Free The Eden Effect by David Finchley Page B

of the Internet ordered a house full of modern furniture and appliances, all top of the range. He ordered desks, chairs and computers for what would be the office. He offered a hefty premium and all the items had arrived and were installed in ten days, the day after Ron the handyman, had completed his task of restoring the interior of the house.
    A week later the three of them had arrived. Robert, Adam the junior and Robert’s P.A, Megan, who was the most stunning redhead Arthur had ever seen. They drove up in three cars, one in each. Robert in a Series 7 BMW, Adam in a Lexus RX 350, and Megan in a red Lexus 250 convertible. She must be on a good wage, thought Arthur, when he saw the car. Arthur showed them through the house and was relieved that they were pleased with it, especially Robert. Arthur let them to settle in and arranged to return later in the afternoon for a briefing followed by dinner.
    Arthur returned to the dairy to bring Martin up to date and confirm the arrangement for later that afternoon. Martin would be accompanying Arthur, albeit reluctantly. He had left this phase of the project entirely to Arthur. Martin was not comfortable with high finance, but he knew he had to make an appearance. After all, it was his project and his money. For all they had spent so far, it’s hardly made a dent in the total sum, which was earning interest at Citibank at a faster rate than they could spend it.
    With all that was going on, Martin and Arthur continued their morning deliveries. Any appointments related to the project were scheduled in afternoon, although Arthur had to take the occasional morning off as he had done that day and Martin had to manage on his own. The good folk of Eden continued to receive their milk and assorted dairy products just as they had always done.
    At 4pm they went back to the house. Arthur did the introductions and could not fail to notice Martin’s eyes widening a little when he saw Megan. The five of them sat down at the boardroom table, which had been set up in a sitting room of the house, now the office. Martin felt that he had to say something.
    â€˜I really appreciate you coming here to help out. I know it could not have been easy leaving your home and families. I don’t know how much Arthur has told you. I’ve come into a large inheritance. More money than I need or could spend in several lifetimes. I want to do something with the money that will actually matter. You may know that I’m the town’s milkman. I don’t have the education or the expertise to run a project like this. This is where Arthur comes in. I’ve given him a free hand. Arthur and the three of you will run things. Arthur knows exactly what I want to achieve and with your help, I hope it can be done.’
    No one spoke for a minute or two. Martin was sure that Robert and the two others were dying to ask just how large the inheritance was, but were too polite to do so.
    It was Arthur’s turn to speak. ‘The project has two phases. The first is acquisition phase. Martin and I have prepared a list of the assets to be purchased. This is where you come in, Robert. It will not be a simple task. As far as we know, none of the assets are actually for sale. This is where your negotiating skills will come into play. And be aware, that we are prepared to pay whatever it takes. I know it’s a cliché, but in this matter, money is literally no object.’
    Arthur stood across the table, three folders, one for each them.
    â€˜It’s all in there. Every property, the names and contact details of the owners, and an approximate value of each. The valuations I’m not at all confident about. They are my approximations based on incomplete data, but it is the best we have got.’
    Arthur saw Robert leafing through the folder without comment. The other two had left their folders closed in front of them.
    â€˜What is our time frame, Arthur?’ Robert asked.
    â€˜The