Choose Forever

By Gary Forfar

Caroline was shocked when she was in the bank manager's office and in real trouble when she left. She would rely on people she would come to care for.
Mark was far from home trying to make sense of what had happened in his life.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Gary Forfar
• Release date: Mar 11, 2018
• ISBN: 9781370938186

Gary Forfar

Born in South Africa in 1971.

Book preview

Choose Forever

Distributed by Gary Forfar at Smashwords

Copyright 2018 Gary Forfar

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to your favorite ebook retailer and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

Table of Contect

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Choose Forever

What do you mean there is no money in my accounts? There should be a set amount paid in from the Trust every month, plus the money I am making. How can there be nothing left? demanded the brunette who was standing in front of the enquiries desk, where a young man was trying to assist her. He looked as though he was about to turn and run for his life Show me my accounts. said the brunette as she leaned over the counter.

Turning the screen so that she would be able to see, the young man stated As you can see Miss, all the accounts have a zero balance.

That can’t be possible! I have not spent any money for two weeks and when I did there was at least five thousand Rand in there, plus there should be another ten thousand from the Trust and my salary from two days ago of six thousand Rand. complained the brunette. I only came in to find out why the bank returned my landlords payment.

The young man pressed a button, looked at the screen and pointed saying You will notice that when the payment request was received there were no funds to meet the request so we had to dishonour the request.

But that’s not possible, where did the money go? asked the brunette sounding very confused.

Well Miss, all the money was transferred out yesterday. stated the young man.

Where was it transferred to and by whom? she asked.

It does not say who asked for the transfer but I can tell you that the transfers were international transfers. replied the young man.

I don’t know anybody overseas or even have a passport if I wanted to go overseas, so why would I transfer money overseas? she asked. I need you to find out who asked for these transfers to be made. she was starting to look worried and upset.

Let me call my manager and see if she can assist you. he said as he turned and walked through the staff door behind him.

The brunette leaned against the desk closing her eyes and looked as though she was going to faint while she waited for the clerk to return with the manager.

Hello Miss, my clerk tells me that you are having some trouble with your accounts. stated the manager as she got to the desk and stood next to the brunette.

Opening her eyes and straightening, the brunette looked at the manager and responded Yes, he told me that I have no money in any of my accounts, even my savings account that I have not touched in two years, except for the monthly deposits. I need to know who authorised the transfer of all my money. My landlord is about to throw Danny and I out onto the street as the bank made an error last month with my rent payment and has now returned the double payment I made this month.

I see. I think we should go to my office and see what we can find out. The manager motioned with her arm for the brunette to follow her. The brunette followed the manager to a door on the other side of the Banking Hall and stepped inside the office.

Please take a seat Miss. I am Shirley. Let’s see if we can get to the bottom of this. What is your ID number please? She asked, tapping at her computer.

9005130002086 and I am Caroline Flintwood. stated the brunette looking across the desk at Shirley who was typing the number Caroline had just given her into the computer.

I see you have a cheque account, savings account and credit card. Are these the only accounts you have? asked Shirley as she looked from her screen to Caroline.

Yes those are the only accounts I have. My father told me that if I can’t afford to buy something then I should save up the money until I can afford to buy it. I have the credit card for emergencies and never use it unless I really have to. replied Caroline.

Well, the money from your credit card was transferred to your cheque account along with the money in your savings account and then all of it was transferred to an overseas bank, which I know from the transaction swift code on the withdrawal transaction. stated Shirley.

I never authorised anybody to do that let alone asked for that to be done! complained Caroline. Please can you find out who authorised the transaction?

Let me call my International Transfer Clerk and see if he can let us know who requested this transfer. Shirley said as she lifted the phone to her ear and dialled. Hello John, could you please come to my office. Thank You. she said into the phone and then looked at Caroline and said He is on his way.

I hope he can tell us something about this transfer as I have no idea who would be accessing my account and why they would be sending the money overseas. stated Caroline.

I am sure we will get to the bottom of this. replied Shirley as a knocking sound came from the door. Come in.

The door opened and a blond haired man walk through and said Mrs Ball, what may I assist you with? as he went to stand by the desk.

John, you handled an international transfer from Caroline’s account yesterday and we wanted to know if you could remember anything about the transfer. said Shirley as she pointed to the transaction on her screen.

John looked at the screen and thought for a moment and then looked at Shirley and said Yes I remember this. It was a transfer I made along with ten others for Mallory Investments. They make transfers on a monthly basis for the off shore investments they have. All the paperwork was in order as it is every month. I remember this one because it was more than normal.

