"Ashley, you're late! Where have you been?" Scarlett questioned him after he walked into Uncle Henry's office a full thirty minutes late. This was incredibly rude of him and also uncommon. The emotions going through her were all heightened since dropping off the letter to Rhett at the post office, so the way she barked her question took Ashley aback as well as herself.
"I'm terribly sorry Scarlett and Uncle Henry, but India held me up. I got here as soon as I could," he replied timidly as he took the seat next to Scarlett across the desk from Uncle Henry. He had a frazzled look about him that Scarlett associated with his embarrassment at being late and her initial anger towards him. She immediately regretted acting irritable.
"It's quite alright Ashley. You're my only appointment today since I figured the paperwork that has to get done will take a while to fill out. Now is Scarlett correct in telling me that you are wanting to hand over half of the lumber mill since she is correcting the ledger and the business path of the mill?" Uncle Henry inquired.
"Yes, that's correct. She is the best out of the two of us at maintaining the books and establishing a business plan. I will be able to handle working the store front and ordering the supplies to keep the store stocked," he said. He looked better today and seemed to enjoy talking about business rather than being cooped up in the house he and Melanie used to share. The revival of the mill was going to benefit him as much as it was going to benefit Scarlett.
"Excellent. It makes things simpler knowing that you both understand the responsibilities you have and what your share in the mill is," Uncle Henry noted as he started to write down the parameters of their business association on official documents.
"I must also give you praise Scarlett. You did a marvelous job with the calculations in the ledger. Would you please explain what you found to Ashley while I finish this?" he requested of Scarlett. She turned to him and started to explain.
"The good news is that there seems to be a steady stream of business. However, you have not been capitalizing on the business by having accurate prices for the profit margin. The profit margin is far too low to sustain you and the mill for much longer. Also, why haven't you signed off on supplying lumber for the new hotel? That is going to be a huge hotel and the price they are willing to pay is exactly what the business needs right now," Scarlett told him. When going over all the paperwork last night, she was perplexed by him not signing off on the contract for the hotel. It made no sense.
"The builders of the hotel are Yankees. I've always hated having business dealings with Yankees and I don't plan start now," he replied strongly to Scarlett. He knew not signing the contract put the mill at risk, but he held to what he said as a matter of pride.
"Damn it Ashley! Now is not the time to go on about who you will and won't do business with when you're about to lose everything!" she scolded him. Immediately she knew her outburst upset Uncle Henry because he looked visibly shocked, whereas Ashley didn't looked phased at all. He's heard me shout too many times to care anymore, she thought.
"There's no need for that kind of talk in here; although, I do agree with Scarlett, Ashley. You could make decisions like that if you were in a better place financially, but you're not. The contract with the hotel needs to go through if you want the mill to last," Uncle Henry told him plainly, reiterating what Scarlett said originally just in a calmer tone.
"I don't feel good about this. Can't there be any other way?" he asked in a last attempt to keep his pride on the matter.
"No. This must be done to sustain you," he replied frankly. Ashley, looking crestfallen, nodded his head in acceptance.
"Good. Now that we know where this is going, I need you both to sign the contract now for the hotel. The paperwork can be filed by the end of the business day if we're lucky," Uncle Henry said as he passed them pens and the contract to sign off on. It was the first set of many signatures to come during the appointment.
"We got a lot of work done today. Now Ashley, could you please take that contract and the new ownership agreement to the courts to be filed right now? It would be best to get that out of the way today," Uncle Henry said as the three of them stood since the meeting was over.
"Certainly. Thank you for all your help. Good day to you both," Ashley replied as he walked out of the room with all the paperwork that was going to be filed. Scarlett watched him leave, but made no move to follow his lead.
"Uncle Henry, there is something I wish to discuss with you privately. Would you mind?" she asked.
"No, I wouldn't. But please, let us take a seat on the couches. It would be more comfortable than those hard wood chairs. What is it that you wish to discuss?" he smiled pleasantly as he led her to the seating area in his office.
"How my control over the mill will be executed. You see, I don't plan to stay here much longer," Scarlett revealed to him. He was the first person she discussed her impending departure with. If he was willing to work with her, he would be the only person who knew the truth about her departure and where she was going to go.
"I see. And when you say that you don't plan to stay here much longer, am I to presume that you are moving out of Atlanta?" he inquired. It was easy to tell that his interest in the matter was peaked, since she seemed to give the impression during the meeting that she was going to be a very hands-on owner.
"Uncle Henry, I don't even plan on living in Georgia," she said. A lump was starting to develop in her throat from the shear sadness of discussing this, but she kept her voice steady.
"And where do you plan on going?" he questioned, getting more and more intrigued as the seconds ticked by on his desk clock.
"I don't know yet. But I will be leaving in less than a week," she replied. The days are flying by so fast, she thought.
"That seems like a rather impulsive move. Are you sure that you have thought everything through?" he posed with his voice dripping with curiosity.
"I'm sure. But when I get wherever I decide go, I will send you an address. That is where you will send me all news of business, my personal finances, and anything else that seems of importance to you," she said with strength in her voice so he could stop doubting her.
"So when you are gone, I send you all the important news and paperwork, and all the while I keep maintaining your finances here along with the house?" he asked. She could tell he was screaming for her to tell him why she was doing this. He didn't have much longer to wait for the answer.
"You already take care of my finances as it is, but you will no longer have to deal with matters of the house. I want you to put it up for sale and I don't care what price you put on it. I just want it gone to whoever makes the first offer," she replied as a sense of heaviness lifted off her shoulders. She could practically taste her impending freedom.
"Excuse me!? You want me to sell the Peachtree house? Scarlett, that house is worth a fortune! I can't just sell it to whoever gives the first offer. They would practically be stealing it! And as it is, I'll need Rhett to sign off on it," he said with such shock in his voice that Scarlett was surprised he didn't faint. She had truly provided a shock to his system.
"No you don't. Rhett transferred the deed over to my name. The house is mine and you will do as I say with it," Scarlett chastised him. How dare he challenge her!
"Please tell me he at least knows you are doing this. After all, he does send money each month to pay for the house expenses. He will notice if the money gets to me and not only isn't used, but is placed back into his account," Uncle Henry stated with almost a tone of fear in his voice. Rhett had a way of inspiring fear in others.
"He doesn't know and he won't know until I'm gone and even then you will not tell him, or anyone for that matter, where I have gone," she replied. If he found out what she was doing, she wasn't sure of what he would do. Either way, she didn't want to find out. What Scarlett was asking him to do was obviously affecting him because he got up from the couch and made his way to the mini bar in the corner of the room.
"Scarlett, is there something else you wish to ask of me? I'm exhausted and would like to go home," he said with the intent of getting across to her that he wanted out of this office as soon as possible. The thought of crossing Rhett and his money behind his back was daunting.
This is it, Scarlett thought. Now is when you need to tell him the reason you are really here. The ultimate tie keeping you here needs to be severed. Her heart rate picked up and she felt as if her heart was literally breaking inside her chest. A wave of nausea was hitting her, a headache was threatening to split her skull in half, and tears were trying to spill forth from her eyes. Say it Scarlett! Say it, she screamed at herself.
"Yes. There is also the matter of my needing your help in filing for a divorce," she choked out through the lump in her throat. Even through the tunnel hearing which overcame her, she heard Uncle Henry drop the decanter he was holding and the shattering sound it made when it hit the floor.
