Keeping Victoria's Secret

by Melinda Peters

  Inhaling deeply, he let his breath out in a rush, and frowned. What’s happened? They haven’t spoken to each other since entering my office. Fred looked at Jack’s stony profile for a moment, shook his head, and then turned to Vicky taking in the strained look on her face. I always say, youth is wasted on the young!

  “Well then. Victoria, I have copies of all the pertinent documents, which you are at liberty to look over. If you have no objection to Mr. Conner seeing them as well, just pass them on when you’re....” The look Vicky shot him caused Fred to quickly rethink his statement. “Then again, I have other copies of all the documents right over here.”

  Fred began his explanation. “As you know, your grandmother, Victoria Willet had an older brother, Alexander. Alexander was heir to the property known commonly as The Willet Farm. According to their parent’s will, should Alexander predecease Victoria, she would become sole heir. We all understood this to be the case. That is until Mr. Van Winkle entered the picture. Apparently, Alexander, while in the armed forces was married before leaving for the Pacific theater. Later his wife, Betsy, had a son named Theodore, born in September, 1944. At Alexander’s death, the inheritance would have passed from Alexander Willet to his wife, and subsequently to Theodore. Here’s where the connection to the Van Winkles comes into it. Young Theodore Willet was adopted by Betsy’s second husband, George Van Winkle, when they married in 1947 and took the name Theodore Van Winkle. Our Jonathan Van Winkle is the natural son of Theodore Van Winkle. Your grandmother was never the true heir. It puzzles me that my father gave your grandmother title to the property when Alexander didn’t survive the war. It wasn’t like my father to make an error like this. Nevertheless, that’s their case in a nutshell.”

  Vicky felt as though she couldn’t breathe. The reality of actually losing her new home overwhelmed her. She wanted to cry, thinking of all she’d lost. My parents, then Nanna, and now I’m losing my home! Nanna’s home, her things, the flower beds.... Thoughts whirled in her mind. The only sounds in the room were the gentle shuffling of paper and ticking of Fred’s wall clock.

  Clutching her copies of the documents, she stared at a spot over Fred’s shoulder, without saying a word. Tears welled up in her eyes and she brushed them away. When she could finally take a deep breath, Vicky looked to Fred. “All right then, what do we do now?”

  The attorney leaned back in his high backed leather chair, folded his hands in his lap, and began. “We’ll file some appeals, things which will serve to delay. I need some time to delve into this problem. Remember I have yet to state our case. I’m still confused, as to the reason my father put the property in your grandmother’s name. There’s a copy of the deed in your papers. You’ll see I have no death certificate for Alexander yet, but the military record shows him as missing and presumed dead. There’s no date of death, but he was lost at sea, sometime in late 1944. I’ll be doing my best to support your claim of ownership, but unless I succeed, ultimately there’s nothing to stop Van Winkle. I’m going to attempt to discover why my father apparently ignored a potential inheritance of the property by Alexander’s wife. As I said, that has me baffled. Would you like for me to go ahead and file the paperwork?”

  Miserably she shook her head. “No Fred, let’s just get it over with and let Jonathan have it. I’ll arrange to move back down to New Jersey. Why bother going through the motions if I can’t win?”

  “No! Absolutely not!” Jack shouted, as he jumped up and began to pace back and forth.

  Startled, the other two turned to look at him, his face dark with anger.

  “I told you both that I’m going to fight that bastard Van Winkle to the bitter end. I want to go ahead with whatever legal tricks or lawyer magic you can do Fred.”

  “With all due respect, my friend, this decision is Victoria’s alone. It’s up to her.” Turning to her, Fred said, “If it’s the expense that concerns you, there will be no charges. I feel that I owe it to you and to your family to unravel this mess that was three generations in the making.”

  The two younger people glared at one another in silence. She shrugged and looked away. The clock on the wall ticked steadily, oblivious to the tension in the room.

  Jack turned back to Fred. “You’re the lawyer here, but it seems to me, the farm was just as much mine when I thought I inherited it from Uncle Charley. Then it was Victoria’s, because her inheritance was valid, where mine wasn’t. Now her claim to the property has gone down the tubes just like mine, so we’re equal here. Don’t I have as much say in this as she does?”

