Chapter 60
“Well?” McCracken said expectantly.
“This is … a lot,” Maeve said finally. “I need some time to process all of this.”
McCracken looked shocked. “I expected you would be thrilled, overjoyed, at this news. It would be premature to speculate on the size of Esme’s holdings, but you do realize that you and your sister stand to inherit a sizeable estate, don’t you?”
“A sizeable estate with considerable strings and a huge commitment attached,” Maeve pointed out. “You’re expecting us to walk away from our homes, our families, friends, and our careers, to drop everything and move to a new country, into a falling-down, rat-infested dump.”
“Career?” McCracken folded and unfolded his handkerchief.
“You’re a university professor, correct?
We have several prestigious universities in the region, although practically speaking, you won’t really need a job.
And your sister, the actress? No reason she couldn’t pursue acting right here in Ireland. ”
“Please stop!” Maeve begged.
Sinead stirred, sat up, and gave Maeve a quizzical look.
“What happens if we say no thank you?” she asked. “If Therese and I decide we don’t want to upend our lives in the States and move to Ireland? What if we don’t choose to let a perfect stranger determine what our futures hold?”
McCracken looked stunned. “I’ve never had beneficiaries of an inheritance decline it before, in all my years of practice.
My guess is that eventually, Esme’s estate would be deemed property of the state.
Or, there’s the distinct possibility Geoffrey would pursue a claim to his sister’s estate.
But that could take years.” He looked over at Sinead, who was busily snacking on the remnants of Maeve’s sandwich.
“And in the meantime the dog would be surrendered to an animal shelter until such time as someone else adopts her.”
“You wouldn’t really do that, would you?” Maeve asked, horrified by the prospect that Esme’s dog could end up in a cage somewhere.
“I’m bound by Esme’s wishes,” he said calmly.
Maeve stood abruptly, leaving Sinead to scramble onto the floor.
“I don’t mean to be ungrateful, but I need to think about this,” she said forcefully. “I’ve got to talk to Therese and see what she says.” She grabbed her pocketbook from the back of her chair and started for the door with the dog trotting along in her wake.
“Where are you going?” Liam rushed to her side.
“I’m not sure. But I guess, for now, Sinead is going wherever I go. I suppose I’ll call the inn and beg them to find me a room. At least for tonight.”
McCracken had followed them to the exit. “That shouldn’t be a problem. I’ll have a word with Shawn, the manager at the inn. She’s next on my list to call anyway.”
“Why would you call the inn about Esme?” Liam asked.
“Because Esme owned the inn. Or rather, Ms. Dunagin and her sister own it now. In trust for Sinead.”
“I thought Shawn Davis owned the inn,” Liam said.
“When Lord Rossington donated the manor house over to the National Trust, following the robbery, he conveyed the gardener’s cottage to Esme, and the inn to Geoffrey, who had no interest in becoming a hotelier, and very nearly ran it into the ground.
Two years later, Esme bought out her brother, a fact which she deliberately kept secret from the community.
Ms. Davis, the manager, is very competent, and has run the place brilliantly these last few years. ”
Maeve could barely process this last bit of news. “Theoretically, we now own the inn, and the gardener’s cottage?”
“In trust for Sinead,” McCracken said. “I’ll call Shawn and ask her to book you into the owner’s suite, shall I?”
“Yes, fine, whatever.” Maeve felt as though her head would explode with all the information that had just been dumped on her. She had to get out of the pub, get some fresh air, and think.