The morning of the will reading Marie dressed in her very
best clothes and some new heels she had managed to squeeze out of the family
budget, Mandy had seen the last one’s off after a heavy night out so she was
very careful where she wore them. Arriving at the downtown office she was made
to wait in a small side room while the solicitors grabbed all the paperwork,
she was then led through to a large office where the solicitor Anthony Simpkiss
was waiting for her, he was sat behind a huge desk in the middle of an old
Victorian style room with law books catalogued and shelved like a local Town
library, he stood up and shook her hand across the desk and immediately began
to open up a folder in front of him.
“Right Mrs Davies I see you are the sole beneficiary to the
last will and testament of Mrs Felicity Margaret Summers, this being the case
could you supply me with the paperwork my office asked you to bring along with
you, just to check you are who you say you are of course”
Marie handed all the paperwork across the desk including
passport and birth certificate,
“That’s fine, all in order, now I gather that you are
currently residing in the deceased’s property at 57 Malin Rd is that correct?”
“Yes that’s correct” Marie said feeling more like a school
girl in the Headmasters office than she ought to have done.
“Right the will is quite short in it’s requirements
obviously cremation and her ashes scattered on the heath land where she loved
to walk, I presume that has been carried out to satisfaction?”
Marie just nodded and quietly said “yes”
“Right well the property at 57 Malin Road is actually
subject to a garnishee order I am afraid Mrs Davies, it basically means that it
is being seized on behalf of H M Treasury in lieu of unpaid taxes, so I am
afraid it will be put up for auction as soon as time permits, this will
probably be within the next 21 days”
“B-but it’s Mother’s house, was Mothers house, she lived in
it for 40 years!” Marie exclaimed,
“That is in fact the case Mrs Davies but your mother had
also guaranteed a tax debt on the property and there is a substantial amount of
money left to pay on that debt, in fact Mrs Summers was in possession of the
Garnishee order before her untimely death, she had been served the papers 10
days before, so I am afraid there is little one can do, the house will go to
auction within the next three weeks and that is the fact of the matter”
“How much does she owe the tax man?!” Marie said in a
quivering voice,
“well she doesn’t actually owe the tax man her previous errr
boyfriend did, he has failed to keep payment up on an agreement with HMRC and I
am afraid your mother guaranteed the agreement with her property, the amount is
around £175,000 as it stands, plus accumulative interest of course, I am afraid
it’s a substantial amount and once our fees have been taken into account and
that of the tax office you may even be a little out of pocket I am afraid Mrs
Davies, not the sort of news I suppose you wanted to hear?”
Marie sat stunned in the chair, she could hear Mr Simpkiss
but she wasn’t listening, her mother had guaranteed a debt on her property for
her previous boyfriend who was a complete layabout, Marie had never liked him
and she was overjoyed when Felicity had given him his marching orders over
twelve months previous, but it all made sense why she had done so, Marie
couldn’t help wondering if all the stress of this had brought on her Mothers
early untimely demise, she was harbouring all this and never said a word, Marie
was stunned, speechless.
“Would you like a cup of tea perhaps” Mr Simpkiss asked,
“You do look a little pale, perhaps if I called my secretary
she could give you some time in the side office to gather your thoughts, if I
can just get you to sign these documents before you do so we can finish up with
the formalities”
Marie stood up, she grabbed the gold embossed pen out of the
solicitor’s hand, she signed in three different places and placed the pen back
on to the desk in front of him,
“Thank you” she said and with that she turned and walked
out,
“Oh err we will be in touch!” he shouted as she left,
“I am sure you bloody will” Marie muttered under
her breath as the secretary led her to the outside door....
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