  Fred smiled wanly. “I suppose you make a point. Vicky?” he asked.

  “Okay. Go ahead and file the appeals. Do whatever you have to do. I don’t really want to think about this anymore. If it’ll make Jack happy, then just go on and do it. If we’ve finished here, I’d like to go and get a bite to eat. Is there some place nearby?”

  “I imagine you’ll feel better after you’ve had a little something to eat. The nearest place is right around the corner, Paulding’s Rest,” he said. “It’s not only the closest food, but the best in Pippen’s Grove. Good sandwiches, big salads, and steaks. I recommend the onion rings. Well, I’d like to thank you both for coming. I’m just sorry I didn’t have more encouraging news.”

  Fred stood and walked her to the door. “Now don’t dwell on this. You go and enjoy yourself and I’ll do the worrying for you. Don’t forget, if you have any questions, Victoria, anything else I can do, don’t hesitate.”

  She thanked him, gave both Jack and Fred one last glance, turned and walked slowly out.

  Jack looked at the attorney and shrugged.

  Fred studied the younger man curiously for a moment. “None of my business of course, but it seems as though you and Victoria haven’t yet been able to put aside your animosity toward one another. Still have bad feelings about the inheritance? Now that’s rather a mute point, what with the Van Winkle suit.”

  “Things were actually fine between us. More than fine, then this morning.... Well, without going into any detail, everything went all to hell. It’s my fault, but none of it matters now.”

  * * *

  Jack’s breakfast was a distant memory. As Vicky walked along the charming main street of town, the scent of good cooking came to her on the breeze, causing her stomach to growl. Opening the door into Paulding’s Rest, she lingered in the entryway listening to laughter and the tinkling of glasses from inside.

  Wondering if she should seat herself or wait for a hostess, she hesitated. Several lunchtime regulars were seated at the bar to her left. To the right were half a dozen booths, all of which seemed to be occupied. Her mind was numb from her recent experience in Fred’s office. She stood for a moment, unsure what to do.

  “Vicky! Hey, Miss Vicky!”

  She turned, surprised to hear someone calling her name. It was a grinning Jimmy Smith waving and beckoning from one of the booths.

  “Over here. Come on and join us.”

  She wasn’t in the mood to socialize and make small talk with Jimmy or anyone else just now. Her intention was to sit quietly anonymous in a corner and pick at a lonely lunch. Unable to escape, she walked over listlessly.

  Two other men sat with Jimmy. One she recognized as Joe Vandersmoot from the nursery. When she reached their table all three men stood, grinning broadly.

  Jimmy was beaming proudly. “I’m a daddy, Miss Vicky. We had our baby girl, late last night. She came a little early. Penny and the baby are doing great! We haven’t named her yet. Thought we had that all figured out, but changed our minds at the last minute.”

  The good news slowly penetrated her numbed mind. Here was one good thing today, she thought smiling.

  “Miss Vicky, you okay?”

  “Sure Jim, I’m fine. That’s great news. I’m so glad for you and Penny. Everybody healthy and doing well?”

  “Yup, hey Vicky, these guys are helping me celebrate. This is Joe Vandersmoot and John Van Wart.”

  “Hello everyone. Mr.
Vandersmoot, I remember meeting you the other day at the nursery. Good to see you.”

  “We were just having lunch. Want to join us?” asked Jimmy

  She looked helplessly about the room. All the tables and booths in the popular tavern were occupied. “Sure. I guess if your friends don’t mind.”

  Joe and John insisted she join them. Smiling, Joe slid out to allow Vicky to sit between them on the inside of the U-shaped banquette with Jimmy and Van Wart on one side and himself on the other. Soon they were making suggestions about what to order from an extensive menu.

  A smiling waitress came and quickly cleared the table of plates and beer glasses.

  When she returned to take Vicky’s order, Joe requested another round of beer for all, and insisted that Vicky accept a glass of wine. The celebratory mood was infectious and she couldn’t help but be happy for Jimmy and his wife.

