by Madyson Grey
“It’s good to see you Victoria,” Mr. Hall said, giving her a one-armed hug. “I just wish it were under happier circumstances.”
Dennis Hall had been the Thornton attorney for thirty-five years. David Thornton’s great-grandfather had built the Thornton Building back in the Twenties, and it had passed down through three generations until it came to David. Dennis Hall’s grandfather had been the first attorney to take an office in the building, and had served as David’s father and grandfather’s attorney. Then the mantle passed to Dennis’s father, and then to Dennis, who had served David’s father, and then David.
In a city of constant change, these generations of men had served each other for nearly eighty-five years. The continuity bordered on a phenomenon. Now, the fifth generation of Thorntons sat before Dennis Hall seeking legal counsel.
“What can I do for you today, Victoria?” Mr. Hall asked kindly.
“Well, I have a long list,” she replied. “But to begin with, have you heard what happened to my mother yesterday?”
“Oh, yes,” he said. “I was in the building while she was here. I didn’t know who was down there until it was all over with, though. But, Victoria, you know she has her own attorney. You’ll have to contact him to represent your mother in this unfortunate situation.”
“Yes, I know, and I need to do that. But that’s not my question. My question has to do with Daddy’s will. Now that it looks like Mother will be put away for a very long time, possibly even life, how does the disposition of her inheritance of Daddy’s assets work? Can they all go to me? Or are they frozen until her sentence is passed? What happens next? I’m thinking especially of the house and Daddy’s car. Those two items were left to us jointly. I had just decided that I would buy out her half of Daddy’s car. But do I need to now?”
“This certainly does complicate things a bit. But why do you think she might be away for life?”
“I have found some very incriminating evidence that makes me think that Mother killed Daddy, rather than him committing suicide.”
“Seriously?” Mr. Hall said, coming to full attention.
“Yes. In fact a police lieutenant and detective were at the house this morning going over my evidence, and checking his office over again. They took items from the house that will give them DNA samples of all four of us—me, Daddy, Mother, and Lena, the housekeeper. If they decide to try Mother for murder, I am sure she will be put away for life. Whether it’s in a state hospital or a prison, I have no idea. But even if she isn’t, the penalty for hostage-taking can go up to life. I looked it up.”
“Yes, that’s true. What evidence do you have that your mother may have murdered your dad?”
Victoria then told Mr. Hall the whole story about the list of men, the so-called suicide note being torn from the same page that the names of the men were on; the cash withdrawals; her mother’s rage at her dad having sold the business to Rafael, and her determination to take it back, the empty pill bottle, the ring on the desk, and so on and on. It took her the better part of thirty minutes just to go over it all. But as many times as she had told it by now, she was getting it down pat.
He listened intently, occasionally jotting something down on the legal pad on his desk. He asked questions now and then to clarify one point or another, but mostly he listened. When she was finally finished, he leaned forward over the desk and assured her that he would do everything he could to figure out how to straighten out all that he could, and make things as easy on her as possible.
“For now, you can just continue to live in the house, if you wish, drive your dad’s car, and use the money that he left specifically to you. Some of your mother’s money will likely have to go to her attorney to pay his fees to represent her in court. As for her half of the house and the car, I’ll have to study that one out. I don’t believe I’ve ever had a case like this before,” he said.
“I can subpoena the bank records and find out where that money went to, that’s no problem,” he told her.
“Good, because they wouldn’t tell me anything,” Victoria said. “Although the lieutenant said he could probably find out, too, and he’d tell me. But you get them, too, please. You may get more than the lieutenant can.”
“It will take me a couple of days to get the subpoena and get over to the bank, but as soon as I get the information, I’ll call you and either you can come here, or I’ll bring them to your house, whichever you prefer,” he said.
Dennis Hall knew good and well where that money had gone, but he wasn’t sure it was the time to tell Victoria. He wasn’t David Thornton’s attorney for nothing.
“Great. Let me give you my phone number,” Victoria said. “Oh, yeah, the other thing I wanted to talk about is the business. You drew up the contract for Daddy to sell it to Rafael Rivera, right?”
“Right.”
“Do you know why Daddy decided to sell? For the life of me, I can’t come to terms with that. I talked to him nearly every single day since I moved to Seattle, and he never once talked about selling, or being in debt, or anything else that Mother has said about him. It just doesn’t make sense to me. This building has been in his family since 1924. Why would he sell it? He was proud of his heritage here, and he loved every inch of this building.”
“I know he did, Victoria, but he did have a very good reason for letting it go. Have you met Rafael Rivera?”
“Oh, yes, I’ve met him.”
“Oh, of course, you mentioned that earlier when you said your mother wanted you to go out with him. Sorry. What do you think of him so far?”
Victoria hesitated. Should she admit to falling in love with a man she’s known all of five days, and who has been accused of stealing her father’s business and causing him to commit suicide? She decided that, given the circumstances, she would.
“I have been seeing him every day since Daddy’s funeral. In fact, that’s where I met him. I can see nothing but honesty, kindness, and a deep affection for my father in him. I am also very attracted to him, and feel like I’m falling in love with him. I know, it’s crazy. I’ve only just met him about five days ago. Mother accuses him of stealing Daddy’s business and driving him to suicide. But I am just telling you where I’m at with him right now. He seems to have mutual feelings for me, unless he’s a great con artist.”
