Page 98 of Snow Falls Over Starry Cove
But if I was expecting him to want to shake on it, I’d have been left disappointed. Not that I’d want to be in any way associated with someone like him. And yet, if Grandma found him contemptible, then that meant there was more to him than the mere nuisance. There was something else going on, I can feel it in my bones.
‘And in any case, I like hard times,’ he says. ‘It’s the only way to live!’
‘Well, then you are in for a treat,’ she replies, eyeing me. ‘My lawyers will rip you apart. By the time they are done with you, you will be living in the shack on Tempest Island at the fishermen’s mercy. You already have no friends. We will drive you out of Starry Cove. You don’t belong here. Your presence was a mistake from the start!’
‘Grandmother, please calm down,’ I say for her sake as her face begins to turn red. ‘Remember what happened last time you got so upset…’
‘Yes, Grootmother,’ Jago snorts. ‘Remember? You almost kicked the fish pail last time. And many more times before that.’ He looks at me. ‘She used to fake illnesses all the time when she and Nano disagreed on something, which was practically always. The poor sod didn’t have the heart to see her like that, so she’d always win. It must have run in the family. But it doesn’t work like that anymore, Mary. Nano’s gone.’
My grandmother stands up, panting, furious, but perfectly in control.
‘Get out. You will be hearing from my lawyers promptly.’
‘Well, it’s about time someone pulled their finger out,’ he says, then turns to me. ‘I’ll see you at work tomorrow. Bring an accountant. You never know, I could be fixing the books to supplement my luxurious lifestyle.’
I stare at him as he turns to her with a huge grin.
‘I’ve been kicked out of here enough times to know my way, so don’t bother. Ladies…’
And with that, he tips his imaginary hat to us, turns and marches off.
‘Lout,’ Grandma sentences as she picks up her tea and takes a sip with shaky fingers. ‘Do you see what I meant about him, Emily?’
‘Grandmother… leave it. Don’t call a lawyer. Jago and I will hash it out between ourselves.’
‘And leave you to the mercy of that wastrel? He is smarter than you think, Emily and he will eat you for breakfast. You mark my words. There will be nothing left of you when he is done.’
