Jonas pressed a gentle hand to my knee to stop my bobbing leg. “Before we go any further, can you give me the short version of what you’re about to tell me? I’m freaking out here.” I slid my hand into Jonas’s and squeezed, as if bracing for a major medical procedure.
Mr. Finland sat back. With his elbows on the arms of the chair, he steepled his fingers to his chin. “Miss Matthews, I’m here to tell you that you have inherited Wellington Boarding School… among other things.”
Jonas and I gasped at the same time.
“Come again?” I sat up straighter.
“The fact that you have inherited Wellington Boarding School is only the beginning. Ms. Long is here to explain the rest.”
Chapter Six
“I can’t run a boarding school.” And I didn’t want to. “This is crazy.” My voice cracked.
Jonas and I stood just outside the boardroom. After an hour, we had taken a break from the lawyerly meeting so that I could make sense of what I had learned so far and gather my wits before I heard more. Mr. Finland had read the will. In the midst of all the legalese was the basic message that I was now sole heir to everything my dad owned. That included Wellington Boarding School, several houses around the world, half of a house here in Kentucky, and, of course, money.
A cold sweat broke out across my neck as I stared up at Jonas’s calm expression. I held up my two shaking hands.
“Look at me. Do I look like I’m capable of what they just told me? I’m a kid.” I didn’t want to be responsible for teaching cloned humans to use unnatural abilities—to mindread, mindspeak, control actions, or whatever else they could do. Not to mention the responsibility of honing the medical healing capabilities these clones might have. And what if these clones turned out to be more like Sandra? I couldn’t even think about that right now.
After allowing me to rant for several minutes, Jonas rubbed my arms in an apparent attempt to get some circulation going. “I’ve seen you in action, remember? You are capable of anything you set that mind to.” He tapped a finger to my temple.
“Did you listen to the rest of that will? I’ve been left some kind of trust fund that I’m in charge of. What was my dad thinking?”
“He was thinking he would be alive long enough to make sure you knew what to do, but in the event that he wasn’t, he made sure there were people around to advise you.”
“Like who? Who are we talking about? Those attorneys I just met? Cathy DeWeese? Dad left Dr. John DeWeese as my co-guardian, for crying out loud. My father may have loved me, but he obviously didn’t know who he could trust any more than I do.”
“That’s not why he chose John as your guardian. In fact, he never expected John to advise you or take care of you.” Coach Williams’s voice startled me. I hadn’t heard him return.
“What makes you say that?”
“Your father met with me the day after he spoke at the Association of International Physicians dinner. He thought someone was following him, and he wanted me to know that if anything happened to him, he had arranged for John DeWeese to be your legal guardian. But he warned me that if that were ever to happen, I would need to watch over you more closely than ever before.”
“I don’t understand.”
“Your father believed in the old adage, ‘Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer.’ He thought that by bringing John DeWeese into the fold—by making him your co-guardian, a gesture of trust—that John would hang himself, so to speak. Your father knew John had been meeting with Sandra. I don’t know how he knew, but he knew. Your dad just didn’t count on dying before your eighteenth birthday. I’m sure he hoped to catch John in his secrets.”
“So you’re saying he gambled with my life?”
“Maybe a little, but I was watching. You were seventeen years old, after all—not a child. And Jack was looking out for you. He might not have known to keep
Mr. Finland sat back. With his elbows on the arms of the chair, he steepled his fingers to his chin. “Miss Matthews, I’m here to tell you that you have inherited Wellington Boarding School… among other things.”
Jonas and I gasped at the same time.
“Come again?” I sat up straighter.
“The fact that you have inherited Wellington Boarding School is only the beginning. Ms. Long is here to explain the rest.”
Chapter Six
“I can’t run a boarding school.” And I didn’t want to. “This is crazy.” My voice cracked.
Jonas and I stood just outside the boardroom. After an hour, we had taken a break from the lawyerly meeting so that I could make sense of what I had learned so far and gather my wits before I heard more. Mr. Finland had read the will. In the midst of all the legalese was the basic message that I was now sole heir to everything my dad owned. That included Wellington Boarding School, several houses around the world, half of a house here in Kentucky, and, of course, money.
A cold sweat broke out across my neck as I stared up at Jonas’s calm expression. I held up my two shaking hands.
“Look at me. Do I look like I’m capable of what they just told me? I’m a kid.” I didn’t want to be responsible for teaching cloned humans to use unnatural abilities—to mindread, mindspeak, control actions, or whatever else they could do. Not to mention the responsibility of honing the medical healing capabilities these clones might have. And what if these clones turned out to be more like Sandra? I couldn’t even think about that right now.
After allowing me to rant for several minutes, Jonas rubbed my arms in an apparent attempt to get some circulation going. “I’ve seen you in action, remember? You are capable of anything you set that mind to.” He tapped a finger to my temple.
“Did you listen to the rest of that will? I’ve been left some kind of trust fund that I’m in charge of. What was my dad thinking?”
“He was thinking he would be alive long enough to make sure you knew what to do, but in the event that he wasn’t, he made sure there were people around to advise you.”
“Like who? Who are we talking about? Those attorneys I just met? Cathy DeWeese? Dad left Dr. John DeWeese as my co-guardian, for crying out loud. My father may have loved me, but he obviously didn’t know who he could trust any more than I do.”
“That’s not why he chose John as your guardian. In fact, he never expected John to advise you or take care of you.” Coach Williams’s voice startled me. I hadn’t heard him return.
“What makes you say that?”
“Your father met with me the day after he spoke at the Association of International Physicians dinner. He thought someone was following him, and he wanted me to know that if anything happened to him, he had arranged for John DeWeese to be your legal guardian. But he warned me that if that were ever to happen, I would need to watch over you more closely than ever before.”
“I don’t understand.”
“Your father believed in the old adage, ‘Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer.’ He thought that by bringing John DeWeese into the fold—by making him your co-guardian, a gesture of trust—that John would hang himself, so to speak. Your father knew John had been meeting with Sandra. I don’t know how he knew, but he knew. Your dad just didn’t count on dying before your eighteenth birthday. I’m sure he hoped to catch John in his secrets.”
“So you’re saying he gambled with my life?”
“Maybe a little, but I was watching. You were seventeen years old, after all—not a child. And Jack was looking out for you. He might not have known to keep
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