Chapter 11
By Friday, Judith could see a pattern to some of her grandfather’s dealings. He was always the moneyed partner. His associates usually had some form of collateral to offer, and generally speaking it came in the form of land.
Noting this, she couldn’t help but wish there were older records to consider. Her grandfather had released additional materials for her to study, but everything was written up in the last five years.
Catching sight of the time, Judith closed the ledger she’d been reading and prepared to go to her grandfather.
Every afternoon at two, he had requested she come to his room to discuss what she was learning.
It was rather fascinating to hear his reasonings behind certain projects and his projections of what he felt he could accomplish in the days to come.
He was determined to leave a legacy in his Ashton Block in downtown Minneapolis.
Unfortunately, Judith knew the legacy he was really leaving behind made him much despised instead of respected and admired as he hoped.
She made her way to his room and encountered Mary on the way. “I wonder if after I visit with my grandfather, you and I might have a talk. Perhaps in the garden again.”
“It looks like it might storm this afternoon, but we can surely find somewhere to speak without being overheard.” Mary walked with Judith and paused when they stood at the door to her grandfather’s room. “You know the doctor just left.”
“No, I didn’t realize.” Judith frowned. “Is the news bad?”
“I don’t know. I showed the doctor out and figured I’d come up and confer with Winchell. He’ll be able to tell us everything.”
As if speaking his name had summoned him, Winchell opened the bedroom door and looked in surprise at the two women.
“May I help you?”
Judith nodded. “I was coming to speak with grandfather per his instructions. However, Mrs. Deeters just mentioned the doctor was here. I wondered what he had to say.”
Winchell stepped into the hall and pulled the door closed.
“The news is not good. He has ordered your grandfather to remain bedfast. He said that Mr. Ashton is not strong enough to be up on his own without overtaxing his heart. He may sit for fifteen to twenty minutes each morning and afternoon, but otherwise should rest in bed.”
“I see.” Judith hadn’t expected things to happen quite this fast. “Did he say . . . well . . . did he speak of when . . .” She fell silent. It was harder than she’d expected to ask about when the doctor thought her grandfather might die.
“He felt confident that your grandfather’s death would come sooner than he originally thought.”
Judith looked up at the older man. Winchell was probably ten years her grandfather’s junior, but time with the man had clearly aged him. How she wished he felt comfortable enough with her to talk about her grandfather and their history together.
“Well, I suppose we must simply forge ahead and do whatever we can to make him comfortable.”
“Yes, miss,” Winchell said with a heaviness in his tone that left Judith feeling sorry for him. He had spent his entire life caring for her grandfather. No doubt he was worried at his own advanced age regarding what he would do once the man died.
She put her hand on his arm. “Winchell, you are a faithful and loyal friend to my grandfather. I know he appreciates all that you do, but I want you to know that I do as well. If I am chosen as heir and decide to remain in Minneapolis, you will always have a place here. I hope you also know that you can come to me with anything you need.”
His stoic expression softened. “Thank you, miss.” He stepped back and reopened the door. “I’m sure he is eagerly awaiting your visit.”
Judith moved past Winchell and headed into the room. It was the first time Winchell hadn’t gone ahead of her to announce the visit.
James Ashton sat propped in his bed, reading the newspaper, as Judith often found him when she came for their business discussions. He looked over the top of the paper, then folded it closed.
“I wondered if you were ever coming.”
“How are you feeling today? I know the doctor saw you earlier.”
“Yes, yes. The man is all doom and nonsense. He has no means of helping me, but ever so much confidence in my demise.”
Judith pulled up a chair and sat down. “Well, we all must die sooner or later. Perhaps if you had more confidence in what lay beyond, you would be less disgruntled.”
“Are you going to preach at me?” He frowned but didn’t forbid it.
“Preach? No. But I am always happy to share with you the simplicity of accepting Jesus as Savior and Lord. The Bible makes it quite clear that Jesus is the only way to God and the reconciliation that we so desperately need. Jesus died once for all, so you might as well accept what has been freely given.”
He looked at her oddly. “You speak with such certainty that I wonder if there were ever any doubts for you.”
