“Because they’ve got taste, that’s why.” Brenda turned her attention to her daughter. “I’ve always said that the youth of today don’t get enough credit.”
Flick rolled her eyes. Her mother had never said anything of the sort.
“Although I suppose none of this matters now anyway,” Rob continued. “Not considering you’re selling up.”
As intriguing as his request sounded, Flick didn’t know how to respond. After all, the man did have a point.
“Not necessarily,” Brenda said.
“What do you mean?” Flick asked. Of course they were selling. “In case you’ve forgotten, we don’t have a choice.”
Brenda lowered her voice. “We’re only considering an offer. We haven’t accepted it yet, have we? And you did say that if you had the cash you’d think about staying on.”
Much to Flick’s annoyance, her protests went ignored.
Instead, her mum returned her attention to the location manager with a smile. “This video shoot of yours, how much money are we talking about?”
21
With her mother busy messing on her phone, Flick got on with making them a sandwich. Usually such a straightforward if not mundane activity, that day organising lunch gave her a warm fuzzy feeling. To think, she could be eating real French baguettes, smothered in creamy French butter, packed with genuine French cheese, every day if she wanted to. She could enjoy a rich red Merlot, or a crisp white Chablis with her midday meal for the foreseeable future. She could cook her evening dish on the giant range… And not just in any old French chateau, of course, in one that she owned.
She knew she was getting ahead of herself. She’d been doing that all morning. Unlike on previous occasions, when she’d gone from room to room burdened with the prospect of letting her father down, she seemed to float through the building.
Instead of feeling heavy, her heart sang with possibility. She allowed herself to imagine how the place would look once she’d filled it with antique whites, misty greys, country creams and rustic ochres, giving it the grandeur of an old-world chateau. Not that her renovations would be too extravagant, of course. At least not straight away. What with faulty pipework, no doubt, a new septic tank, and goodness knew what other hidden delights to consider, she knew she’d have to make any money coming in stretch. Flick let out a wistful sigh. She could have hugged herself. Not even thoughts of dodgy plumbing could spoil the day’s reverie.
“Wow!” Brenda said.
Flick turned to see her mother’s eyes widen as she scrolled through some website or other.
“At these rates you’ll be a millionaire.”
“What rates?” she asked, wondering what her mum found so interesting as to risk losing her eyeballs.
Brenda held up her phone. “It’s an agency specialising in renting out properties for film and television. They have everything from two-up two-downs to great big mansion houses. And Mr What’s-his-name wasn’t lying when he said the money’s not bad. I’m thinking we should give them a ring to add this place onto their books. They’d love it.”
“They’ve put a special call out for abandoned-looking chateaux then?”
Brenda laughed. “It won’t always look abandoned. A couple more bookings and you’ll be able to turn this place around in no time.”
It was Flick’s turn to laugh. She carried their sandwiches over to the table. “You mean today Argon Fire. TomorrowDownton Abbey?”
“Exactly!”
Taking a seat, Flick wished she could share her mum’s confidence.
“Argon Fire. Can you believe it? I keep pinching myself to make sure I’m not dreaming.”
She also wished she could share her mum’s excitement. “That we’ll soon have a group of ageing, has-been, rockers in our midst? No, not really.”
“I’m surprised, even if you’re not.”
“Mum, you’re talking to a woman who’s just inherited a chateau. A chateau she didn’t even know existed until a few weeks ago.” Flick took a bite of her sandwich. “As surprises go, I doubt anything could ever top that.”
“I still can’t believe you’ve never heard of them. They were massive in their day.” Brenda came over all nostalgic. “Just wait until Linda hears about this. We’re going to be mixing with rock star royalty.”
“Like I said, ageing has-beens. Probably drug addled too.”
“They certainly had their moments,” Brenda said. “Then again, what band from way back when didn’t?”
