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“I think we need to get to our appointment now.”
Drew drops his hand and smiles again. We exit the truck and I meet him around in front. Once again, he holds out his hand for me to take. I gratefully accept it and suck in a deep breath.
“Let’s do this,” I say as we start the walk into the building to learn how our future might play out.
DREW
To say I was shocked to see Sam, the so in-control woman, having an internal battle and what looked like what was about to be a panic attack, would be an under statement. With my training, I knew it could happen to anyone no matter what they looked like on the outside, but it still threw me off. Not enough to not step in and help though because I immediately needed to help.
My protective nature surged and I found myself using a distraction touch on her knee while trying to get her to refocus and breathe. It appeared my efforts worked when she started to breathe normally and tell me about her damn donkey. I’ll call it a win. When she turned to me and thanked me while staring into my eyes, I felt like my heart would come out of my throat.
As we walk down the hallway towards Mr. Burns office, it was my turn to have a bout of anxiety. I have no idea what to expect and why Tom really wants me here. Maybe it’s to confirm our verbal agreement had indeed been made legal in the will.
I drop Sam’s hand and motion for her enter the office ahead of me. We take our seats in the waiting room and both of us sit silently with our hands in our laps. I want to reach out and offer my support again, but I feel like maybe I would be overstepping or seem like I was being too presumptuous. I’m exceptionally drawn to this woman and it’s hard for me to come to grips with it. If this meeting doesn’t have a positive outcome, I don’t know how I will deal with it. What if Sam kicks me out? What if I lose everything I have been working towards? What if…? The office door opens interrupting my thoughts.
Mr. Burns strides towards us, smiling, and holds out his hand to Sam. “Sam, it’s so wonderful to see you. Your grandfather spoke very highly of you. I haven’t seen you since you were about ten-years-old and ripping around the ice with the boys!”
She stands up and shakes his hand. “Oh my gosh, that was a million moons ago, it seems. I wish I could say I remember you, but I don’t.” They both chuckle and look my way.
Mr. Burns offers a hand to me. “Nice to see you again, Drew. Tom sure did appreciate everything you did for him. So did I, actually.”
I clear my throat. “Thank you, sir, it was the least I could do after everything he did for me.”
“Let’s go into my office and get this meeting done, so you two know what’s about to happen.”
Sam and I follow Mr. Burns into his office and take the seats in front of his desk. He has a single file folder on his desk and he sits down placing his hands on top of it.
“I’m going to begin by saying what you probably already know. This is not a standard will and will be executed a bit differently. I’ve already met with your dad and uncle and they have handled with their parts already. To make sure you’re aware, I am the executor, and your dad and uncle have been left cash sums. They are completely in agreement with the rest of the will, even though they don’t know the details. They trust Tom and will abide with his wishes. Which brings me to your part in all this. Sam, the remainder of your grandfather’s assets are yours with the exception of a few things he’s left to Drew. I’ll get to that in a minute. Here comes the part that is not usually standard. Both of you will need to complete a request Tom has made before I am to release anything to you. It is up to me and my discretion to decide if it has been completed to his liking. Tom and I had several discussions about this. I know very well what he is looking for. Before you start asking questions, I want you to know that I counselled him to not do this, but he insisted it was what he wanted. He felt this would be the poke you both needed to get yourselves on track again.”
Sam is watching Mr. Burns intently. Her face reveals nothing of her thoughts but my brows are furrowed together as I try to piece together where this is going.
He continues speaking after taking a deep breath. “While you are working towards the request, there is an account set up for the maintenance of the horses and running the house. You don’t need to worry about that. I will go over the details at the end on how you can access it. Sam, as you have heard, Tom wants you to take over the head coach position with the Bandits. You must do this for the entire season and when the season is over it will be up to you if you want to continue, but you must do it this year. There will be a salary paid to you for this separate from the house and farm fund I just told you about. This salary is yours to do with as you wish for performing the job. You are expected to approach it as a real job and not try to get out of it. I was explicitly told you run away when things get difficult and you are under no circumstances to do so. Should you decide to quit before the season is up, you will forfeit the entire inheritance except for a cash amount that I will disperse as a lump sum at that time. The farm would be sold and all associated property sold along with it.”
At the last bit of information, I suck in an audible breath. I can’t lose the farm! Sam looks at me warily. I nod at Mr. Burns to continue.
“Drew, I know Tom had discussed the horses and barn with you. He wants to give that to you. No matter what happens with Sam’s part, the horses will be yours. Here’s the tricky part, the farm will be sold as a whole should Sam fail with her part, which means, you wouldn’t have the land and barn for the horses as you hoped. Should that happen, there is a sum set aside to help you establish your practice somewhere else. You will only receive this if the farm is sold. Should Sam fulfill her part and inherit the farm, she can then decide if you will continue using the space or if you are to find a new place. Tom was initially going to separate the property into two parcels, but after we spoke and met with real estate agents, he saw it wasn’t going to be the best option for the property. He didn’t want to disappoint you, Drew. He viewed you as a member of his family and wanted to be sure the horses were yours and you have the space to operate as you wish. It just depends on how it plays out as to where you will be.”
Sam and I sit silently, taking it all in before we start asking any questions.
Mr. Burns isn’t done, though, “There is one more thing I need to tell you both. This is the special request I mentioned earlier.” He looks at Sam and continues, “Tom wants you to help Drew get his love of hockey back, and he wants him to be involved with the team.”
I can’t contain my outburst, “What the hell, Burns! He’s going to give me the horses but force me back into hockey? I don’t understand that at all.”
“Calm down, Drew, I’m only the messenger. He felt you have something to contribute, but it’s up to you to figure out what and follow up with it.”
I’m vibrating with anger. How could he do this to me? He knew how I felt about being involved with hockey. He knew my injuries. I feel so…betrayed. He’s forcing me back to a dark time in my life and from beyond the grave at that.
“Drew, you have a request to fill as well. He wants you to help Sam gain confidence again and to not run away when the tough times start. She has a history of running and not dealing with problems. He wants you to help her cope.”
Sam lets out a sigh and looks at me. “He’s not wrong.” She chuckles faintly as a tear slips down her face. She turns her attention back to the lawyer. “I’m going to assume if Drew doesn’t get involved with hockey and I don’t face my issues adequately, we fail. What happens if we fail?”
Mr. Burns takes a breath and glances at each of us in turn. “If you fail these requests, I have been instructed to liquidate all assets and only disperse a set amount of cash to each of you with the rest going to a variety of charities. That includes selling the donkeys.”
A heavy silence falls on the room as we sit there and absorb what he has just revealed to us. I’m in shock. Gobsmacked. My future is dependent on helping Sam reach a personal and professional goal. But I also have to get back into hockey. How will I do that?
“I’m assuming you’re solely responsible in deciding if we meet the requirements, then?” Sam directs her question to Mr. Burns.
“I am.”
