Story Part 8

The next installment is now ready for viewing. I didn't post on Facebook last week, but I did post, so if you missed it, I would recommend reading that post before this one. Just to keep you informed of my progress, I have about 5 posts left of what I have written so far. Now that you know, I will have to write more, because I hope to have at least one more post ready before next week. (That means next week I should have another 5 posts left).

The list he gave her was long. There were so many charities in Vancouver and all of them had worthy causes. There were children charities, cancer charities, charities for homeless people, and battered women. There were charities for other diseases like AIDS and multiple sclerosis. There was no end to all the save the world charities like save the whales and save the trees. She tried to remember what Busby had told her in that she had enough money now to make some mistakes. And if her mistake was choosing a charity that wasn’t as important to her as another, that would be more than okay. There really were no wrong decisions in this case.

“What is this?” her mother asked as she came back from dropping the kids off at their house.

“Mr. Busby gave me a list of charities to look into. To help me figure out what I want to do. He also gave me some literature on the ones he thought I’d be most interested in with the promise that he could get more if another on the list strikes my fancy.”

“Which one do you think is most interesting so far?”

“Oh I don’t know, they’re all very worthy causes. And none of this has really touched my life before, so I’m not really emotionally attached to a particular cause the way some people are about say, breast cancer.” She held up the pink breast cancer foundation brochure that Busby had given her. “I was never abused, I’ve never had a disease that threatened my life, I’ve never known anyone like that either. I can see these are all really good causes and I’ve decided to make a donation to all of them over the next while, but none of them strike me emotionally. I want to find something that speaks to me, you know? Right here.” She pointed to her heart.

“You’ll find it, Syl. One day you’ll wake up and it’ll occur to you that it has been staring you in the face this whole time. You’ll wonder for a moment how you didn’t see it before and then you’ll figure out how you’re going to make it part of your life.”

Her mother went into the kitchen to see about dinner and Sylvia went back to the papers in front of her. There was something on the list or in the brochures that would strike her emotionally. And when it did, she would know what she was going to do with the rest of her life.

“We’re not getting anywhere.” She paced the bedroom in a sheer, white robe that enhanced her nudity rather than concealed it.

“Our PI is doing all he can, darling. Come lay down. Relax.”

“I can’t relax. William is in jail. He called her last night telling her to bail him out and the little tramp said no. Can you believe that? She said no. To William. If she said no to him, she’ll say no to any of us. What if I need something? Grandfather always bought me the nicest things when I asked him to. But she won’t even bail William out of jail.”

“You need to calm down, dear. You’re working yourself up and it’s not good to have a high stress level. Come here and I’ll rub the tension from your shoulders.”

She flopped down on the bed that she had recently gotten out of so that he could make her feel better, again. “I just want the money so we can get away from here. So we can be together and not have anyone look at us like we’re crazy.”

“I know, dear. I know. I want that too. We just have to be patient. Peter will come up with something. Everyone has skeletons in their closet. We’ll back her into a corner and she’ll have nowhere to run. She’ll have to give us the money we need.”

His hands gently rubbed her shoulders and she started to relax a bit.

“You’re right. Everyone has something. Except, Peter said she’d been poor most of her life. And poor people don’t make secrets the way rich people do.”

“Even if that’s true, she’s rich now, isn’t she? All we have to do is wait. She’ll do something, or has already done something and we’ll find a way to use it against her. She took everything from us, now we’ll have to take it back.”

His hands slipped down her arms and around to her breasts. He squeezed them gently in his hands, kneading the soft mounds.

“I thought you were giving me a shoulder massage.”

“You don’t want a shoulder massage. You want something else.”

“Maybe you’re right. A nice new Hermes bag would be nice. Those Louis Vuitton sunglasses I saw yesterday were to die for. A million dollars in my bank account would be a nice start.”

He pinched her nipple hard between his thumb and middle finger. She yelped and jumped but he held on. Finally, he loosened his grip and she sighed with satisfaction.

“Now what do you want?”

“I want you.”

He tore the expensive robe off of her and tossed it away.

“That’s right. And don’t forget it, either.”

Story Part 6

After a few weeks' hiatus, I'm back with more. Sorry it took so long, but with Christmas, I was constantly busy. Anyway, here is the sixth installment. Enjoy.

