Chapter 13
Chapter Thirteen
Poppy
Amelia assured me that all funeral food was the same, no matter whether you were rich or poor, but for some reason…
I didn’t think that was true. Every single meal that was brought to us was catered.
I was sure the poor couldn’t afford that, but I didn’t say it out loud because I’d never been to a poor person’s funeral before and I hadn’t ever been poor.
I hadn’t actually been to any funeral before either.
It was weird. The closed casket. The priest. We didn’t even go to church, but that was where my father was buried.
My mother put on the water works, my sisters sobbed on her shoulders, and my brothers looked like they were ready for the inheritance that would come next.
They didn’t seem even a tad bit sad. Then there was the revolving door of people that hugged and held me as if we’d known each other our entire lives—people I’d never even seen before.
Most of the Cristofs were in attendance, but not Ivan or the youngest Griffin. I didn’t know whether to be relieved or sad. It was a strange combination of both. But then there was the strange emotion that flooded everything else out—curiosity, which then brought on anger.
Why had he lied? Why had he pretended? At the bridal shower, he’d watched me; I could feel his eyes from across the room. So what was the angle?
It didn’t even matter. I would probably never see him again, though Amelia insisted we hunt him down. There was a rumor he was staying at the same hotel as us, but I didn’t know if I really cared that much.
A voice in the back of my head told me that I did, but I ignored it.
We were all seated around a large oak table in my father’s attorney’s office, waiting for the will to be read off; it was the last place I wanted to be. There was nothing in his will for me, I was sure.
My father’s lawyer finally entered the room and unbuttoned his suit coat before sitting down at the head of the table. “Good morning, everyone. I know this is an unfortunate time, but I want each of you to know that we are here for you and just a call away, if you should need us.”
My mother grinned at him as if she hadn’t just lost her husband. “Go on then.”
“Let’s begin,” He tapped the stack of papers on the table before he cleared his throat. “Mrs. Fairchild…” He trailed off as he frowned. He cleared his throat again. “Due to the prenup you signed, you are entitled to whatever is in your own name.”
I knew without looking at my mother that she had no idea what this man was talking about. I hadn’t known she’d signed a prenup.
“Excuse me?”
“Would you like a copy of it? It is notarized.”
“Well, of course,” I could practically hear her rolling her eyes.
“Let’s continue,” he sniffed and cleared his throat once again, and I found myself frowning.
“To my two boys, my sons, my pride and joy, all of my business holdings and business dealings will be left to the two of you. May you continue my legacy the way it was always supposed to be run. To my oldest daughter, Jade, you may have your penthouse and your trust fund.”
“What?” My oldest sister practically shrieked. “That’s it?”
The poor attorney nodded his head slowly.
“To Jane, my youngest little star, I know you were never mine, but I liked to pretend you were. Your father was a close friend of mine, and I hope you will come to find him as you grow into the woman you were always meant to be. All of the money you will be inheriting will be deposited in your trust fund. I hope it helps you live a comfortable life without worry.”
The room was spinning with each word the man read from his stack of papers. My sister was only a half sister? My father knew? We all stared at the lawyer with big eyes.
“And last but certainly not least, my darling, smart daughter Poppy. Everything else is left to you. My assets, my stocks, and all the money in my accounts. It will all be deposited into your trust fund. See the world, find love, explore academics—whatever your heart desires, I want you to have it all. You were never meant to fit in, and I hope this helps you find everything you’ve been looking for. ”
I blinked. I thought nothing was more shocking than finding my father’s dead body, but this took the cake.
Were we sure this was my father’s will and not someone else’s?
The room erupted around me, but I couldn’t hear a single thing.
My mother was yelling something, and my sisters were crying.
My brothers got everything they wanted, so they seemed perfectly fine, if not a little confused.
But me? I was spiraling all over again. If the funeral hadn’t been bad enough… This was worse. Security was quickly called, and my mother was forcibly dragged out with my sister, Jade, close behind.
I didn’t know if I could stand up, much less leave. My brothers didn’t bother with a backwards glance as they left the room. Jane and I stared at the attorney wide-eyed.
“How much money?” I whispered.
The man scratched his partially balding head with the back of his pen and blew out a breath. “I don’t have exact numbers, but a couple billion.”
The room really spun, and I shook my head. “This is all a mistake, a misunderstanding. Why wouldn’t that go to Jade or my brothers or even Jane?”
Jane stared down at her pale hands, and I watched as tears slid down her cheeks and peppered the table in front of her. She’d just found out that the father she thought she had wasn’t really her father at all…
“Do you know who Jane’s biological father is?” I asked for her.
“I don’t, but I have a letter here for her. Though I’m sure Mrs. Fairchild could tell you everything you want to know.”
Jane laughed and shook her head. She was only fourteen. This wasn’t fair. None of it. “She won’t. She’ll go down with the ship.”
