After the funeral, which was held with only a small circle of relatives and some close friends. Sybil was sat down at the dining table, together with her aunt, her father's long time friend and right hand man in the business. Together they sat across the solicitor, whom Parker arranged the meeting with. Her aunt wanted him to speak with Sybil first of all before anyone else butted their noses into the inheritance matter.
"Are you quite sure Sybil?" Mr. Weathers asks her as her pen hovers over the paper in front of her. Sybil smiles at him, no regret in her eyes. "I'm sure. I'm not suited for…all this." she states, motioning to the text. "I hope you haven't changed your mind though." she tries, assaying the middle-aged man for any doubts. "No, of course not." he states, meeting her eyes confidently.
"Then it's settled." she says, signing her name under the document in large curly letters. "I wish you luck. You will come across some resistance no doubt." she reminds him again, to which Mr. Weathers chuckles. "Indeed. But I can take it. I'll make sure your father's wishes will be respected." he assures her. "I have no doubt they will be. Thank you James." she says, reaching out to him. They shake hands.
"I will put this before the board." the solicitor, Mr. Heart says as he takes the paper. "I have a feeling that it will pass with a majority. Your father was a loved man." he finishes, making Sybil nod. Loved indeed. That is the more fitting word instead of 'well respected'. That would be more fitted for her grandfather as it can insinuate a certain fear towards a person.
Heart and Weathers stand up. "Could I ride you to the office James?" Mr. Heart offers, since the man came on his bike as he lives in the same town. "That would be kind of you. It's better to drop the bomb as soon as possible no? Better to get it over with so to speak." he nods to himself. "Agreed." Heart states before they turn to the two ladies. "Take care Sybil. Goodbye Lady Penelope." Mr. Weathers greets before leaving. Mr. Heart follows after donning his hat, tipping it politely to the two of them before following after Mr. Weathers.
Lady Penelope turns to her niece, smiling. "I'm proud of you darling. It mustn't have been entirely easy to cut the ties." she compliments, making Sybil smile in return. "The company is in capable hands. I'm sure daddy would agree."
Still smiling, Penelope stands, folding a different piece of paper and putting it inside her purse. "Well then, I'll just be at the real estate agent. You can just stay put while I arrange things. Rest up a little perhaps. It has been a long day." she suggests, making Sybil nod. "Thank you aunt Penny." she sighs, feeling weariness hit her like a ton of bricks. "Anytime darling." her aunt assures her before walking out of the room. "Come along Parker."
Sybil sighs, taking in the quiet of the house, everybody gone now. Without her father here, this house seems but an empty shell to her and so she decided to sell it after finding out that he left everything he had to her. That also included his part of the company. According to the will that Mr. Heart read to her, it said: 'to do with as you please'. So she made arrangements following that.
Getting to her feet, she puts the chairs back in place before wandering around the house, trying to memorize it and remember all the good memories it holds, casting aside the bad. She finds herself rummaging through drawer, boxes and such, forgetting all about the time.
She is startled by a loud bang from downstairs, making her drop the pictures she was holding. Getting up from the ground, she walks out of a room used for storage, looking towards the stairs curiously. The sounds of angry voices echo throughout the house.
Frowning, she rushes towards the top of the stairs and looking down, she is not all that surprised, but apprehensive none the least to see her grandfather standing in the hallway. His face has turned an angry red and his veins nearly seem to want to pop at the pressure. Sybil quickly concludes that he found out what she had done. The look in his eyes when he looks up at her confirms it.
"You! You insubordinate little twat!" he shouts, pointing a shaking finger at her. "How dare you, to go behind my back, and give away your shares and ownership to that insignificant man, Weather?! Behind my back!" he shouts, stepping forward. Sybil grips the railing tightly, holding her head high, though her heart is thumping rapidly at the anxiety of having this show down.
"It was for me to do with what I saw fit. I chose to do with it what I believed my father would approve of." she says, trying to stay calm despite the verbal abuse thrown her way. It does little to defuse the situation though.
"I could have taken over the company if you didn't want it! Though I admit that if you didn't cast it aside, it would not be long before I would make you do so, since you know so little! You bypassed me, out of pure scorn I bet! Your own grandfather!" he continues to rant, literally spitting out the words.
"Yes!" Sybil states, breathing hard. "I bypassed you, because I do not believe you have its best interest in mind. You're a selfish man grandfather. You cannot make me believe that my father wanted you at the helm on your own." she counters, stepping down to face him better. She does not want him to see that he frightens her in any way, because for all she cares, this is the last time they see each other.
"What do you know of what that man wanted? You were hardly around! And now, you have made a mockery of me in front of all my peers, pushing someone forth other than myself! I could have made something more out of the company than you're weak hearted father ever could! He was always too careful! Finally he's gone and there you pop up! You ruined it! It should have been me!" he shouts, he hand shooting out towards Sybil as he pushes her, making her fall back against the stairs.
She gazes up at the man in front of her in shock, not quite registering that he put his hands on her. "I wish you would have stayed under that rock you crawled out from. You mongrel!" he growls, towering over her form now. He glances sideways and swipes a bronze horse statue from a side table at the bottom of the stairs and swings it at her.
Her hands fly up to defend herself from being hit, shrieking in surprise as her mind short-circuits, forgetting every self defense lesson she had learned for a short moment at the shock of her own grandfather intending her physical harm.
As his hand swings down, it is stopped just inches from her face as a strong hand is wrapped around her grandfather's wrist. Sybil looks up to see, to her great surprise, that it is Scott who stopped her grandfather in his tracks. With a grunt he pushes against her assailant, who in turn swings his makeshift weapon towards the pilot, clipping Scott in the chin with it.