After lunch, they went for a walk through the stores on Granville Island. They stopped in several stores before continuing on around the sea wall toward Vanier Park. They passed the Bard on the Beach site and then passed the Planetarium. Then they started along Cypress toward 4^th where Sylvia was going to catch the bus.

“There are some very nice houses along this street,” Peter said.

“Yeah. They have small yards, but they’re beautiful houses.”

“True, but beautiful houses on large property are rare around here. And expensive. These houses are what a million apiece?”

“More. Probably around 1.5 million give or take. The ones with yards are ten million plus.”

“Exactly. And who can afford that?”

Sylvia was quiet. She didn’t mention that she could by another two of the beautiful houses with the yards if she wanted to.

When they reached 4^th, they stood together at the bus stop waiting.

“So, you don’t drive?” Peter asked.

Sylvia shrugged. “My mom can’t drive and my dad died when I was little. We didn’t have the money for lessons, so I never had anyone to teach me. Now I live in Vancouver and so does my mom, so it seems like a waste of money at the moment. Maybe I’ll get my license later, but for now, I’m fine with the bus. It’s gotten me everywhere for the past twenty-four years, it can continue to do so for a while longer.”

“You know, Sylvia, you are a very remarkable person.”

The bus came into sight and Sylvia took out her wallet to find her bus pass.

“So do I get your number this time,” Peter asked.

Sylvia smiled at him. “Nope. Not this time. Maybe next time.”

“And when will next time be?”

“How about Friday? There’s a movie out that I’d like to see. What do you say?”

“I love movies. I’m in. Where do you want to meet?”

“Fifth Avenue Cinema on Burrard and 5^th. Let’s say at 5. That’ll make sure that the movie hasn’t started and we can get something to eat first.”

“I’ll be there.”

The phone woke Sylvia at 1:32 in the morning. She stumbled out of her bed and went to the sitting area where the phone was ringing incessantly.

“Hello?”

“Sylvia? It’s Will. Will Cassidy. I’m in jail. I need you to come bail me out.”

Sylvia frowned at the telephone. “Why do you think that I would do that?”

“My father always bailed me out of jail when I got locked in here. It’s a stupid charge. I didn’t do anything wrong. Anyway, you have his estate now, so you have to come and help me.”

“I don’t have to do anything, Will. I can simply go back to bed and pretend I never got this phone call.”

There was a long pause on the other end of the telephone. “You can’t.”

“Yes I can. When you’re father left me everything, there were no caveats and addendums attached to the will. I can do whatever I want with the money. If I want to come bail you out, I can. But if I don’t want to bail you out, I don’t have to. It’s my choice.”

“What am I going to do, then?”

“How old are you, Will?”

 Another pause. “Forty Nine.”

“Mm-hm. And why were you arrested?”

“I allegedly got into a bar fight and broke someone’s nose.”

“So you’re almost fifty and you’re doing stupid things like getting into bar fights.” Sylvia sat down on a chair and closed her eyes. “Do you have any idea how childish that sounds? You say that your father would have come and bailed you out? Well, maybe he shouldn’t have. Maybe he should have let you take the consequences of your actions and you wouldn’t be where you are right now.”

“That’s ridiculous. Now come and get me. I’d like to go home.”

“I know you would. Which is exactly why you’re staying right where you are. You’re going to deal with what you got yourself into. Maybe I’ll change my mind and come tomorrow. But it is quarter to two in the morning and I’m going back to my nice, warm, comfortable bed. Good night, Will.”

“Wait! Sylvia! You can’t do –”

Sylvia pressed the end button before she could hear him tell her what she couldn’t do. She wasn’t sure if she should go to the jail the next day and bail Will Cassidy out. It was true that if his father was still alive, he would have gone and done it. And if she hadn’t been James’ beneficiary, Will may have gotten his share of the estate and been able to bail himself out. But neither of those things had happened. If James had decided to leave his estate to charities, as he said in his letter was what he had been thinking when he changed his will, Will would not have anyone to turn to in this situation. Maybe that would have been better.

Regardless of what could have been, Sylvia now had all the money that the Cassidys thought should be theirs.

Story Part 5

I know, I know, I missed last week. Christmas has me a little frazzled right now. But here is Part 5 of my story. I hope it was worth the wait.

