Lewi's Legacy (13 page)

He rang the mobile number three times before Mikhail answered, with a curt ‘You’re late my boy.’

He didn’t rise to the comment, only to say that the task was now complete, and ready for inspection.

‘Can you be ready for eight tomorrow, and we will pick you up outside.’ Mikhail said sharply.

A big black Mercedes stretched limousine pulled alongside, and Victor opened the rear door, observing two men already seated in the back. On the far side was Mikhail, and closest to him was a short rotund character, immaculately dressed, balding and aged about sixty he thought. He shook his hand as Mikhail introduced him as Philippe, explaining that he was a Swiss banker, from Zürich.

‘You are English Mikhail tells me, I speak it fluently of course.’ He said a little haughtily as he handed the young man his business card.

Victor replied in Russian and spoke very quickly. ‘I hope that you find what you are looking for sir.’ He then turned to look through the tinted window. He could not see out, but Mikhail’s reflection came into view as he leaned forward to look at him. Louis felt that the fat man had insulted him, and quite frankly did not care what Mikhail thought about it.

‘Today I will not be pushed around.’ He said to himself under his breath.

As they all disembarked from the car he glanced at Philippe’s face as he looked at the surroundings of the warehouse, how run down it looked. Mikhail saw it too as he commented,’ we purposely don’t want to raise any unwanted interest in the place as you will understand when we enter.’

Two guards came out of the small side door and saluted the Ambassador and his guests and indicated for them to enter. Once through the little office and into the main cavernous area they both stood stock still, just taking it all in. Mikhail turned around to Victor standing behind them, smiled and led Philippe into the heart of the area.

Victor purposely did not accompany them on the tour, instead he talked small talk in Russian to the guards and they obliged with their replies. Suddenly he heard a shout, ‘Victor!’ he turned around to see Mikhail waving for him to join them near the far wall. As he approached the banker was scrutinizing his copy of the manifest.

As he came alongside, Philippe asked, ‘what about the items marked ‘Unknown’ at the bottom of the list with little detail on them, where are they can I ask?’

The young man nodded to him and asked them to follow as he led them back to the entrance. In a quarantined area, well away from the rest of the artifacts, the items were neatly stacked. Philippe counted them and gave a smug sort of smile, Mikhail however looked very pleased. Victor left them to carry on with their audit and went to get some fresh air for a moment, but all too soon he saw Mikhail waving at him from the tiny window in the office.

‘Victor, I think we can safely say that our friend here is completely satisfied with our arrangements, and we offer our congratulations on a job well done.’

The assembled security guards stood to attention outside as the three visitors approached their car.’ I trust you are satisfied Philippe with our security arrangements?’ Mikhail asked the banker.

Philippe nodded his agreement, and in Russian, the fat banker thanked the guards and told them to carry on their good work. In turn they stood to attention and saluted their illustrious visitor.

Cocooned in the back seat, Philippe asked Victor a question.’ When do you start the auctions Victor?’

‘The show begins on Monday eh Victor?’ the Ambassador asked.

Victor nodded and at that moment realized, as he visualized the contents of the warehouse in his mind’s eye, what an enormous task was ahead of him. The driver dropped the Swiss banker off at his hotel and they said their goodbyes, continued on their journey.

‘I get the feeling that you are not happy with Philippe, Victor?’

‘I do apologize Mikhail, but I never feel that I can fully trust bankers, they don’t do anything but make money from money, and their only interest is self interest.’ He answered.

Yes I understand that they are evil, but they are a necessary evil, and in these plans that we have, he plays a very important part of them. So we must learn to like him eh Victor?’ He put his arm around the young man’s shoulders. ‘What you did for me over these last few days was most impressive, even laying out all the small treasures on the tables, where did you get them from?’

‘It was your driver Levka’s idea, he’s a very smart man Mikhail, and I hope you reward him for his efforts.’

‘It was a very good idea, and I will certainly look after the man, but now it is time to celebrate our friendship, the work you have done and the work to come. Will you dine with me tonight at Maxim’s?’

13
A New Friend

The magical stone

After purchasing the Toyota pickup, strangely enough Edmund did not feel the urge to go driving in it the next day. Instead he looked at the morning sky and the clouds were thin and wispy and high up, a sure sign of a dry day. After his recent failed attempt to find Sally’s pond, he decided to make a concerted effort this time to find a route. He took the shepherd’s crook and a small sharp axe. As he proceeded, instead of trying to look ahead, he scanned the forest floor for prints.

As he skirted a large clump of bramble, there they were footprints and paw prints, undoubtedly his and Sally’s. Just to confirm his suspicions, he saw a clear sole print and after checking what he was wearing the wavy lines matched exactly, he was on his way. At this discovery, he reached up to an overhanging branch of a tree and he chopped a ‘V’ mark on the underside. At the next one hundred paces he did the same but took care not to make each mark too obvious. Six marks later and he had made it, and he sat pleased with himself, on the rustic bench feeling like an Indian tracker. The silence of the pond flooded over him, almost hypnotising his senses and soon he was dozing off in a feeling of peace. He awoke with a start; did he hear a twig snap sharply? He just couldn’t remember. The silence overcame him again and he started to settle, his right arm dangling over the bench’s sculptured armrest. He felt that his hand was getting wet and something was gently moving it.

