“No, I—I don’t have a problem.”
“Don’t worry. She’ll be fine living on-site if that’s what you’re worried about. Trust me. We’ve both stayed in a lot worse places than this to get a job done.”
Wait, thought Leonard.She?
“In case you ever need her skills, by the way, Toni Frankston—Toni with an ‘i’—is the best builder and electrician in and around Norwich. And I’ve worked with a few. More importantly, I know she needs the work. Her partner, Jack, is a damned good landscape gardener, but we don’t need one of those. You’ve already got that covered.”
“I have,” said Leonard, smiling down at his plate, at his stupidity. “And will Toni with an ‘i’ be able to give me a quote on what needs doing? Sometime next week?”
“Of course. Or do you want to meet her first?”
“No. Absolutely not. I trust you completely.” Something hit Leonard hard then, in that he genuinely did trust Adrian. If only he had someone like Adrian on his preferred list of freelance builders back in London, someone who could source other experts in other fields when needed. Maybe that could be another conversation. “Which reminds me. I got a set of keys cut for you. To the house. They’re upstairs in my jacket pocket.”
“Perfect. So let’s get these breakfast things cleaned up then get to work.”
* * * *
After they had finished, they both donned their goggles, gloves and mask and hauled the fallen piece of furniture upright. Each took one side, and Leonard struggled at first, but with Adrian’s strength soon had the curio back on its feet in an open space in the living room. While Adrian went to fetch a broom to sweep the floor and a damp cloth for Leonard to wipe down the unit down, Leonard made a quick inspection.
What he discovered was a beautiful Welsh dresser, much grander than others he had professionally dealt with before, this one made of heavy oak. When he examined the floorboards in the newly opened alcove he noticed one of them had collapsed over time, probably from damp, which must have been what caused the dresser to lean forwards and buckle the wall panelling.
Adrian set about sweeping the rubble away and shifting the mattress they had wisely left in place. Leonard tackled the new item with care and something bordering excitement.
From the top down, the dresser had three shelves to house plates and other chinaware, three deep drawers arranged horizontally at waist height, probably for easy-to-reach cutlery and tableware, and finally two solid-looking cupboards below. Leonard tried them but found all drawers and doors to be locked. Each drawer had identical ornate bronze plates with old-fashioned keyholes, and two matching bronze handles, all age-darkened but beautifully crafted. Even the woodwork, with the gentle curves and curls running in parallel either side of the shelves, to the floral designs carved into the cupboard doors, spoke of skilled craftsmanship. In all his time in the antique business, Leonard had rarely seen such incredible workmanship.
“This is stunning, Ade. And despite being buried in the wall, it’s still in excellent condition. At an auction, this would sell for a small fortune.
“Are you going to flog it, then?”
“Absolutely not,” Leonard answered immediately. “The dresser belongs here, and this is where it stays.”
“So I guess the question is, why would somebody stuff something as valuable as this into a wall space?”
Leonard had been so engrossed in assessing the dresser he hadn’t considered Adrian’s very reasonable question. He stood back and studied the piece before answering.
“From what I understand my aunt and uncle were strapped for cash. And I know this sounds a bit mean, but I wonder if they sold off the rest of the furniture. Got someone to give them cash to take a job lot—everything except the beds and the appliances in the kitchen. If I’d been Luke, I’d have wanted to keep this classic piece safe, and one way to guarantee that would have been to redecorate the place and effectively hide this beauty away from greedy eyes. Honestly, Ade, even back then this would have brought in a tidy sum of money. And remember what Pippa said, that Luke was eventually going to inherit this house?”
“Makes sense. If so, Luke was a smart guy. I wonder if there’s anything of value in the drawers and cupboards? Want me to force them open?”
Leonard felt torn and stood for a moment, staring and thinking. He felt the same tug of inquisitiveness but also wanted to keep the dresser intact. Maybe this called for a little patience.
“Let’s not risk damaging the woodwork. I’ve got a set of skeleton keys back in London for this very purpose. I’ll bring them with me next time and we can investigate then. For now, can we set this against a wall somewhere and put a dust cover over?”
“How about the other bay. I’ve already stripped the walls and checked the plasterwork. Just need to make sure the floorboards are sound.”
Thankfully, the floorboards to the other bay were undamaged, and the dresser fit the space perfectly. Adrian brought a spare sheet from his truck and covered the whole thing. Satisfied with their efforts, they began the job of removing wallpaper from the rest of the room.
During a late lunch of sandwiches and soft drinks, Leonard’s phone rang. Although he didn’t recognise the number he told Adrian he would take the call. Adrian suggested they take a break so he could use the opportunity to head outside and call Toni.
“Leonard Day speaking,” said Leonard, perching against the window ledge.
“Hello, Leonard.” He immediately recognised the soft female voice with the Welsh accent. “It’s Pippa here.”
Pippa from Redfern Landscaping. He had been expecting her call, to find when she would start work on the house.
“Look, you mentioned meeting up at the pub, and I wondered if you were doing anything tonight? Completely by chance last night, I bumped into Freya Williams in the car park outside the superstore in Llandrindod Wells. Told her about you renovating the house. Anyway, I said you might like a chat with her, seeing as how she knew Luke and all. So I arranged for us all to meet up in the Manor tonight, early like. Freya’s not a night owl, see? She likes to be in bed by nine. So how does six-thirty sound?”
Leonard checked his watch. Two-thirty.
