Ramifications
By Caleb and Eric
It's our story but their characters, folks, thus the story is free.
No unauthorized reposting please.
Now, on with the show!
Ramifications 11
Hunting for British Royalty!
The next morning Nigel came in with a happy smile on his soft lips and it wasn't due to the lipstick he was wearing. There was a spring in his step - not only was it great waking up feeling wonderful from all the attention from the state's movers and shakers of society and government last night, but the press coverage in the morning newspaper was stupendous! 'Sydn… I mean I am more famous than the former Sydney was before the great body exchange we underwent!' Nigel contemplated his borrowed success while reading the headlines and channel surfing through the morning news shows on TV.
Every paper and local news channel mentioned the triumphs of their successful hunt for relics in Crete and most highlighted the story with pictures of the beautiful Professor Fox taken when Nigel and Sydney arrived back in the states. Nigel recorded them all, especially the coverage of the embrace by the President! He knew the President was beloved, but someone must have noticed the man's hand on Nigel's succulent rear end! Not one station mentioned the President feeling him up! The man could do no wrong in the eyes of the press but Nigel knew better! At least the pictures were flattering and did justice to his current body.
In his euphoria over the positive reports, Nigel didn't notice the guilty starts of Sydney and Karen when he arrived at the office.
The telephone rang. It was for Nigel, so Sydney of course had to take it.
"Roderick Stanley here. Nigel, old chap, or should I say Lord Sandwich, we were surprise not to hear from you about your inheritance, but upon reading this morning's newspapers I can see you were very busy with that relic hunting business down in Greece! Helping the famous Professor Fox with her adventures in Crete must of course take precedence to your personal business. She must be absolutely wizard to kill three murderous thieves and find a treasure like that!"
Sydney was torn between annoyance and pride. Nigel had done quite well, but she had come up with the plan to trap the Minotaur and she had rescued the relics as well, not Nigel.
She reluctantly agreed with the man. "She certainly is!"
"Well, you really need to come back to England now to officially claim the title - by tomorrow at the absolute latest, old boy. There are endless items on the agenda. What with receiving the inheritance, your investiture, meeting the queen - you know, all the usual sort of bother."
"I understand." Sydney acknowledged, with a sinking feeling. What was she going to do? "I will call you with the flight number."
"Excellent, Lord Sandwich. It's going to be a rather difficult adjustment calling you that - I've called you Nigel ever since you were a pint sized little chap in knickers and I was the young family solicitor."
Roderick Stanley wasn't the only one to be discomforted by the use of the British title. Sydney felt even weirder being called Lord Sandwich than she did being called Nigel. After nearly two weeks, she was used to others calling her by that name. Being part of British royalty was a new experience, and one she would prefer to avoid. However, Nigel had commitments and since she was currently force to take his place…
"I wish you would call me Nigel, Mr. Stanley. "
"Very kind of you, Lord…Nigel. I am honored. Permit me to say it will be far nicer to work for you and with you instead with your late cousin. It was most trying getting him out of scrapes. Like the time he pinched the late Princess, bless her soul! Very bad form, that was! I had to draft three separate apologies to her highness, the Prince, and the Queen herself! He wasn't really a bad bloke, but one to let his emotions rule his intellect. Still, he deserved a better fate than the one he received. I will miss him."
"As will I." Sydney's head was in a whirl. Somehow, she and Nigel had to change back before tomorrow so Nigel could claim his title, but how? I guess I can delay going back with some sort of an excuse. Absently, and full of confusing thoughts, she headed towards her former office to explain the new agenda. She didn't notice a calculating look on Karen's beautiful face.
Nigel heard him out and then said.
"Sydney, I want you to go overseas for me. I would be an utter disaster claiming my title looking like this!" Nigel waved a hand over his bosom and his wide hips. "You will do much better. They are expecting the man I used to be, not the woman I currently am. The title can only be given to a male heir. The beastly relatives would never accept me. You can put them in the their place, and arrange my affairs much better than I could."
