“With the help of a nanny, a cook, a maid, and a cleaner,” whispered Bob, which his counsel duly noted.
“Even during the school holidays, my lady, it was rare for Mr. Bingham to spend more than a week with his wife and child, always wanting to get back to his factory in Grimsby. We are therefore proposing,” continued learned counsel, “that Mrs. Bingham should retain the family home in which she has lived for the past twenty-six years, along with the house in London, and the villa near Cap Ferrat in the South of France, where she and her son always spent the long summer vacation together. Mrs. Bingham would also ask the court for the sum of three million pounds in order that she can maintain the three houses and continue to live in a style to which she has grown accustomed. I should point out, my lady, that this is far less than fifty percent of Mr. Bingham’s considerable fortune.” Mrs. Everitt sat down.
“And is Mr. Bingham agreeable to these terms, Mr. Brooke?”
Robert’s attorney rose slowly to his feet, tugged the lapels of his gown, and said, “Indeed, my lady. Mr. Bingham will retain the family company, Bingham’s Fish Paste, which was founded by his grandfather over a hundred years ago. He makes no other demands.”
“So be it,” said the judge, “but before final settlement is agreed, I always like both parties to confirm they are satisfied with the division, so there can be no recriminations at some later date, or any suggestion that they didn’t fully understand what had been proposed. Mr. Bingham—” Robert’s counsel nudged him and Bob jumped up. “Are you satisfied with this division of your goods and chattels?”
“I am, my lady.”
“Thank you, Mr. Bingham.” Turning her attention to the other side of the courtroom, the judge asked Mrs. Bingham the same question.
Priscilla rose to her feet, smiled up at the judge, and said, “I am satisfied. Indeed, I am happy for my ex-husband to select whichever of the two packages he would prefer.”
“How very magnanimous of you,” declared the judge, as consternation appeared on the faces of both counsel, who had been quite unprepared for this unrehearsed intervention. Although it would surely make no difference to the outcome, counsel never likes to be taken by surprise.
“Then I will put the question to Mr. Bingham once again,” said the judge. “But as it deserves careful consideration, I will allow Mr. Bingham to consider his position overnight. Court is adjourned until ten a.m. tomorrow.”
Bob was quickly on his feet. “That’s most kind of you, my lady, but I have already made up—”
Bob’s counsel pulled him back down, because Mrs. Justice Havers had already left the court.
If that was the first surprise of the day for Bob, the second was to see Sebastian Clifton sitting quietly at the back of the courtroom taking notes. He was even more surprised when Seb asked if he was free to join him for dinner.
“Well, I had planned to go back to Lincolnshire tonight, but now that I have to make a short reappearance in court tomorrow morning, I’d be delighted to take up your offer.”
They both watched as Priscilla left the courtroom on Virginia’s arm. She was sobbing quietly.
“I could kill that woman,” said Bob, “and happily serve a life sentence.”
“I don’t think that will be necessary,” said Seb. “I think I’ve come up with a far better solution for dealing with Lady Virginia.”
At ten o’clock the following morning, everyone was back in their places when Mrs. Justice Havers entered the courtroom. Once she had settled herself, she looked down at the counsels’ bench and said, “Only one matter remains to be resolved, and that is which of the two packages Mr. Bingham has settled on.”
Bob rose from his place. “I would like to thank you, my lady, for giving me the opportunity to reflect on my decision overnight, because I have decided to choose the three properties along with the three million pounds. I’d like to thank my wife for her most magnanimous gesture, and to wish her every success with running the company.”
Uproar broke out in court. Apart from Bob Bingham, only two other people didn’t look surprised: the judge and Sebastian Clifton.
16
“What possessed you to do something quite so stupid?” said Virginia.
“I just wanted Robert to know how fair I considered the settlement was.”
“Well, that backfired spectacularly.”
“But I never thought for a moment he’d let go of his beloved company.”
“And I’m not convinced he has,” said Virginia. “Those two are up to something.”
“Those two?”
“Yes, I should have realized that Sebastian Clifton would have an ulterior motive for being in court. He may have taken me by surprise this time, but he won’t get away with it again.”
“But he’s only a child.”
“A child who is fast gaining a reputation in the City as a whiz kid. And never forget, he’s the son of Emma and Harry Clifton, so he’s not to be trusted.”
“But what’s in it for him?”
“I haven’t worked that out yet, but you can be sure he’s after something. However, we can still stop them both in their tracks if we move quickly.”
“But what can I do, now I’m penniless and homeless?”
“Pull yourself together, Priscilla. You own a company worth fifteen million pounds that only last year declared a profit of over a million.”
“But for how much longer, now Robert’s no longer around to manage it?”
“You needn’t worry about that. I know exactly the right person to take his place. He has considerable experience of management, has served as the director of a public company, and, more important, he’s available at short notice.”
Sebastian, Bob, and Clive Bingham met in Seb’s office later that morning to discuss what needed to be done next.
“The first part of our plan went smoothly enough,” said Seb. “But it won’t be long before Virginia works out what we’re up to. So we’re going to have to move quickly, very quickly, if we’re to get all the pieces off the chessboard in time.”
“Then I’ll have to drive up to Grimsby this afternoon,” said Bob.
“It can’t be too soon,” said Seb, “because you need to be back in London by tomorrow evening at the latest. I want everyone at Bingham’s, from the management to the factory workers, and all of its customers up and down the country, to think the only reason you’re visiting the factory is to say good-bye to the staff and wish them luck under the new management. Just before you leave, Clive will issue the press statement he’s been working on.”
Clive opened his briefcase and took out two sheets of foolscap paper.
“The statement needs to be short, unequivocal, and to the point,” he said, passing a copy to his father and Seb. “I won’t release it until I know Dad’s on his way back to London, when I’ll send a copy to the Grimsby Evening Telegraph. It’s sure to make the front page. After that, I’ll release it to every business correspondent in Fleet Street.”
Bob read through the statement slowly, and was impressed by what his son had come up with. However, he realized that a lot more needed to be done if the public, and not least Lady Virginia, were to believe he meant what he said.
“And once I’m back in London, what do I do then?”