Page 13 of Dead Serious Case 5 Madame Vivienne

“Very good,” Mr Hadley replies with an inclination of his head.

“Do I need to sign something? And how do I get the keys to the property?”

“If you’d like to come back in and take a seat, I can give you the details now you’ve come to a decision.”

He steps aside and Danny and I once again re-enter the room. But as Mr Hadley’s closing the door, I see Dusty follow behind us. Either she’s forgotten about the warding or she’strying her luck a second time but as she reaches the threshold, she collides with an invisible wall. For a second her face looks as if it’s been crushed up against glass, smooshing her cheek and lips up, then she falls backwards and hits the floor.

I wince as I see a platform boot hit the barrier a moment later. She is not going to be happy when we get out of here.

“Shall we?” Mr Hadley closes the door with a quiet click, either unaware of Dusty’s predicament or simply not bothered by the frustrated ghost about to throw a strop on the other side of his magically protected office.

We settle back in the same chairs as earlier and watch as he removes a folder and places it on the desk in front of him.

“Right.” He opens it up and studies the first sheet of paper as if re-familiarising himself with the details. “The Whitechapel property, as you know, was originally one building until it was divided in 1883 by Genevieve Crawshanks. Since then it has been rented out as two separate properties. Although the other side is not currently being used as a commercial space right now, it is under contract until next year. The rent is being paid, I believe the leaseholders are using it for storage, so you don’t need to worry about dealing with any of that. It’s being managed by the property brokerage arm of Hadley and Mason. All of the financial assets and accounts have been frozen until we can locate Vivienne’s son, but we will continue to make sure the utilities and taxes are paid for the building.”

“What exactly is my job?” I ask in confusion.

“You simply have to look in on the bookshop from time to time, make sure it’s kept in good order.”

“So I’m the janitor?” I say dryly.

Mr Hadley’s lips twitch again and I wonder what would happen if he smiled. Would his face actually crack?

“Mr Everett, you and I both know it isn’t the bricks and mortar that you’ll be checking in on.”

I stare at him contemplatively. Although we’ve skirted around the details of what happened on the day of the eclipse and about the portal, I’m not sure exactly how much he does know and, quite honestly, I’m too exhausted to start what I’m sure will be another long-arsed conversation. I really just want to go home and eat whatever cute little finger foods Chan’s put together, break open a bag of Doritos, and dive headfirst into that bottle of gin. However, there really is one question I need an answer to.

“Mr Hadley?” I say and he looks at me expectantly. “What happens if you don’t find Viv’s son? I mean, not to sound like a dick or anything, but I’m not going to get stuck with the bookshop permanently, am I?”

“There are contingencies in place for the Crawshanks legacy, but we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.”

That wasn’t a no.

“Now then.” Mr Hadley ploughs ahead, obviously not wanting to give me any opportunity to change my mind. “Vivienne also left something of a more personal nature for you.”

I watch as he flips to the back of the manila folder and withdraws an envelope, which he hands to me.

For Tristan…

The messy scrawl on the front is definitely Viv’s. I recognise it from all the half-filled crossword puzzles and word searches she left scattered around the flat when she was staying with us. Suddenly my throat burns and my eyes fill with tears.

“Oh, Viv,” I whisper.

“I’m sure you’ll want to read that in private,” Mr Hadley says, not unkindly. In fact, his gaze softens a fraction as he looks at me and slides the keys a small bunch of keys and a business card across the desk to me. “Those are the keys to the shop, there’s no alarm, with all the supernatural activity going on in there, it wasn’t needed.”

“Tell that to Viv,” I mutter.

“If you have any questions, feel free to contact me. Email is usually best, unless it’s an emergency.”

I clear my throat and stand. “Thank you, Mr Hadley.” I reach out politely.

“No, thank you.” He shakes my hand, then Danny’s. “I knew Vivienne for a very long time. She was always very solitary and contained. Sometimes it seemed like she carried the weight of the world on her shoulders. But I’m glad she had a friend… I’m glad she had you.”

I don’t have any words left so I simply nod and move woodenly, clutching the letter and the keys in my hand, as Danny places his hand on the small of my back and steers me towards the door.

“Are you going to open it?”Dusty asks from the back seat leaning over my shoulder.

The three of us are sitting in Danny’s car parked in the shopping centre car park as I stare down at the letter.