On joining her, Bryce said, “I took the liberty of ordering a pot of tea. Edward said you liked that.” She glimpsed the steam surrounding the teapot. If only Edward had attempted to fulfill other, less tangible, but no less meaningful, desires.
Bryce lifted his briefcase. “I’ve been meaning to call, but—”
“I see you’ve been speaking with Edward,” she said. Bryce lowered the briefcase onto the linen covered table. “Then again, you are his attorney and the one person who works with him.”
“In light of Edward’s condition—” Bryce started once more.
“My husband’s dying. It’s taking a toll on all of us,” Anna said. An air of strain overtook Bryce. He looked as if he might cry, or worse, that he lacked the words to state his cause. Anna’s anger toward Bryce increased as he lowered his head. She didn’t know the meaning or root of her indignation. Bryce had been good and loyal to Edward. And he appeared to desire the same with Anna. She managed to say, “I appreciate you being there for Edward even when I couldn’t.”
Bryce’s palm gave a slight tremble. The same tension that had overtaken him when Anna entered Edward’s hospital room settled him once more. He opened his briefcase and removed a folder of documents. Anna sipped her tea.
Bryce laid the folder upon the linen covered table and then, with what seemed all that he could gather, said, “Edward has made you the owner and president of Manning Ventures.”
Anna carefully lowered her cup onto its saucer. “Edward sold real estate. His company was called Manning Real Estate.”
“Yes, but over the years, he invested much of his profits into what has now become three small, yet lucrative, conglomerates.”
“Manning Ventures?” Anna tried absorbing the name.
“Startups that have subsidiaries in Angola, India, China, Saudi Arabia, and the Soviet Union. Most are related to Internet technology and the development of alternative forms of energy.” Bryce went on. “They hold much potential for the future, particularly and in light of our recent economic oil crisis, I would suggest—”
“No, wait a minute.” Anna raised her palm. Bryce’s words, the full brunt of their meaning sank in. “You’re saying that Edward’s willed me his company, Manning Ventures, so that when he dies—”
“No. You’re the owner and president right now.” She stared at Bryce, the truth of his anxiety in earlier moments now eroding. “I filed the last forms yesterday. It’ll take a week for the county and city clerk to record the change, but essentially you own Manning Ventures.” Bryce spoke the words, as if having shed a weight.
“Well, the first thing I’m going to do is sell it. I know nothing about real estate.”
“It’s not that simple. As I said, these small conglomerates have nothing to do with the real estate company. In fact,” Bryce pulled back his sleeve and read his watch, “Manning Real Estate has been sold. All that remains,” his words slowed, “—is Manning Ventures. And you, Anna, are its major stockholder, and president.”
“I don’t want it. I don’t want any of it.” She shook her head then turned toward the window adjacent the table. She considered In man from last evening, their argument, her leaving and then their lovemaking.
“The company is solid,” Bryce reiterated, trying to make her understand. “There are some outstanding debts, which comes with any business. Yet, through the last eight years, the company held its own. It hasn’t needed an infusion of cash from the real estate company.”
“And you want a job.” Anna turned back to Bryce. “Better yet to keep the one you have.” She leaned into the table, and whispered, “How about you buy the company? I’ll sell it to you. Make a loan you can live with.” Anna wanted to be through with Edward Manning and his surprises.
“I would love to do that. But honestly, even with what I’ve learned from Edward, I have no skills at running this company.” A sheen of tears slipped over Bryce’s eyes and delivered a sad sparkle.
“And you think I do?” ?
Chapter 29
Anna hated double talk. And Henderson, as she sat in his office, was beginning to sound like Bryce. “Just, hear me out.” Henderson begged.
“That’s what Bryce said.”
“Then perhaps you should.” Henderson leaned across his desk. “Edward owes you.”
“But not a company. I don’t know what to do with it.”