  The other two men competed for her attention, playfully arguing over which of them would treat Vicky to lunch.

  Joe announced, “She’s my date, so I’m buying.”

  “Oh no.” countered John. “You can have the bar tab, I’ll take care of the lovely lady.”

  They all laughed. When her wine arrived, she took a sip and said, “This is very good. I don’t drink much wine, but this is very nice.”

  In a few minutes, her Caesar salad arrived topped with a generous portion of grilled salmon. As she ate and the others sipped their beer, Jimmy recounted once more the details of Penny’s labor, the birth, and his sleepless night.

  “Here,” Jimmy said, holding out his phone with a picture of the newborn displayed. “Isn’t she beautiful?”

  “She’s lovely! A beautiful baby Jim, “she enthused as he thumbed through dozens more.

  “Hello, Miss Buonadies,” said Vince Cangelosi.

  She looked up at him and winced, surprised to see the policeman that had answered her nine-one-one call her first day in Pippen’s Grove. This man had seen her at her worst. He was congratulating Jimmy, slapping him on the back.

  “Vicky’s helping us celebrate, Vince,” said Jimmy.

  “We’ve met.” His eyes twinkled with a knowing smile. “Ma’am, Jack mentioned to me that Jonathan Van Winkle has been bothering you. If he comes around again harassing you, just let me know and I’ll put a stop to it.”

  “Yeah, thanks.” Vicky smiled weakly. “And I’ll try to limit my nine-one-one calls in the future.” About to mention to the police officer Jonathan’s most recent visit, she then thought better of it, not wanting to throw cold water on the new father’s celebration.

  Jimmy stood up and waved to the group. “Vince is going to give me a ride back up to the hospital. Need to get back and see Penny and our little girl. You boys entertain Vicky, okay?”

  “We’ll take good care of her. Don’t you worry. The two friends were more than happy to keep the lady company while she finished her lunch and told Jimmy to say hello to Penny from them.

  Officer Cangelosi leaned over and tapped one of the empty beer glasses with a forefinger. “Wouldn’t want to have to stop anyone on a DUI this afternoon,” he teased. Smiling at Vicky he said, “It was nice meeting you again.”

  She found herself sitting between two virtual strangers and was a bit uncomfortable. Embarrassed, she picked at the remains of her salad. Vandersmoot flagged down the waitress and ordered beer and another glass of wine “for the lady”.

  Feeling the need to make conversation, she turned to Joe Vandersmoot. “I was going to come see you today.”

  “Really?” he said leaning a little closer and smiling into her eyes.

  Flustered she shifted away. “That is, Jack and I were going to ask your advice about plants. You see, I have some old pictures of the farmhouse with my grandmother’s flowerbeds in bloom. What I wanted to do was to try to recreate the gardens to look like they did back then. Jack and I just thought you might be able to identify the flowers and plantings in the pictures. Then you could tell me what to buy.”

  Her voice trailed off and she turned again to the last scraps of salad, pushing them around on her plate. She looked up, first to Van Wart, then back to Joe. They studied Vicky, waiting for her to finish, sipping beer. Another glass of wine appeared as if by magic and she lifted the glass and drank.

  “It doesn’t matter now,” she announced. “There’s no point in doing anything else to the property. You see, it seems that someone else is the rightful owner, not me. So I guess in a month or two, I’m not really sure how long these things take; I’ll be moving back to Jersey. I was getting to like it here in Pippen’s Grove. It’s such a nice little town, with so many nice people. Jack’s been, well, I guess Jack’s been helpful. He’s just furious about this business.” Closing her mouth firmly she scolded herself. Why am I talking so much?

  The silence at their booth was underscored by the ambient noise of conversation and clattering crockery in the tavern.

  Van Wart spoke, “We’re aware of the Van Winkle claim, Vicky. Jack told us about that. Word is all around about it anyway. There was a certain curiosity about you when you first arrived here. At first we all felt sorry for Jack, but Charley Conners was a scoundrel. Jack shouldn’t have let himself be fooled by that thief. We’ve all been trying to figure some way we can stop Van Winkle, but short of shooting him, well I can’t think of anything. Vince would never let us shoot anybody, so I guess that’s out. I’m sorry this has ruined things for you.

