipts, and letters filled the room with the scent of aged paper. To be quite honest, she had no clue really what to keep and what to throw, but as she worked, she made a little pile of anything that seemed particularly significant or interesting. A good few hours passed in a blur of sorting and organising, and soon, the piles of papers began to make a bit of sense. The room, once chaotic and cluttered, slowly started to take on a more orderly appearance.
Just as she was beginning to make headway with the desk, Nina popped her head back in. ‘How’s it going in here?’
‘Good, actually,’ Cally said, looking up with a smile. ‘I’m making progress. There’s a lot to go through, but it’s not as bad as it first seemed. So much stuff!’
Nina stepped inside, looking around. ‘I can see that. You’re getting on better than I am.’
Cally laughed. ‘There are definitely some interesting things here. Look at this from back in the day.’ Cally held up an old letter.
Nina took the letter and glanced over it. ‘Wow, you don’t really see things like this these days. What beautiful writing.’
Cally nodded. ‘There are loads more like it. It might be worth setting them aside.’
‘Good idea. Okay, I’ll get back to it, then we’ll stop for tea.’
‘Sounds like a plan.’
After opening another carton of blackcurrant, Cally got stuck in and uncovered forgotten memories, piles of accounts from the stable management, and reams and reams of old documents. The desk, once buried under clutter, was gradually cleared and organised.
Hidden among the papers she found a few old trinkets here and there; a vintage watch, a set of collectible silver spoons, and a few pieces of random jewellery. Among the papers, they found old business records, property deeds, and personal letters.
Once the desk was clear and Nina had arrived with two cups of tea and a packet of Bourbons, which they’d had on a little patio area outside the east wing, Cally went back into the room and started to pull piles of papers off the tops of the old timber filing cabinets. She plonked them onto the desk and as she was moving back to get more, she knocked a pile on the floor with her hip as she shimmied around a small side table. The pile teetered for a moment before falling onto the floor in a flurry of documents. Papers scattered all around and as she tutted and bent down to scoop them up, a green leather folio whose contents had fallen out caught her eye. Mostly because, in contrast to everything else in the room, the folio was bright green and more modern.
Crouched down on the floor, she started to gather the contents of the folio and stuff it back into the main section. Reaching forward to scoop in some papers, a semi-folded marriage certificate caught her eye. Not really realising what she was doing, she flicked it out to its full width and then frowned. As her eyes scanned the names, she froze. Right after that, she wanted to vomit.
She read it again and her whole face crumpled as she sat back on her heels and stared at the piece of paper in front of her. She closed her eyes and shook her head. Surely not. It didn’t make sense. But there it was in front of her in black and white. According to the official signed paper, many moons before, Logan Henry-Hicks had married someone called Cassia Allegra Brommington.
Cally went cold to her core. She frowned and squinted. It couldn’t be her Logan, surely.
Logan Henry Hicks. Cassia Allegra Brommington.
How many Logan Henry-Hicks were there in the world? As far as she knew, not that many at all. And the one she knew, the same one she was currently in love with, had forgotten to tell her a tiny little detail about his life. This was not going to end well. At all.