“Run it. At least don’t sell it as a knee-jerk reaction. Take a look-see. Investigate what Bryce is telling you. The sale of Edward’s real estate company provides more than enough for you to live on. In fact, once everything has settled, go to France.” Henderson pointed to the sky beyond the window. “See Paris.”
“Oh, but Bryce has to prepare me for a board meeting,” Anna quipped. “Edward’s dying.” She sighed. “This is Edward’s money. It’s all he’s worked for.”
“That’s right. Edward has cancer and won’t live to see his third grandchild enter this world. But, you’ll be here. The money will come in handy.”
“How can you be so cold?”
“Few people come to grips with reality and their role in shaping it. Edward seems to have done that,” Henderson said. “From the looks of it, he’s going to leave this world in a better manner than he lived. I’m proud of him.”
Tears threatened to overtake her. It had become like this since Edward had admitted he was scared, that life and all its uncertainties frightened him. Then Anna had slept with Inman. The emotions she had abandoned in her will to take care of her children had crawled to life.
Henderson came around his desk and lifted her hand. “Forgive me, Anna, but I’m not about to let you throw away what you’ve worked so hard for. Edward obviously agrees.”
“I was a wife and mother, and of the latter, not a very good one.”
“Life is dirty, Anna.” Henderson’s words took her back to that night Anna had Edward begged him to make love to her. You’re too
good for me. I’m dirty and mean, like life,” Edward had said. `I won’t soil you. I won’t make you like me.” Hours earlier she had served him the filet mignon with pearl onions and asparagus with wild rice. Everything about Edward, his tone, the movement of his body, the slope of his shoulders had reflected his shame.
Despite his hatred for the physician to whom Violet had been a mistress, Edward had become like the physician. Anna had undergone a variation of what Violet Manning had endured. They understand, Wyntonia had said of others regarding Edward’s long absences. Now Anna did. The house symbolized so much.
Anna said to her attorney, “Thank you for seeing me on such short notice.” She stood and left Henderson before the tears started to fall.
During the drive home, Anna replayed her conversations with Bryce, and then Henderson. Manning Ventures is a small conglomerate of companies with investments in the U.S., South America, Africa, and China, Bryce had said. Henderson then asserted, Edward never involved you in any of his businesses. He spent more time in those countries than he did at home in your house. Anna crawled upon the bed and shut her eyes. She was at home and inside Theo’s room. Moments later, there was a knock on the door.
“Who is it?” Anna called.
The door opened and Linda peeked inside. “It’s me.”
Anna sat up, smoothed back her hair, and made a feeble attempt at wiping her face. “Sorry, but I was tired.”
“David said you met with Bryce.” Linda lowered herself onto the bed.
“Yes.” Anna nodded.
“How did that go? Are you alright?”
“Not well. And no, I’m not.”
Linda chuckled.
“What’s so funny?” Anna knitted her brows.
“For once you’re telling the truth.”
“When have I ever lied?”
Linda’s smile dimmed.
“Let’s just say that relaying the reality of a situation, particularly when it involves Dad, has not been a skill you’ve possessed.” Anna sighed. Linda had verbalized Anna’s struggle
for the last thirty or more years. She lifted Linda’s hand then explained what Bryce had said concerning Manning Ventures.
“I know nothing about running a company. What am I’m going to do?”
“Have you spoken to Inman?” Linda asked.
“What do you know about Inman?” Anna screwed her face.
“He seems to care for you.”
“I love your father, but—”
“None of us have ever questioned that,” Linda said. “Not even David.”
“I doubt that.” Anna’s shoulders fell against a sinking feeling within.
Linda said, “You need to let yourself have some fun.” She sounded like Theo.
“Your father’s dying. And my children are unhappy. I don’t mean you.”
“You’re so certain I’m doing fine?” Linda’s smile returned.
“I am so happy that you’ve found happiness.” Anna embraced her. “I thank God everyday for Brad and what he’s given you.” Anna whispered then, “And now with the baby...”