Mr. Hall leaned back in his chair and thought for a moment. He wondered if this was the proper time to tell her what he knew about the transaction. And about Rafael Rivera.
“What do you know about Rafael’s work history here in the Thornton Building?” he asked.
“Well, just what he told me, about starting out as a messenger boy and working his way up to being my dad’s assistant. Not much more than that.”
“Those are the high points,” Mr. Hall said, “but there’s a little more to it than that. After Rafael’s father died, David took a real interest in his boys, both Rafael and his brother Mateo. He tried his best to befriend them, but Mateo especially fostered a hatred in his heart for David. Mateo tried to influence Rafael to hate David also, but Rafael was younger, and didn’t fully understand the whole situation like Mateo did.
“David gave Mrs. Rivera her husband’s former job of janitor here in the building. He secretly took food boxes to their house, because he knew they didn’t have much. When Rafael got old enough, he gave him the job here of messenger boy. I know he paid him a lot more than any other messenger boy has ever seen.
“He also helped the boy with his personal life. Rafael was a bit of a—how shall I put it?—misfit. I’m sure some of it had to do with his early childhood and his father’s death, but he became overweight and lacked self-confidence. Mateo tended to be lazy, but he portrayed himself to little Rafael as the big brother who needed to order Rafael around. Consequently, Rafael was, to put it bluntly, a fat, pimply-faced, mouse when he came to work for David”
Victoria’s mouth fell open. “You mean that shy, fat kid was Rafael? Wow! What a change! I remember that kid, but I sure never
pegged Rafael for him.”
“The change took time, but it was dramatic. Your dad really worked with him. He set up a workout room in the basement of this building just for Rafael. He taught him how to exercise to turn his fat into lean muscle. He coached him on social skills. He mentored the boy in business procedures, and groomed him to be his assistant for several years before Rafael actually became his assistant.
“From the time Rafael became David’s assistant, which was just about the time you left for college, he talked to Rafael about you. He also worried when Rafael started dating girls around here. He really wanted Rafael to marry you. But Rafael was having too much fun playing the field to take you or David seriously. And you left town, which threw his plan for a loop.
“David was not deeply in debt. Where your mother got that idea, I don’t know. But suffice it to say that David’s business was quite solvent. The reason he transferred it to Rafael, was because he was planning to divorce Marian and didn’t want to have to give half of the company to her. He planned to give her a more than adequate settlement, but he didn’t want her fingers in his business. You know, he never did allow her name to be anywhere on the corporation papers. In fact, I have a paper here that I drew up that is not part of the sale documents because he didn’t want Marian to know about it at all. I think maybe it is time that you see it, though.”
Mr. Hall got up, went over to a polished wood filing cabinet, opened a drawer, and pulled out a thin folder. He crossed the floor and handed it to Victoria. She opened it up and began to read.
Transfer of Real Property and Assets.
“I, David Edward Thornton, being of sound mind and without duress, do hereby place the Thornton Building and Thornton Enterprise and all their associated assets in the temporary custody of Rafael José Rivera, until such time as I am fully divorced from my wife, Marian Lee Smith Thornton. At that time, full ownership of the Thornton Building and Thornton Enterprise will revert back to me. In case of my untimely demise before such time as the said assets are returned to me, they will transfer to my sole heir, Victoria Marie Thornton.
“I, David E. Thornton, will still maintain advisory control of said assets under this provision. Rafael Rivera will in no way and under no circumstances be able to sell, trade, give away, or otherwise dispose of said assets as long as they are under his name.
“If and when such transfer should occur, I do so state that my heir, Victoria Thornton, shall keep Rafael Rivera on as chief executive officer until such time as he proves unworthy of the position. If my fondest wish becomes reality, and Rafael Rivera and my daughter Victoria Thornton are wed, the said assets will become theirs jointly to have and to hold.
Signed: David E. Thornton
Date: March 21, 2016
There were more signatures: Rafael’s, the lawyer’s, and it had been notarized. Victoria was stunned. Her dad didn’t sell the company, he just loaned it to Rafael for a while. But wait; there were more papers.
The other set of papers was a divorce petition, all filled out and signed. It was dated June 19, 2016. That was the day before David Thornton was found dead of a gunshot wound to the right temple.
Victoria laid the folder down on her lap and looked at Mr. Hall.
“Was my mother served with these divorce papers?” she asked.
“Yes,” Mr. Hall answered.
“When?”
“On the same date as the papers are dated,” he said.
“One more reason to point the finger at her for killing my dad,” she said sadly.
“Possibly. Although it’s circumstantial.”
“Yeah, I know. But adding it to all the other incriminating evidence just makes the case more solid, does it not?”
“It could,” Mr. Hall conceded.
“Is there anything else I should know?” Victoria asked wearily.
She wondered how many more surprises lay in store for her. She didn’t know how many more she could handle. Even winning the lottery would just about overwhelm her. To say nothing of the kinds of things she had been being hit with all week.
