'No, Mom. You should have gotten something too. You stood by him for all those years before he walked out on you. You deserve something from that.'
'I'm perfectly comfortable moneywise,' Ann protested mildly. 'Frank knew that.'
'OK. But what about me? Simon, you stole my inheritance from under my nose.'
'How do you get that idea?'
'I've seen how you worked your way into Dad's favours. Getting the job at Revere, getting Lisa, being the perfect son-in-law. You kissed his ass and it worked!'
Given the deterioration of my relationship with Frank before he died, the irony of this comment made me smile. Big mistake.
'Oh, you just go right ahead and laugh about it. Just go ahead and deposit that fat cheque. It's pretty funny'
'I'm sorry, Eddie,' I said. 'But Frank didn't consult me about his will, I can assure you of that.'
'Yeah, but you and Lisa spent so much time with him,' now he turned on his sister. 'The only reason he cut me out is because I stood by Mom. He should never have left us. I didn't go running to him. That's why I didn't get any of his money'
Lisa looked shocked. She had viewed this meeting as just an administrative item that had to be got through before her family went back to California.
'Eddie, I loved him,' she said. 'I don't want his stupid money.'
'Oh, yeah, you loved him. Never mind Mom. And he…' he jabbed a finger in my direction,'he will love his money.'
I could watch Eddie attacking me with something close to amusement. But not Lisa. 'Eddie…' I growled.
'No, Simon,' Lisa put her hand on mine. 'I really don't care about the money' She turned to the lawyer. 'Mr Bergey. Isn't there any way I can renounce half of it? Give it to Eddie?'
'Hm,' the lawyer frowned. 'You do have the right to renounce all or part of your inheritance, up to nine months after the date of death. Your renunciation would not necessarily direct the funds to your brother, since he is not a named default in the will. So the funds would be disposed under the laws of intestacy, which means…' he paused, thinking it through, 'that since you have no issue, Edward Cook would be the next in line after all.'
'Great,' said Lisa. 'Let's do it.'
Bergey cleared his throat. 'I strongly suggest that you think carefully before you decide to take that course. After all, we are talking about Mr Cook's estate here. He was very clear that he wanted everything to go to you.'
Lisa glanced at Eddie. 'I'm sure it's what I want. But I'll think it over if you like. Perhaps I can see you next week, and we can figure out a way of getting this done?'
'Very well,' said Bergey.
Eddie breathed in. He smiled at Lisa. 'Thank you,' he said.
Lisa smiled quickly back. But a few minutes later, as we all got up to leave the room, I caught Eddie glaring at me.
I was eager to get back to the office while Lisa took the other two to the airport. I was looking forward to a dose of normality.
It was with relief that I immersed myself in the problems of Net Cop and Tetracom. But I was soon disturbed by a summons from Gil.
He sat me down on his sofa and poured me a cup of coffee.
'Thank you for coming in today, Simon. I know you must have a lot on your plate at home, but we can definitely use you here. There's plenty to do, and Frank leaves a big hole.'
'It's no problem. It's good to have the distraction, to be honest.'
'I'm sure,' said Gil sympathetically. 'How's Lisa?'
'Not great,' I said.
'No. It must be bad for her. And you?'
'Not too good, either. I just wish Frank and I had parted on better terms.'
'Don't beat yourself with that, Simon. Frank thought very highly of you. He told me so on many occasions. And although he's gone, I won't forget his opinions. They were always worth listening to.'
I tried to smile.
Gil cleared his throat. 'This is a difficult question, but I think it's important to clear the air. The police have been asking all of us here all kinds of questions about Frank, and about you. They haven't said anything directly, but from their questions I'd guess they view you as a likely suspect.'
'I know'
'So my question is, are they correct?'
'You mean, did I kill Frank?'
Gil nodded. His eyes, shrunken by the thick lenses of his glasses, bored into me. I met them, held them.
'No, Gil. No, I didn't.'
Gil paused a moment, and then sat back. 'Good. I believe you. I thought so, but I wanted to ask for myself. I want you to know that you have my total support, and that of the firm. If there's anything I can do for you please ask.'
'Thank you,' I said. 'Um, Gil?'
'Yes?'
'There is one thing. I wonder if you could give me the name of a good criminal lawyer? I doubt I'll need one, but you never know'
Gil looked at me strangely for a moment, as if wondering whether he had made a mistake in trusting me so quickly. Then he gave me a quick smile. 'Certainly. Hold on a moment.' He went over to his desk and rifled through his Rolodex. 'Gardner Phillips. He's an old friend of mine, and a fine trial lawyer. Here's his number.'
He handed me an index card, and I jotted down the details.
'Thanks. As I say, I hope I won't need him.' I made as if to get up.
'One moment, Simon. There's something else I wanted to talk to you about.'
'Oh yes?'
'Net Cop. What are you planning to do about it?'
'As I told you, I don't intend giving up quite yet. The company can continue for a month or so as it is. Craig Docherty and I are trying to find some other sources of funds to develop the prototype switch.'
Any luck?'
'None yet. But we've only just started.'
'I see. I'm worried about Craig Docherty. I think Frank might have been right about him.'
I looked at Gil sharply. 'What do you mean?'
'He came to see me last week. He threatened me, said he would go to the press with the story of how Revere allegedly hadn't met its commitment to him.'
I groaned. How could Craig have been so stupid? 'What did you tell him?' I asked.
'I told him to leave my office. I won't be blackmailed by my entrepreneurs.'
'He was probably just upset,' I said. 'He was pretty angry when I told him we were going to pull out.'
'Oh it was clear he was upset. But as Frank said, it clouded his judgement. It wasn't smart to threaten me.'
'I think he's calmer now. I can make sure he doesn't do anything like that again.'
'It was stupid, Simon. If he did something that stupid once, he's going to do something just as stupid again.'
I saw Gil's point. 'What do you want me to do about it?'
Gil paused. 'Do you really think you can salvage something from this investment?'
'I think so. I don't make any promises…' I looked up at Gil, who caught the point and smiled, 'but I will do my best.'
'OK. Do this. Carry on with Net Cop. Get every last dollar you can out of it. But tell Craig Docherty that if he breathes a word to the press that might harm Revere's reputation, he'll be fired from Net Cop, and he'll never get venture backing from anyone in this town again.'
