Chapter 15

“I just know she’ll be pleased to see you.”

The next morning, Will sat in his favourite armchair, holding the invitation in one hand, and picked up his landline handset. He hesitated before dialling Lizzie’s number. She was his oldest friend. Their parents had been neighbours for many, many years. They were born just a few weeks apart and had been in the same class throughout their school days. So why was the prospect of calling her so alarming?

Perhaps it was because he hadn’t spoken to her for almost ten years. They’d kept in touch for a while after he’d graduated from Oxford, particularly while he was living and working in London, but eventually they’d both just gotten on with their lives.

He keyed in her number and put the handset to his ear. His heart thumped so hard he could feel it in his throat as he listened to the ringing and waited for her to answer.

“Hello, Lizzie Archer.”

Will took a deep breath. “Lizzie, hi. It’s Will.”

“Will? Will Brown?”

“The one and only.”

“Well, I never. I wasn’t expecting to hear from you today. I take it you got the invitation?”

“Yeah, I got it.”

“And are you coming?”

“Well...”

“Will, you have to. You just have to.”

“I wasn’t going to. When I opened the invitation, I rolled my eyes and said no way.”

“But ... There is a but, isn’t there?”

“There is. You see, I couldn’t get the damn thing out of my head. And after talking to one of my friends ... Let’s just say, he gave me a few reasons to go.”

“So you are coming. Oh, that’s great. Everyone will be so pleased.”

“Yes, I’m coming.”

“I’ll tell Bobby when I see him tomorrow. He’ll be stoked.”

“You still see Bobby?”

“Of course. We work together actually. Well, not quite, together. Just, for the same company, you know. I persuaded him to join the organising committee. I couldn’t quite believe it, but I did. You know he and Julie got married, don’t you? Of course, you do, you were invited to the wedding. Why didn’t you go?”

“I’d already got a holiday in the Bahamas booked. I’d have been there otherwise.”

“I know. I mean, you two were bezzie mates at school. Still, you can catch up at the reunion. Hey, you know who else is on the committee with me?”

“Who?”

“Guess.”

“I don’t know ... Ray Turner.”

“God no. I think I’d end up killing him if he was. He hasn’t changed you know—still as annoying as ever. No. I’m talking about Amy.”

“Am ... Amy?”

“Yeah. Cool huh? She’s going to be delighted you’re coming. I know she is. Even though...”

“Even though what?”

“Nothing. I just know she’ll be pleased to see you. So, are you going to come and visit before the big ... day?”

“I don’t know if I’ll be able to find the time, to be honest. I’m pretty busy these days.”

“I’ll bet. An important lawyer like you. Still, it’s been nice to talk to you, and the end of May isn’t that far away.”

“No. It’s not.”

“It’s going to be so good to see you again, Will.”

“It’ll be good to see you too, Lizzie”

“So ... Fill me in. What have you been up to the past few years?”

Most weekdays, Will tried to be at his desk at around seven. This gave him two hours to work on some of his more complicated matters before the rest of the staff arrived and the phones started ringing. He was, primarily, a lawyer for the elderly dealing with estate planning, trust management and probate. It was often commented on by his colleagues that he had a way with the elderly that few other lawyers possessed. They trusted him. Trusted him to look after their best interests in their final years and carry out their wishes after they went to the grave.

In the last edition of The Chambers Guide, the bible of the British legal profession, he’d been rated as number one in his field in the south of England. As a result, he’d attracted some very wealthy clients from London with complex requirements in addition to being the most popular lawyer with the elderly in Westmouth. He even had the numbers of the local care homes stored in his mobile phone.

Because his work could be so complicated, the two hours he got to spend at the office each morning when no one else was around were invaluable. He was able to draft complex wills, manage a minefield of trusts and work through massive estates without fear of interruption. He was normally so engrossed that he didn’t notice nine o’clock had arrived and the office had officially opened until his secretary brought in his morning coffee.