Thanks to everyone who has left reviews and is following :) There was one question from a guest that I haven't answered so I thought I would do it here. I don't really have a way to find out what docs were required 20 years ago to register for school in Boston but today the rules are that you need to prove residency (utility bills can do the trick) and a birth certificate to prove age. Lizzy's parents would have registered her when she was 4 and had her birth certificate - it was just from Mexico. In sitting for the placement exams for high school and college, you can get your school to provide proof of their identification if your child doesn't have a driver's license of passport. They literally provide a notarized letter with your kid's picture on it and their name attesting to their identity. Now...onto today's installment :)
Darcy bolted out of his second class of the day. He wanted to find a quiet place to check email and to see if the attorney's had sent along the elusive codicil. Settling into a quiet corner of the HLS library, Darcy powered up his laptop and opened his email. Amidst the random junk mail that seemed to clog his inbox daily he saw the email from Fitzwilliam & DeBourgh LLC. He clicked the email open and downloaded the pdf. The attached document was fairly short and Darcy got through the document quickly. Two clauses. Both attached to his marital status upon graduation from school or upon turning 28. If he wasn't married by the time he graduated, two things happened. First, the guardianship of Georgiana Marie Darcy was transferred to Catherine DeBourgh until Georgie turned 18. Second, control of Georgiana's trust fund and Pemberley Holdings stock would be overseen by Catherine until Georgie was 21. Doing some quick mental math Darcy estimated that today, Georgie's trust fund was valued at over $30 million, not including her 10% ownership stake in Pemberley Holdings. There was another stipulation, which his aunt and uncle hadn't mentioned. If he was married by graduation, but filed for divorce before Georgie reached 21, the conditions would come into force. 'Well, no quick wedding will work to get out of this.' William thought.
Looking over the document again, William noted that that the document was dated four months before his father had died. That placed it around the time of George Darcy's diagnosis. His signature still appeared to be strong and it was witnessed by two of the senior partners at the law firm. That would make it difficult to fight, even if he wanted to. The idea of making the argument that his father was already too ill at the time of it's signing, that he wasn't of sound mind, had no appeal. That claim, and all of its attendant implications about other decisions he made at the same time, was truly not palatable. The only other avenue was to try and get his aunt declared incompetent. Again, not likely. For as difficult as she was, Catherine DeBourgh was still sharp as a tack. Setting his laptop on the table he decided he should call his uncle.
The phone rang and Senator Fitzwilliam's assistant promptly answered the phone. "Hi Clare, it's William Darcy. Is my uncle available?"
"Good morning Mr. Darcy. The senator told me to expect your call and to interrupt him if necessary. Hold on and I'll get him on the line for you." Clare, Henry's long-time assistant, put the line on hold and knocked on the adjoining door before opening it.
"Excuse me gentlemen. Senator, the call you have been waiting for is holding." Clare interrupted.
"Of course. You will have to excuse me but I have been waiting all morning for this call. Clare, please show these men out." Henry watched as she closed the door behind the departing constituents and paused to collect his thoughts. He was worried about his nephew. When he told his wife Sophia about the codicil, the language she used would've made a sailor blush. She had a point and he still couldn't believe his brother-in-law had actually made such a stupid decision. He couldn't understand how his sister had been able to influence him. Shaking his head he picked up the phone. "Good morning William, did you get the document?"
"Yes uncle, I did. I just finished reviewing it. As you told me on Saturday, my father's intentions are pretty clear. And I can't fight this document. Either my aunt or my father, may he rest in peace, would have to be deemed incompetent. Neither option seems plausible or desirable." William sighed.
"Look, let's see what we can do in the intervening months. Maybe we could find some way to tie up Georgiana's investments so Catherine can't really touch them. Your aunt and I have been talking and we will use all of our influence on Catherine to minimize the impact of her guardianship. And, when you get married, which will happen at some point, you can undo all of this." His uncle offered.
"Thanks Uncle Henry. Look, I appreciate your efforts to make me feel better but to be honest, it really sucks." Darcy uttered.
"No need to mince words son. You're right and I'm sorry. I can't really add anything to that sentiment. When do you want to tell Georgie?" He asked.
"I'm not really sure. I need to see what Aunt Cathy is thinking: probably not for a little while though. Georgie is finally beginning to settle into her new school and things are going well with her new therapist too. I need to process this myself first before I can imagine talking to Georgie about it." He sighed.
"Well, we will take good care of her over Thanksgiving so don't worry for now. There is still some time before this comes into effect." Henry said and paused before continuing, "your Aunt wanted to stop by tonight to check in with you. Will you be around to see her?"
"Of course." William was surprised but figured his aunt was going to try and assess how he was really handling all this news. "What time was she planning to come by?"
"Oh I think 7 or so. She was going to pick up some BBQ take-out from Red Bones on her way over. It's her weakness, you know, and given my low sodium diet she never gets to have it anymore." Henry said chuckling a little. His wife was all that was proper when she needed to be but deep down she was still the Southern girl he had met at in England when they were both exchange students at Oxford.
"I am looking forward to it. I'll be sure to pick up some Kentucky Bourbon to go along with the BBQ before she comes." Darcy added. This got another laugh from his uncle and they managed to get off the phone each with a smile on their faces.