“What about me?” My voice was hardly a whisper.
I didn’t have much left in me. First seeing my father the way he was…
and now I was sure the rest of the family hated me.
This was great. He’d managed to royally ruin my life from the grave.
“Is there a letter for me?” There had to be some kind of explanation.
The man spread his hands and shook his head. “No, there wasn’t a letter for you.”
“Did he tell you anything? Has anyone heard anything? Anything at all?” My voice rose an octave as the panic really began to set in.
He shook his head again. “I’m afraid not. There is only a list of his financial advisors and phone numbers that you can call to get more information on your inheritance.”
***
With a spinning head, a crying teenager on my heels, and more money than I knew what to do with…
we left the attorney's office. The quiet building opened up to the hustle and bustle of chaotic New York life. It was almost more of a culture shock than everything we’d gone through in the last twenty minutes.
“What now?” Jane asked. I still couldn’t believe our mother had abandoned her in there with me. Jane was pretty resourceful—you had to be when dealing with our mother, but this was an all-time low. Lower than low.
I huffed out a breath and closed my eyes, but only for a moment. I didn’t want to get waylaid by the traffic on the sidewalk. “What do you want to do?”
“Mother was more concerned about her prenup than the bomb that was dropped on me,” She shrugged as she swiped her fingers under her eyes. “Can I just stay with you for a bit?”
I lived at home, and home was an active crime scene. Amelia was going back home today. We could continue to stay in the hotel room she got, but there wasn’t enough room for Jane, with Mother probably staying there. Could Mother even afford to stay there? As far as I knew, she’d never had a job.
“Yeah, we will go get our stuff and get a new, clean room.”
“What about Mother?” I didn’t know if she was asking because she actually cared or if she was worried about how she would react.
“She’s a big girl, Jane, she’ll figure it out.”
The receptionist at the hotel smiled warmly at us as I got a room for the foreseeable future.
I handed over my card to her, which she scanned quickly, before she handed us both new key cards to a room on the fifteenth floor.
Amelia was coming out of the elevator just as we were about to go up. She beamed as the doors slid open.
“I hear congratulations are in order!” She shimmied her shoulders as she rushed from the elevator.
She threw her arms around my shoulders. “I wish I could stay and celebrate with you, but I’ll send some champagne up to your room!
My father is insistent that I come home and make an appearance at the derby soon.
” She rolled her eyes dramatically. “I do miss my horses, so I guess it’s time. ”
“You have been gone all winter,” I squeezed her tighter before we pulled away. “Thank you for being here.”
The light dimmed in her eyes a bit, and I wondered just how much she was hiding in that head of hers. “I wouldn’t miss being here for the world. I love you and I know how you feel, even if it's a little different.”
She ran her fingers down the side of my cheek affectionately. “How did you know congratulations were in order?”
“I may or may not have taken home a cute financial advisor from the club last night who got a very detailed phone call this morning. Of course, he didn’t tell me anything, but the phone speaker was loud enough.
” She winked at me before she turned her sights on Jane.
“Good luck out there, honey! I’ll be in touch.
” She pecked Jane on the cheek and walked away from us with swishing skirts and bouncing hair.
Jane scrunched her nose. “I think I like her, but I don’t know what to think of her.”
I could agree with that one.
My brain was going ninety to nothing when we exited the elevator onto the fifteenth floor. I was so caught up in everything happening that when I ran straight into what felt like a brick wall, I went straight down on my ass.
I blinked up at the very not a brick wall and winced.
My stomach dropped all the way down to the lobby.
Ivan.
There were rumors he was staying here, but I’d yet to confirm if they were true… They were, and it looked like he was staying on the same floor as us. Jane stumbled to help me up, and I ran my shaking hands down the front of my dress pants.
“Ivan, what a surprise,”
“Poppy, right?”
My eyes narrowed as I looked him up and down. He was carrying a long black case and a dark grey backpack. Did he play an instrument? After everything that had happened to me in the last week, I was done playing nice. I took a step toward him, back into his personal space, and gritted my teeth.
“You know who I am,” I whispered angrily at him.
“I met you at my brother’s bridal shower,” I watched as he swallowed thickly, his Adam’s apple bobbed in his throat.
I was done playing nice. I poked him square in the chest, right where I knew his scar was, right where I’d kissed him. “You can keep pretending like what happened didn't happen but I’m going to get to the bottom of it, and when I do… I’m coming for you.”
I could have been mistaken, but I swore I saw fear flash through his eyes. I took a step back, finally satisfied with something happening in my life, and looked over my shoulder to Jane, whose jaw was definitely on the floor.
“Enjoy your trumpet practice,” I waved my hand to his large case and walked down the hall with my head held high and my shoulders straight. Nothing had ever felt so good.