Caroline sat forward and said I made no request to have my money invested overseas or anywhere else, as it is the money I need to live on. The Trust Account that my father set up for me was managed by Mallory Investments. I know that some of that money was held by this bank in an Investment account while the rest was placed in Market accounts for better returns.

What is your father’s name Caroline? asked Shirley starting to look a little concerned.

My father was Brian Flintwood. replied Caroline

Let’s see if we can find anything on the system. stated Shirley as she typed on her keyboard. There is an investment account in that name but no other accounts. Does your father hold his accounts at another bank Caroline? asked Shirley

No Shirley. My father and mother passed away two years ago. My dad opened the Investment account on my 16th birthday and because it was part of a Trust it had to remain in his name, according to Mr Mallory. replied Caroline mournfully.

I don’t know why Mr Mallory would say that, because this account should have been closed and the money transferred into a Trust account in your name. Looking at this account there have been monthly transfers made out of this account. responded Shirley.

Yes that sounds right as I receive a payment of ten thousand Rand every month from the Trust account. said Caroline

Ok but the amount transferred from this account has been seventy thousand Rand a month except for the last transfer in the amount of fifty five thousand Rand which brought the balance to fifteen Rand and twelve cents. said Shirley.

Why was that amount transferred if I only receive ten thousand Rand? asked Caroline

We will have to ask Mr Mallory as he is the one who is doing the transfers. said Shirley as she again typed on her keyboard. His number is here as one of the contact numbers for this account. I will ring him and ask. She picked up the phone and dialled the number and waited for the phone to be answered. As she waited a frown appeared on her face and she place the receiver back in its cradle. The recorded message states that the number has been disconnected. John do you have a number for Mallory Investments? asked Shirley turning to look at him.

I do have a contact number on the forms that he brought in yesterday for the international transfers. I will go and fetch my copies. he replied as he turned to leave.

You mean that he himself brought the transfer requests in? asked Shirley with a shocked expression on her face.

John turned and replied He has brought the transfers in for the last three months and said that his assistant, Jane who used to bring them, had gotten married and moved to Durban with her husband and he had not yet found a replacement. I will be right back. And he turned and left the office.

Shirley turned to Caroline and asked Would you like a cup of tea or coffee Caroline?

No thank you but could I possibly get a glass of water?

Certainly. Shirley stood up and left the office.

Caroline was left by herself in the office and she could now start processing what had happened over the last thirty minutes from the time she entered the bank. ‘What am I going to do? I can’t pay the rent. I can’t pay Danny’s school fees. I can’t shop for food. I can’t put petrol in the car. I can’t pay for anything.’ she thought to herself as she sat there.

Here you go Caroline. said Shirley as she re-entered the office with the glass of water and was followed by John with a folder in his hand. Ok. John let’s have a look at that paperwork. said Shirley as she passed the glass to Caroline, sat down and took the folder from John. Shirley flipped through the pages in the folder and sat back in her chair when she was finished and said Well the number on the paperwork is the same as the one on the account. All the documentation is there that needs to be there for the authorisation for the transactions. It appears as though Mr Mallory had signing powers on the Investment account as well as all your accounts Caroline.

Yes. When my father died, Mr Mallory helped me open my accounts and said that it would make it easier for him to manage the Trust account. I had just turned 18 when my father died so I had no idea what I was doing. Luckily, I was able to go to college and look after my brother, who was one when my parents died, because of the money we received from the Trust. The house was sold to pay taxes and outstanding debts my father had and we moved to a small garden cottage near my college. All this was done by Mr Mallory who was a friend of my fathers. Caroline stated.

Mrs Ball while I was fetching the papers I mentioned Mr Mallory to Paul and he said that yesterday afternoon Mr Mallory came in and got some foreign exchange for the business trip he was going on. The only reason Paul remembered it when I mentioned Mr Mallory was because Mr Mallory paid cash and only wanted US dollars in cash. Paul found this strange because in the past, Mr Mallory has always put this through the company account. stated John.

Let me take a look at Mallory Investment’s Account and see if there are any other contact details. said Shirley turning to her computer and typing on the keyboard and waiting for the data to appear on the screen. Well no wonder he did not put the transaction through the account, he has no money in the account, in fact he is at the limit of his overdraft.

He had not gone into the overdraft when I made the transfers yesterday because we transferred the money from his investment accounts to the cheque account to cover the transfers. We do this every month although we don’t usually empty the investment accounts. If I ever needed to use the overdraft I needed your authorisation for the transaction Mrs Ball. stated John

Yes, I can see that from the transfers and I see that one of the investment accounts has the fifty five thousand rand transfer from your Investment account in it, with a standing order for the ten thousand rand paid to your cheque account and the balance was transferred to Mallory Investment’s cheque account. said Shirley who looked across the desk at Caroline. The transaction that used the overdraft was put though by a travel agent.

