Lynda Plante - The Talisman

In her hotel room, Edward waited to collect the stones. She was slightly drunk from the champagne, and seemed not to care about her body search. Edward replaced the stones in their little white bags, then into the case, after which Skye took ‘Miss Smith’ to the airport and saw her safely on her way.

The next day Skye had sold his story to every paper, with different pictures to go with the stories. The photos of the visit to the diamond merchant’s office to verify the stones were of excellent quality, and the ones at the minehead showed Miss Smith displaying the stones as the boys grouped around. There were also shots taken by flash down the newly blasted mine.

All the newspaper reports stated that Miss Smith had been prepared to sell until a young scientist from the De Veer Corporation had assured her that her old grandfather’s mine was indeed alive and kicking not more than another hundred feet down. Skye’s article also mentioned that the experiment had been verified and that Japan was fighting to get a share of what would be the biggest breakthrough in the history of mining. The news caused an uproar, and an even greater ripple passed through the laboratories of De Veer’s. When they checked the exact location of the mine, they found that Edward Stubbs had already earmarked it as being live. Again De Veer’s declined to make a statement as to the authenticity of Edward’s experiments, saying they were not prepared to disclose their findings before further examination.

With trembling hands, Richard retrieved his case and Edward gave his word that he would be paid in full by banker’s draft in any currency he desired within the month. All the stones were intact, and Richard returned to England.

BB now played his final hand at the Pretoria Club. He weaved his way in and declared that he was buying drinks for everyone in the house. The news items littered every table. ‘That lad’s a genius, he’s proved it once, now it’s my turn.’

Edward made the call to the club and BB’s voice boomed at him down the line. For a moment he thought BB was having a heart attack, then he started to laugh as the old boy gave the performance of his life.

He would have laughed even harder if he had seen BB stagger to his chair in the club, gripping his arm. ‘The bank, those bastards are foreclosing on me.’

He began to think he had overdone it, because he could actually feel a burning pain down his left arm.

They all watched as the old boy, his face flushed bright red, gritted his teeth and marched, leaning on his stick, to the car, and drove himself home. Edward was waiting, ran to him, clapping his hands. ‘My God, BB, we’re going to do it, look — the bank’s publicized their foreclosure on your loans, when that auction starts we’ll clean up.’

BB felt terrible, his chest hurt and his arm was stiff. He nodded and asked Edward to bring him a brandy.

Concerned, Edward stepped back, looked the old boy over, and hurried to the drinks cabinet. He carried the bottle back and poured a stiff measure, helped BB’s shaking hands lift the glass to his lips.

‘I’ll be fine, just fine... Now then, son, you know where everything is kept, don’t you, never know, old ticker’s playing me up.’

Edward held the old man close, gripped him tight. ‘Now listen to me, you old bastard, I do know where everything is, and in no way are you opting out of the last stage. You not got the guts for it? Backing out at the last minute?’

The old boy swiped the air with his cane. ‘Am I hell, I’ll be at the bloody auction, I’ll be there.’ He let the cane slide to the floor and held his big hand out. Edward knelt down beside him.

‘God bless the day I met you, you’ve made an old man happy.’

Edward kissed him on the top of his bristling white hair and said he would be waiting. ‘Think big and your dreams will grow, think small and you’ll fall behind.’

The next day BB drove himself to the auction of all his worldly possessions in his gleaming old Bentley. As he entered the room, a hush fell over the crowd. He pointed his stick at two bankers and told them they were vultures. He sat up at the front as the auctioneer took his place. The house went under the hammer for a ludicrously low price. From the front came the boom of BB’s voice, ‘Bastards... bastard bankers.’

Next on the agenda were the mines, to be sold as a job lot. BB waved his stick, screaming that the bankers were taking his very life.

The bidding started, and BB had to hold on to his stick with both hands. He wished Edward, his adopted son, could be there... he closed his eyes and the bidding sounded like sweet music...

‘I am bid five... and six million... and one and two, eight... I have nine... and one, ten million... twelve...’

The Van der Burge mines went under the hammer for sixteen million. Cheap at the price — if they had been as good as the reports they should have fetched twenty times that amount. BB didn’t feel he had cheated in any way. The vultures deserved it.

BB could see Edward waiting as he stepped out of the car and he beamed, held up four fingers four times... Edward slid down the wall of the house, rolled on the ground and screamed with delight. ‘We did it, we did it!’

That afternoon BB signed over all the deeds to his dead mines. He kissed the cheque lovingly, and banked it the same day. Edward placed his mines on the market and made five million each. Like his partner, he deposited the cheque the same day. They were moving as fast as possible, knowing that at any moment the ludicrous ‘gold rush’ they had instigated would be proved a con. BB had already signed the drafts of the major sums over to Edward as agreed. The rest he retained, leaving very little for himself. Overnight Edward earned himself fifteen million. The dam would burst at any time, and preparations for him to leave South Africa began to move ahead.

Skye Duval threw himself at Edward’s feet and kissed his ankles. ‘We did it! We fucking did it!’

Edward turned on him. He was so tense he was like a coiled spring. ‘I’ve got to get out. I’m the one who started this rolling, so they’ll be coming for me. I’m leaving for London on the next plane.’

Skye crawled across the floor and hauled himself up into a chair. He had been drinking steadily, and was so flushed with the success of their scheme he couldn’t stop laughing.

Edward left Skye opening a bottle of champagne and went upstairs to BB’s study. Hearing Edward coming, BB knew he had done the right thing. Edward would receive his share too if anything happened... He had made Edward his heir.

Edward went to the old man and held him tight. ‘I’ve got two tickets, one for you as well. You packed? We’ll move out this afternoon. The vultures won’t take long, BB.’

BB’s eyes went moist, and his voice was gruff with the effort of trying not to show how deeply touched he was. ‘No, lad, you go and make more, much more. Put all you have to good use, make yourself powerful and untouchable. I did it once and, by Christ, with your help I almost did it again. But Edward, son, I’ve no more mountains to climb, I’m satisfied now and I’m in debt to you.’ He stuck his will in Edward’s top pocket, and Edward opened it. He gripped the old man’s knees. ‘You can’t do this, BB, what about Richard?’

‘He’ll hate me, but that won’t be anything new. He deserves no more than he gets. Now, lad, bugger off. Any day the news’ll break what you got yourself up to. You’ll not only have them after you, but the police as well. Go on, go on, and don’t look back. Just walk out, and remember, Eddie, think big and all your dreams will grow, think small and you will fall behind. Think that you will...’

Edward walked out and didn’t look back, he couldn’t. Skye was waiting for him outside the room. He was staggering drunk and flung his arm around Edward’s shoulder. ‘Let’s you an’ me go on a long jaunt together, eh? Take the place apart, just you an’ me, brother.’