Sydney was surprised. "I not am sure about that Nigel."
"Well I am! They would have me tied up in knots. I would make myself look like a fool. "Her voice took on a more commanding aspect." Look, Sydney I did the weekend with your beau, the least you can do is do the inheritance trip for me."
Sydney could not help but see the justice of this. "It's not like I have much choice. They are expecting a British man, not an American woman! They aren't likely to give the title to you as you are now, even if they hold you in high regard after our hunt in Crete. I'll go. I guess it's a good thing I upgraded your wardrobe."
Nigel laughed. " Sydney, I know you will make me look good no matter what you wear! You are a classy lady… even if you are currently a man."
"Why thank you Nigel. I think that's the nicest thing you ever said to me." Sydney kissed him on the cheek and they both blushed. It was the closest contact they had had since being tied chest to chest by Indians in Peru on a relic hunt months ago.
They went over whom Sydney would meet in England. Sydney took copious notes, and they sent Karen out to fetch Nigel's family album from his apartment so she would have a visual image to go along with Nigel's descriptions. By the end of the afternoon, Sydney was well prepared. It was a little like a relic hunt she told herself, only she was hunting a British title instead of a relic. Preparation was the name of the game for both! Later, Karen, with misty eyes, kissed Sydney's manly lips.
"I will miss you something dreadful, Nigel sweetheart!"
Poor Sydney was all confused. How to deal with Karen when if things worked out the way she hoped, Nigel would be reoccupying his own body very soon. She knew how to handle a relationship with a man but had never been with a woman before becoming a man. "I will miss you too, Karen. I wish you could go with me but…" she added, trying to be polite to the woman who had become her sexual partner.
Sydney was startled when Karen flung her arms around her, nearly knocking her off her feet.
"Oh, Nigel, thank you, thank you, thank you! I will be gladly come with you! I am so proud you want to take me to introduce me as your fiancée."
Sydney couldn't believe what Nigel's ears had heard! "Come with me? To Great Britain?" she muttered weakly.
"No need to ask me twice, darling, I already said I would go with you! I am so happy you want me to be with you. The woman who loves you should be by your side when you become royalty!" Karen said deftly, pretending it was Nigel's idea and not hers to tag along with him. She had already accelerated their relationship into a proposal and Nigel hadn't corrected her yet. It was time to use the rest of her ammunition and cement the deal.
"I will be very proud to be the future Lady Sandwich. I can't believe our baby will be a future Earl!"
Sydney gulped. "Our baby?" When did she fall down that Rabbit hole? "You mean a child we might have someday in the future, right?" Sydney prayed that was what she meant!
"No, Nigel, darling! I am pregnant with our child. I was going to wait until we were alone tonight to tell you back at your place, but its true. The test came out positive. My gynecologist confirmed the results of the home testing kit today. The rabbit died!"
Sydney felt sympathy with the unknown rabbit! She would have wished she were dead, but that god Ram was probably still listening, and might have made that wish a reality as well. Nigel is going to kill me when he finds out I made him father, she thought. But maybe not! He's always had the hots for Karen ever since she started working here. He just hasn't done anything about asking her out. He probably thinks it wouldn't be appropriate for the office, or that it could be misinterpreted as sexual harassment by Karen. Sydney had never been more embarrassed in her life. Not even when she had to dance naked in the Bordio tribe's fertility dance to get a relic she wanted. As hard as it was to believe, she was going to be a father!
"What am I going to tell Nigel?" she wondered… and when? She decided to save it until after the trip.
While Sydney sat stunned and bemused, Karen leaned forward, smiled and kissed him on the check. She deftly removed Nigel's wallet and took a credit card from his wallet.
"You make the reservations for two, darling. I'll do some shopping. I know you don't want the future Countess of Sandwich to disgrace you in England by wearing last year's fashions."