Peter got back to his office and checked his mail. He had two bills and some junk mail. He brought everything into his office and dropped it on his desk. When he sat down, he started his dinosaur computer and then leaned back in his chair to wait for it to boot up. It was going to take a while.

After a few seconds, his door swung open and she stormed in.

“What have you found out?”

“Nothing yet. I’m still working on it. I told you I would call you when I found something.”

“It looks like you’re hard at work.”

“Well, if you hadn’t come in here asking me what information I have, I would be looking for it right now. However, you did, so now I have to talk to you and explain what I’m doing. Spending time on you that is completely unproductive.”

“Don’t be a smart ass to me. I could buy and sell you.”

“That may be true, but it is also irrelevant. You still need me to do my job and I can’t do it if you’re constantly stopping me.”

She sat down across from him. “You really haven’t found anything yet?”

He shook his head. “She’s only twenty four. What do you expect her to have done? It takes years for people to get good skeletons in their closets. And besides that, before this, she was broke. Poor people don’t get skeletons the way rich people do. You may have to wait a few years to have something blackmail worthy.”

“I don’t want to wait a few years. I didn’t want to wait a few months. That estate should have been mine.”

Peter rolled his eyes and sat forward. Self-centred bitch. “I don’t really care. All I care about is getting paid. I’m charging you for this meeting. And now, if you’d kindly leave, I’ll get back to work.”

She glared at him for a moment and then stood up. “Fine. Get back to work. But I want results and I want them within the next two weeks. Or else you’re fired.”

He watched her as she stalked from the room. When she slammed the door behind her, he sighed and turned to his computer that had now booted up. He had to find something and find it soon. If he lost this job…

He glanced at the two bills that he had brought in from the mail.

He didn’t want to think about what would happen.

He was early for lunch. Sylvia had told him not to be late, so he was standing outside the Granville Island Market at 12:45. She, however, was even earlier.

She smiled when she saw him. “Early. I’m impressed. I thought guys had no sense of time.”

He shrugged. “I set an alarm.”

She laughed. It was a great laugh and he realized that he wanted to hear more of it.

“Shall we get something to eat?” she asked.

They went into the food court and ordered food, then sat at the one available table.

“It’s always so busy in here,” Sylvia remarked. “In the summer, I prefer to eat outside on the benches.”

“You come here a lot?”

She shrugged. “I don’t think I come here a lot. But I do like it here. Granville Island is always very interesting. And beautiful. I also like to walk to Vanier Park along the pathway.”

“It’s certainly a very pretty area.”

“Do you live around here?”

“I live in a small apartment on 7^th. Not too far from here. What about you?”

“I was in lived in Langley before but I moved to Vancouver when I started at UBC. I’ve lived here for three years now.”

“So are you almost done at UBC then?”

Sylvia shook her head. “I’m part time. I can’t afford to go full time.”

“What are you taking?”

“Business studies. Well, I was. I’m taking some time off. Reevaluating my options.”

“I see. What have you come up with?”

She laughed again, but it was more self-deprecating than humourous this time. “Nothing. I have no idea what I’m going to do. I know what I said I would do, but it doesn’t seem like the right thing anymore.”

“I’m not sure I understand.”

She smiled. “It doesn’t matter. It’s just something I have to work out. I’ll figure it out.”

“If I can help in anyway, just let me know. I’ll be happy to do it.”

“Let’s talk about something else. What do you do?”

“I’m a private investigator. I mostly take pictures of cheating husbands. It’s a pretty boring job most of the time actually.”

“So why do you do it then?”

“It pays the bills. Most of the time, anyway. And occasionally, I get a really interesting case that makes everything worthwhile.”

“When was the last job like that?”

Peter leaned his head back and thought about it. “Probably would have to be the one a couple months ago. A little girl came to my office. She was maybe ten years old. She’d lost her dog and her parents couldn’t find him. They’d called up the SPCA but no one had brought the dog in. So she came to me on her way home from school. She had brought her life savings. Fifty-three dollars and twenty-nine cents. A lot of it was in pennies. She had brought her money in a zip lock bag and set it on my desk. She said, ‘Mr. Hartley? I would like to hire you to find my dog, Rudy.’

