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Chapter 14
She was about to explain, but Ray got there first.‘I know for a fact that Joseph does not have many or indeedanyfriends.’
Lili stared at him. ‘You knew, and you didn’t mention anything?’
‘Let’s just say I had my suspicions.’
Lili was about to ask why he’d kept quiet about it, but Ray had anticipated the question. ‘The reason I’ve kept it under my hat was for William’s sake – and Nate’s. My son and grandson were not in a good place, and then you and Maisie walked into their lives. So, I don’t need an explanation, Lili.’
Lili felt he deserved one, anyway. She told him all about the argument with Alex over Maisie, and her decision to go to Aldeburgh for a holiday. Then how Alex had ended their relationship in a text, sending her things by FedEx; how, in the meantime, Maisie’s mother had decided she’d stay on abroad for an extended break; and how she had come to be in Joseph’s flat, meeting all the wonderful people in Cobbler’s Yard.
Then Lili went further, telling Ray more than she’d ever told anybody about her past and her fears for Maisie; how she’d always been afraid that someone would take her into care and that she would never see her again.
Lili could feel the tears rolling down her face. ‘Sorry.’
‘There’s no need to apologise, Lili. I quite understand.’
‘Nate told me you needed my help. You were found wandering along a beach in Corfu alone when you were three and shipped back to England, where you were put in care until you started boarding school here, paid for by an anonymous benefactor. Is that correct?’
Lili nodded. ‘That’s all I know so far; that and the fact that my social worker, who I thought was my friend, has deceived me all these years about how my private education was funded.’
‘Hmm. Have you spoken to her?’
‘Not yet. I can’t help thinking that if she’s lied all this time, she must have her reasons. Why would she stop now and tell me the truth?’
Ray looked thoughtful. ‘Yes, you may have a point. So, when they found you, the authorities couldn’t trace your immediate family or relatives?’
‘Nobody.’
He looked at her askance. ‘Everybody has somebody, a friend or a relative … I think it’s rather odd.’
Lili mulled it over. Put that way, it made sense. ‘If therewassomeone out there, then why didn’t they come forward?’
Because, thought Ray,they had something to hide – some skeleton in their closet. He sighed.
Lili glanced at Ray. ‘Never mind. I know what you’re thinking. It’s an impossible task.’
‘It isn’t impossible,’ Ray said slowly. ‘It’s just different. Normally, I find descendants. This time I have a descendant.’
‘Me?’
‘Yes, you must have some relatives somewhere. I just need to find the house.’
‘The house?’
‘Ah, what I mean to say is, when I look for heirs to estates, I typically start with a physical place, the estate, someone’s home. A property that has been left empty and not bequeathed to anybody in a will, so then I search for that person’s descendants. You are somebody’s descendant. Everybody has somebody – the trick is to find them.’
But Lili wanted to find living relatives, not dead ones. She told Ray as much.
‘Well, you certainly had someone ten years ago, because they were paying for your expensive education. They could still be alive.’
‘But in all that time if Connie has never found my relatives …’
‘Who is Connie?’
‘She’s my social worker.’
‘The person who you recently discovered had lied to you?’