Sydney watched her leave with rueful admiration. She looked fantastic for an expectant mother. My god, can women manipulate men! In less than ten minutes, Sydney had gone from being a bachelor to being a future father with a fiancée! If she ever got her body back, she promised herself she would never manipulate a man again!
In a castle in England, two of Nigel's remaining relatives were talking. "Nigel Bailey is on his way. What a dear, dim, inoffensive bloke. We will have no trouble with him."
Lady Catherine Frothingam spoke. "Absolutely right, Basil, my love. Nigel will do what we tell him. He was always self-effacing and lacking in confidence."
"A word of caution, we must bear in mind Nigel has been associating with Professor Fox, that aggressive, take no prisoners relic hunter for the last three years. Some of her ruthless American tendencies may have tarred the lad." cautioned Sir FitzWilliam Wooster.
"Nonsense!" decried the maternal Lady Catherine.
No one dared contradicted her.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
At London's Heathrow airport, Roderick Stanley and a gaggle of Nigel's remaining relatives met Sydney and Karen.
"Ah, you must be Karen, the future Lady Sandwich. We talked on the telephone. It was so thoughtful of you to call and tell us of your engagement. Nigel is a lucky fellow!"
Sydney gave Karen a dirty look. 'The girl is really boxing me - I mean Nigel into getting married!'
As they approached the estate, Karen couldn't believe the size of the castle and the grounds. She had stars in her eyes. 'Someday soon, I will be mistress of all this! Unbelievable!'
Both the beauty and the antiquity of the old castle amazed Sydney and Karen.
Sir FitzWilliam Wooster and Lady Catherine Frothingam insisted that Nigel sign the documents transferring the title to him as soon as possible so the estate could run smoothly. Roderick Stanley prepared the necessary papers in the study while Sydney and Karen were shown to their rooms. Both were impressed by the sheer size of their accommodations. They didn't make rooms like the ones in the castle anymore. Indeed, they hadn't made rooms like that in several centuries.
Unbeknownst to Roderick, Lady Frothingam slipped into the study after he finished his work in the study and exchanged some of the documents he had set out on the antique desk with similar papers she and Sir Wooster had prepared in advance. Subtle changes would insure that neither Nigel nor Karen, or any of their offspring would ever be more than a figurehead. Wooster and Frothingam would be the true power behind the new Earl.
Lady Catherine closed the door behind her moments before her accomplice would have been forced to distract Nigel. She walked over by Sir Wooster and greeted Nigel as he came down the stairs with Karen. Roderick finished making a call to his office and escorted them all into the study.
"Please sit down at the desk, Nigel. It, this castle, and all the Sandwich estate will belong to you as soon as you sign these papers!"
Karen, Lady Catherine and Sir Wooster all offered Sydney pens. The sooner he signed the papers, the better they would all feel.
"You need to sign here, and here, and it will all be yours, Nigel!" Roderick told Sydney.
Sydney had learned long ago to read the fine print before she signed anything. Judging by the anticipation on the faces of Lady Frothingam and Sir Wooster, she had a hunch something weird was going on. She read each document carefully. While she wasn't a lawyer, she had a facile mind and soon spotted the bogus paragraphs which would give control of the estate to Wooster and Frothingam.
"What are you trying to do, Mr. Stanley? The wording of this page gives control of everything over to these two!" She pointed over to the shocked faces of Nigel's relatives.
Roderick looked over the papers. "These are not the papers I put out to be signed, Nigel. Someone has replaced them with these phony pages, and judging by whom these pages say the new recipients are I believe we know exactly who did the deed!
Roderick turned towards Sir Wooster and Lady Frothingam. They cringed as he reached into his jacket and pulled out . . . a cellphone. They sighed with relief. They had expected a weapon! But when Roderick used it to call in the authorities, they quivered with fear! Lady Catherine fainted, while Sir Wooster ran out the door!
Sydney was a woman whose middle name ought to be action and she started to run after the errant relative, but she stopped when Roderick suggested restraint.