What does all this mean? asked a confused Caroline.

I think that we should maybe be contacting the police Caroline, because I think that Mr Mallory has been stealing your money for a long time and that he has left the country with all the money that he has been transferring out every month. said Shirley to a very concerned looking Caroline.

Will you be able to get my money back that was transferred yesterday? asked Caroline.

I am afraid all we can do is request for the overseas bank to hold the money for us until we can resolve this. stated Shirley as she turned to look and John John please contact the International Transfer Department at Head Office and ask them to start the process.

Will do. said John as he left the office.

How long will it be before you know if I am going to get my money back? asked Caroline as she placed the glass of water that she had been holding on the table.

It all depends on how quickly we can prove that the money was transferred under false pretences. replied Shirley We need to get our Fraud Department working on this. Let me contact them now. She dialled a number into the phone keypad and hit the speaker button.

The phone started to ring which Caroline did not hear nor did she hear any of the conversation because she had closed her eyes and had started to pray. ‘Lord God please be with me and give me the strength to cope with all this. I know that there are always reasons for everything that happens in my life and that You are there to teach me how to live according to Your Word and to keep my faith through all these times. Please help me Lord. Amen.’ She opened her eyes and watched as Shirley wrote information down onto the pad in front of her.

… we will start investigating this immediately. said the voice from the other side of the speaker.

Thank you, please let me know as soon as you find something. replied Shirley as she clicked the disconnect button and looked up at Caroline. They are going to look into this and will get as much information as quickly as possible. stated Shirley.

What am I supposed to do? Will the money be back today so that I can pay my rent? asked Caroline.

Shirley replied I don’t think we will be at that point for at least a couple of days.

If I don’t go home with the money for the rent, my landlord says I must be out by the end of today and I don’t have anywhere to go. Said Caroline as her lower lip started to tremble. The last time she had felt this helpless was the day she was told that her parents had been killed in a car accident and she had vowed, that day, never to feel so helpless again. So she had kept to herself and had not made any friends at college or since leaving college, except Martha at work, who was due to retire. She had no-one to turn to, not even family as Danny was the only family she had left.

Caroline how much is the rent amount that you need to pay? asked Shirley.

Fifteen thousand rand, which is for the two months plus this months. replied Caroline.

Oh dear, responded Shirley shaking her head I might have been able to extend a line of credit for four to five thousand Rand.

That would be wonderful, but I don’t think my landlord would accept that. He wants all the money today. I overheard his wife telling my neighbour that he wants to give my cottage to his brother who is coming to live.

Shirley stood and walked around her desk and sat on the chair next to Caroline and asked Is there anyone else that you can ask to help you out?

Caroline looked down at her hands, folded in her lap and said No there is only me and my brother, no one else that I can ask to help me with this.

Do you think your employer would advance you the money? asked Shirley.

I don’t know. I have only been there three months and I have only dealt with the Office Manager. But even if I can get the rent money together I still need money to pay for food, electricity and water not to mention Danny’s nursery school fees. explained Caroline.

Well I think you need to go and talk to your Supervisor and see if you can organize an advance or loan, as I unfortunately cannot authorise more than a few thousand without a full application and credit check, which will take about 48 hours to be authorized. said Shirley as she stood up and took Caroline’s hand and encouraged her to stand.

I will try. whispered Caroline as she stood and moved towards the door. When she got to the door she turned and said Thank-you for your help and advice Shirley.

I am sorry I could not do more, but I will contact you as soon as I know anything in regards to the missing money. replied Shirley.

Caroline turned and walked out of the office and the bank feeling very alone. She walked to the parking lot, found her VW, unlocked it, got in, closed the door and just sat there staring out the window.

Chapter 1

You need to pull yourself together and get things sorted before you have to pick up Danny Caroline thought as she inserted the key into the ignition and looked at her watch and saw that it was ten to two. Shoot. I need to let the crèche know that I am going to be late she muttered as she grabbed her bag and looked for her phone. Dialling the number she put the phone to her ear.

Hello Little Roo’s Playgroup. said a voice from the phone speaker.

Hello this is Caroline Flintwood. I need to arrange to pick up Danny later than usual please. said Caroline.

Miss Flintwood I will make a note and we will see you later on. stated the young lady on the other side of the phone.

Thank-you. said Caroline as she ended the call. Driving to work, all she could think about was what she was going to do if she could not get the rent money together. Driving into her work parking lot and parking in her spot in front of the office, she recalled the first day she drove into this parking lot three months ago, for the interview for the Office Assistant position - she had been to fifteen interviews over four months since leaving college ……..

