and their dreams. All he wanted was to hear about him.
“ ‘In addition,’ ” Arnold said, as Bertie looked relieved, they were finally getting to the part of the will that concerned him, “ ‘I am bequeathing my château near St. Paul de Vence, in four equal shares, one each to my three daughters Timmie, Juliette, and Joy, and’ ”—Arnold seemed to hesitate before he went on as they listened—“ ‘the fourth equal share to my daughter Sophie Agnès Marnier, daughter of Elisabeth Marnier, with whom I had a tender union for several years. I realize that Sophie’s existence, and that of her mother, will come as a shock to my children, and to Véronique, and for that I apologize. Sophie’s existence and her mother’s in no way diminish my love for my three older daughters, nor for Véronique, while I was married to her. It is something that happened a long time ago, and I wish to acknowledge my youngest daughter now at my death, and do for her what I didn’t do during my lifetime. I wish her to own an equal share of the château with her sisters, with each getting one quarter of it, and I bequeath the remaining funds in my estate to Sophie, after my bequests to the three older girls. It will be a far smaller share than what they receive, but it will help her and her mother, and it will be useful to Sophie and take some of the burden from her mother, which is the least I can do for them now.’ ”
There was dead silence in the room after Arnold spoke. No one moved, no one said a word, no one even breathed. Not even Véronique, who looked as if she had turned to stone in her chair. Joy looked the most shocked. She had always thought she was his baby and favored child until two minutes ago, and now she realized he had another younger daughter, and she hadn’t been his baby at all. Everyone was stunned.
“How old is she?” Véronique finally asked in a choked voice, and he knew how painful the answer would be to her.
“Sophie is twenty-three years old, three years younger than Joy.” They both knew what that meant. Paul had still been very much married to Véronique when he’d been involved with the girl’s mother. Sophie had been born three years before the divorce, when all was supposedly well with them, and Véronique hadn’t yet known about his affairs. She had learned of them after they separated, and it had been a shock as their marriage unraveled, but Elisabeth Marnier was not a name she recognized. He had managed to keep that a secret till now. And clearly it had been serious, since they had a child. Véronique knew it shouldn’t have surprised her of Paul, after what she’d learned, but it did, and he had kept it hidden from her for all these years.
The girls were speechless as Arnold went on. And Bertie’s face was bright red. He had listened carefully and could do the math. The four girls had become owners of the château, with no share for him, and whatever funds remained in the estate were going to his father’s illegitimate daughter Sophie, which left nothing for Bertie.
“ ‘And to my son Bertrand,’ ” Arnold continued, “ ‘for whom I have funded a dozen business ventures, all of which failed for lack of good judgment, good practices, and solid business plans—and whose stepmother helped him far more generously than I when he was younger, with just as little success for fifteen years—I feel you have had far more advantages than your sisters, and more money than I am leaving them, after never giving them a penny until now. In my estimation, you’ve already had far more than your fair share of my estate, and your stepmother’s help, and I am afraid that anything I would leave you would be wasted like the rest. I know this is a hard lesson for you, son, and I love you, but you now have to do the work yourself, earn your living fairly and honestly, and learn what Véronique and I have tried to teach you with no success. You need to build your career and
“ ‘In addition,’ ” Arnold said, as Bertie looked relieved, they were finally getting to the part of the will that concerned him, “ ‘I am bequeathing my château near St. Paul de Vence, in four equal shares, one each to my three daughters Timmie, Juliette, and Joy, and’ ”—Arnold seemed to hesitate before he went on as they listened—“ ‘the fourth equal share to my daughter Sophie Agnès Marnier, daughter of Elisabeth Marnier, with whom I had a tender union for several years. I realize that Sophie’s existence, and that of her mother, will come as a shock to my children, and to Véronique, and for that I apologize. Sophie’s existence and her mother’s in no way diminish my love for my three older daughters, nor for Véronique, while I was married to her. It is something that happened a long time ago, and I wish to acknowledge my youngest daughter now at my death, and do for her what I didn’t do during my lifetime. I wish her to own an equal share of the château with her sisters, with each getting one quarter of it, and I bequeath the remaining funds in my estate to Sophie, after my bequests to the three older girls. It will be a far smaller share than what they receive, but it will help her and her mother, and it will be useful to Sophie and take some of the burden from her mother, which is the least I can do for them now.’ ”
There was dead silence in the room after Arnold spoke. No one moved, no one said a word, no one even breathed. Not even Véronique, who looked as if she had turned to stone in her chair. Joy looked the most shocked. She had always thought she was his baby and favored child until two minutes ago, and now she realized he had another younger daughter, and she hadn’t been his baby at all. Everyone was stunned.
“How old is she?” Véronique finally asked in a choked voice, and he knew how painful the answer would be to her.
“Sophie is twenty-three years old, three years younger than Joy.” They both knew what that meant. Paul had still been very much married to Véronique when he’d been involved with the girl’s mother. Sophie had been born three years before the divorce, when all was supposedly well with them, and Véronique hadn’t yet known about his affairs. She had learned of them after they separated, and it had been a shock as their marriage unraveled, but Elisabeth Marnier was not a name she recognized. He had managed to keep that a secret till now. And clearly it had been serious, since they had a child. Véronique knew it shouldn’t have surprised her of Paul, after what she’d learned, but it did, and he had kept it hidden from her for all these years.
The girls were speechless as Arnold went on. And Bertie’s face was bright red. He had listened carefully and could do the math. The four girls had become owners of the château, with no share for him, and whatever funds remained in the estate were going to his father’s illegitimate daughter Sophie, which left nothing for Bertie.
“ ‘And to my son Bertrand,’ ” Arnold continued, “ ‘for whom I have funded a dozen business ventures, all of which failed for lack of good judgment, good practices, and solid business plans—and whose stepmother helped him far more generously than I when he was younger, with just as little success for fifteen years—I feel you have had far more advantages than your sisters, and more money than I am leaving them, after never giving them a penny until now. In my estimation, you’ve already had far more than your fair share of my estate, and your stepmother’s help, and I am afraid that anything I would leave you would be wasted like the rest. I know this is a hard lesson for you, son, and I love you, but you now have to do the work yourself, earn your living fairly and honestly, and learn what Véronique and I have tried to teach you with no success. You need to build your career and
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