A black and white fluffy ball was sitting by his hand with a little red tongue that darted out of it. Edmund shook himself awake and looked down for a closer look. He scooped it up towards him and looked more closely; it was a black and white puppy dog. He brought it closer to his face. The dog’s face was familiar but smaller, a black head with a broad white stripe finishing at the little black nose, he realised at once that it was a miniature Sally. He stood up, holding the puppy and shouted.

‘Hello! Hello!’ as he looked around the pool.

There was no reply so he tried again but there was no sound, just the echo of his voice that reflected back from the dense growth of beeches encircling the pond.

’Now little puppy, where do you come from? And who do you belong to?’

The little dog answered by licking his nose. He sat on the bench with the puppy on his lap deciding to wait for a while, just in case someone appeared, looking for the dog. He checked his watch and there was just half an hour gone, so he continued to shout several times into nothingness. Then he gave up and made his way back to the cottage with the help of his patented Indian tracking system. All the way back to his home he continuously scanned in all directions, but there remained just him and the puppy. As with all young animals they generate a soft warm feeling in humans, probably due to their apparent vulnerability, and Edmund was certainly no exception to this rule.

As he opened the cottage back door the puppy scampered in and sat next to Sally’s tin plate, which was empty of course and looked up at Edmund as if she was hoping for him to fill it.

‘I don’t have anything for you to er, what shall I call you?’ He asked.

He went through the alphabet and decided on Zowie, a name that started with the last letter of the alphabet, and being the last thing he expected at the pond. He picked Zowie up and placed her on the passenger seat of the pickup and drove to the Cross Roads garage. So as not to block the entrance to the fuel pumps, he slotted it next to the forecourt area and took the dog into the shop.

It was a quiet period in the shop, so the two ladies who served the customers came up quickly, and he handed Zowie to them for a little petting. Edmund explained that she had appeared from nowhere and he knew that collie puppies are valuable. The older of the two women suggested a notice on the community board at the shop, but he said he didn’t have a phone and his house was very difficult to find. Her younger colleague took a photo of Zowie and said that she would post that on the board. They then suggested that he call back each week for a month and check. He agreed and offered to pay, but they wouldn’t hear of it, as long as he brought her into the shop each week when he returned. He was led to the dog food counter and one of the assistants advised him to buy a selection of puppy food for her, which he did.

On the way home he stopped at Rufus’s bungalow, and looking at the time at three in the afternoon, he didn’t expect him to be home, so Edmund left a note for him to call at the cottage as he had some work for the young builder.

Three months had passed with no response from the advert, and it looked to Edmund as if he was going to have a permanent guest at the cottage. He had to admit to himself, that recently he would have been very unhappy if the dog had been claimed, so the last time he went to the garage, he asked them to take the picture down.

She had her own collar and engraved tag, shaped like a bone. He had paid for the attention of the local vet to check her over and prescribe the usual preventative shots including a worming programme, taking into account the area where she was living. The previous week he had taken a week’s training course in the village, he gathered that it was more for the owner than the dog. She was already too clever for him.

Rufus had done a great job in building a car shelter for the Morgan. He used rustic wood from the forest and a gravel hardstand. When the car was parked in the shelter its camouflage was amazing. The young builder was extraordinary talented.

Zowie was already looking like a standard border collie by now, and she was very quick to learn the commands he had taught her. One bright cold day in December the beech trees had shed their leaves and the white cloak of frost was lying on the bare boughs. Edmund decided to go and visit Harry and Phaedra in Burley. He had been thinking about how they were coping with the disappearance of their son Victor, maybe he could cheer them up a little with his new companion.

The sun was shining albeit low on the horizon, with no warmth in it. He still took the Morgan as it had been a dry spell of late, and the little sports car needed a run. As they passed the Station House tea rooms he remembered that he was close to their village. Once again he had to slow down on the approach to the village, as there were tight bends and it was a very narrow road. He glanced to the left, and he had to stop on the side of the road, exactly in the same place as before.

He saw, on the crown of a hill, the magnificent white stag. Zowie barked at it and he had to hold her collar to stop her jumping out. They sat still and he put his arm around the dogs back as they just sat and stared together. Slowly as before the majestic animal turned his great neck away from them and sauntered down the other side of the hill into the thicket. Edmund just sat and stroked Zowie’s head for a few seconds knowing that he had seen the rarest sight in the New Forest twice.