"Don't worry, Nigel. He won't get far. I drove us here, remember. I have the keys, so he will have quite a walk just to get off the castle grounds. The Bobbies will have him in custody before he can get safely away."
"Well, good show, Roderick! I guess we just wait for them to arrive, then."
"Not at all, lad. Gather up a couple of the staff to fill for these two as witnesses. I'm sure this lovely lady would volunteer but we need a resident of the country." Karen smiled at the brave solicitor and accepted the compliments. Of course, she would have volunteered to be a witness! She had been too busy being relieved that Nigel hadn't found out how she had kept the first word of his inheritance from him. Grateful, she promised herself to be the best wife any woman could be from that moment on.
Roderick continued, "Meanwhile, I will print out fresh copies of the papers for you to sign off of my laptop computer. We'll be ready to go in about five minutes, Nigel!"
Sydney was surprised by the way her - or rather Nigel's - relatives thought they could put one over Nigel. Not on her watch, though! After the papers were signed, over the recovered Catherine's objections, the authorities brought Sir Wooster in for identification. His clothing was torn and covered with foliage, and upon entering the study again, he begged the new Earl of Sandwich for forgiveness to no avail.
When Sydney got through chastising them, Lady Catherine had to be hospitalized for a nervous breakdown and Sir Wooster felt like a dragon had come in, chewed them up, and spit them out!
Upon hearing the recount of events, the rest of Nigel's nearest and dearest were horrified at 'his' willfulness and independence as much as they were shocked by the criminal actions of Catherine and FitzWilliam.
"It's almost like the dear boy we used to know has become another person entirely," said Basil, not realizing how close to the truth he was!
"That blasted Professor Fox has changed the lad out of all recognition. Even his accent isn't as British as it once was. He speaks like an American now!" said James, another member of the Wooster part of the family tree and FitzWilliam's cousin.
"I don't understand why he is marrying that dreadful America girl!" complained Lady Catherine's sister, Constance Frothingam.
"If you were a man you would understand, my dear Constance! Sydney Fox is very sexy! Or perhaps I should say Foxy!" said Basil with a broad smile.
The lawyer part of Roderick Stanley was surprised at Nigel's solid grasp of the ins and outs of his inherited estate, and by his decisiveness. The dear boy had certainly matured during his adventures overseas. It was a shame that poor Nigel had been trapped into a most unequal alliance with his fiancée, but he had to admit that the beautiful Karen was an absolute stunner. Boys would be boys, after all, even when they became men. If it didn't work out, there was always divorce. He made a mental note to advise the new Earl to get a pre-nuptial agreement just in case.
When 'Nigel' and Karen were finally introduced to the Queen, her Majesty thought much the same thing. However, she found handsome Nigel, the new Lord Sandwich, a charming and most intelligent young man with much more poise than she had expected. Most academic types were so gauche and usually boring! But not the new Earl of Sandwich! He knew how to charm a woman! The Queen was pleased to welcome him into royal society!
In the master bedroom in the castle later that night, Karen couldn't stop gushing about the official ceremony! "I can't believe it! I can't believe it! I got to meet the queen! The freaking QUEEN of England!"
She hugged her lover. "I owe it all to you, my darling Nigel! I wonder how I can thank you for all this?" Then she covered his face with kisses, saying ever so sweetly, "Oh, wait a moment, I have a pretty good idea..."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Seven days later, and after several more ceremonies of varying importance, they returned to the states. Nigel was supposed to take up residence as the Earl of Sandwich in England soon and he needed to clear up his affairs in America. His most important affair cuddled and held his hand on the flight back. Inside the mind of the new Earl, Sydney was wondering, 'What are we going to do, Nigel? Everything is a hopeless mess! If we don't switch back, I will have to live out my life as Nigel Bailey. I want to be Sydney Fox again! I think I will knock Ram's head off his tiny stone shoulders if we are stuck like this forever!'
That thought cheered Sydney immensely, but Mr. Ram was somewhat less amused...
To be concluded soon in Chapter Twelve!
