Chapter 35
35
Theo rang Denice in the morning before leaving for the notaire’s office as he’d promised but was connected to a messaging service. He left his name and telephone number and asked Denice to ring him as soon as possible. There was no reply before they had to leave for the notaire’s.
‘ Bonjour ,’ Monsieur Caumont said as he ushered Agnes and Theo into his office. ‘You have brought me some papers?’ he asked, looking at the file Theo was holding.
‘Something we feel you should know about but in reality we think it’s too late to rectify,’ Theo said.
‘But first,’ Agnes said, ‘I have decided about the DNA tests. I do not think they are necessary. Rachel Cortez has signed a legal document knowing the consequences if she lies. I have now met both Rachel and Serge and also Serge’s son and accept that Serge is the illegitimate son of Oscar.’
The notaire sighed. ‘It is irregular but I can only advise in this case.’
‘You have met him, surely you recognise the family likeness,’ Agnes said.
Monsieur Caumont nodded. ‘ Oui . D’accord . We will proceed on the basis of the legal quarter for you and a two-way split of the remainder between the children of Oscar Agistini – Madame Mansell and Monsieur Cortez. Do you, Madame Agistini, intend to live in the house?’
‘Definitely not,’ Agnes said.
‘The house will need to be sold then. Would you like my property manager to deal with that?’
‘Please.’
‘It would be good if we could get it on the market whilst the film festival is running,’ the notaire said thoughtfully. ‘It is not a Belle Epoque villa but its situation in Le Suquet makes it a desirable property and there will be a lot of creative people in town who would love to get their hands on such a house. Bon . I will ask my property manager, Suzette, to call you urgently and make arrangements for a visit and to take photographs. Perhaps we can even hold an “Open Viewing” morning.’ He looked at the file in Theo’s hands.
Theo took a deep breath and handed it to him. ‘I found it going through Oscar’s papers. It would appear that he swindled Agnes out of her parents’ inheritance.’
‘Oh, come Monsieur Agistini, that is extremely unlikely,’ the notaire protested. ‘There are regulations in place to prevent such a happening. I think perhaps you misunderstand. I will have a quick look and set your mind at rest. Would you like a coffee while I read through?’ When Agnes and Theo both said please, he pressed a button on his desk. ‘ Trois cafés , s’il vous pla?t .’
Drinking her coffee, Agnes tried to read the notaire’s expression but apart from the occasional twitch of his mouth he remained poker faced. Ten long minutes passed with Agnes and Theo watching and waiting. Finally Monsieur Caumont closed the file with a deep sigh.
‘My apologies, Monsieur Agistini, you were right. Your brother did indeed swindle his wife out of her inheritance.’ He looked Agnes. ‘The notaire he used in Marseille was struck off ten years ago for seriously dishonest conduct and has since died. I can report it and have this case added to his record but…’ He shook his head.
‘There’s little point, is there?’ Agnes said quietly. ‘The money has gone.’
The notaire shook his head. ‘Yes. I am so sorry.’
‘Apropos of absolutely nothing,’ Theo asked quietly. ‘Are you aware that my brother had a fifty-foot motor yacht?’
‘I know nothing about any boat.’ The notaire looked at Theo, surprised. ‘It’s not mentioned in his papers.’
‘That’s good, because my brother verbally promised it to me in the event of his death.’ Theo held Monsieur Caumont’s gaze. ‘I intend to sell it.’
The notaire gave Theo a slow enigmatic smile and nodded, before shaking Theo’s hand. ‘I think that is a good way to proceed. But we’ve never had this conversation.’
‘Thank you,’ Theo said, returning his smile and picking up the folder.
Walking back to Theo’s cottage Agnes said, ‘Did Oscar really promise to leave the boat to you?’
‘ Non .’ Theo turned to look at her. ‘D’you know how much Oscar’s boat turns out to be worth?’
‘No idea,’ Agnes said. ‘I’ve never had much interest in boats.’
‘Somewhere in the region of forty-five thousand euros, possibly more. Which, with a little bit of luck, should be in your bank account some time in the near future when the boat is sold.’
