Page 70 of Heather and the Highlander
“One more good year,” Halperin corrected.
“One more good year, fine. And then the MacNair lands will be well on their way to turning record profits.”
“Heartening.”
“And I can offer a token of good faith.” Niall placed the sapphire ring on the desk. “By itself, the stone is worth a few hundred pounds.”
Halperin picked up the ring, surveying it with curiosity but also with professional confidence. “A beautiful piece of jewelry. An heirloom?”
“It belonged to my mother.”
“While I appreciate the gesture, I do not hold any items hostage in my business. It is a contract that determines our obligations.” He handed the ring back to Niall, who took it with more relief than he wanted to admit.
“Then let’s discuss a contract,” Niall said. “The sooner I can take care of this, the better.”
Halperin sat back in his chair. “Unfortunately, my lord, I will not make you a loan of any amount.”
“What?”
“You heard me. I will not loan you any money, for several reasons. The first is that—as you’ve admitted—no other reputable lenders will make a loan, suggesting that you are a poor investment. They think you’ll fail to repay. Why should I think differently?”
Niall couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “Sir, I need the money.”
“That is undoubtedly true. We all need money.” Halperin spread his hands out in a gesture proclaimingthere’s nothing new under the sun. “It is the nature of the world we live in. But you are already in debt too far. You cannot take more on without offering the one thing you say you will not offer: your land. That is a noble stance, in all senses of the word. I would encourage you to hold firm on that.”
“I don’t understand. You’re a moneylender refusing to lend money?”
“In this case, yes.”
“But why?”
“Greed is an evil thing, my lord. Let me explain. In my profession, I am succeeding. I am quite comfortable, and will continue to have many clients even if I never lend you a pound. So if I were to make a loan to you now, it would be purely out of greed. A desire to have more and more, no matter how it is acquired. It is one thing to be a good businessman. It is quite another to place one’s business above all else. If I were to loan you money knowing that you are in desperate straits and unlikely to be able to repay on the terms I set, then I would be acting unethically to do it. That is why there are laws forbidding minors to sign such contracts, for instance. They lack not just the authority, but the judgment to know what they are entering into.”
Niall took a deep breath. “Very nice words. But not of much use to me.”
“No, I imagine not. Whatwouldbe of use to you is discovering why Ogilvy wants so much capital,” Halperin said, with careful emphasis. “As Lord MacNair, you may be in a position to take some action there.”
Niall inhaled. He still hadn’t quite come to terms with what his title meant. Could he do something to prevent Ogilvy from demanding all the money at once? “May I ask you a question then, sir?”
“Certainly.”
“You mentioned three other people. If you cannot give me their names, can you tell me where they are from, or what they have in common?”
Halperin smiled, reaching for pen and paper. “That is an excellent line of questioning, my lord. And though I can offer you no money, I can indeed give you some information.” He wrote a few lines on the page, blotted the ink, and folded the paper carefully. “I regret I cannot do more.”
Niall took the paper. “You don’t like Ogilvy, do you?”
“Let’s just say he does not like me,” Halperin replied with a faint, wry smile. “Good night, my lord. And good luck to you.”
So Niall returned to Carregness no richer. But at least he had names. He woke his brothers at first light to discuss the matter. Together they’d be able to ferret out what Mr. Ogilvy was up to, and how Niall might use his newfound position to alter things to his own benefit.
Ian was all for chasing down Ogilvy and simply offering him a choice between a slow and steady repayment, or a quick trip off a cliff.
“That’s not how it works, ya dolt,” Robert said. “Ogilvy has others behind him, and if we were to threaten him, there’d be all kinds of unpleasant consequences.”
Niall nodded agreement. “Aye, and anyway, I’m not aiming to evade the loan entirely. I’ll pay back the money. I just want to do it on a reasonable schedule.”
“Let’s go and speak to these others,” Rob offered. “And I can ask around to see what Ogilvy’s been into lately. Once we find out what he’s planning to spend all that money on, you’ll know what strings to pull as laird to cool him down.”