By Caleb and Eric
It's our story but their characters, folks, thus the story is free.
No unauthorized reposting please.
Now, on with the show!
Ramifications 11
Hunting for British Royalty!
The next morning Nigel came in with a happy smile on his soft lips and it wasn't due to the lipstick he was wearing. There was a spring in his step - not only was it great waking up feeling wonderful from all the attention from the state's movers and shakers of society and government last night, but the press coverage in the morning newspaper was stupendous! 'Sydn… I mean I am more famous than the former Sydney was before the great body exchange we underwent!' Nigel contemplated his borrowed success while reading the headlines and channel surfing through the morning news shows on TV.
Every paper and local news channel mentioned the triumphs of their successful hunt for relics in Crete and most highlighted the story with pictures of the beautiful Professor Fox taken when Nigel and Sydney arrived back in the states. Nigel recorded them all, especially the coverage of the embrace by the President! He knew the President was beloved, but someone must have noticed the man's hand on Nigel's succulent rear end! Not one station mentioned the President feeling him up! The man could do no wrong in the eyes of the press but Nigel knew better! At least the pictures were flattering and did justice to his current body.
In his euphoria over the positive reports, Nigel didn't notice the guilty starts of Sydney and Karen when he arrived at the office.
The telephone rang. It was for Nigel, so Sydney of course had to take it.
"Roderick Stanley here. Nigel, old chap, or should I say Lord Sandwich, we were surprise not to hear from you about your inheritance, but upon reading this morning's newspapers I can see you were very busy with that relic hunting business down in Greece! Helping the famous Professor Fox with her adventures in Crete must of course take precedence to your personal business. She must be absolutely wizard to kill three murderous thieves and find a treasure like that!"
Sydney was torn between annoyance and pride. Nigel had done quite well, but she had come up with the plan to trap the Minotaur and she had rescued the relics as well, not Nigel.
She reluctantly agreed with the man. "She certainly is!"
"Well, you really need to come back to England now to officially claim the title - by tomorrow at the absolute latest, old boy. There are endless items on the agenda. What with receiving the inheritance, your investiture, meeting the queen - you know, all the usual sort of bother."
"I understand." Sydney acknowledged, with a sinking feeling. What was she going to do? "I will call you with the flight number."
"Excellent, Lord Sandwich. It's going to be a rather difficult adjustment calling you that - I've called you Nigel ever since you were a pint sized little chap in knickers and I was the young family solicitor."
Roderick Stanley wasn't the only one to be discomforted by the use of the British title. Sydney felt even weirder being called Lord Sandwich than she did being called Nigel. After nearly two weeks, she was used to others calling her by that name. Being part of British royalty was a new experience, and one she would prefer to avoid. However, Nigel had commitments and since she was currently force to take his place…
"I wish you would call me Nigel, Mr. Stanley. "
"Very kind of you, Lord…Nigel. I am honored. Permit me to say it will be far nicer to work for you and with you instead with your late cousin. It was most trying getting him out of scrapes. Like the time he pinched the late Princess, bless her soul! Very bad form, that was! I had to draft three separate apologies to her highness, the Prince, and the Queen herself! He wasn't really a bad bloke, but one to let his emotions rule his intellect. Still, he deserved a better fate than the one he received. I will miss him."
"As will I." Sydney's head was in a whirl. Somehow, she and Nigel had to change back before tomorrow so Nigel could claim his title, but how? I guess I can delay going back with some sort of an excuse. Absently, and full of confusing thoughts, she headed towards her former office to explain the new agenda. She didn't notice a calculating look on Karen's beautiful face.
Nigel heard him out and then said.
"Sydney, I want you to go overseas for me. I would be an utter disaster claiming my title looking like this!" Nigel waved a hand over his bosom and his wide hips. "You will do much better. They are expecting the man I used to be, not the woman I currently am. The title can only be given to a male heir. The beastly relatives would never accept me. You can put them in the their place, and arrange my affairs much better than I could."
