She unlocked her car and sat down, dropping all the suppliers’ invoices on the passenger seat before hooking her finger under the seal and ripping the envelope open. Her eyes scanned the contents of the letter once quickly; then again as she read more slowly, the words sinking in with mind-numbing dread.
The lawyers had been instructed by the owners of the converted villa which housed Carson’s that the property had been listed for sale.
She bashed the palm of her hand against her steering wheel in frustration.
“Damn, damn, damn!” she shouted, garnering some strange looks from passersby.
What if a new owner wanted to use the building for something else? They weren’t bound by the lease she had with the current owner, an elderly widow. She scanned the letter again for any indication of who might have listed the property, but there was nothing. She’d have to call the lawyers and ask them. She had to find out how much her landlord wanted for the building. Maybe, just maybe, on the coattails of her current success and with the money she’d managed to save, she’d be able to raise a loan to buy the building herself?
The next day, despite not having been able to get ahold of the lawyer dealing with her landlord’s affairs, Blair walked as confidently as she could manage into her bank manager’s office. She laid out her position and showed him the financial statements for the business, supplemented by her past month’s receipts. After much discussion and juggling of numbers, the bank manager leaned back in his chair and steepled his fingers together. Blair’s stomach clenched in a knot of nerves.
“Well, Ms. Carson, I think we’ll be able to help you out.”
He named a figure that made Blair’s heart swell with hope, even as her brain shrank back in horror at the requirements to meet such a loan. She couldn’t even begin to think how she’d meet the repayments if she had to slow down her workload later in her pregnancy, or how she’d cope after the baby was born.
“Now, I suggest you put an offer together to your landlord’s lawyer based on what we’ve discussed today.” He stood up and offered his hand across the table. “Good luck. I look forward to hearing from you so we can get the paperwork drawn up.”
“Thank you so much. You have no idea how much this means to me.”
“Oh, you’d be surprised. Now you go and make that offer and call me when you hear back, okay?”
“Yes. Yes I will.”
Blair almost ran back to her car, barely able to suppress her excitement. The trip back to her apartment passed in a blur. She raced up her back stairs and flung open the door, scrabbling for her phone on the side table before the door was even fully closed behind her.
She drummed her fingers on the tabletop as she was put on hold, the piped music setting her teeth on edge. She was almost on the verge of hanging up to call back and leave a message when the phone was answered at the other end.
Blair wasted no time in getting to the point.
“It’s Blair Carson here, I received a letter from you regarding the possible sale of the building I lease from Mrs. Whitcomb. I’d like to put in an offer based on pre-arranged finance.”
Blair named the sum she and the bank manager had agreed she could afford. He’d suggested she offer lower and then come back with another figure if the vendor counter-offered, but Blair just wanted the place so much she went in with her highest bid. She curled the cord of the phone around and around in her fingers as she waited for the lawyer on the other side to respond.
“I’m sorry, Ms. Carson. But Mrs. Whitcomb has already accepted an unconditional offer.”
“I beg your pardon? But I only got your letter yesterday.”
“Yes, the letter was a formality required under your tenancy agreement, however at the time of writing it, the property had already been sold.”
“But—”
“As I said, Ms. Carson, I’m terribly sorry. Mrs. Whitcomb was more than happy with the offer and has signed the transfer papers.”
“Who…who bought the property?” Tears spiked in Blair’s eyes—hot, burning tears of anger and frustration.
“I am not at liberty to disclose the identity of the purchaser at this time.”
“And their plans for the building? Have they said anything about that yet?”
“Not yet, Ms. Carson, but might I suggest, as a precaution of course, that you consider where you might relocate to, should the necessity arise.”
Blair hung up the phone without saying good-bye and sank to her knees. The tears were coming thick and fast now. Relocate? How the heck would she do that? Suitable property in Ponsonby was in very high demand, and with her patronage now at an all-time high, to shift to another suburb could spell total ruin for Carson’s.