Dennis Hall pondered her question for a moment before answering.
“No, not that I know of now,” he said carefully. “Go home and try to not worry about all this stuff. I know it must be totally overwhelming to you. But it won’t do you any good to stew about it. Things like this have a way of working themselves out given time. The police will do their job to investigate David’s death. I’ll do my job to execute David’s will properly. If you need to leave town, let me know, please.”
Victoria stood and so did Mr. Hall.
“Thanks for everything you’ve done for Daddy over the years, and for what you’ll be doing for me,” she said. “I will need to make a run back to Seattle to move my things back down here. I have decided to move back. But I won’t be gone very long. No more than a week. I’ll fly up and rent a moving truck up there, then I’ll need a couple of days there to pack, then it’ll be a two-day run back here. I hope to go within the next two or three days, if possible.”
“Shouldn’t be a problem for me, as long as the police don’t need you for something,” he said.
“I’ll check with them first, of course,” Victoria said. “Well, I’d better be going. Thanks again, Mr. Hall. See you soon.”
“’Bye, Victoria, take care of yourself,” Mr. Hall said.
He gave her a hug, and then let her go. She took the elevator down to the first floor and walked to her dad’s office. She and Rafael had things to discuss. At least now she understood why nothing had really changed here at the Thornton Building. Why all the same employees were still in the lobby. Why even the large, now antique sign on the corner of the building that said “Thornton Building” had not been removed and a new one hung in its place proclaiming the change to “Rivera Building.”
Just as Karen was buzzing Rafael to let him know that Victoria was there, her cell phone rang. She pulled it out of her purse and looked at the caller ID. Oh, good grief! It was Harry. That was all she needed right now—him calling and pestering her. She silenced the ringer and let the call go through to voicemail. She’d deal with him later. Or not.
“Go right on in, Victoria,” Karen told her.
Victoria walked around the reception desk and into Rafael’s office. He was already half-way across the room to greet her.
“Hi, beautiful,” he said, reaching out to take her in his arms. She allowed him to put his arms around her, but she just stood there, not responding.
“What’s the matter, baby?” he asked. “Are you all right?”
Victoria sighed and pulled away from him. She wrapped her arms around herself and paced the office that had once been her father’s domain. How she missed him.
“I’m just on overload right now, Rafael,” she said. “I’ve just come from the lawyer’s office where I learned even more stuff. My head is about to explode with all the twists and turns my life has taken this week. I swear, my life has turned into a bad movie, with me as the star, and you, you … I don’t know if you’re the villain or the hero.”
She sank into an overstuffed chair that had been her favorite since childhood. She hadn’t come to her dad’s “city office,” as she had thought of this room, very often, but when she did, she always wanted to sit in this particular chair. When she was small, it was a big, cozy chair in which she could cuddle up and feel safe while her mother and daddy talked. Today, she didn’t get that same safe feeling from the chair. Her life had just spiraled completely out of control.
Daddy wants me to marry Rafael, she thought to herself as she sat there looking at him. He didn’t really sell the business at all. And now it’s mine. What do I do with it? I’ll have to marry Rafael. He seems to know what he’s doing. Daddy must have thought so or he wouldn’t have let him keep it for him. Do I love Rafael enough to marry him? Does he love me? Or is he just after me because he wants the company? How will I know?
Rafael leaned against the large cherrywood desk that domi
nated the room. He wondered just how much the lawyer had told her. Was the secret out about the business? That it’s not really mine, but now it’s hers? Just how much did she know? Does she know that I promised David that I would do my best to court her and win her hand in marriage? Does she know that I’ve been in love with her since I was thirteen? If she knew about the arrangement, will she marry me out of duty, or the misguided notion that she must in order to maintain the business? Oh, what a tangled web we weave, when first we decide to deceive. Or however that little ditty goes, he thought.
“Rafael,” Victoria said at last, “why did you pick up on me at Daddy’s funeral?”
“What do you mean?” he asked.
“Just what I said. “Why did you come on to me? Was it only because I’m David Thornton’s daughter and you thought if you could seduce me, you could retain control of the business?”
“Well, I’ll admit, yes. That was the initial reason that I asked you out. Well, that coupled with the fact that your dad had been talking you up to me for two or three years. I was curious to find out what all the hoopla about you was. If you were all he made you out to be,” Rafael confessed.
Victoria’s face crumpled and she put her head in her hands.
“But, that’s not the end of it, Vic,” he said.
He crossed the room to come and kneel on the carpet beside her chair.
“I did have ulterior motives at first, I admit it. But after the second date, all that went right out the window, because I knew just what your dad had been talking about all these years. You are the one for me. Victoria, I love you. I know we’ve only been seeing each other for a few days. But I’ve been watching and learning all about you for years.
“What you don’t know, is that I’ve been crazy about you since I was thirteen. I used to watch you when you would come here to see your dad. You didn’t know I existed, but I was totally smitten with your beauty. I didn’t know you as a person, but I had a major crush on you. And furthermore, this week has been so traumatic that I feel like we’ve become close much faster than if we’d have met under ordinary circumstances.”