Sydney was surprised. "I not am sure about that Nigel."
"Well I am! They would have me tied up in knots. I would make myself look like a fool. "Her voice took on a more commanding aspect." Look, Sydney I did the weekend with your beau, the least you can do is do the inheritance trip for me."
Sydney could not help but see the justice of this. "It's not like I have much choice. They are expecting a British man, not an American woman! They aren't likely to give the title to you as you are now, even if they hold you in high regard after our hunt in Crete. I'll go. I guess it's a good thing I upgraded your wardrobe."
Nigel laughed. " Sydney, I know you will make me look good no matter what you wear! You are a classy lady… even if you are currently a man."
"Why thank you Nigel. I think that's the nicest thing you ever said to me." Sydney kissed him on the cheek and they both blushed. It was the closest contact they had had since being tied chest to chest by Indians in Peru on a relic hunt months ago.
They went over whom Sydney would meet in England. Sydney took copious notes, and they sent Karen out to fetch Nigel's family album from his apartment so she would have a visual image to go along with Nigel's descriptions. By the end of the afternoon, Sydney was well prepared. It was a little like a relic hunt she told herself, only she was hunting a British title instead of a relic. Preparation was the name of the game for both! Later, Karen, with misty eyes, kissed Sydney's manly lips.
"I will miss you something dreadful, Nigel sweetheart!"
Poor Sydney was all confused. How to deal with Karen when if things worked out the way she hoped, Nigel would be reoccupying his own body very soon. She knew how to handle a relationship with a man but had never been with a woman before becoming a man. "I will miss you too, Karen. I wish you could go with me but…" she added, trying to be polite to the woman who had become her sexual partner.
Sydney was startled when Karen flung her arms around her, nearly knocking her off her feet.
"Oh, Nigel, thank you, thank you, thank you! I will be gladly come with you! I am so proud you want to take me to introduce me as your fiancée."
Sydney couldn't believe what Nigel's ears had heard! "Come with me? To Great Britain?" she muttered weakly.
"No need to ask me twice, darling, I already said I would go with you! I am so happy you want me to be with you. The woman who loves you should be by your side when you become royalty!" Karen said deftly, pretending it was Nigel's idea and not hers to tag along with him. She had already accelerated their relationship into a proposal and Nigel hadn't corrected her yet. It was time to use the rest of her ammunition and cement the deal.
"I will be very proud to be the future Lady Sandwich. I can't believe our baby will be a future Earl!"
Sydney gulped. "Our baby?" When did she fall down that Rabbit hole? "You mean a child we might have someday in the future, right?" Sydney prayed that was what she meant!
"No, Nigel, darling! I am pregnant with our child. I was going to wait until we were alone tonight to tell you back at your place, but its true. The test came out positive. My gynecologist confirmed the results of the home testing kit today. The rabbit died!"
Sydney felt sympathy with the unknown rabbit! She would have wished she were dead, but that god Ram was probably still listening, and might have made that wish a reality as well. Nigel is going to kill me when he finds out I made him father, she thought. But maybe not! He's always had the hots for Karen ever since she started working here. He just hasn't done anything about asking her out. He probably thinks it wouldn't be appropriate for the office, or that it could be misinterpreted as sexual harassment by Karen. Sydney had never been more embarrassed in her life. Not even when she had to dance naked in the Bordio tribe's fertility dance to get a relic she wanted. As hard as it was to believe, she was going to be a father!
"What am I going to tell Nigel?" she wondered… and when? She decided to save it until after the trip.
While Sydney sat stunned and bemused, Karen leaned forward, smiled and kissed him on the check. She deftly removed Nigel's wallet and took a credit card from his wallet.
"You make the reservations for two, darling. I'll do some shopping. I know you don't want the future Countess of Sandwich to disgrace you in England by wearing last year's fashions."
