February 2013
The doubts all started with the 17th century cuckoo clock. They had first met on the seventeenth of April and here he was nearly a year later being placed in a police car. He had startled as Lily had called, smiled and waved at him; she had only feelings of pity. She understood clearly that she had been a means to an end. It had all started in such an amusing and positive way; he bumped into her whilst she was carrying some party balloons he was jogging and ran into her. The balloons drifted away and Lily being small and petite and barely five foot high had fallen over with the jogger on top of her, both ended up laughing. He appeared charming and indeed was easy on the eye, his name was James and that was the beginning.
Lily invited him to the party that night he said yes and generously replaced the balloons. He wooed her with a vengeance and she had been bowled over by his kindness and thoughtfulness. On the seventeenth of May he had turned up with a magnum of Dom Perignon Champagne, he told her it had been first made in the 17th century. Of course they did not drink that bottle but a different one he had brought. That remained in the wine rack "for a special occasion" he said. More Wine and then books gradually appeared in the flat Shakespeare mostly and the wine was definitely vintage and always Grand Premier Cru. James told her that he was in insurance and that meant he travelled. He apparently carried out insurance estimates for wealthy individuals, so frequently went to Europe to carry out these valuations.
On his return he would phone and they would pick up their relationship where it had left off. He told her he loved her and wanted to move in and to marry Lily but was clear that his present nomadic existence would be no life for her. In June he returned with a series of framed drawings, student copies he said of sketches by Leonardo and Vermeer together with two oil paintings, again student copies of work by Van Hals and Brueghel. Her flat was becoming very stylish and James told her that when he next went to France he would see what glass he could pick up in the flea markets. He treated with disdain her ultra modern glassware from IKEA. Gradually as time passed he had refurbished more and more of her flat. On the day that she had chilled the champagne ready and opened it as he entered the door he had been furious, he calmed quickly explaining that it was an investment towards the costs of their wedding day. But the incident left its mark.
He stated that once he finished all the travelling and was next promoted they could start to plan their wedding but his routine was still far too chaotic. He loved her flat and said that the security was good and James said that he felt good knowing she was safe when he could not be around.
At long last and after much badgering she was invited to his flat and whilst it was a penthouse in a very good location it was surprisingly plain and ordinary. There were no stylish prints, no collections of Shakespeare or other old books and his wine glasses were definitely moulded crystal rather than her now very fine cut glass. She knew little of his background except that both of his parents and sister had died in a motor accident when he had been at University. He appeared a solitary soul and his flat was bereft of any family photographs etc. There were none of him on various holidays that he had told her about and the penthouse appeared in many ways as if it was about to be rented out, devoid of any personality.
The moment she saw the cuckoo clock she knew it was not a copy it was the one thing that she knew something about. Her father had adored them and whilst she intensely disliked them the knowledge had almost by osmosis been transferred into her head. James's clock was definitely a 17th Century clock by Franz Otto Ketterer, a master clockmaker from the Black Forest, but when she asked James about it he stated it was a copy and not an original. Everything that he spoke about and had given her all were copies, and of course why would they not be. When he went into the kitchen to get the wine she took a picture of the clock on her mobile.
James had an early morning departure so Lily's visit was short and she left early still puzzling; deciding that she would look up the clock and if it was genuine James would have a valuable artefact on his hands. As she drove away she quickly realised that her mobile was at the flat; she turned the car and returned. Surprisingly James was with his travel bag in the lobby about to leave for Lucerne. He had not noticed the phone and said he would run up and find it. Lily stood in the lobby waiting and noticed beside his bag a shoebox that had slipped to one side, she bent down to straighten it and saw the cuckoo clock packed inside. As she heard the elevators return she stepped back and turned around to face James arriving with her mobile phone in hand.
Lily thanked him and with a quick kiss on the cheek they were both out in the street. He did not want a lift to the airport and said he would hail a taxi. Lilly crossed the road and returned to her car, as she watched a cab pulled up and James was on his way. She had understood his flight to Lucerne was tomorrow at 8am. On impulse she pulled in a couple of cars behind him and decided to follow, she would not perhaps have done so had the cab been plain black, but it was bright pink in its advertising livery. The car headed to Greenwich and finally stopped outside a small terraced house, where James alighted and paid off the cab. He took his keys out opened the door and went in. Lily felt her heart racing as she wrote down the number of the door and the name of the street and then drove off.
