dispersed, giving him an unobstructed view of the fire. He could hardly control his jubilation. The expression on his face showed concern, while his heart was jumping for joy.
Lauren and Daniel watched for about an hour in utter dismay as to what was happening. They did not speak to each other, preferring to ponder the situation and how it could be connected to their actions of previous days.
Evelyn Littleton heard the news on the radio and decided to avoid the crowds she was certain would congregate outside Hampton Manor.
The next evening Channel 36 ran an in-depth follow-up piece on the fire.
“This is Meredith McKenzie, continuing the report we brought you late last night from the tragic fire that completely destroyed Hampton Manor in Old Brooking. Earlier today, the Old Brooking Police Department confirmed that nine bodies were discovered in the charred ruins of the mansion along with the remains of the two family dogs. Forensic testing will be required to determine the identities of six of the victims, however, two of the bodies, identified through dental records, were those of Adam Hampton II and his son, Adam Hampton III. A third body identified as Megan Porter, a chef’s assistant hired only last week was identified this afternoon by her mother Mrs. Mildred Porter a long time resident of Old Brooking.”
As she spoke the screen was filled with footage of the conflagration showing Hampton Manor as it was slowly reduced to a pile of charred embers. In the upper left corner was a small picture of the Manor as a reminder of its past splendor.
“Fire companies from three towns battled the fire for over five hours with only a short supply of water, due to the town’s water supply being cut off earlier in the day by a severed water main. While the cause of the fire is still undetermined, Fire Marshall Edward Nelson has declared the fire to be of suspicious origin. A witness at the scene of the fire reported hearing several loud noises which she described as sounding like an explosions. The site has not been certified safe enough for the Fire Marshall to complete his investigation. A spokesman for Hampton Industries has declined comment. One thing is for sure, the town of Old Brooking has been shaken by the loss of two of its native sons.”
Channel 36 will be following-up on this story as it unfolds. For now, this is Meredith McKenzie with
Chapter 46
A distraught Evelyn Littleton stared at the morning paper.
HAMPTON MANOR LEVELED BY MASSIVE FIRE.
She sipped her coffee as she thought about how this tragedy would impact Kane’s legal claim to the Hampton fortune. She looked at the kitchen clock.
“Wayne Jennings, please. Tell him Evelyn Littleton is calling.”
Several minutes later Jennings was on the line, “I bet I know why you’re calling.”
“Am I correct that if both Adam II and III are deceased, the way is clear for my son’s claim as the only living heir to the Hampton Estate?”
“I wish it were that simple. If Adam III died intestate the way would be clear for Kane’s claim as the sole remaining heir to Adam II’s estate, but If Adam III, left a will, Kane could only claim a half of the estate. That’s all based on the assumption that the Coroner will determine that the father, being older, succumbed to the fire first. I don’t see how he could do otherwise with a disaster of that magnitude, but stranger things have happened. This probably sounds confusing to you; all this legalese.”
Evelyn laughed, “You’re right. Do you think you could skip all the ‘party of the first part’ stuff and get to the bottom line?”
“Okay. First, we need to wait for both of the death certificates. Then we need to clear up the issue of a possible will. Lastly a judge will have to rule on the results of the DNA tests you had run. This is going to take time, Evelyn. I’ll let you know when the Coroner releases the certificates. In the interim, I’ll start a dialogue with Matthew Scheiber, Adam III’s personal attorney. The Attorney/Client privilege shouldn’t be an issue now. With no heirs and no known relatives in the picture he may agree to partner with us for Kane to take over the Hampton Estate. That is unless the Board or Legal Department at Hampton Industries has already approached him. Then all bets are off.”
Evelyn laughed again, “Thanks for simplifying it. Look, Wayne, you do what you need to do, but hold off telling anyone about Kane until tomorrow. I need time to break the news to him. I’m concerned that if too many people get involved someone might leak the information. I certainly don’t want him to hear it from anyone except me.”
“That’s not a problem. I won’t call Scheiber until you call me, but remember that in this case, time is working against us.”
“Don’t worry, I’ll speak with him today.”
The fire was also the topic of discussion at the McKnight household. Lauren and Daniel read the account of the fire several times and had tuned into Channel 36 as soon as they got up.
“I can’t help shaking my head every time I think about that fire. I mean, like what are the odds that a fire would break out and spread so fast that none of the nine people could escape. It’s too eerie. And that thing about two explosions. That fire had to have been set deliberately, but who would do such a terrible thing?”
“I’m sure that’s what they’ll find,” Lauren replied. “It was sad to see the firemen just standing there, unable to do anything. Even the few fire trucks from other towns only brought in a small supply of water. All that did was slow the fire down for a few minutes. Did you notice the outline of the bars on the windows of the West Wing? Anyone inside didn’t stand a chance.”
“That’s another thing. It’s very suspicious that the fire broke out within hours of the town’s water supply being cut off. It almost looks like a coordinated terrorist attack.
“I’m sure glad we’re leaving this town. Let’s get out of here today. When we get to Westfield we can make arrangements to have our stuff packed and moved.”
“I’m all for that. It’s weird being without water. I’m glad you have a case of bottled water in the garage. It’s one thing to be without electricity for a day or two, but water to shower with, no way.”
“By the way what are you going to do about getting your jewelry back, now that Hampton’s dead?”
“You know, Daniel, I haven’t even thought about that. On the one hand it seems petty to go after something after someone passes away, but those pieces mean a lot to me.
Walt Madding told us that the items were unrecoverable. I believe him when he says that the buyer is under no obligation to return the jewelry. What I’m not convinced of is that he won’t sell the items back if the price was right. It would have been Adam’s responsibility to recover the pieces regardless of the cost. Now I think his estate should have to deal with it. I think I should sue the estate as soon as all the legal matters are cleared up. I want that jewelry back. They should have plenty of money to meet the owners demands.”
“Well, that’s what we will do then.”
“Speaking of legal matters, what about the actions that Terwilliger & Benson were pursuing against Local 33 and Adam?”
“I don’t know what will happen there. Local 33 and SEWU could still have to pay punitive damages for their illegal acts. I’ll let Bob Terwilliger follow up on it. If he doesn’t think it’s worth the effort, then I’ll drop it. I want to
