Chapter 47
THEN
A week after my father found Daphne and me in his bedroom, I came downstairs to find him sitting at the breakfast table, peering down at a folded newspaper that sat beside his plate of scrambled eggs.
Cess stood at the stove, an apron tied over her pedal pushers and sleeveless beige fitted top with a pussy bow.
“Good morning, Mabel,” she said with faux brightness.
“Good morning,” I said.
My father didn’t look up from his newspaper. He was dressed for work, in suit and tie, his jacket resting on the back of his chair, his shirtsleeves rolled to the forearms.
I looked at Cess uncertainly.
“Sit, Mabel.”
There was a place already laid out for me and she gestured for me to sit as she tipped a medley of scrambled eggs and tomatoes onto my plate. “How are your eggs, Elliott?” she asked.
He kept his gaze on the paper. “Fine.”
She served her own meal and sat opposite me. “Good. Once you’ve eaten them, you can pack your bags and go.”
Cess ate a mouthful of eggs.
My father looked up. “Excuse me?”
Cess took her time to swallow her mouthful, making my father wait.
I felt like I’d walked down a laneway just as someone else was getting mugged. Desperate to leave. Afraid to move.
“I’m not leaving Rosehill,” she said, touching her serviette to the corners of her mouth. “Neither is Mabel. You are.”
She leaned back casually in her chair, reaching for the document on the counter, which she then placed on the table next to my father’s plate.
“What is this?” My father glanced at the document but didn’t read it. His body language oozed calm, but his cheeks colored ever so slightly.
“There’s a lot of legal jargon in there, but I’ll précis it for you,” Cess said. “As you know, Mary, as my parents’ oldest child, inherited the house from our parents when they died—”
“Of course I’m aware of this, I—”
Cess continued speaking as if he wasn’t there.
“My parents’ will also states that upon Mary’s death, the house should pass to her oldest child, if they are of age, and if they aren’t, it passes to me until such time as they are.
You’re number three on the list, and only inherit Rosehill if there are no other living relatives. ”
My father glanced at me. I was frozen, entirely motionless. Even my breathing had stopped.
“If you read the paperwork you’ll see it’s very clear,” Cess said calmly.
“Ridiculous.” My father rolled his eyes and picked up a piece of toast from his plate. “What would you know about legal documents, Cecily? I’ll get Stan to go through it today.”
“Actually, Stan was the one who pointed it out to me. If you recall, he was the one who drew up the paperwork for my father before he died. I think his word was ‘incontestable.’ ” She smiled. “It will all be explained to you at Mary’s will reading.”
My father reached for his briefcase, took out his glasses, and started flicking through the document.
“Pages three and four are the important ones,” Cess said cheerfully. “Page five says you’ll still own the prosthetic business my father built, so don’t feel too sorry for yourself. ”
While my father read the document in silence, Cess raised her eyebrows in triumph. But I was far too nervous to be triumphant.
Finally, my father stopped flicking pages and sat back in his seat. “Well, how do you like that, Mabel? Your beloved aunt is throwing us out onto the street.”
Cess waved her hand. “Nonsense. Mabel is welcome to stay until she turns eighteen, at which point the house will become hers. I’m only throwing you onto the street.”
My father removed his glasses. “Correct me if I’m wrong,” he said coolly, “but your father’s will doesn’t grant you custody of my daughter as well as the house, does it?”
Panic started: a low rumble in the distance.
“If not, Mabel and I are leaving. Come on, Mabel.”
I stared at Cess in horror. This, I assumed, was not part of her plan.
“Don’t look at her, you stupid girl,” my father snapped. “Go pack a bag. We’re leaving.”
I started to stand.
“Sit down, Mabel,” Cess said. To my father, she said: “Mabel isn’t going anywhere.
As I’ve been acting as her guardian since her mother died, you’ll need to apply to the courts to reclaim her.
I should warn you, though, as a father, with your work and travel schedule, without a current place of residence, you don’t stand a chance. ”
My father and Cess locked eyes. The silence stretched out for several seconds.
“Aren’t you clever?” my father said finally. “I’m impressed. Your sister was far too stupid to pull off such a thing.”
Cess didn’t respond, and she even managed to keep her face fairly neutral, though I could see the comment enraged her.
I didn’t have the same restraint. “My mother was not stupid.”
My father stood. “You’re all stupid if you think I’m not going to end up in the house.”
“The law disagrees with you,” Cess said.
“Actually,” he says, “the law states I do have a claim to the house. If there are no other living relatives.”
He let that comment settle between us for a second before he reached for his briefcase. Then he picked up a piece of toast and popped it between his teeth. And then, with a wave, he was gone.
“He’ll be on the phone to lawyers as we speak,” I said to Cess once we heard the front door close.
“Probably,” she agreed. “Good luck to him. The paperwork is iron-clad.”
“Was that a threat, what he said about him having a claim to the house if he was the only living relative? You don’t think he’d actually …”
“No!” Cess stood and started clearing away the dishes. “He just didn’t want to lose face. Don’t you worry about that. Anyway, you’re staying here with me! That’s good news, isn’t it? Didn’t I tell you to trust me?”
“You did. But—”
“Mabel.” She stopped doing the dishes. “Look at me.”
I did.
“I promised you I wouldn’t leave you with him, didn’t I?”
I nodded.
“I’m promising you again. He can contact his lawyers, file the paperwork, become a High Court judge for all he wants, but I won’t let it happen. Do you believe me?”
“Yes.”
And I did. I believed, in a way I never had before, that I was loved.