“You’ve given me a lot, too.” Linda touched her stomach.
Anna placed her palm over Linda’s hand to her stomach, then said, “I failed you in so many ways.”
“That’s in the past. And I certainly played my role.”
“You were hurting,” Anna said. “There was a time when I ...” She began to cry.
“I wanted you happy,” Linda said. “And no one wanted to talk about it. David was the worse.”
“I guess that’s why you treated him like your nemesis?”
“When it came to you and your happiness, he was my nemesis,” Linda said.
“Would it be true to say that when it comes to David, you don’t always see straight?”
“I can see why Heather won’t sleep with him.”
“Linda.”
“David’s charming. He’s also bossy. And he can be passive aggressive.”
“He’s never been unfaithful,” Anna asserted.
“That is true, unless you count self-absorption, being totally consumed with one’s success, career, and status in the world as in fidelities. What he needs is a taste of Millicent to set him straight.” How different Linda sounded from Serine. “Then again, she’s so much like David,” Linda said of her sister-in-law, “ ... he might be overcome.”
Anna laughed amid the echo of Linda’s words. Change had arrived.
“You’re right about David ... “ She sat still for a moment. “But somehow I feel as though I’ve failed you, Serine, and your brothers. If only I had been more truthful. But I couldn’t have you hating your father. And there was no way I was about to fall into poverty by leaving him. He was a good provider. He never hit me.”
“No one has a perfect marriage,” Linda said.
“Some are better than others.”
“And then there are those that are worse.” Linda’s round face warmed to another smile. “You never let us know the full truth about Dad until we could handle it. For that, I’ll always be thankful.”
“But my unhappiness ... you said that—”
“I thought it was me or that it was something I had done wrong. I was angry,” Linda said. “I wanted to fix you, make you smile.”
“And you prefer that to me telling you the truth?” Anna was confused.
“I’m not saying I want my child to go through the same. But neither am I willing to tamper with history. I survived. That I was depressed in all that was going on makes sense. I know that now. Any child who sees their parent unhappy assumes some of the responsibility. My marriage to Brad has taught me a lot. Talking with his father has also helped.”
Anna rubbed Linda’s arm. “Things are working out for you two.” She smiled.
“I don’t know what I might have done had you actually told me about Dad’s affairs when I was a child. It was one thing to sense something, and quite another for your mother to confirm your worst fears.”
“You were sitting right there at the table when your father brought Gabrielle home to dinner. You watched the two of them, laughing and so excited about all of his plans. You called your father on it. But I pretended all was well.”
“But you never affirmed what I suspected. My outburst during dinner, the pain I felt during adolescence was based on suspicion, albeit correct. You never said Dad was having an affair with Gabrielle or any other women. That gave me hope.”
“It also confused and drove you crazy.” Anna grew frightened. Linda lifted her hand. “We’re adults now. And I’m okay.”
“And you love your father?”
“I love Dad for the father you let him be, not the man who left you alone. But most of all I love you for preserving the chance for me to do that.” Linda smiled and this time reached out for Anna. The two embraced.
“What is Inman like?” Linda’s intuition once again hit the mark. Anna considered what it would be like to have Inman as part of her children’s lives. Slowly, she began to tell about him.?
Chapter 30
Hours after dinner that evening, and feeling certain Edward had fallen asleep, Anna called a meeting out on the patio. The sun, setting into a sky that moments earlier had poured blood-red orange across the landscape of the heavens, edged toward indigo. Anna considered how the transformation of day to night had arrived minutes earlier the previous evening. The days were growing shorter, daylight less plentiful. Change was taking place in the Manning family. Death would soon extinguish the light of Edward in their lives.
David, Theo, Linda, and Brad took their places around the table by the pool. Anna brushed aside thoughts of her time with Inman at his home atop Grizzly Peak, the two of them naked in his bed. She joined her children at the patio table.
