Chapter Ten The Boxes #2
Madison thought she might cry. “How sweet is that?”
Lincoln sniffed. “Now I really feel guilty about losing touch with him.”
“He never lost touch with you. I mean, you were clearly in his thoughts. He must have known how fond you were of him; otherwise, he wouldn’t have kept them. Don’t you agree?” Olivia looked to Madison for support.
“I do,” Madison said thoughtfully. “He wouldn’t have left us his marina if he didn’t think we cared.”
Charlie let out a guffaw. “You saw the condition it was in. Maybe he was getting even.”
“You hush,” Hannah reprimanded him. “You know he hadn’t been feeling well, especially with one storm hittin’ after another.”
“I know. I know. I’m just funnin’ ya. Don’t get your panties in a knot,” he retorted.
“You leave my panties out of this!” Hannah joked. A huge laugh filled the air.
Madison opened another envelope and discovered several photos that dated back to the 1950s.
A young version of her father was glaring at her.
Next to him was Kirby. They were with their Aunt Betty and Uncle George in front of a split rail fence.
Kirby was holding a fishing pole with a big smile on his face.
Her father looked like he wanted to be anywhere else but where he was.
She fell silent and looked deep into those criminal eyes.
He was a bad guy in the making. She could see it in his stance and his stare.
It had taken her a long time to get over the feeling of rejection after her father sent her off to boarding school.
Had she seen this photo sooner, she would have known it wasn’t her.
He was the problem. Not that there was any doubt after he humiliated the family.
She slowly handed it to Lincoln; he shuddered as if a ghost had come back to haunt him.
Olivia stood and went into the kitchen. She returned with a pair of scissors, plucked the photo from her husband’s hand, and began to cut Jackson out of the picture.
“I never liked him,” she said in a very uncharacteristic tone of loathing.
Olivia harkened back to when they were children, and how Madison’s father denigrated Olivia and her mother for not being rich.
Nothing was ever said out loud, but it was painfully obvious they were personae non gratae.
They were never invited to the opulent co-op, and Gwen was always planning clandestine lunches and outings.
She handed the butchered photo back to Lincoln. “There. Much better.”
Madison was stunned and amused. Olivia was the quiet one. Levelheaded. Soft spoken. It was an unusual circumstance if Olivia were to lose her temper.
“Feel better?” Madison asked, tilting her head.
“Much. Thank you,” Olivia said quite calmly, and returned to her spot on the floor.
Charlie rustled a few papers. “Hey. Looky here.” He handed a few pages to Lincoln.
Lincoln read and reread the pages. He shifted his focus to Madison. “See if I am reading this correctly.” He handed her three sheets of paper.
Madison scanned the papers. “Uncle Kirby owns the adjacent properties?” she asked.
“It appears that way. According to the deed, the marina is only one third of it.”
Crusty snapped up. “I knew it!”
Hannah burst in with, “What do you mean you knew it?”
“One day while we were trying to figure out how to start fixing up the place, I told Kirby I was surprised that the other property owners hadn’t checked it out after the storm.” Crusty was excited. “He said, ‘Maybe they already did.’”
“Huh,” Charlie huffed. “I wonder why he never said anything.”
Lincoln peered at an attached paper. “According to this, Uncle Kirby won the property due to a bet.”
“Yeah. Just like the marina!” Crusty sputtered.
Lincoln read the handwritten note out loud:
I, Daniel Farrell, hereby release and relinquish my property Lots 118, 119, 120, also known as 1231 Snug Harbor Drive to Kirby Taylor as payment for an agreement we have sealed in writing.
The papers were signed, witnessed, and notarized. At first glance, they appeared to be legit.
Lincoln said, “I’m going to call our attorney tomorrow and have him look into this.”
“Do ya think that’s what Dennis was after, and not the map?” Charlie proposed.
“It’s possible, but we may never know the answer to that,” Lincoln said.
Madison was stunned, then said calmly, “Uncle Kirby was full of surprises.”
Another hour went by, but nothing else in Uncle Kirby’s papers proved to be relevant.
At least not as far as the property was involved.
Madison began to collect the nautical maps, and Olivia stacked the utility bills on the dining room table.
Lincoln went down the hall to the guest room, where they had a computer and a printer secreted behind the bifold doors of the closet.
It made for a sleek and unobtrusive office space when guests were visiting.
Once the piles were organized and stacked on the table, Olivia went into the kitchen, returned with a charcuterie board, and set it on the coffee table. Madison offered beverages. Crusty asked for a soda; Hannah and Charlie requested beer. Viggo was waiting for dinner before he had another drink.
Lincoln returned with the original agreement between Kirby and Daniel Farrell and the copies. “I scanned them and emailed them to Sidney. I hope he doesn’t mind working during his retirement,” Lincoln mused.
“He said he would continue to represent us, with the help of Jaqui,” Madison reminded her brother.
Sidney had been the family lawyer for decades and turned his business over to his daughter when she got her law degree and passed the bar.
“I can’t imagine what we would have done without him.
I’m glad he’s stepping back, though. He’s got to be in his mid-eighties. ”
“Sometimes it’s the work that keeps people young.” Viggo thought of his grandfather, who continued to work at the fishing co-op in New England. “My Pops is turning eighty this year, and he’s still going strong.”
“And my grandmother was active until she turned ninety-six. We practically had to tie her to a chair!” Hannah hooted. “God love ’er.”
Crusty remained unusually silent. Charlie addressed him. “What’s on your mind?”
“Just wondrin’ why Kirby never said nothin’ about the property.” He looked crestfallen. “Didn’t he trust us?”
“Maybe it was part of the deal,” Charlie suggested. “Otherwise, his kids woulda tried to get it back when their old man died.”
“So maybe they’re trying to get it back now,” Viggo stated.
Madison gave Viggo a long stare. He could tell she had something on her mind. He nodded slightly to let her know that he knew her wheels were turning. They were certainly in sync.
A half an hour later, the group dispersed with many thanks going around.
“I really appreciate all of you.” Madison hugged each of them. It was a gesture she was getting used to.
Olivia finished the farewells with more hugs. Lincoln patted Charlie and Crusty on the back and gave Hannah a peck on the cheek. Viggo stood to one side. He didn’t want to inject himself into something where he had no claim. He simply waved and nodded.
Charlie and Hannah skittered down the walkway. Hannah was giddy. She slipped her arm through the crook of Charlie’s arm and leaned close to his ear. “Did you notice that Viggo wasn’t leaving?”