Three months ago…………

It was ten to three when she parked in front of the Reception door of the office attached to the warehouse. Ten minutes to go before I have to try and sell myself again to someone I don’t know. thought Caroline aloud as she looked at herself in the mirror to check that she looked ok.

She searched through her bag and found her lip balm, applied some to her lips, dropped it back into her bag, climbed out of the car and walked towards the reception door. Just as she reached the top of the stairs the door swung open and she was bumped out of the way as a man came bursting from within.

Sorry! said the man as he rushed down the stairs.

If it was not for the railing on the side of the steps leading up to the door she would have ended up falling down the stairs.

Before she could regain her balance and recover from the shock of being bashed aside, the man had climbed into his car and was reversing out of the parking.

She just stood there and watched as the car sped from the parking lot. She composed herself and opened the door, walked into the reception area and approached the reception desk.

Good afternoon. How may I help you? asked the lady sitting behind the desk.

Hello. Yes I am Caroline Flintwood and I have an interview with Mr Williamson at three o’clock. replied Caroline.

Ummmmmm, please take a seat. I will be right back. said the receptionist as she stood up and walked through the doors leading into the offices.

Well that does not sound like a positive start. thought Caroline as she took a seat. A few minutes passed and the receptionist had still not returned, so Caroline picked up one of the brochures for the company that was sitting on the little table next to her. It had a picture on the front and a list of what the company had to offer on the back. She was reading the list of products when the receptionist returned.

Miss Flintwood, Miss Gardener will be with you shortly. said the receptionist as she walked back into the reception area and asked Could I get you anything to drink while you wait?

No thank-you Martha replied Caroline, noticing the name plate on the desk. The receptionist smiled at her, took her seat at her desk and resumed typing. Caroline looked at her and thought that she gave the impression that she would be a wonderful grand-mother. Caroline sat patiently and waited to be called in to see Miss Gardener wondering why she was seeing Miss Gardener and not Mr Williamson. She noticed that Martha kept looking up at the door to the offices. She does not look happy, thought Caroline wondering what the problem was, maybe it has something to do with the man who almost knocked her down the stairs?

Sorry for the wait. said Martha looking at Caroline. I’m sure Miss Gardener will be with you shortly. Are you sure I can’t get you something to drink?

That’s ok I am fine waiting, the Lord has taught me how to be patient. replied Caroline smiling.

He is a good teacher of patience. I have also had to learn patience in the past but every now and then He has had to give me a refresher. replied Martha smiling at Caroline.

Yes He is a good teacher, but sometimes I am not a very good student. I don’t get what he is trying to teach me stated Caroline and then asked So do you attend church Martha?

Martha responded Yes I attend the small church that meets in the local scout hall. Where do you go to church? asked Martha

Caroline looked down at the floor and replied I used to go but I have not gone to church in one and a half years. The colour drained from her face.

Martha stood, walked over and sat next to Caroline taking her hand and asked Are you alright, Caroline? You have gone quite pale.

Caroline fought back the tears that threatened to come, looked at Martha and smiled saying I am fine, just a bad memory.

That must be one bad memory to make you so pale and to stop you from going to church. murmered Martha as she gave Caroline’s hand a squeeze.

Bzzzzzzzzzzzz. buzzed the intercom on the desk followed by a sharp Please show Miss Flintwood through.

Are you ok, do you need some time before you go in? asked Martha as she stood.

No I am ok replied Caroline standing.

Ok then, please follow me said Martha, who turned, walked down the passage to the offices and stopped at the third door. She guided Caroline into a large office.

Miss Flintwood, please have a seat. You may go Martha. said the lady sitting behind the desk. I have looked over your application Miss Flintwood and I see that you have not worked since leaving college. Did you need to take a break after your year of college doing office management? asked Miss Gardener flatly.

No Miss Gardener I did not need a break, I have been trying to find employment since I left college, but due to my lack of work experience and because I can only work until two o’clock every day, I have been unable to find employment. replied Caroline as she sat down.

Is a full day’s work too much for you to cope with? asked Miss Gardener harshly.

No, I have to pick up Danny from crèche at half past two every day. So I have only been able to apply for half-day positions. replied Caroline as politely as possible without showing any of the irritation she felt.

Oh, I see said Miss Gardener looking at Caroline. Well then from your application and what I can see I think you will do. You can start work on Monday at eight thirty until one o’clock. You should not be required to work any later than that. You can sign the contract when you come to work on Monday.

Thank-you very much Miss Gardener said a delighted Caroline.

You may go. barked Miss Gardener.

Caroline stood and walked out of the office and down the passage feeling wonderful