Agnes stopped dead. ‘How much? Shouldn’t it be included as part of Oscar’s estate and be divided between Francine and Serge?’
‘It’s not listed amongst Oscar’s assets. The notaire knows nothing about a boat. Once it’s sold the proceeds will go some way to repaying you the money Oscar swindled you out of – and probably used to buy the boat in the first place.’
‘And the notaire is happy with you doing this?’
‘Like he said, we’ve never had a conversation about it!’
Agnes smiled at him, before leaning in and kissing his cheek. ‘Thank you.’
* * *
Edwin and Francine joined them that evening, bringing boxes of takeaway pizzas for supper, after spending the day clearing, cleaning and tidying things up at Oscar’s.
‘This morning at the notaire’s we put the house on the market with him and he’s sending someone round to take photographs and measurements soon,’ Agnes said. ‘He seems to think it will sell quite quickly. He’s talking about holding an “open viewing” morning if there is enough interest, probably during the last week of the festival.’
‘That sounds like a good idea,’ Edwin said. ‘That kind of thing often results in a quick sale.’
‘We’ve decided to treat ourselves to a day out tomorrow,’ Francine said. ‘Take the train along the coast and explore Monaco. Would you two like to come with us? We asked Zazz if she wanted to come but she’s going shopping with Mel to buy a dress to wear for her red-carpet adventure with Dominic.’
‘Cannes was heaving as we walked down,’ Edwin said. ‘A real buzz about the place. There’s a fair few super yachts moored out in the bay too. I guess now the festival has kicked off the town will be even busier.’
After exchanging a quick look with Theo, when he gave her a small shrug, Agnes said. ‘Thank you for the offer to go to Monaco but I think Theo and I will have a quiet day here. I know Theo is waiting for a phone call and may have to go to Antibes Juan-les-Pins.’
Theo’s phone buzzed at one point in the evening and Agnes held her breath as he stood up, murmuring, ‘Excuse me, I need to answer this,’ before he disappeared indoors. When he returned to the courtyard two or three minutes later he looked at Agnes and gave a slight shake of his head. Not Denice then as she’d hoped.
After Francine and Edwin left, Agnes and Theo had a nightcap of Saint Honorat liqueur out in the courtyard. ‘I wish Denice would hurry up and return your call,’ Agnes said. ‘I worry that she’s not going to ring you back.’
‘I expect she’s just busy and returning a phone call from a stranger isn’t high on her list of priorities.’
‘Maybe she associates the name Agistini with Oscar and doesn’t want to contact you,’ Agnes said.
‘We have the address so we can always go and knock on the door until she opens it,’ Theo said, smiling.
Agnes finished her drink and stood up. ‘I think I’ll have an early night. See you in the morning.’
Getting ready for bed, Agnes’s glance was drawn to the envelope Theo had brought down from Oscar’s. With all the excitement of knowing Denice was back in the Riviera she’d taken it upstairs with her and thrown it unopened onto the dressing table next to her grandmère ’s newly polished table mirror that Theo had also brought down for her. Perhaps now would be a good time to open it? Of course, what she’d really like to do with it was to throw it away unopened but she wasn’t brave enough to do that in case it did contain something of importance. Although what on earth Oscar could have to say to her after all these years she dreaded to think. Sighing, she reached out a hand to pick it up, when there was a knock on the door and Theo’s voice called out.
‘Denice has phoned.’
‘Come in,’ Agnes said, jumping up quickly, the envelope forgotten again. ‘What did she say?’
‘She apologised for the late call. Apparently, she’s been away and only returned this evening. I’ve arranged to meet her tomorrow afternoon.’
‘You didn’t tell her about me?’
‘No.’ Theo shook his head. ‘She was a little bristly at first, asked if I was related to Oscar Agistini. I told her he was my brother and that he had recently died. She asked me what I wanted to talk to her about. I told her it was a highly personal matter and I’d rather explain face to face. She then suggested three o’clock tomorrow afternoon and I agreed.’
Agnes sank down on her bed. ‘I can’t believe that tomorrow I’m going to meet up with my sister after all these years.’