Rat Inheritance

Rat Inheritance

Death was too nice an ending for such a horrible man. I didn’t even want to go to the reading of his will. The man was a bastard. Worse than a bastard really. Mom had gotten cancer twelve years ago and he just vanished. Didn’t want to handle the sticky parts of life, mom would say. Always smiling, even though she was dying and her asshole husband took her car and her money and bailed out. She lived a shit life at the end, and he just walked away with no commitments. Never looked back.

So when Winnie called me to tell me that he had died, I said, “Good riddance.” I think I heard her gasp from the other end of the line. Always playing the sweet girl. Even when it came to him. I asked Winnie why she was ringing me to tell me that.

“Gray, I got a call from a lawyer. Something about both of us needing to come in so he can read over the will.”

“A will? That asshole made a will. Yeah, you go. I don’t have time to cry over that piece of shit. Not anymore. I cried for mom, but not for him.”

“I told the lawyer that. He said it has to be both of us or he cannot do it. Something about a stipulation dad put in. Both or no one gets anything.” Winnie said.

“Yea, well I guess we get nothing then. I refuse to let him bully me anymore. The man has entered my nightmares more times than I can count. I will not let him have this last demand of me.”

“Gray, I need to know what it says. I need this. For closure. He was my daddy too, you know? I know you hate him. I think I kind of do too. And another part of me loves him. Just different than I used to I guess. So please, for me. We need to go. I need to close this chapter of the book.”

“He’s only going to disappoint you again. Only this time from the grave. You know that. I know that. Why do this to ourselves?”

“Just go with me. Please Grayson. I won’t ask anything of you ever again.”

“Winnifred, I will go with you. If you cry though over that man, I am leaving. I don’t want you to shed any more tears for him. This isn’t new, he’s been dead to us for years now anyway.”

“I know, Gray, no more tears. I promise.”

*************

I park in the parking garage and wait for my sister to show up. She said third floor. I notice her green SUV pull in the spot beside me and I wave.

“Winnie, you sure we have to do this, right? We can’t just go to a bar and toast a hoorah that he is gone. You know, like, “ding dong the witch is dead” sort of thing?”

“Haha, funny. No, we have to go in. I have to hear him out, even if he’s already gone.”

“Did you know he was sick?” I ask, hoping she didn’t for some reason.

“No, I guess I just assumed I would never hear about him again. I sometimes looked at the obituaries for his name. Thinking maybe if it came up, I could let it go. The call was a shock to me. After all these years, he somehow made it known after his death. Seems so like him. Doesn’t come around for any of lifes’ events, but wants us to show up for his death. Classic Roy.”

“This better be quick. I feel guilty being here, like I’m cheating on mom and all she went through at the end. He didn’t even call when she died to see if we were ok. I was 19, you were 13. And he didn’t even call.”

“I remember holding mom’s hand those last few months. She would smile and sing songs to me. Tried to make me feel better when I knew she was at her worst. One day, she took my hand and told me she wanted to talk to me about dad. I think I pulled mine away and told her no. I said, ‘Dad’s a jerk. He is dead to me.’ Mom just smiled and said, ‘That may be true, but he was also a good man once upon a time. I remember those times. I think you should too.’ I don’t know why but when the lawyer called me, that's all I could hear in my brain. Like on a loop. He was a good man once upon a time. I guess that is why I wanted to come. For mom and her memory.”

“Well, just so you know, I am here for you. Only you. Not him. I don’t care what baggage he needed to get rid of at the end. I will not forgive him. I will never love him. He died the day he walked out on us.”

We reached the elevator in the parking garage. Winnie got quiet as we waited for the doors to open. When the car finally stopped and we stepped inside, she turned to look at me.

“I know Grayson. I know he died for you that day. And maybe for me too. But not for mom. She loved him. Until she took her last breath, she loved him. And I loved her. More than anything. So I’m going to go listen to what this man had to say at the end. Maybe it will give me some understanding of the man she fell in love with. Because he had to have been good at some point to earn the love of her.” She turned back to staring at the door. I kept my mouth shut, knowing she was right about that. He had to have been worthy at some point for mom to have loved him. 

**********

“Welcome,” the small squirrely man said, handing out a handshake. “I am so glad you could meet today to go through your father’s will.”