“I met with Bryce this afternoon,” she started. “He tells me that your father has given me his company, Manning Ventures.”
“The real estate company?” Theo said.
“Not exactly.”
“The company’s now Manning Ventures,” David interjected. “A collection of three, small companies.”
Anna eyed Linda as she recalled their conversation from earlier that afternoon. David can be a lot like Dad, bossy and stubborn. Anna turned her attention to David. “So you knew about this?” Appearing somewhat anxious, he said, “Dad discussed a few things with me. Like his purchases.”
“Well,” Anna returned to her main point, “I’ve decided to keep the company. I’m not going to sell it as I’d first thought.”
Linda smiled. Theo leaned back in his seat appearing, as on many times, as if possessed in thought.
David’s interest was piqued. “Do you think that’s prudent? Running a company takes—”
“acumen,” Anna finished his sentence. David looked straight at her. Brad and Linda snickered while exchanging glances with Theo. “Do you even know what you’re doing?” David persisted.
“Not exactly,” Anna said. “But Bryce assures me that the companies are strong and thriving. He also says that this is not a time to sell. With a recession looming, I’d never get what they’re worth.”
“At least you know that,” David retorted. “Still, you can’t do any thing until Dad is—”
“I own the company right now,” Anna again interrupted her elder son. All eyes around the table became alert, as if for the first time grasping the meaning of her words, Your father’s given me his company. Theo’s watchful composure clarified into a subtle show of glee. Linda patted Brad’s hand, their subdued smiles showing pleasure. Her thoughts again fresh, as when Henderson informed her of David’s bogus suits, Anna said, “Is this why you sued Henderson and tried to have me declared insane?” All was coming clear.
Linda, Brad, and Theo turned to David in surprise. With his back to the pool, the moonlight shimmering on the surface of the water made David’s figure silhouette-like.
“You actually did that?” Brad asked. “I remember what you said at dinner that first night after we arrived, but—”
“You’re not in this.” David shot Bra
d a glare of disgust.
“You knew what your father was going to do,” Anna said to David. “He discussed this with you. You knew he was giving me the company.”
“I can’t believe you’d do such a thing.” Linda displayed a contorted frown.
“Did Heather know you issued a suit against Mama and Henderson?” Theo asked.
Linda sighed once more then said, “You interned at Henderson’s office. He invited you to join his practice.” She began massaging her stomach. Anna grew anxious. It was happening again. The energy of Elena’s diseased spirit was roaming among them.
David addressed Linda. “He was also Dad’s friend and former attorney.” He turned to Anna. “But that didn’t seem to matter when you asked for a divorce.”
“I asked Henderson to represent me because aside from your father’s behavior in his private life, Henderson respected his accomplishments,” Anna said.
“Dad’s dying,” David refused to listen. “The last year he’s been fighting a cancer that’s now eating him alive. And all you’ve done is fight him.”
“I had no idea your father had cancer,” Anna said.
“Would it have mattered? For Christ’s sake, you’re not even wearing his ring, never mind where you sleep.”
Anna took in a breath as Theo, Linda, and Brad lowered their heads.
Anna finally said, “I am truly sorry that you father is dying. I would never wish this on him or anyone in a million years. But that does not change the fact that—”
“I was unfaithful to your mother,” Edward spoke as he stepped from the kitchen onto the patio. David dashed to him. Edward lifted his cane and waved him back. He tried to smile on his way to the table. Carefully, he lowered himself onto the chair between David and Brad, sitting opposite to Anna. He propped his cane against the edge of the circular glass table. He placed his hands in his lap.
“I’m dying,” Edward softly said to David, growing solemn and frustrated. “No amount of arguing is going to change that. And as for rings, I’ve worn one for over thirty years. The only meaning they hold is symbolized by our behavior.” The muscles in David’s neck flexed as if he was attempting to swallow a rock covered in spurs. Again, Theo exchanged metered glances with Anna and Brad. David appeared about to cry.
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