“Doubts? About Jesus?” She shook her head.
“Never. I know many people speak of difficulty in believing. Sometimes even preachers talk about how hard it was to come to a place of faith and acceptance, but that is not the case for me. My father made it clear that God is a reliable source of love and trust. He is faithfully the same yesterday, today, and forever. To be certain, God alone is the only constant in my life. How could I doubt Him when He has proven Himself over and over?”
“And what proof has He offered?”
Judith was surprised that her grandfather continued to pursue the discussion. “He has always answered my prayers. He has shown me His nature in the Bible. I see His handiwork in all of creation and find comfort in His promises.”
“You say He has always given you everything you prayed for. How can that be?”
“I didn’t say that He always gave me everything I prayed for.
I said He always answered my prayers. To be certain, there have been times when God has refused my requests, like when my parents died even though I had prayed for them to return home safely.
But even in that, He answered. I have learned from my father’s example that praying for God’s will in all matters is better than seeking my own. ”
“Your parents died during the war, did they not?”
“Yes, in 1864, but it wasn’t due to any fighting. The boiler on the riverboat was faulty and blew up. It was such a powerful explosion that the boat was quickly engulfed in flames. The doctor felt certain that the blast itself killed my parents instantly. He believed they did not suffer.
“They were the most important people in my life. Still, God allowed them to die. It was His will, and I can accept that. It doesn’t mean I like it, but I trust that God had a purpose even in that. And His love for them, taking them instantly—well, that blessed me too.”
“Why?” Her grandfather’s tone was demanding.
“Well, if anyone can account for my thoughts behind that, you surely can. Many die from disease and sickness, as you well know. Lingering day after day, suffering pain and fear of what is yet to come is hardly a comforting way to pass from this earth. However, I believe firmly that God can be a comfort to those who have Him as Lord, though I am rather puzzled at what others like you do for peace of mind during such a time.”
Her grandfather’s eyes narrowed. “I need no comfort or peace. I am a man of action and have been so all my life. I neither fear nor welcome death. It simply is a part of each man’s life. I accept it for what it is.”
“And in your mind, what is it? You see, for me I know death is but a door to eternal life with my heavenly Father. When I received Jesus as my Savior, my sins were washed clean, and I became God’s own child. I can assure you that life on this earth is not the end but merely the beginning.”
“You should have been born a male. Your confidence and conviction would suggest that you could make a great revivalist or perhaps politician. You are strong-willed and outspoken. In a man, those things are rewarded. Not so much in a woman.”
Judith laughed. “And well I know that.”
Her grandfather studied her for a moment, then shook his head. “But perhaps it serves you well enough to be a woman, for such nature is unexpected. I have come to realize that you are full of surprises.”
“I am an Ashton, after all.” She waited for him to challenge her.
“Indeed, you are that.”
She smiled at this new acceptance. “Good. Now, are you ready to discuss business?”
“Mary, I’ve poured over all of the books and contracts in my grandfather’s office,” Judith began, “but I’m wondering where I might lay my hands on his older dealings.”
“There is a room on the third floor where his oldest records are stored. He’s always said that no one is to have access, but I have a key. I go in from time to time to dust and make sure things are still in order.”
“I want to go there. I need to read through the old contracts and see for myself how he cheated people in the early days. It seems to me that I have a great deal of work to accomplish once he’s gone.”
“What do you mean?”
Judith got up from behind her grandfather’s desk.
“I mean, James Ashton Sr. wasn’t as good at hiding his manipulations and schemes as he might have thought he was.
Perhaps God has given me the ability to read between the lines, but I can easily see what my grandfather has done.
And, while he might have managed to conduct business in a legal manner, it certainly wasn’t done in an ethical one. ”
Mary Deeters nodded and produced a ring of keys. “I’ll show you up there at once. You’ll need a lamp.”
Judith grabbed one of the lamps from the hall table and followed Mary up to the third floor.
Mary pointed out the rooms of various staff, including her own, as she moved to the far end of the hall.
“Mr. Winchell is the only staff member to have a room on the second floor. It’s attached to the back of your grandfather’s suite.
He wanted to have the man close at all times. ”