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“You didn’t start that, he did,” Heather said to Steph. “And it’s the last time he’ll be in here, too. Don’t you apologise for standing up for yourself, honey. Something tells me he’s not used to women doing that.”
“He and my late husband,” Steph muttered. “Hey, Lottie.”
“I’d say good morning, but it doesn’t seem like one,” I quipped, then turned to Heather. “Can I have a cup of coffee, please?”
Heather nodded and turned to make it.
“Are you all right?” I asked Steph. “Was that Declan’s business partner?”
Perks of being new in town: I could play dumb.
Steph nodded. “Alan. He’s been wanting out of the business for a while. I think I told you how Declan made it hard for him.”
I nodded and tapped my card against the machine when Heather prompted me to, then took my coffee and guided my friend to the nearest empty table. “I’ve heard some rumours, too.”
“I’m not surprised. Alan wasn’t exactly shy about telling everyone how awful Declan was being. I don’t blame him because he was being horrid, but there’s no reason to take it out on me.” She sighed and looked at her coffee cup. “And it’s not like there’s endless money in that joint account. There’s a lot more than he ever led me to believe there was, sure, but not what Alan is thinking.”
“I’m surprised he even let you have a joint account.”
“Oh, it was joint in name, but not by nature, same as our house. In all honesty I have no idea what that money is or where it came from, and I’m tied behind probate for a lot of the assets, so I doubt I’m going to find out anytime soon.”
So, she had full ownership of the house, too.
Not to be a terrible friend, but Steph’s motive really was growing by the minute.
“I’m just shocked he didn’t will his half of the house to anyone and left it all to me,” Steph continued. “Sorry. I just came from an early meeting with my lawyer about his will—or, well the fact there wasn’t one.”
I raised my eyebrows. “You said that before. Is it confirmed?”
“Yep. Everything is one hundred percent mine, and I’m trying to process that. The last thing I needed was Alan getting on my back yet again.”
“He seemed pretty aggressive. Has he done it before?”
“Just before the funeral, and he called me three times yesterday before showing up at the house and demanding his money. He was absolutely hammered yesterday, and I think he’d just been drinking even after the wake.” She paused. “Not that I woke up feeling good yesterday, but at least I was sober.”
“Amen to that,” I muttered. “Why is he so desperate for you to buy out his share? Even before Declan died he was, right? My neighbour is an electrician and said he heard them fighting when he did some work for them.”
Sorry, Stan.
Steph nodded. “I might have overstepped the line blurting out his gambling habits, but it wasn’t a lie. He’s almost completely broke—unless I buy him out soon, he might be filing for bankruptcy kind of broke.”
“Won’t that affect the business?”
“I’m sure it has to. It’s not like Declan ever spoke to me about it,” she said. “I only know what I do from hearing Declan complain about Alan constantly going on, but he pretty much gambled everything they had. All his work, gone, just because he was forever chasing a win that would never come in. Every time he won something, he’d immediately put it on something else, instead of taking his money and running. Smart bets turned into desperate, stupid ones.”
Ouch.
“Declan actually tried to help him at one point. He made Alan come over and he sat him down as he closed all the online accounts, but then he found paper betting slips in the office. He was going out of town every other day and visiting the actual betting stores all around the area, changing it up every time so they never caught on about his problem.” She pressed her lips together. “I told Declan he should have told Alan’s wife, but that was months ago, before I left him. Given Alan’s desperation, there’s no way he’s not still betting every penny he has and hasn’t told her a thing.”
“Christ. That poor woman. Her life is about to tumble down around her.”
“Well, she’s not exactly a frugal one herself. I’ve never really gotten along with Nicola, so I don’t know how much she knows. She cheated on Alan years ago when the business had a rough spot, and she was about to leave him when they landed a huge contract, and she changed her mind.”
I raised my eyebrows. “Nice woman.”
“She’s materialistic to say the least,” Steph said quietly. “I know that seems rich coming from me, but I sometimes think my life would have been much easier and certainly much happier if it wasn’t an option.”
It was always said that money couldn’t buy happiness. While I’m sure it could for some people, it was definitely the case as far as Steph was concerned.