Darcy checked his watch and realized he had just enough time to grab a sandwich in the cafeteria before his afternoon class. After class, Darcy cloistered himself in the stacks trying to breeze through his cases for the following day so that he could have an uninterrupted night with his aunt. He knew her well enough to know that they would in fact, be doing shots of bourbon tonight, and as such it was a safe bet that he wouldn't be getting anything done following dinner. His cousin Rich came by his alcohol tolerance honestly. His Aunt Sophia had grown up with three older brothers and a contingent of uncles and she certainly liked to let her hair down every once in awhile.
He got home at 6:45. Just enough time to jump through a shower before his aunt arrived, he thought. He was throwing on a button down shirt when he heard the doorbell. Walking over to the intercom he buzzed his aunt in and walked into the kitchen to get some glasses, ice and a pitcher of water. He heard a voice coming from the doorway. "Hello William. It's your Aunt Sophia here. Can you help me with the bags? I think I was a little ambitious in my ordering."
Running to the door he stared in disbelief. His aunt had bought enough food for six people rather than the two of them. Taking the bags from her, he carried them over to the kitchen and started pulling out Styrofoam containers of BBQ goodness. The tangy smell filled the condo and his mouth was watering. "Aunt, did you invite my law school class for dinner?" William said with a smile crossing his face.
"I know when I get bad news the best thing for me is to drown my sorrows in BBQ sauce and bourbon. I figured, what's good for the goose is good for the gander. Now let's unpack all of this and settle down to this feast." Sophia Fitzwilliam grinned.
The two made themselves plates and sat at the dining room table. The first ten minutes they each ate in silence. William poured out some bourbon over ice for each of them and they sipped the drinks between bites of baby back ribs. Sitting back in her chair, Sophia decided she might as well start.
"William. I can't tell you how upset I was when I found out about that stupid codicil. Excuse my language but I didn't think it was possible to be so very angry with someone who has been dead for five years! Of course, I can very well be angry with my sister-in-law. Of all the manipulative things to do." She got up and started pacing. "William, I remember when your father was first diagnosed. He was so very concerned for you and Georgie. I keep thinking back to that time. He understood from the beginning that he didn't have long to live. He wanted to give you every minute of freedom before you were burdened with, well, with everything. He was so proud of you and he would be so very proud of the man you are today." Sophia paused and sat down again, directly across from William. Looking up at him she started again, "William, you are like a son to me. I have watched you grow into a wonderful, confident and accomplished man. Your mom and dad aren't here to tell you this and so I want to make sure someone is giving you the praise you deserve. I don't want this, this, this stupid thing to make you doubt yourself in anyway. Your father had ultimate confidence in you. Your Uncle Henry and I have total confidence in you as well and we will do everything we can to help you." Sophia paused and looked down at William before taking a long sip of water.
Refilling her glass William looked up at her and was so glad he uncle had married her. She was so unlike the rest of the family. She was real and honest to a fault. She was passionate about her family and her causes. She was bright and challenged his uncle to be the best Senator he could be. William hoped he would find a woman just like her to marry. "Thank you Aunt. You and uncle have been an undeniable support, really, ever since mom died. I can't begin to understand what my father was thinking and feeling when he found out about the tumor. I wish so very much he hadn't done this."
"What are you planning to tell Georgiana?" Sophia asked.
"Right now? Nothing. Georgie is just getting to be stable again and this will not help. I know I can't change it but I need to figure out a plan to protect Georgie. I can't give her up."
They fell into silence again for several minutes until his aunt went into the kitchen. A few minutes later she emerged with a plate of cornbread covered in melting butter. She set the plate down between them and picked one up with her fingers and took a bite. Will joined her and before long the plate was clean. Over the next two hours they continued drinking and stuffing their faces with BBQ reminiscing. Sophia shared stories of William's parents when they were first married and of times altogether as a family once he and Richard had been born. As the night progressed the bourbon began to have its effect.
"Ok, let's figure out all of the ways we can torture Cathy for plotting this. You and Richard are going there for Thanksgiving. Maybe you could swap the turkey for a ham. Cathy would be fit to be tied." Sophia started giggling. The ideas became more and more farfetched and by the time they were half way through the bottle of bourbon, Sophia had proposed all manner of pranks that would outrage his beloved Aunt Cathy. He knew he was likely going straight to the devil when he suggested replacing her beloved Corgi with a ferret.
Darcy looked at the time and realized it was already past 10. He should probably put his Aunt in a car and back to his Uncle. She really did know how to make him feel better and he was glad he had some relatives that simply cared that he was happy. She never put any expectations on him and had managed tonight to make this difficult situation seen manageable.
Standing up, he put his hand out to his aunt who took it and pulled herself up to standing. He pulled out his phone and placed an order on Uber. "Well, it looks as though a town car will be here in 10 minutes. Let's pack some of this BBQ up so you can take some with you Aunt." William offered.
"Always the gentleman William. Thank you for entertaining your old Aunt Sophia." They walked into the kitchen and found a completely unopened bag with containers of brisket, ribs, mashed potatoes and corn. After packing up the rest of the leftovers, William handed the unopened bag to his Aunt. She took the bag in one hand and William steadied her as he walked her into the elevators. Stepping out onto the ground floor they could see the car waiting for her. She gave him a quick peck on the cheek and headed home.
William went back up to his condo and finished cleaning up. If any of his Aunt's society friends had seen her tonight they wouldn't have believed it. Chuckling to himself he decided he should probably take a few Advil before he went to bed tonight.