Page 5 of Wild Scottish Knight
“They’re like their own built-in support group,” Lottie whispered to me, and this time, I did chuckle. I couldn’t help it, but I was pleased that Arthur had made that decision.
I’ve never liked any of those women, and I’d always had a hard time understanding why Arthur had continued to pay them alimony even for the briefest of marriages. “Hush money,” Lottie had called it. And what she meant by that was the payments kept the women from calling Arthur and harassing him.
“‘To my brother, Robert MacKnight, I leave my collection of antique toys and my prized fire engine toy truck. I still remember playing with those toys together when we were boys. I think it was the last time I saw you smile in an open and carefree manner. You’ve grown cold, calculated, and controlling, and I’m sorry to see the man that you’ve become. I’m hoping the gift of these toys will bring back a sense of childhood wonderment to your life, and maybe it will help you to realize that life isn’t just about acquiring more.’”
I jumped in my seat as my father slammed his fist on the table and stood. Shaking with rage, he pointed at Harold. “I’m going to contest this will. Expect to hear from my attorney. Let’s go.” The last part Robert snapped at my mother, who immediately started to rise.
“‘To Robert’s wife, Drea MacKnight, I leave you five million dollars on the condition that you divorce Robert and become the woman and the mother to Sophie that I suspect you’re capable of being.’” My mother froze in an awkward crouched position, half out of her chair, her eyes darting between Harold and Robert. My heart stilled, and the tiniest bit of hope bloomed inside me. I don’t know why I was hopeful because, at this point, I wasn’t sure that a forced effort to try to be my mother would erase years of hurt, but still… I waited, wondering what would be more enticing to her—a chance at freedom and the opportunity to have a relationship with her daughter or staying in the comfort of what she knew with a man who made all the decisions in her life. Robert snapped his fingers again like he was beckoning his prize show dog, and I already knew the answer before my mother’s eyes darted to mine and then away. She straightened and cleared her throat. The room was dead silent.
“I, um, will be joining my husband.” She started to turn, but Harold stopped her.
“The terms of the will are very clear. If you leave now, the offer is off the table.”
I gulped, and Lottie reached over to put an arm around my shoulders. We both knew that the wound of my parents’ abandonment was one that would never fully heal, even though I had somewhat made peace with it. Now their rejection reared its ugly head again, and I tried not to feel like a little girl wishing her parents would love her. My father reached over and grabbed my mother’s hand, dragging her across the room. At the doorway he turned, not sparing me a glance, and pointed a finger at Harold. “Five million is nothing. You’ll be hearing from my attorney.”
With their departure, the room remained uncomfortably silent. I looked down at the table, unable to accept the sympathetic looks of everyone who had just witnessed my mother refusing to put her only child first.
“Your love is worth more than five million. Arthur knew that, andIknow that. Don’t let them decide your worth,” Lottie whispered fiercely in my ear. I nodded, though it was impossible for me to speak past the lump in my throat.
“‘To my enchanting wife, Lottie, I leave everything else.’” At that, Harold looked up and around the room. “And at this juncture, he’s asked that everybody leave except for Sophie and Lottie.” Harold waited patiently while the rest of the disgruntled attendees filed from the room. In moments, the doors were closed, leaving us to look across the table at Harold. Poor Harold, I thought as he pulled a handkerchief out of his pocket and dabbed the sweat from his brow. Looking up, he surprised us both with a grin that transformed his face from boring to roguish. Well, then, Harold. I hadn’t seen that coming. Perhaps that was why my uncle had employed him? I suspected Harold was often underestimated, which probably made him killer during negotiations.
“Well, that wasn’t fun, now was it? Anyone up for a bit of whisky?” Harold stood and helped himself to a glass from the sidebar. Though I still hadn’t acquired the taste for whisky, I nodded in agreement. Lottie stood and pulled me to sit closer to Harold at the end of the table. “Sláinte.”
We held our glasses in the air and each took a sip. Nope, whisky was still not my favorite. I grimaced and put my glass down.
