Play On by Heather C. Myers Page A

didn’t reach his eyes.  Seraphina thought it looked like a smile that resulted from someone slowly losing their grip on their sanity.  “I don’t understand,” was all he managed to say.
    “Ken wanted both of you “ – here, he looked both at Alan and Ryan – “to learn from your mistakes.  He stressed the fact that his two sons were supposed to be independent adults, not two men who depended on outside stimuli.  If you can’t control your urges in regards to drugs and alcohol, he did not think you should be rewarded, and he specifically said that he was through giving the two of you second chances, lending the two of you money to start up a business or to buy a house, only to see that business fail to get off the ground or that house to foreclose months later.  Why would he reward you for doing something he was so adamant against?”
    Though Alan said nothing in response, Seraphina could feel him seething in anger.  She looked over at her sister, to see if she could feel it too, and when she locked eyes with Katella, she knew that she wasn’t the only one who could sense it.  Alan’s temper, like Ryan’s, was unpredictable, but unlike Ryan, it didn’t just happen when he was drunk.  If anything, his anger flared when he was forced to maintain composure, like right now.
    Earl kept firm eye contact with Alan, almost as though he was daring the younger man to refuse, to claim how unfair it was.  When Alan remained quiet, Earl continued.
    “Everything else is split down the middle between Katella and Seraphina, including his bank accounts, his primary place of residence, the property he owns, and any income generated from the Seagulls,” Earl concluded.  He looked only at the two women in the room.  “What this means, ladies, is that you can choose to keep or sell the residential home as well as the rentals, and whatever income generated is split down the middle between the two of you.  If you keep everything, the revenue from the rentals is also split.”
    “Are you fucking kidding me?” Alan snarled as he lost complete control of himself.  “These girls are in their goddamn early twenties and already are multi-millionaires without doing anything except kissing ass?”
    Seraphina could feel her own temper start to flare.  It wasn’t because of his anger at them getting the majority of the money or even that he believed she and Katella didn’t deserve it, but to think that they were kissing ass rather than loving and caring about her grandfather -  Before Seraphina could say something, Katella reached over and wrapped her cool, long fingers around her sister’s forearm and squeezed gently but firmly.  It was a warning to keep her mouth shut, and even though Seraphina desperately wanted to defend herself, she bit down on her tongue in order to do as suggested.
    “Are you arguing with the will, Mr. Brown?” Earl asked coolly, leaning against the leather back of his chair and raising an eyebrow.
    “I just don’t understand it, that’s all,” Alan said through gritted teeth.
    “You don’t need to understand it,” Earl said and then looked away, entirely dismissing any concern Alan had about the fairness of the will.  “The last bit of the will also needs to be discussed before you are all free to leave, which is just what Ken wanted done with the hockey team the Newport Beach Seagulls.”
    There was a heavy silence that suddenly filled the room, and Seraphina noticed that even Ryan seemed to stand up straighter at the new topic.
    “Ken wanted to keep the team in the family,” Earl said.  “I talked to him regarding the matter just after the end of the last season, in April.  If he changed his mind, he didn’t mention it whatsoever or change his will.  Having said that, he wanted a specific person in the family to run the team after his death, including all the managerial duties such as signing and trading players, salaries, and the like.  And that person is you,