Page 18 of My Lord
The gates swung open and we followed the drive. Veronica, in her usual attire of business suit and hair pulled tight in a ponytail on top of her head, stood at the door. Her smile was broad when she watched us come to a stop and open the car doors. Mackenzie buttoned up his suit before allowing me to walk to her first. I kissed her cheek and introduced her to Mackenzie.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Veronica. Alex has told me a lot about you and your project here,” he said.
For the first time in years I saw a change in Veronica. She didn’t seem the ballsy woman I knew. Instead of reaching out and shaking his hand firmly, as I expected, she seemed…compliantI guess is the word I’m looking for. Whether Mackenzie saw or not, I couldn’t tell, but he certainly didn’t act upon it.
“Welcome, please come in. Would you like to sit in the bar and have a cool drink, or the office with coffee?” Veronica asked eventually.
“A cool drink would be good, I think,” he answered.
I might have well been invisible, and then I realised. She liked Mackenzie,a lot. In the few minutes they had met, it seemed she had connected with him. I chuckled quietly to myself and received a scowl from her and a frown from Mackenzie. With a smirk, I raised my eyebrows at her and widened my eyes. Behind Mackenzie’s back, she scowled again.
“This way,” she said.
Veronica led us into the bar and even though I’d been there many times, it was an impressive room that took one’s breath away on each visit. The walls were half panelled in rich coloured wood, and there was red velvet covering above. A fireplace took up most of one wall and the bar, I feared, had been fashioned from the once grand bookcases. I seemed to remember, in an act of defiance one time, Von and I had scratched our names in the oak. We had been sent to do schoolwork in the library with Von’s private tutor, even though it was the summer holidays. I scanned the top to see if I could see our graffiti.
We sat on a collection of wingback chairs set around a small coffee table.
“Tell me, Veronica, exactly what goes on here and what is it you want this place to be?”
Veronica slid the folder that had been sitting on the table towards him. He ignored it, staring intently at her. I called the waiter for some cold drinks since it appeared Veronica had forgotten.
Mackenzie left the folder untouched on the table. “I’d like to hear it in your own words, if I may,” he said.
She took a deep breath and wetted her lips, she seemed nervous and there was no wonder. It’s not every day one has to promote a sex club to a potential investor.
“My mother needs to sell this house,” she told him. “I don’t want her to, obviously. It should be passed to me. I have an idea, a means for it to earn money and, potentially, so I can keep it, and that’s where I’d like your help. Before Alex mentioned you, I had you listed as someone to approach, and that wasn’t because of my father’s dealings with you, I wasn’t aware of that, but simply because I thought you were open-minded enough to listen to me, at least.”
“So explain,” he said. She did.
She first told him of her lifestyle and even I had to screw my eyes closed at a couple of points, with embarrassment. She was my cousin, and although I was more than aware of her hedonistic lifestyle, I didn’t really want to hear it. However, it appeared Mackenzie was enthralled. He leaned forwards, placing his elbows on his knees and rested his chin on his fists.
I sipped the iced spring water that had been placed on the table and tried not to listen. I thought her father would be turning in his grave. Then I had to chastise myself; Von and I weren’t that dissimilar in our preferences.
I perked up when Von started to detail her vision. Mackenzie and I both chirped in with suggestions and excitement built. Not only that, but when Mackenzie detailed some of theactivityrooms possible, we believed he was on board with the idea already.
We decided to take a walk in the gardens. I’d had the idea of lodges to let for short breaks, and Mackenzie liked the idea of a fully functioning spa. What we ended up with was an exclusive hotel complex that allowed members to use the facilities just for an evening, for a few hours, or a weekend.
Veronica was tasked with redrafting her proposal and to cost what was needed. Mackenzie would put her in touch with teams of designers and builders, Veronica would know where to purchase the necessary equipment. We also decided a very discrete CCTV system was to be installed for two reasons. We wanted to be sure of the safety of our guests and, like the case with Stanton, we all had enemies and we would benefit from learning a little about their private lives.
It wasn’t that Mackenzie was shady in the least; he was a very astute businessman who knew how to protect himself. It led me to think he had been in battle many times; perhaps he’d lost a lot also.
We had toured the building and were heading back to our car when Mackenzie stopped and turned to face the front elevation. He looked up at the turrets and the broken windows, the crumbling chimneystacks and the torn and battered flag that once displayed Veronica’s coat of arms.
“I know the system here is different than the US. Y’all willingly pay taxes your whole life, and then again when you die, and I find it sad when heritage is left to crumble as if it doesn’t matter and no one wants to pay for it anymore,” he said.
Veronica glanced up too. “I agree, although I also think we are complacent. This house isn’t that old in terms of heritage. There are far older ones. And we’re surrounded by it, so we don’t necessarily appreciate it. How many times do we walk past the Tower of London, for example, and don’t give it a second glance?” she replied.
Mackenzie nodded slowly. He turned to her. “I’m not going to propose that I simply invest, Veronica. I want to own this business. I don’t want to own your house, you keep that, but the business will rent the property from you, which should allow you to pay off any debts. You run it; I won’t interfere unless I need to. Part of my deal will be a loan for you to repair your home to its former glory.”
Both Von and I stood silent and looked at him. “Do you know what the repair of this type of building will cost?” I asked.
He shrugged his shoulders slowly. “We’ll get some experts in, but ten million. Ish?” I suspected he wasn’t that far off.
“I don’t know that I can pay that back,” Veronica said.
“You will. This business is going to be so successful, the fees high enough to ensure only the right clientele are members, and then with all the add-ons, I expect to see a profit within a year. And if you really can’t pay it back, we’ll come to some arrangement.” He stared at her intently and she wilted, again. On that occasion he was fully aware, and without acknowledging I was still standing there, he seemed to grow in stature.
We left then, climbing into the car and welcoming the air conditioning.