Lily's night was sleepless and returned to the lobby of the penthouse building early the next morning. She was now angry and very very put out. A concierge was on duty and she asked if there were any flats to rent in this building. The concierge showed her to the manager's office; Lily explained that her office was not far from here and this block appeared quiet and well located. The older manager bristled with pride and said that they took great care with their tenants and that at this moment there was only the penthouse vacant. Lily professed an interest and soon found herself in the lift, brochure in hand.
As the lift went up her stomach sank down and soon enough she found the manager opening the penthouse door and ushering her in. It was indeed the flat which James had said was his own. It was impeccably clean and with the exception of the cuckoo clock, it was as she had seen it the night before. The manager prattled on and as her head went fuzzy she could hear him saying the flat was vacant and had been empty for about four weeks. Only one other client had been to look at it and from the description that appeared to be James. She wondered how he got the key but was starting to realise how very resourceful he was. Lily thanked the manager and said that she would be in touch and arrange a visit with her husband, thanking him for his kindness she left.
Lily returned to home her anger had now turned into calm cold logic, she had been well and truly duped. She did a tour of the flat making a list of what she thought could be valuable items given by James. With her list in hand and the photo of the cuckoo clock beside her she searched the internet; she had now formed a clear plan of action. A search for the cuckoo clock, a credit search on the residents of the house in Greenwich and a search on some of the gifts James had given her. A few days and a lot of computer work later Lily had some answers and she was shaking with both anger and rage, what was she in the middle of. Now it was her turn and she felt confident that she would be able to channel all of these negative emotions into something positive.
Her glassware was all Lalique; the books were first editions, the wine varied from five hundred pounds upwards. This of course explained why James had been angry when she had opened a bottle and also why he always turned up with a bottle of wine or champagne, saying their "little wine cellar" may well contribute to the costs of their home together. So of course Lily never again touched any of the bottles and now was feeling totally taken in and used, Lily felt like kicking herself, but she now took a bottle of Laffite Rothschild from the wine rack and placed it in the fridge to chill, celebrations were ahead.
When it came to the paintings and the cuckoo clock all were on the Interpol website as stolen goods not recovered and with large insurance rewards for their return. Her home had in fact become a place for James to display and admire his ill-gotten gains. No wonder he had checked her burglar alarms and security for the block of flats. Not for her benefit at all, she had felt so flattered. Lily's anger made her think more clearly James was also protecting his stash with his irregular visits as long as he had been careful there were of course no ties between them. Had he been apprehended there would be no links to his stolen goods. Lily needed to have some fresh air and think.
She put on her jogging gear and set off around Victoria Park, running always helped to clear her head. Lily's mind turned over and over seeking out options and weighing up choices Fortune had favoured her; at least she had the sense not to pressure him about moving in and marriage. He had no ties to her she therefore had no ties to him. The house in Greenwich belonged to a married couple or at least so the census indicated, Lily felt sorry for the woman but wondered if the wife knew of his nefarious goings on.
Lily returned home clear headed, she contacted the insurance companies about the books, prints and paintings. They were certainly happy to negotiate a finder's fee with her for the safe return of the stolen goods. They were very professional and transferring over one million pounds into her account and arranging the safe transfer and collection of the property. They also liaised with the police with regard to James and the information she had passed to them. The police needed her identification as the man who had in fact brought the property to her flat. So very early the next morning Lily found herself sitting across the road from the house she had identified in Greenwich as the police entered the property. Her stomach churned "What if he was not there?" suddenly the door opened and Lily as told got out of the police car and stood up.
She nodded to the police inspector and then as James looked across she smiled at him and waved. The police car then drove her home and Lily went inside time for Bucks Fizz and scrambled eggs on toast. Life was good, she now had plenty of money, a refurbished flat, a good wine cellar and a few bits and pieces that did not appear on any stolen goods list.