Sydney watched her leave with rueful admiration. She looked fantastic for an expectant mother. My god, can women manipulate men! In less than ten minutes, Sydney had gone from being a bachelor to being a future father with a fiancée! If she ever got her body back, she promised herself she would never manipulate a man again!
In a castle in England, two of Nigel's remaining relatives were talking. "Nigel Bailey is on his way. What a dear, dim, inoffensive bloke. We will have no trouble with him."
Lady Catherine Frothingam spoke. "Absolutely right, Basil, my love. Nigel will do what we tell him. He was always self-effacing and lacking in confidence."
"A word of caution, we must bear in mind Nigel has been associating with Professor Fox, that aggressive, take no prisoners relic hunter for the last three years. Some of her ruthless American tendencies may have tarred the lad." cautioned Sir FitzWilliam Wooster.
"Nonsense!" decried the maternal Lady Catherine.
No one dared contradicted her.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
At London's Heathrow airport, Roderick Stanley and a gaggle of Nigel's remaining relatives met Sydney and Karen.
"Ah, you must be Karen, the future Lady Sandwich. We talked on the telephone. It was so thoughtful of you to call and tell us of your engagement. Nigel is a lucky fellow!"
Sydney gave Karen a dirty look. 'The girl is really boxing me - I mean Nigel into getting married!'
As they approached the estate, Karen couldn't believe the size of the castle and the grounds. She had stars in her eyes. 'Someday soon, I will be mistress of all this! Unbelievable!'
Both the beauty and the antiquity of the old castle amazed Sydney and Karen.
Sir FitzWilliam Wooster and Lady Catherine Frothingam insisted that Nigel sign the documents transferring the title to him as soon as possible so the estate could run smoothly. Roderick Stanley prepared the necessary papers in the study while Sydney and Karen were shown to their rooms. Both were impressed by the sheer size of their accommodations. They didn't make rooms like the ones in the castle anymore. Indeed, they hadn't made rooms like that in several centuries.
Unbeknownst to Roderick, Lady Frothingam slipped into the study after he finished his work in the study and exchanged some of the documents he had set out on the antique desk with similar papers she and Sir Wooster had prepared in advance. Subtle changes would insure that neither Nigel nor Karen, or any of their offspring would ever be more than a figurehead. Wooster and Frothingam would be the true power behind the new Earl.
Lady Catherine closed the door behind her moments before her accomplice would have been forced to distract Nigel. She walked over by Sir Wooster and greeted Nigel as he came down the stairs with Karen. Roderick finished making a call to his office and escorted them all into the study.
"Please sit down at the desk, Nigel. It, this castle, and all the Sandwich estate will belong to you as soon as you sign these papers!"
Karen, Lady Catherine and Sir Wooster all offered Sydney pens. The sooner he signed the papers, the better they would all feel.
"You need to sign here, and here, and it will all be yours, Nigel!" Roderick told Sydney.
Sydney had learned long ago to read the fine print before she signed anything. Judging by the anticipation on the faces of Lady Frothingam and Sir Wooster, she had a hunch something weird was going on. She read each document carefully. While she wasn't a lawyer, she had a facile mind and soon spotted the bogus paragraphs which would give control of the estate to Wooster and Frothingam.
"What are you trying to do, Mr. Stanley? The wording of this page gives control of everything over to these two!" She pointed over to the shocked faces of Nigel's relatives.
Roderick looked over the papers. "These are not the papers I put out to be signed, Nigel. Someone has replaced them with these phony pages, and judging by whom these pages say the new recipients are I believe we know exactly who did the deed!
Roderick turned towards Sir Wooster and Lady Frothingam. They cringed as he reached into his jacket and pulled out . . . a cellphone. They sighed with relief. They had expected a weapon! But when Roderick used it to call in the authorities, they quivered with fear! Lady Catherine fainted, while Sir Wooster ran out the door!
Sydney was a woman whose middle name ought to be action and she started to run after the errant relative, but she stopped when Roderick suggested restraint.
