Still talking aloud to herself she said. “A plan. That’s what I need. If it’s money that’s the problem, I don’t need to be paying for an apartment that I can barely afford. It won’t do anything for Em except be on the Estate to help her with whatever she needs. Maybe once I’m out there every day, I can do more good ~ I hope.” She rolled down the window. She’d stay in Hartley for a couple of days to put her plan in motion. For now, she would keep Em in the dark.
~~~~~
“Digby, did you know about this?” Without knocking, Emelina strode into his office. Digby sat up straight, and stood to face his boss. “What is it, Miss Emelina? You’re troubled. Here, sit down.” He was confused, but only for a moment. “You’re talking about the balance sheet for the orchard and apiary aren’t you?”
“Yes. Why haven’t you told me we’re in trouble? I need to know these things, Digby.” Looking more closely at the kind man who had lived and worked faithfully on the Estate, the distress on his face pained her. “I’m sorry, Digby. I’ve been rude coming in here and demanding like a…….like a……” Words failed her. She took a deep breath and handed Digby the old ledger that Dez had left with her. He took it from her and studied the pages marked ‘Orchard and Apiary Expenses/Profits’. His face smoothed, then a small smile crept on his face. “This does look quite frightening, Miss Emelina.” He recognized her sister’s writing from the many notes she had left for him. Miss Dez has done a good job of keeping track of things.”
“Why are you smiling, Digby? This is dreadful!” It was Emelina’s turn to be confused. A patient man, Digby explained “These numbers are accurate, but they are only for the orchard and apiary. Do you recall the very odd will Mr. Michael set up?” He closed the ledger, setting it on his desk. Emelina sat back in her chair, tipped her head back and closed her eyes. “Oh, Digby, I do not remember that day. It’s still all blurred. But what does that have to do with this very serious imbalance?” She sat forward again. “What do I tell Dez? Not to worry about it?”
“When will you be seeing her again?” Digby needed to ease his employer’s worries. “Do you have your calendar with you? Let me make an appointment with the family lawyer.” He turned to his own calendar. “Can you include my sister on that appointment. I’ll let her know about it.”
~~~~~
Dez had been right. It was none of her business. Until now. The text message from her sister was “Appointment with family lawyer for both of us - Monday at 2pm. Let me know if that works for you.” There were no details. The lawyer? It must be worse than she thought. Moving out to the Estate could not come soon enough. She texted “OK see you Monday. Meet me at my apartment at one.”
“Well, I guess I’d better keep packing.” She already had empty boxes stacked haphazardly in each room of her small apartment. Getting boxes hadn’t been as difficult as she thought. “I’d better eat my supper first.” She cleared space enough on her table for her pizza box and coke. Picking up a piece of pizza she opened kitchen drawers and covered her cupboard with their contents. A wad of twist ties, old batteries, useless plastic bags, an old stack of paper napkins. She stuck the last bite in her mouth. Using one of the napkins, she wiped her mouth and her fingers. Her hand with the greasy napkin hung in the air. Suddenly she stuffed everything back in the open drawer. “What if….. “ She picked up another piece of pizza. Her mouth full, she mumbled. “What if the lawyer tells us that Em has to sell of part of the Estate - will that be Martha’s duplex as well?”
Picking up the pizza box, she went into the living room, crossed to the patio doors and went outside. It was a lovely evening. Sun was low, breeze barely stirring leaves, a warm day cooling off. “Now what am I going to do? I’ve already cancelled my lease - maybe they’ll give me a new one.”
“You think you know this story, You do not.”
~ Jane Yolen, Finding Baba Yaga: A Short Novel in Verse
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