Dear Beneficiary Read Online Free PDF Page A

as a colourful display against an otherwise bleak background of mundanity. It was an oasis from which I could drink pure pleasure in an otherwise dry and dusty life, one I only realised was dull in hindsight.
    So when the email from Nigeria came through, I couldn’t believe he’d been thinking of me all that time. I read it again and knew this was a message that had something to do with my former lover – and that he wanted assistance in obtaining a large sum of money, some of which would be made available to me.
    He’d previously explained that his family had needed his help and that the authorities were difficult to deal with. He also told me Nigeria was full of legal and administrative corruption. We’d discussed the poverty of his country and the greedy destruction of its leaders on many occasions, so this is what it was all about. Bringing the matter to my attention means he will be able to get the funds for his family’s medical treatment and I will also benefit by getting a commission for helping him out. A perfect solution.
    Of course I will help him , I thought. If it is just a matter of using my bank account to liberate what is his, then I will offer him what I can.
    It was only natural to start thinking of the financial rewards. I’d be able to help the family. Maybe pay off the children’s mortgages and help send the grandchildren to university. Colin’s legacy wasn’t enough for that by any stretch, so this could be a real godsend. Better than winning the lottery, although the thought of seeing Darius again would be reward enough.
    I fished around in my desk drawer to find my cheque book and entered the details of my account carefully into a blank email message, to ensure no mistakes. I wrote a quick reply, taking care not to make any assumptions.
    My Dear Darius,
    It is so lovely to hear from you. I did often wonder why you never contacted me after our last meeting but I understand this is because you had many pressing matters to attend to, about which I’m very sorry to hear. Please find within this message my bank details. You are free to use these at your will to sort out your problems and I look forward to seeing you. Hearing from you has reminded me how much I miss our talks and your company.
    I signed off and pressed the ‘send’ button, albeit with some difficulty as that mouse thing still had a mind of its own, and clapped my hands to my chest with glee. I spent the next few hours planning, on paper, what I could do with my share of the funds.
    I’d worked out that three million dollars was around two million pounds; a significant amount even for someone who had already benefitted quite considerably from their husband’s sensible insurance planning.
    Of course I’d help out the family, but that would still leave a significant sum to enhance what life I have left to me, which considering how I fare against others my age should be a reasonable one.
    â€˜An adventure,’ I said to myself, while imagining how the bridge club folk would react to my good fortune.
    â€˜Yes, I’m going to have a bloody good adventure,’ I muttered, before going back to my notebook and pen to continue to hypothetically divide my share of these unexpected funds between duty and my now expanding future.

CHAPTER FIVE
    I was trying to pull on a pair of tights when I heard the phone ringing. I’d been to the local baths for my regular forty lengths morning swim and was still damp from the shower. However hard I tried to put them on they would twist and turn to the point where I looked like I’d been in a bad accident as a child.
    My descent down the stairs to the hall was reminiscent of a Norman Wisdom film and it was only the banisters that saved me from crashing to the floor. I do sometimes think it could take weeks to be found if I ever ended up incapacitated for any reason. Maybe that’s why so many old women only wear trousers.
    Breathless,