“So I said, ‘Of course. Ms?’ and she said, ‘Miss Parker.’ ‘I’m pleased to meet you, Miss Parker,’ I told her. ‘Would you have a seat and tell me about your missing dog.’ She said he’d been missing for four days and she was quite worried about him. Her mom and dad had done everything they could think of but hadn’t found him. She had asked them to go to the police, but they said that the police didn’t look for lost dogs. She had read a book about a private investigator and so looked them up online to see where the closest one was to her school. She found me and there she was.

“I said to her, ‘Miss Parker, have you ever heard the term pro bono?’ She said she hadn’t. I told her it meant that the private investigator had decided that the case was so important that he was willing to do it for free. I said I would see if I could help her find her dog and she didn’t have to pay me a single cent. I called around to the SPCA and the veterinary clinics in the area. It turned out that Rudy had been hit by a car and that the person who had done it brought him to a veterinarian and paid the bill to have him fixed up. The only problem was that Rudy had managed to get out of his collar and so they didn’t know who he belonged to. I called up the Parkers and told them my news. Little Miss Parker showed up to the animal hospital with tears in her eyes and a bone with a big blue bow wrapped around it. The Parkers said they hadn’t thought to call a veterinarian. I said that if the dog, or even cat, gets a tattoo in their ear, most people will simply bring the animal to a veterinarian instead of to the SPCA. A vet can look up the serial number in their database and call the owner. And they don’t charge you to get your pet back. My dog had been a serial escape artist, you see. Well, the Parkers got Rudy back. He’s got a broken leg, but it’s well on its way to healing now. And little Miss Parker got her best friend back.”

“And you didn’t get paid anything?”

Peter shook his head. “I remembered all the times when my dog used to run away and how scared I was that he might never come home. Dalia Parker got Rudy back. That was enough payment for me.”

NaNoWriMo Part 4

Part 4 of the NaNoWriMo story. I shoud really start calling it something else since I'm not finishing it on time for National Novel Writing Month. Anyway, this one is longer but I didn't want to cut it off in the middle of a scene.

They spent a few hours touring the art gallery. They went to every floor and saw every piece of art that currently resided at the gallery. There were a few pieces that confused Sylvia, a few pieces that she thought were interesting, and a few pieces that really spoke to her. That being said, she felt no closer to the answer to the question that had plagued her for months. What was she going to do with her life?

She left the gallery somewhat defeated.

“So, where do we go from here?” Peter asked.

They stood on the steps of the art gallery looking down at the city of tents of the protesters.

“I don’t have any idea,” she responded.

“We could go for lunch. My treat. I know this great sushi place over on Burrard.”

“I don’t think so. I should get home. I have a lot of work to do.” She started down the steps and toward Howe Street.

He caught up to her as she reached the bottom of the stairs and started toward the bus stop. “Can I see you again?”

“I don’t know. Let me think about it.”

“How will I know when you’ve made up your mind?”

She stopped and looked at him. “You’re not going to give up, are you?”

He shook his head. “We had a good time, I thought. I’d like to do it again.”

“All right. Tomorrow, meet me at the Granville Island Market. 1:30. Don’t be late.” She looked down the street. “My bus is coming.” She fished in her purse for her wallet and pulled out the yellow bus pass. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

The 44 UBC stopped and four other people got on the bus with her. They all had similar bus passes to hers. She sat down midway on the bus by a window and watched as Peter disappeared as the bus drove away from him.

She wasn’t sure what to make of him. She found that she was suddenly suspicious of everyone since James had died. She wasn’t sure who she could trust. Her name had been in The Province and The Vancouver Sun and since then people she had barely known before were suddenly her best friend.

It took thirty minutes to get back to the house on Drummond Drive in West Vancouver. Every time she took the bus downtown, she was always grateful that it went down 4^th and not 3^rd. She did not want to have to go past James Cassidy Junior’s house and be reminded of how she had gotten everything and James’ family had gotten nothing. She understood why he did it now. They were all selfish, callous people. That didn’t stop her from feeling bad that they now had nothing thanks to her.