He drove the little Morgan past the Queen’s Head Inn, and turned to the left of the War Memorial and down Pound lane. Within just a couple of hundred yards he was at Harry and Fay’s cottage. Parked in front of the cottage there was a little black Audi TT, he now had a choice to make. He could decide, either to drive to the café along the road and then wait for the visitor to leave, or he could show Zowie the sights of the village, or just park opposite on the verge and say hello.

Whilst he contemplated one of his options, to walk around the village, he was reminded of the story in the fifties when apparently a white witch stalked around the village with a tame jackdaw on her shoulder. It was a great story for the thousands of tourists that visited Burley, and an opportunity for several local entrepreneurs to ply their mystical wares in the many little shops and make the best of the legend. He decided instead to visit his friends anyway, being curious about the little Audi TT still parked outside.

He fastened Zowie’s new rope lead to her collar and they walked to the front door and rang the bell. Fay opened the door and Edmund noticed she seemed a little fraught, which quickly changed to a relieved smile as she recognised him.

‘What is it Fay?’ he asked as she showed him in.

She looked down and smiled. ‘Hello, who is this Edmund? Fay pointed to the collie, ‘I didn’t have your phone number but it seems that you heard me anyway and have come to see us.’

Edmund brought his new companion into the kitchen and asked Fay where Sally was. She opened the back door and Sally was lying down with her feet out in front and her head resting on them, looking quite forlorn. Zowie was straining to get to her; it was probably the first time that she had seen another dog.

Edmund calmed her down and then led her to Sally’s side and she sat down panting and looking back at him for a command. ‘Sally, up!’ he said sharply and the older dog sat up and looked at her visitor. Nothing happened for a moment then her maternal instincts kicked in and she started to lick Zowie’s face, as if she were washing it. Edmund then lowered his index finger in front of them and they both went to the lying position, each dog had her feet out, and Zowie duly copied Sally’s stance by putting her head on her outstretched front paws.

Fay left the kitchen door open just in case, and led Louis into the lounge and he sat on the couch, waiting for his friend to tell him her story. She told him that the day before, Victor had returned home and he knew nothing about where he had been. The car in front belonged to their doctor and she was upstairs with Harry in Victor’s room at that moment. As she was telling him they could hear that Harry and their doctor were on their way downstairs.

A very attractive young woman conservatively dressed, entered the room followed by a tired looking Harry. He looked up and saw Edmund and his face lit up and he sat next to him on the couch. The doctor sat close to Fay, and then Harry introduced Edmund to Doctor Matthews. He asked her to talk freely with the visitor in any diagnosis she was to offer.

She explained that Victor had suffered an amnesia episode brought on by an excessive amount of stress and all she could prescribe was rest, rest and more rest. Before anyone asked, she told them that there was no way that she could tell them when he would come out of the condition. Any recovery of either his mind or body would be a matter for Victor himself. She also said that his condition was not unlike the result of a stroke or a head injury, in the end it was down to the individual and there were no rules.

‘Personally I would suggest that he is not left for long periods alone in his room. On the contrary, get as many people as you can to go up and talk to him, we don’t know if he can hear but it is always best to try.’ The young doctor was going to leave when Edmund spoke up.

‘Can I go up to see him please, with my two special companions?’ He asked.

The doctor looked confused but Fay and Harry nodded enthusiastically. ‘You know Eddie; I think that could be a great idea.’ Harry said with enthusiasm.

He looked at the doctor and she just shrugged her shoulders. In a flash he got off his seat, fetched the two dogs and led them upstairs, followed by the three people. He gently guided the dogs to the side of Victor’s bed and took his very first look at him.

The young man’s face was drained of all colours and he lay there without moving as if in a coma. The only movement that Edmund could detect was the slow rise and fall of the bed cover caused by his breathing. He made a gesture to the other spectators to hold back, and they stood just inside the bedroom door. The doctor put her arm though Harry’s arm in a gesture of support. Standing on the other side of Harry, Fay stood close and gripped his hand.

Edmund sat Zowie down at the right hand side of the bed, about half way down and gently placed her head onto the bed cover. Then he led Sally down to the same position on the other side and she instinctively did the same, without any instruction. Gently he then lifted the bed cover and prised Victor’s arm out and delicately placed his hand on the dog’s smooth black and white head. He tiptoed to the other side and did the same with Zowie’s head.

As he placed Victor’s hand on Zowie’s head she looked at Edmund, but knew she must not move as he looked at her sternly. Finally, he took out the little stone from out of his pocket and slowly placed it in the centre of the young man’s forehead, in the small depression in the centre above his eyebrows. He then beckoned for the others to gather around the bed.

He looked carefully for any reaction to Victor’s hands as they lay on both of the dogs’ heads. There was nothing. The other three observers did the same. The doctor looked at Edmund and then at the small smooth stone which was balancing on Victor’s forehead. Without speaking, the young doctor pulled Edmunds sleeve as she noticed something happening. From the middle, a small orange glow was emanating from the centre of the small stone.