Legacy

PROLOGUE, CONTINUED

Thoughts of his own children, Grace who was twelve and Charlie who had just turned nine, brought a tear to John’s eye. “Yes, of course,” he replied. “How old is she now? Six?”

The smile broke free this time. “Yes, six—going on thirteen, I believe. She’s a little twig of a thing. Always running about. Feisty, full of life.” He didn’t bother to wipe the tears away that were trickling down his cheek. “After losing the other three before we ever even knew them, Meggy has been the breath of fresh air I needed. I can’t imagine….” He paused, his voice catching in his throat. “I can’t imagine my life without Meggy in it. And my heart breaks for her knowing that soon enough, she will have to carry on without her old Da. That’s what she calls me, Da. Must be those Irish nannies,” he chuckled, finally brushing the tears from his face.

John realized he was crying as well, but he also let out a laugh as he pictured his friend running around the garden with his little girl, her thin arms wrapped around him. “Little girls are God’s gift from heaven.” He remembered his Grace when she was that age, how he’d come home from the factory and set her on his knee to read a story each evening.

“So are little boys,” Henry replied, and there was a pointedness to the statement that brought John back to the present. “That’s what I came to talk to you about, John.”

Henry uncrossed his legs and scooted forward in his seat, setting the glass down on the table next to him. With the motion, John could see just how frail his friend had truly become. His movements were not natural; they were forced and calculated, as if each one took all of his concentration. “What is it?” John asked, unsure where this conversation was headed.

“Charles,” Henry said. “He’s a good boy. You’re a good man, a good provider, a good father. I know your son will be, too. I want to ask you to do me a favor. As a friend. I want Charlie to take care of my Meggy. I want him to marry her, to make sure she’s taken care of. I can’t imagine stepping out of this life not knowing what might happen to her. If I know Charles Ashton will be waiting for her, well, then, perhaps crossing over won’t be quite so bad.”

John didn’t hesitate, not even for a moment. “Of course,” he said, nodding with sincerity. “Absolutely. Whatever you need.”

Henry nodded, as if he had known his friend would come through for him. “I’ve put away 50,000 pounds in a safe deposit box at The Bank of New York, along with a very specific copy of my will. Here is another copy for you along with a key to that box,” he said as he pulled an envelope out of his jacket pocket. “If Charles marries Mary Margaret before she turns twenty-one, the company will be his. He’s to take the money and give half to my wife, the other half to my brother Bertram, who will be running the company in my stead. If he waits until after Meggy is twenty-one, he’ll still get the company, but the money will be hers. If he doesn’t marry her at all…”

“You don’t need to worry about that, Henry. I already gave you my word.”

“I understand that, but life isn’t always exactly what we expect, now is it?” he asked, managing a weak chuckle. “My Meggy is strong-willed, like her mother. If she marries someone else, or if she turns thirty without marrying Charlie, then the company will still belong to Bertram, but the money will be donated to the charity I’ve named in the will. I know it sounds rather complicated, but everything is for a reason.”

“I’ve no doubt,” John nodded, accepting the sealed envelope and slipping it into his own jacket pocket. “I can assure you that Charles will marry her before she turns twenty-one, as that is your hope, is it not?”

“It is,” Henry nodded. “I should like for my wife and brother to have the money, to be pacified by that, and to stay out of Charlie and Meggy’s lives so that they can go on about their business without having to worry about interlopers.”

John knew he must be missing something, but he simply nodded. He didn’t need to know the details of the situation with Henry and his wife and brother. “Charlie is a good boy, that’s for certain. I know that he will understand and will willingly accept Mary Margaret as his wife.”

“Good,” Henry nodded. “It’s likely best to start preparing him sooner rather than later.”

“Indeed,” John nodded. “But here’s to hoping you have several more years to spend with us, old friend, and that you are there to give Meggy away on her wedding day.”

Henry scoffed, leaning back in his chair as if he could no longer hold himself forward. “That would be lovely,” he finally said, his gaze not reaching that of his host. “She does have some money of her own. I’ve put it away for her. I will make sure she knows. I want her to be… taken care of.”

“Surely, Mildred will see that she is,” John offered.

“One would think,” Henry agreed. “I should hope a mother would look after her only surviving child.” His eyes were off in the corner of the room somewhere, and once again, John realized he wasn’t getting the full story. After a long pause, he added, “Meggy is a strong girl. Strong in every way. I know she’ll be all right, even after I’m gone.”

“I will do everything I can to look after her,” John assured him.

“I know you will,” Henry nodded. “You’ve always been a good friend, John.”

“You’re like a brother to me, Henry,” John replied, leaning forward and gingerly placing his hand on his friend’s knee as if he were afraid any pressure might cause him to shatter like glass or dissipate like an apparition.

Henry covered his friend’s strong hand with his frail one. “Do whatever you must, John. Please. Despite what my colleagues might think, my business is not my legacy, Meggy is. She’s all that matters.”