When she got back to the house, Kelly and Victor were playing in her yard with her mother. Sylvia watched the Roberts kids bundled up in their warm rain coats and winter boots as they ran around her yard playing a game of tag. She missed being with them all the time but she didn’t miss all of the other chores that came with being a housekeeper and nanny. Mrs. Roberts had been very kind to her since everything changed. She invited Sylvia over for tea and let her take the kids to the park the way she used to whenever she wanted to. Mrs. Roberts had even befriended her mother, Katherine, when she moved into the huge house with Sylvia. She wasn’t sure how she would have made it through the last few months if it hadn’t been for the advice from Mrs. Roberts and Mr. Busby, and the support of her mother.

“Hi, everyone,” she called as she came into the yard. Kelly shrieked and ran to her, jumping into her arms almost before Sylvia was ready to catch her.

“You’re home. I thought you’d never get here. I have some important news.” At eight years old, Kelly thought that the fact that it would rain tomorrow was important news.

“What’s that?” Sylvia asked.

“I got picked to say my speech in front of the whole school. It’s about killer whales, you know.”

“That’s great, Kelly. When’s the big day?”

“Next Monday. Will you come? Mrs. Kirkpatrick said that I could invite four people. I already told Mommy and Daddy. They said they would try to come if they weren’t working. And I asked your mom. She said she would be delighted.”

“I’ll be there. Nothing could keep me away.”

“Great!” Kelly squirmed to get down now that she had what she wanted.

Victor moved next to Sylvia after his sister had gotten down and started running away toward Sylvia’s mother.

“I’ll be there, too,” he said quietly. “My speech was picked as well. It’s about how bullying can affect people even as adults.”

“I can’t wait to hear it. Why don’t you go play for a while longer before we go in for some hot chocolate.”

He smiled at her and ran off to where his sister was playing with her mother. Sylvia went inside and took off her coat and hung it on the coat rack inside the door. She went into the kitchen where she put a kettle on to boil. She got the hot chocolate mix out of the cupboard and poured some into four coffee mugs. She poured a generous amount of milk into two of the cups and then added the boiled water.

When the hot chocolate was ready she called the kids in. The kids sat at the table to drink their hot chocolates and Katherine asked how the trip to the art gallery had gone.

“Not bad. But I still don’t know what I’m going to do. I don’t think art is going to be a good direction for me. I just don’t know what I should do. I could do anything but now I have too many choices.”

“When you were little, you wanted to help people. I understand you were going for a business degree because you thought it would help you get a good job. But I knew that it wasn’t what was going to make you happy. You just need to figure out what makes you happy and then turn that into a career. You have the ability to do that now.”

Sylvia sighed and leaned against the counter, watching the kids drink their hot chocolate. “I know. But there are so many things that deserve attention. What should I focus on? James left me his estate, I want to do something good with the opportunity he gave me.”

“So you didn’t get anything from the art exhibit?”

Sylvia shook her head. “No. But I did meet someone. He seems nice and I’m seeing him again tomorrow.”

“A boy?”

“Mom, he was older than me. He had to be at least twenty seven. I don’t think he can be called a boy anymore.”

Katherine laughed. “When you get to be my age, everyone under the age of forty is a boy or a girl. So tell me about this boy you met.”

“I think he was interested in me, but I don’t know. Ever since the articles ran in the papers there have been a lot of people who seem to be interested in me but are really only interested in my money. Peter didn’t mention it at all though, so he may not have realized who I am. I hope not anyway.”

Kelly set her cup down with a thunk and pronounced, “I’m done! Can we play the Wii now?”

“What do you do with your cup when you’re finished with it?” Sylvia asked.

Kelly sighed heavily and climbed down from her chair. She took her cup from the table and put it in the sink. Then she turned to look at Sylvia expectantly.

“You can go play now. Thank you for putting your cup away.”

The little girl smiled a large, gap-toothed smile and raced off to the play room where the Wii was set up on a sixty inch flat screen television. James had decorated this room with the games and toys after he met Sylvia, Victor, and Kelly. Sylvia suspected that he had been lonely and wanted them to want to spend time there. They hadn’t needed him to buy the expensive things for them, but he didn’t know another way to act at the time. He only understood people who sold their love as a commodity.

Victor finished his drink slowly and got up to put it away. He carefully set the cup down in the sink upside down so that the last drips would drain into the sink.

“Thank you for putting your cup away, Victor.”

He smiled, too and went to play with his sister.

“You’re very good with them,” Katherine said as they followed the kids into the play room.