“‘Now that Robert has punched something and the rest of the gold diggers have stormed off, I have a few other last wishes.’” Harold looked up from the papers and gave another charming smile. “‘Lot-Lot, I want to thank you for being the best of all my wives. I only wish that I had met you first, but I can’t ever express to you how much I valued every day that we did have together. You brought incredible joy and light to my life, and it was a gift that I will forever be grateful for. I love you, my sweet Lot-Lot, and I trust that you will make good decisions with my business and my investments. That being said, I do have a proposal for some of my land that I would like for you to turn into a protected nature reserve. I hope that you will take joy in establishing a beautiful and natural outdoor creative space. Perhaps even an animal sanctuary? I want you to build a space that will continue to give joy back to the world long after I’m gone.’” Lottie was openly crying now, and tears filled my eyes. I’d known just how much the two had loved each other, but this was a testament to the strength of their bond. Arthur had zero reservations about giving everything to Lottie, knowing she’d do right by him and his company. Complete and total trust. If I knew anything about Lottie, she would likely pour all her money into creating the best nature preserve she could.
“‘And to you, my dear, darling Sophie. What a joy you were in my life. I’m sorry about the stunt with your mother. While I do hold some hope that she’ll make the right choice, I suspect she won’t. If that’s the case, let me explain my reasoning for putting you on display like that. I want you to fully understand that your mother’s choices are her own. She had an opportunity for freedom from Robert, along with a cushy paycheck to pad the loss of your father’s income. If millions of dollars won’t change her mind, neither will you. It’s time to close that door and accept that your parents will never change. It is one hundred percent her loss, and when she’s lying on her deathbed, she will deeply regret that she bowed down to your father instead of standing up for her daughter. It’s a shameful thing, this mother turning away from her child, but, oh my, what a wonderful gift it was to me. You, my dear, have been, aside from Lottie, of course, one of the best things that ever happened to me in my life. And I’ve had a lot of cool things happen because, well—I’m rich. We get to do a lot of cool shit.’”
Harold smiled when Lottie narrowed her eyes at him.
“His words,” Harold said, brandishing the papers. “‘That being said, my last bequest is an unusual one, and I’d like for you to listen without judgment.’”
“Here we go,” Lottie said, taking a sip of her whisky.
“‘Sophie, I have set up a trust in your name that can be accessed after several conditions are met. Additionally, there will be some rules for the use of money from the trust during the grace period and until such conditions are met.’” Harold’s serious face was back, and he looked at me to make sure that I understood.
“Okay, that makes sense. I have a general grasp on how trusts work,” I said. I tried another sip of the whisky, hoping I’d warm to it, but still it just tasted bitter to me.
“‘Immediately, I am putting you on a one-year leave from the company,’” Harold began and my mouth dropped open in surprise.
“What? But…I’ve worked so hard,” I sputtered. It was the truth. Nothing had been handed to me just because I was Arthur’s niece. Not only did I love my job, but I was good at it, too. I cared deeply about the company, and our turnover was quite low for the size and global reach we had. It spoke to the fact that Arthur had created a space where people were valued.
“‘You may have your job back, after a year, if you want it. However, first you must do the following,’” Harold continued. He looked up at me from the papers, where I just stared at him, my mouth hanging open like a goby. “‘You are now the new owner of MacAlpine Castle in Scotland. It’s your job, and your birthright, to restore the Order. Harold will arrange your flight on the private plane, but you must go at once. You’re needed, desperately.’”
“Wait, what…Scotland? Why? What do I know about castle upkeep?” I asked, raising my hand weakly into the air. “I’m a brand manager. Not a…castle manager. I’m sure Arthur could have found a far more qualified individual for this endeavor.”
“‘During the time of your stay, you may access your trust for improvements to the castle and the village as needed, as well as a generous stipend for you to live on. When you arrive, ask for Hilda. And Agnes. They’ll know what to do.’”
I waited after Harold finished, certain there would be more, and when nothing else came, I turned to Lottie.
“Had…Arthur been drinking more in his last days?” I asked, desperately hoping this was some sort of mistake. I couldn’t just uproot my life and move to Scotland for a year. I had a job here. An apartment. A boyfriend. Lottie was here. This was…this was…mylife. How could Arthur make such a call? First that stunt with my mother, and now this? He’d known how much I resented people trying to control my life and then he’d swooped in and done just that. For the first time ever, bitterness swelled on my tongue for Arthur.
“No, he hadn’t been. This was something he wanted,” Lottie said, her tone gentle.
“You knew?” I gasped, my voice rising at least an octave.
“I did. Though very little of the details. I…well, I agreed with him.”