《The Manifest》Chapter 50
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It was a bright and very warm day when Edgar arrived to the office of the barristers. He had never been to London before but when the lawyer had said it something to do with Norsberg's estate, it was something worth making the flight over the Atlantic to look into for himself. Edgar wasn't really surprised by how long it took the barrister to contact him. With estates that large, it can take a while to go through all the paper work and get everything organized. It had been over five weeks since the old fart passed away in his sleep, but Edgar was sure the fight for his money was only about to begin. In their group, Jerome took the loss the hardest. It wasn't because he was close to the old fart because they had never really formally met. Jerome was convinced that Norsberg was knocked off by the people who wanted to cut off their funds to continue the search for the missing passengers.
Despite his theories about the passing of the old fart, he was there with Edgar to find out in person what business the PI had with the estate. Any tourist sites that he happened to take in during this visit along with any portions of fish & chips consumed were clearly an added benefit. They spent two nights in the city before their booked appointment, making sure that this wasn't any kind of entrapment. Working with Jerome and his encounters with Mr. Carlson made him a tad paranoid with his work, and he always checked to make sure things were tip top before making any kind of move. While it's a bit vain to think that he would be outlaw #1 in the eyes of the program, Edgar wasn't willing to take any chances, at least for the time being. They arrived to the building about twenty minutes before their scheduled time, and slowed strolled into the lobby. It was an elegant building, very old in its architecture but classy and very upstanding. As they walked in, they approached the desk and the lovely young lady that was behind it.
"Good afternoon gentlemen," she said with a warm smile, "How can I help you today?"
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"I'm Edgar Willis. I have an appointment to meet with Mr. Shivers."
"One moment please." she jumped on the phone and after speaking with someone for a few moments, she turned back to them both, "Have a seat. Someone will come to get you shortly."
"Thank you." Jerome said as they both took a seat in the very comfortable leather couches.
They sat there and wait for close to ten minutes, until finally someone came down the stairs from the second floor and greeted them with a smile, "Thank you for waiting Mr. Willis. I'm Forest Shivers, the barrister handling Sir Norsberg's estate. I apologize for the wait, please come with me."
Edgar and Jerome followed the man up the stairs to his well polished office and took a seat in front of the barrister's desk. Once they were comfortable, Edgar asked the first question, "Did Norsberg leave anything from the estate for me?"
"From what we can tell, no." the lawyer admitted quickly, "But in his last revised will, he asked that this be given to you." He reached out and offered Edgar a single envelope. It was a thin, standard eight by eleven inch envelope, and looked too thin to contain the funds he was hoping to get to continue the search he wanted to start.
Edgar took the envelope, and realized that it was still sealed. It was likely never opened since Norsberg himself sealed it before passing it on to this lawyer. He opened the envelope and took a quick glance at the contents. He looked back at the barrister, "Is this all?"
"Yes. Is there anything else I can do for you?" he quickly asked.
"No, we've taken up enough of your time. Thank you." Edgar said as he stood up and shook the man's hand before making a quick exit.
Jerome quickly shuffled out behind him, but before he could say a word Edgar held up his hand which pretty much asked him to remain quiet.
"Not here," Edgar said, "Follow me."
They quickly exited the building and Jerome followed the PI a few blocks until the reached a small park they had passed while riding in the cab. Edgar strolled through the park until he found an empty bench and took a seat. Jerome quickly sat beside him and had that 'what the fuck is going on' look in his face. Edgar took a deep breath.
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"Do you remember that manifest that Norsberg gave us when I took this case." He asked.
"Yeah, I have it right here." Jerome took the facsimile from his coat pocket. It was folded up, but was still in relatively good shape.
Edgar never took the copy from him, but instead reached into the envelope and pulled out another that looked just like it, "Check this one out."
Jerome was careful when he took the piece of paper and quickly compared it to the one he had with him
"This is the original." Jerome informed him, "I can't believe Norsberg left this for you. Do you think he did this aware that he might pass away or be taken out before this was all done?"
"I think he wanted to make sure everything was taken care of just in case. He was picky about that kind of thing." Edgar concurred, "This way even after his passing, he would be able to control what happened to make sure what he wanted to see happen come to fruition, which would explain this." Edgar reached into the envelope again and pulled out another piece of paper, a single blank sheet with a hand written letter. Jerome took the letter from Edgar and read it to himself:
Dearest Edgar:
I'm not one to panic, but after what happened to poor Tuck I wanted an insurance policy. In the event something happens to myself during the course of our adventure, I wanted a backup of sorts in place. If you are reading this dear boy, I have passed on and will not be able to enjoy the fruits of our labors. All that I ask is for you do this old man one last favor and finish the task I set forth. Please find her and bring her home to her mother and family.
Sincerely,
Nigel
PS: 98829-31409-19512
Jerome took a moment to read the letter again, and then looked back at Edgar, "Do you know what this number is?"
"It's an account number." Edgar replied, "I recognize it because it's a bank that Norsberg and I used often to exchange funds back when Tuck and I were on better terms with the rich old fart. Chances are the old bugger opened this account in my name and made a substantial deposit into it. This makes sense because it would give us instant access to money instead of having to fight his decedents in court for every penny in court. That also means we're going on another field trip."
"So we're leaving London already?" Jerome whined as he was just starting to like hanging around the Brits.
"Well, we could stay if you have a problem veggin' in the Grand Caymans for the next week or so." Edgar said with a smirk, "I for one could use a little sun."
Jerome gave the original manifest back to Edgar, "So do you think there's enough in that account to finish the task that's been given to us?"
"If there's one thing Norsberg is good at, it's making sure you have enough to work with." Edgar said as he safely stowed away the manifest. He took one quick look at it as he slid it back into the envelope. There were a lot of names to work with.
It was a tall task Norsberg has set for him, especially since his daughter was likely already moved as a precaution. Edger would at least give it his best effort not only for Norsberg, but for Tuck, the boys and himself. He wouldn't be able to take a dime of the money waiting for him in the Caymans if he didn't at least make an effort to fulfill the old man's last wish. The two of them left the park and took a taxi back to the hotel to pack up and check out. It was time to move on and start a new adventure.
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