Sylvia shrugged. “They like to be able to do things for themselves. It gives them independence. But more than that, they like to know that someone is watching and is appreciative. The Roberts’ are good people, but they don’t seem to have enough time for their children.”

Kelly had put Just Dance 3 into the game console and was already dancing like a maniac. Victor was dancing as well. When Sylvia had met the kids, Victor wouldn’t have ever played a game like Just Dance. He would have sat and watched Kelly have all the fun. Slowly, Sylvia had got him to participate as well.

After they had danced themselves into exhaustion Sylvia looked at the time. “Okay, guys, it’s time to go home.”

“Awww! But why?” Kelly asked.

Victor had been about to go for his shoes and jacket, but Kelly’s protest stopped him.

“Because your mom is home now and she will want to see you and ask about your day.”

Kelly pouted but went for her shoes and jacket. Victor, seeing his sister’s attempt at staying defeated, went as well.

There had been a time when Sylvia first started when she had used a similar line to get the kids to see their mother and Kelly had protested by saying that her mother didn’t care how her day had gone. They went downstairs and saw Mrs. Roberts and she had listened with divided attention while the kids told her about their day. That night, Sylvia had told Mrs. Roberts what Kelly had said and immediately things began to change. Mrs. Roberts listened closely to her children now.

Sylvia put her own shoes and jacket on and walked the kids to their house. Mrs. Roberts came to the door to let them in.

“Hi guys, your dinner is just about ready, why don’t you go wash up and then you can tell me about your day?”

Both Kelly and Victor hugged their mother and went to do as she asked without complaint.

“Sylvia, you don’t have any idea how much I appreciate you still watching the kids during the day. I feel so much more comfortable knowing they’re with someone I trust. And you’ve helped them so much.”

“It’s no problem at all. Really. My mother and I love to have them. I understand why James always invited us over now. The house is far too big for just the two of us.”

“You’re not thinking of moving, are you?”

“Not right now, no, but maybe in the future. I’m still making a lot of decisions. I wanted to mention though that the kids invited me and my mother to their speech readings. We both said we’d come, but I wanted to make sure it was okay with you, as well.”

Mrs. Roberts laughed. “Of course it is. I was the one who prompted the kids to ask. They were afraid Katherine would say no.”

Sylvia smiled. “But not that I’d say no. I see they understand me well.”

“They do. Well, I should go. They’ll be at the table waiting. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Sylvia walked back to her house. On the way she looked up at the three story structure and wondered again how she had come to own something so absurdly expensive. The house was worth over fifteen million dollars. An old Victorian house sitting on a 38,000 square foot lot, it had six bedrooms and eight bathrooms. She still hadn’t figured out what to do with it. It was far too big for only her and her mother.

She knew she would have to make some decisions soon. She only had a few more weeks before she had to choose her classes for the winter semester at UBC. By that time, she hoped she will have figured it out.

NaNoWriMo Part 1

The first 3000 words are written. Two days down, 28 to go. My goal is 1500 words on weekdays and 2000 words on weekends (including Remembrance Day). Here are the first 1205 words. Keep in mind that I will not be editing anything until after the 30 days of November are up. I hope you enjoy reading my scrambled attempt at writing a novel in 30 days.

July 2011

James Cassidy died quietly in his sleep with only a picture of his late wife, Ruth, to keep him company. If he had been asked, that was how he would have preferred it anyway.

He had been the only one there when Ruth had succumbed to breast cancer. Now, ten years later, she was the only one to witness his final moments of life, if only from within a framed photograph.

The church was full on the day of the funeral. There was the usual mix of people for a funeral of a rich and powerful man. Some genuine mourners, but a lot of people there just to see that the old man was really gone.

Cassidy had been out of the real estate business for fifteen years, but he had made some lasting impressions in his time.

His two sons in the front row with their families. Not one of them shed a tear for the loss.

                                                                                                            

A week following the funeral, the family gathered, this time in the conference room of the Busby and Associates Law Firm. Mr. Evan Busby had been Cassidy’s lawyer for more years than he cared to remember. It was Cassidy money that had helped him start his own law firm. And while he didn’t do quite as well as his client, Busby did extremely well for himself.