“Yea, can we make this quick? I honestly don’t want to spend any extra time thinking of him.” I say. 

Mr LaMoon seems slightly taken back by my bluntness. “Why yes, that is fine. Your father was adamant that I had to read the will to both of you. So you see, I had to have you come in for this.”

“And I am here. For my sister. So start reading ok? So I can go get a drink, maybe two. And cheers to his untimely death.”

“I had the pleasure of meeting your father six months ago. He had just learned of his terminal cancer and begged me to help with his final commitments.”

“Commitments? Is that how he spoke of us? He never bothered to think of us as commitments when he was alive. What a joke, even in death he cannot act like a father.”

“Grayson, please calm down. We are here to follow through on this. I promise when it is complete, we can go have a drink. Sit down,” Winnie pointed to the chair beside her.

“Yes, um, well let’s get on with it, I suppose. I do have to say though in the end, he did wish to make things right,” Mr. LaMoon began. “This is his last writing. He asked that I read this letter to you: 

To my children, I am so sorry for all of the pain that I have put you through. I know that I was a shit. I was never good enough for your mom, yet she loved me anyway. She loved me so much that when she got sick, I could not handle it. I bailed. I did some crap things and I left you both without. For that, I can never repay you. You were both there for your mother in the end. Much better people than I ever was. I did visit her grave the day after she was buried. I would like to think that she forgave me. Knew I was a shit, yet loved me anyway. I hope someday you both can find forgiveness for me too. I have done well for myself in these last few years, and only hope this small amount can help you both to become the people I know that you can be. From Roy”

“That was his final letter? An apology for being shit?” Grayson yelled.

“Your father has left you an inheritance too. He has left you both 250,000 dollars. An amount he hoped would be enough to help you two thrive and grow.”

“Help us? Help us? We have never needed his help. Do you know I was 19 when mom died? I didn’t go to college. I worked two jobs and took care of Winnie. I made sure we kept the house. Made sure Winnie continued to get A’s in school and helped her senior year to apply to 7 colleges. She sacrificed some big universities, and went to community college for her first years so that she wouldn’t go in debt with loans. She graduated a year ago from undergrad. She is on her way to becoming the person everyone knew she would be. But not because of him. Because of mom and because of me. And because of her. I don’t want his money. It feels like blood money, like taking it is saying we couldn’t do it on our own. But we can. We already did.”

“Gray, I am with you. Whatever you want to do. I don’t need dad. The man couldn’t even give a good apology from his grave. He never even said he loved mom, just that she loved him. I don’t know what she saw in him. He was truly an awful human. You tell me what you want and we will do that.”

“Mr LaMoon, please keep the money. We don’t need it.”

“It is not that easy, Grayson. I can’t just keep it. We have to do something with it.”

“Can we hire you? To handle it?”

“Yes, that you can do.”

“Ok, Winnie, do an internet search on your phone.”

“What am I looking up?”

“Type, ‘most obscure non profit organization in the world.’” Grayson says.

“Ok. It is a charity called “The Critter Connection.” Winnie says to him.

“And what do they do at this charity?”

“Find homes for guinea pigs.”

“Perfect. Mr LaMoon, please take out your fee from the money left in the will. Then begin the process of anonymously donating the rest of the money to the Critter Connection. Instead of saying who did it, I would like you to attach a note with the donation.”

“What should the note say, sir?” Mr. LaMoon asks. He has taken out paper and a pen ready to record the message.

“It should read, ‘We hope this money helps your organization. It comes from the biggest rodent we know.’ They are rodents, correct?” Grayson turns and asks his sister.

“It appears as though they are some form of rodent.”

“Perfect. Please send that donation and note, Mr LaMoon. When it has been completed, send me a receipt. That will be all for our visit today. It was lovely meeting you. Good day.”

Winnie and Grayson walked out through the office door. Holding hands.

“Thank you Grayson for everything that you have done for me. You really were the best person to be my guardian,” Winnie says as she hugs his shoulders.

“It was an honor and a privilege Winnie. And dad missed out on watching you become the most beautiful person in the world.”

“You know Gray, I think maybe mom loved dad because he helped her become a mom. She would look at us and see him. Maybe that was enough to keep her loving him too.”

“Let’s go get that drink. We can toast to the death of the rat!”

“Yes, and to The Critter Connection,” they both laughed.