Page 23 of Love Bomb

“Okay, I’ll bite. If everybody forgot about the trust old Mack set up to care for the folly, what happened to the money?”

“From the looks of it, successive generations of trust administrators kept investing it, and storing the returns in the trust. It doesn’t look like the family paid much attention to the account over the years and it was left alone to grow.”

“Because the Dalgliesh family had more money than they needed anyway,” Bain mused.

“That’s what I think,” Kade said.

“So, how much is in the folly fund now?”

Kade’s eyes widened. “About twenty-seven million pounds.”

Bain choked on nothing. Kade left the room and came back with a glass of water for him. He took it with thanks. Once he’d settled down, he stared at his brother in disbelief.

“Twenty-seven million?” he asked.

“Thereabouts, I’m going on estimates in the public domain.”

Bain flopped back into the sofa. His mind racing. “And the person who owns the folly gets the money?”

“Not quite,” Kade said. “Again, I’m going on public information here, not the details of the trust. They’re private. But I think the owner can dip into the fund for anything folly related, such as care and upkeep, or advertising, or anything they think is justified. They also get a yearly stipend for doing the job.”

“What happens if the folly is destroyed?” Bain had to ask, even though he didn’t like where his mind was going.

“Then the owner gets all of the money, no strings attached.” Kade sat back in his seat and spread his hands wide. “Rona can’t touch the twenty-seven million while the folly is intact. Which means, that big brick monstrosity is all that stands between her and a fortune.”

Bain didn’t buy it. “There’s no way Rona wants to destroy the folly for the money.”

Kade held out his hands in supplication. “I’m only telling you what I found.”

“No.” Bain got to his feet to pace the faded rug in front of the TV. “She wouldn’t. You remember what she was like as a kid. She never gave a crap about her family’s money.”

“People change.” Kade looked regretful.

“Not Rona. You heard her when she told us that her grandfather’s fortune was gone. Did she look upset? Or annoyed that she hadn’t inherited anything? No. Because she doesn’t care about the money.”

“Well, I can’t see her family arguing over the prestige of owning a folly nobody knows or cares about. They’ve got to be fighting over the money that goes with it, and Rona wants to get there first. You have to admit, it would be a better revenge for her to take the money than hold the folly hostage.”

Bain was shaking his head. He didn’t believe a word of it. He knew Rona. She was a pain in his arse for sure, but at her core she was honorable. And she hated the family money.

“I’m sorry, bro,” he said. “This all falls down because it’s Rona. I can totally see her money-grubbing parents blowing up the folly to get the cash. But not Rona.”

Not his Rona.

“She’s been gone a long time,” Kade said softly. “She isn’t the kid you once knew. Trust me, I don’t like thinking this anymore than you like hearing it, but we have to face facts. She’s hiding the bit about the trust, and that can only mean one thing—she wants the money. And she knew you wouldn’t help her bring down the folly if she was only doing it for the cash.”

Bain was shaking his head, although Kade’s words were having more of an effect on him than he’d have liked. She’d been holding things back from him, and that wasn’t something she’d have done when she was a kid. Back then, she told him everything. To the point where it’d been hard to get her to shut up.

He let out a heavy breath. “I’ll talk to her in the morning and get the truth. It won’t make any difference anyway. Nothing she can say will make me blow the folly for her.”

“Not even for a cut of twenty-seven million pounds?” Kade asked.

Bain glared at him. “Never for the money. Never.”

“That’s the brother I know.” Kade stood and clasped Bain’s shoulder. “Don’t be hard on her when you talk. After all, she’s still Rona. It’s not her fault she’s been tempted by the money. It would take a helluva strong person to walk away from twenty-seven million.”

“You’re probably right,” Bain said wearily. “I’m going to bed. We’ll deal with this in the morning.”

“Try to get some sleep,” Kade called after him as he headed for the stairs up to his room.