"Don't worry, Nigel. He won't get far. I drove us here, remember. I have the keys, so he will have quite a walk just to get off the castle grounds. The Bobbies will have him in custody before he can get safely away."
"Well, good show, Roderick! I guess we just wait for them to arrive, then."
"Not at all, lad. Gather up a couple of the staff to fill for these two as witnesses. I'm sure this lovely lady would volunteer but we need a resident of the country." Karen smiled at the brave solicitor and accepted the compliments. Of course, she would have volunteered to be a witness! She had been too busy being relieved that Nigel hadn't found out how she had kept the first word of his inheritance from him. Grateful, she promised herself to be the best wife any woman could be from that moment on.
Roderick continued, "Meanwhile, I will print out fresh copies of the papers for you to sign off of my laptop computer. We'll be ready to go in about five minutes, Nigel!"
Sydney was surprised by the way her - or rather Nigel's - relatives thought they could put one over Nigel. Not on her watch, though! After the papers were signed, over the recovered Catherine's objections, the authorities brought Sir Wooster in for identification. His clothing was torn and covered with foliage, and upon entering the study again, he begged the new Earl of Sandwich for forgiveness to no avail.
When Sydney got through chastising them, Lady Catherine had to be hospitalized for a nervous breakdown and Sir Wooster felt like a dragon had come in, chewed them up, and spit them out!
Upon hearing the recount of events, the rest of Nigel's nearest and dearest were horrified at 'his' willfulness and independence as much as they were shocked by the criminal actions of Catherine and FitzWilliam.
"It's almost like the dear boy we used to know has become another person entirely," said Basil, not realizing how close to the truth he was!
"That blasted Professor Fox has changed the lad out of all recognition. Even his accent isn't as British as it once was. He speaks like an American now!" said James, another member of the Wooster part of the family tree and FitzWilliam's cousin.
"I don't understand why he is marrying that dreadful America girl!" complained Lady Catherine's sister, Constance Frothingam.
"If you were a man you would understand, my dear Constance! Sydney Fox is very sexy! Or perhaps I should say Foxy!" said Basil with a broad smile.
The lawyer part of Roderick Stanley was surprised at Nigel's solid grasp of the ins and outs of his inherited estate, and by his decisiveness. The dear boy had certainly matured during his adventures overseas. It was a shame that poor Nigel had been trapped into a most unequal alliance with his fiancée, but he had to admit that the beautiful Karen was an absolute stunner. Boys would be boys, after all, even when they became men. If it didn't work out, there was always divorce. He made a mental note to advise the new Earl to get a pre-nuptial agreement just in case.
When 'Nigel' and Karen were finally introduced to the Queen, her Majesty thought much the same thing. However, she found handsome Nigel, the new Lord Sandwich, a charming and most intelligent young man with much more poise than she had expected. Most academic types were so gauche and usually boring! But not the new Earl of Sandwich! He knew how to charm a woman! The Queen was pleased to welcome him into royal society!
In the master bedroom in the castle later that night, Karen couldn't stop gushing about the official ceremony! "I can't believe it! I can't believe it! I got to meet the queen! The freaking QUEEN of England!"
She hugged her lover. "I owe it all to you, my darling Nigel! I wonder how I can thank you for all this?" Then she covered his face with kisses, saying ever so sweetly, "Oh, wait a moment, I have a pretty good idea..."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Seven days later, and after several more ceremonies of varying importance, they returned to the states. Nigel was supposed to take up residence as the Earl of Sandwich in England soon and he needed to clear up his affairs in America. His most important affair cuddled and held his hand on the flight back. Inside the mind of the new Earl, Sydney was wondering, 'What are we going to do, Nigel? Everything is a hopeless mess! If we don't switch back, I will have to live out my life as Nigel Bailey. I want to be Sydney Fox again! I think I will knock Ram's head off his tiny stone shoulders if we are stuck like this forever!'
That thought cheered Sydney immensely, but Mr. Ram was somewhat less amused...
To be concluded soon in Chapter Twelve!