  It's so nice that these two guys, these friends of Jack's cared what happened to her. She told them, “You’re both so sweet.”

  “Why don’t you stay up here?” asked John. “You’ll find something to do here. There are lots of us eligible bachelors to take you out in Pippen’s Grove, right Joe?”

  Vandersmoot grinned thoughtfully at her. “Listen, why not go ahead and plant things in those beds? Who knows, but what something will happen to keep Van Winkle from getting his hands on the farm. What’s his connection? He’s claiming what exactly?”

  She picked up her glass and stared into the wine. She was relaxing and felt the need to talk with someone about her predicament. “Apparently, Jonathan Van Winkle is the grandson of Alexander Willet, my Grandmother’s brother. Alexander died serving in World War II, but back here in Pippen’s Grove, his wife gave birth to a son. I don’t think it was even very widely known that Alexander married before going off to the war. A few years later, she remarried a Van Winkle and he adopted her little boy, Theodore. His son is Jonathan. Therefore, ownership of the farm should have passed down to him. I guess no one knew, or everyone overlooked the fact that legally the heir would be Alexander’s son. So here we are. Both Jack and I were fooled into thinking we owned it.” She sipped and leaned back. Then her eyes opened wide. “Oh my god! Oh my god! That means I’m related to that awful man.”

  “Hey, we won’t hold it against you,” said John smiling at her. “Though no one likes or trusts that Van Winkle clan. I remember his father who died about a year or so ago. He was just as bad as Jonathan. Looked like him too.”

  Joe added, “They’ve had that old cider mill for years. I always thought they watered down the juice to cut corners. The Dutch can be like that, stubborn, stingy, and funny about their money. Hey, I can say that, being a Dutchman myself. Understand?”

  “Hey Joe, remember the time Van Winkle accidentally burned down his own barn?” asked John.

  “Some say it wasn’t so accidental. He figured it would cost him less to clean up the mess after the fire, instead of paying to tear it down. Wouldn’t put it past him. You know if he filed an insurance claim on that?”

  The two men took turns telling amusing stories about the Van Winkle family. Apparently there were plenty. In a few minutes all three were laughing heartily.

  She was beginning to enjoy herself. It felt very nice, being the center of attention, nestled between two attentive men.

  “Mind if I join you?” Their laughter died away as they looked up to see a very sober Jack Conner.

&nb
sp; “Jack, did you hear Jimmy’s wife had her baby last night, a girl. Jimmy was just here,” said John smiling.

  Jack nodded. “I know. Just saw Jim and Vince down the street.”

  Again, there was an awkward silence, before Joe spoke up. “Jack, come on. Sit down and have a beer with us. Want some lunch? Take a load off and we’ll talk.”

  “No. I don’t want a beer and I don’t want lunch. What I want is to wring Van Winkle’s neck,” Jack growled.

  “Hey, cool off. There’s nothing else we can do about Van Winkle now. We’ve been telling funny stories about him,” said Joe.

  “You three seem to be having a great time,” Jack said. “Nice little party you’ve got going here.”

  “We’ve been keeping Vicky company. She told us about all your problems with Old Rip,” said John.

  She smiled at him. “Jack, you have awesome friends. John and Joe have been so nice.”

  Jack gestured with his thumb for Joe to get out and let him slide in next to Victoria. Ignoring him, Joe eased over right up next to her. She didn’t move away, but now sat on the inside of the booth, closely nestled between John and Joe.

  Jack glowered at the three of them sitting together.

  * * *

  Fred looked up, in response to his secretary’s knock.

  “Dr. Sweeney is here and wants to know, do you have a minute?”

  “Thank you Dottie. Please ask him to come in. I was going to phone him in any case.”

  Soon the doctor was holding the door for his wife, Elvira, as she stepped into the office. Doc closed the door securely and walked over to shake the lawyer’s hand. “Good to see you, Fred. Thanks for giving us your time.”

  Their expressions told him they had something important on their minds. Fred motioned to the two chairs recently vacated by Vicky and Jack, inviting them to sit.