He glanced into the conference room and took a deep breath. It was not going to be easy, what he had to do next. There were nine people seated around the large conference table. James Junior and his wife Clare sat opposite the two empty seats where he and the young lady with him would sit. Next to James was his brother William and then his wife Vanessa. She was the only one dressed in black. She had a tissue in one hand but her eyes were dry. Next sat William and Vanessa’s oldest child, Colby and then his sister Pamela. On the other side of the table Pricilla, James’ oldest child sat primly next to her mother. Her hands were folded in her lap and she stared straight ahead at nothing. Next to her sat her two brothers, Gordon and Robert. Her husband John was not present, nor was her baby daughter, Cecilia.

He opened the door and bid the young woman enter first.

She was dressed in a pale blue pencil skirt and matching jacket with a white blouse underneath. She had done her hair up in a simple pony tail. Her black framed glasses hid her blue eyes.

The first thing James Cassidy Junior thought when he saw her was prim and proper as well as vaguely familiar. She sat down in the chair Busby held for her and then he sat down beside her. Obviously, his assistant.

Busby laid a thick folder on the table and opened it. Then he patted his pockets until he realized he was already wearing his glasses. He poured himself a glass of water from the pitcher in the centre of the table and then wordlessly offered a glass to the young woman next to him. She shook her head no and so he set the pitcher back in the centre of the table. He took a sip of water. He adjusted his glasses. He straightened his tie.

“Mr. Busby,” James Jr. said. “Could we please get on with this? I have a squash game at 3.”

Busby glanced at the man who looked so much like his father. Busby had never liked his client’s oldest son.

“Of course, Mr. Cassidy. I’m sorry. I wouldn’t want to delay your game. Perhaps I should just give you the gist of what’s here so you may go.”

“That would be fine, Busby. Please just tell us what we get.”

“Nothing.”

If a pin had fallen on the table in that moment, it would have sounded like an explosion.

“Excuse me?” William asked, the younger son.

“You get nothing. All of you. Except Cecilia who has a college fund held in trust with me. If she goes on to post secondary education it is fully paid for. If she graduates from post secondary, she will receive a bonus of $100,000 to help start her future. The same is set up for any other grandchildren and great-grand children who may wish to use it. He said to consider it a Cassidy scholarship.”

“What happens to the rest of the estate?” James asked.

“Your father left it all to Sylvia Rowland.”

The woman next to Busby gasped and started so hard she nearly fell out of her chair. “What did you just say?” she asked.

“He left everything to you, Ms. Rowland,” Busby told her.

“But why? I was just his next door neighbour. When you told me he had written me into his will, I thought you meant just something small, some token or something.”

“No, Ms. Rowland. Everything. The entire Cassidy estate.” He turned to the Cassidy family sitting across from him at the table. “He and I figured you would want to contest the will.”

“You’re damn right, we do!” James erupted.

“Before you go to the trouble and expense, I can assure you that your father did this quite a while ago and we have the documentation that the doctor gave us saying that he was of sound mind and body. I made sure this will was iron clad. If you take it to court, you will be wasting your time and money.”

James stood and everyone else followed suit. “We’ll see about that.”

When the Cassidys left the room, Busby turned to Sylvia Rowland who sat beside him in shock.

“They don’t have a case against you. The estate is yours. I have some paperwork that we’ll need to go over, but you can move into the house whenever you want to.”

“The house?” She looked at Busby, confused.

“The house is part of the estate. Unless you’d rather sell it and buy another.”

“I don’t… I don’t know. He never told me. Why didn’t he tell me?”

“I can’t tell you that, but maybe he can.” He reached into the folder and pulled out an envelope with Sylvia scrawled across it in James Cassidy Sr.’s bold script. She gently took the letter and fingered the envelope.

“I loved him you know,” she said, looking at the envelope. “My father died when I was five and so James became like a father to me. And now he’s gone, too.” Tears formed quickly in her eyes and rolled down her cheeks. They dripped off her chin and onto the table but she didn’t wipe them away. She held onto the envelope, the last thing James would ever say to her, and cried.

Eventually she noticed that Mr. Busby was holding a tissue out to her so she took it and dried her face and blew her nose.

“I’m sorry,” she said.

“It’s okay. You’re not the first person to cry at the reading of a will. You won’t be the last. But I should get on with it. I really do have to read this will. Are you ready?”

She looked at the envelope in her hands and nodded.