Scott doesn't seem to feel it, or decides to ignore it as he tackles the older man to the ground. Sybil, finally coming to her senses, rushes over to them and wrap her hands around her grandfathers' hand as she pries away the statue from him. Scott, having the advantage of age and fitness, manages to subdue him. "Call the police Sybil!" he says urgently. She nods, rushing off towards the sitting room.
When she returns, she finds the two men still in the same position, but her grandfather had finally stopped struggling. He only lays still, glaring into space as he seems to come to terms with the consequences of his actions.
"Are you alright?" Scott asks her, his face etched with anger and worry. She nods. "Are you?" she questions him, seeing an angry red mark appear on his jaw. "Fine." he answers curtly. After that, they stay silent as they wait for the police to arrive to which they tell their story of what happened. After they have left, the once proud Mr. Silverstone in tow, Sybil and Scott are left to themselves.
"What just happened?" Sybil breathes out in disbelief, the gravity of the events crashing down on her. She raises her hand to her mouth, looking away as she subconsciously tries to hide the emotions plastered to her face; that being a mixture of horror, shock and sadness.
It takes her a moment to realize that Scott has wrapped his arms around her, her head now resting on his chest as he holds her, rocking slightly. "He could have killed me." she mutters in realization, her hands gripping onto the back Scott's jacket as her eyes start to water. She never expected him do go that far. She didn't know that his hate for her ran so deep.
Scott looks down at her in pity, finding it equally unbelievable that the man would assault his own granddaughter. When he parked in front of the house he thought it curious that the door stood wide open considering the cold and when he heard shouting, he wasted no time in rushing inside, a bad feeling crawling up his spine. He initially acted on instinct when he saw what went on, wanting to keep Sybil from harm. After that, he just got plain furious.
Looking around, he spots the sitting room. Guiding Sybil there, he sits her down on the couch before sitting next to her. He noticed that she winched slightly when she sat. "Are you sure you're not hurt?" he asks, making her hand subconsciously reach for her lower back. "Maybe a bit bruised from the stairs, but otherwise fine." she says softly before looking up at him.
"I should get you some ice." she states, reaching out to his face. He flinches, just now feeling the pain. Reaching up he feels the tender flesh. "I'll be right back." Sybil says, getting to her feet and rushing out of the room. When she returns, she hands him a hand towel, filled with ice cubes. "Thanks." he says, pushing it to his chin to stop the swelling. It's silent for a moment as they try to figure out what to say. Finally Sybil decides she should speak up.
"Thank you Scott. You probably saved my life, again." she thanks him. "No problem. I'm glad I got here in time." he tells her. She smiles sheepishly. "Impeccable timing as always. Though it makes me wonder… What are you doing here?" she asks him.
"I came to give you a ride home." is his surprising answer. Her brows rise in wonder. "As it happens…John told me what you said during your last conversation. Alan happened to overhear and he told Tin Tin, Gordon…Virgil, Grandma….me again because he forgot John was the one who told me, than dad got wind of it. I think it was Grandma…. And Brains and Kyrano got wind of it too." he sums up, making her narrow her eyes in amusement, her green eyes sparkling fondly as she thinks on how typical it is of Alan.
"Anyway. We came to the consensus that neither of us wanted you to leave, so we assaulted dad on the matter. Little did we know he was way ahead of us…. I wanted to tell you earlier when I called, but considering the circumstances… I thought it best to ask you in person." he explains vaguely, making Sybil tilt her head in confusion.
"We want you to work with us. We haven't quite figured out the details, but dad drafted you a contract. He thinks your knowledge will come in handy on missions and at times, you might even be able to come with us. But to be honest…" he continues, meeting her eyes. "Even if you hadn't had the knowledge you have… We would still like it very much if you stayed. As far as we're concerned, you're part of the family. We would like it if you'd stayed." he finishes.
Sybil glances away for a moment, her cheeks flushing. "Really?" she asks. He nods in reply. "Sure. Why not?" he urges. Finally Sybil smiles widely. "I…I'm a bit speechless." she breathes. "But… If you all really don't mind. I'd be happy to." she tells him. "Great!" Scott states happily.
Sybil smiles slightly, looking away from him, her features relaxing a little. "Thanks Scott. I needed some good news." she sighs tiredly. "Sure." he nods, leaning back, also feeling the fatigue hitting him.
He stares at Sybil for a moment longer as she seems to be stuck in her own thoughts, the sunlight that shines in through the window dancing in her eyes as she gazes silently outside. Reaching out, he lays his hand gently on top of hers that is resting beside her on the couch. "Are you going to be alright Sybil?" he asks quietly, worried on how she is holding up after all that happened.
She looks down at their hands in wonder for a moment, before slowly moving her fingers until his fit in between hers. She clasps onto them gently before looking up at him, smiling sadly. "I think I will be."
It must not be long after when Lady Penelope steps inside. The light outside is just fading. Arranging to sell the house has taken up more time then expected. She hadn't intended to be away for so many hours.
She raises delicate brow when she regards the discarded horse statue on the floor as she hangs up her coat. Slightly worried, she walks into the sitting room, only to receive a shock. Two figures lay sprawled across the couch, sleeping soundly. One of them being her niece while the other is none other than Scott Tracy. She can't help but grin widely. Deciding to leave the questions until the morning, she leaves them be, making her way to the guest bedroom with a slight bounce in her step.
Action and intrigue and a tinge of romance. I loved writing this part. Let me know what you guys think.