Soul Mates (35 page)

For the next hour, Cassandra visited with her aunt. She had questions, but first needed to show appreciation for the tremendous gift Sophia had given her. “You helped me know what I want to do with my life,” she gushed. “You showed me my purpose. How can I ever thank you?”

“What you’re seeing as your purpose, is just an experience that’s calling you in the moment,” her aunt clarified. “Your true purpose will always be joy.”

“My purpose…is joy?”

“Yes, my dear,” Sophia explained. “You’ll continue to have experiences from which you’ll grow and expand. But expansion is inevitable. Joy is what you’re really seeking.”

The new insight left Cassandra tingling. “I love that. I’ve been feeling it, too. I knew joy was an important element, but I still thought that having a purpose in terms of action was what we were ultimately striving for. Is it because we’re taught that? Because we grow up believing it?” Cassandra was silent for a moment, absorbing the new ideas. “So…the purpose I was seeking was really joy, and the principles you gave me allowed me to discover that.”

“Yes, I had a desire to share the wonderful knowledge I’d come to know, and you had a desire to hear it,” her aunt responded lovingly. “That made us a vibrational match. I suggested you write down the four principles I’d learned about living life, because writing is something you love to do. The knowledge is yours now; you get to choose what you do with it.”

“But Aunt Sophia,” Cassandra objected, “you mentioned five principles.”

“Yes, and the fifth is the most wonderful of all; it explains how we can continue interacting in this way.”

“Wait!” Cassandra cried as she caught a glimpse of what Sophia was telling her. “You said the first four principles were about living life. The fifth must be about life after death. Or is it…” She paused as the understanding unfolded. “Is it that we don’t really die at all?”

“Yes, dear!” Sophia exclaimed. “It is. You see, we’re eternal, interconnected, creative beings who come to this wonderfully diverse time-space reality to experience joy. We come knowing our power and trusting our guidance system to steer us through the contrast to the well-being that we instinctively know is ours for the having. We can’t get it wrong, because every experience—whether we label it good or bad—adds to the expansion of all that is, and we never cease existing. Even when we have what humans call the death experience, we never stop being interested in the life we’ve created and are continuing to create.

“Those, my dear,” she concluded, “are the principles of the universe. You knew them when you made the decision to come here, and you wanted to remember them now so that you could begin living life on purpose.”

“And my life’s purpose,” Cassandra repeated the exciting truth, “is joy!”

JACE FELT PREPARED as he left for the meeting. He had proof of his innocence and could produce it if necessary. Moreover, he had Sophie as his constant companion. Whatever happened, she would be there to support him.

Arriving a few minutes before six, he pushed the button for the eighteenth floor where the offices of Harmon, Corruthers & Scott were located. When he’d dropped off Sophie’s car, he’d met Mr. Corruthers in the lobby. The lavishness of the building’s common area should have given him some indication of what the suites would be like. Still, he wasn’t prepared for the opulence he witnessed as he stepped off the elevator and into the firm’s reception area. Directly in front of him, water cascaded down a rock wall that was at least fifteen feet in height. The name of the law office stood out from the stone in gold embossed lettering.

Built into another wall was a fish tank he estimated to be at least five feet high and ten to twelve feet long. The fish, darting through mazes of artificial seaweed, underwater castles, and sunken pirate ships, were large and colorful. A seating area consisted of low-back leather chairs and ultra-glossy tables with magazines that looked as though they’d never been opened. A coffee bar housed a cappuccino machine and a crystal dome under which a selection of pastries was perfectly arranged. Jace wondered if it was all for show or if people were actually made to wait. He found out as the woman behind the reception desk called his name.

“Mr. Rutherford?”

“Yes.”

“You can come right this way.”

He followed her to a conference room with a large mahogany table in the center and cushiony, black leather office chairs surrounding it. The woman invited him to have a seat. On the table was a tray with a gleaming coffee decanter and another assortment of delicious-looking pastries. He accepted her offer of coffee and was told that an associate of Mr. Corruthers would be with him shortly.

Jace’s mind was reeling, and questions were amassing.
What the hell am I doing here? What do they want with me, anyway?
Other thoughts vied for his attention as he took in the luxurious surroundings
.
Is this what Cassandra and her family are used to?
He’d heard his mom speak of the lavish home she spent her days cleaning, and suddenly Jace wondered how he would ever fit in.

How could Sophie afford a firm like this to look after her affairs? Or did the Van Brodens pay for stuff like that?
Though Sophie’s answers were always forthcoming, Jace’s barrage of questions and his uneasiness with the setting in which he found himself kept him from hearing them.

Before long, a man not much older than him entered the room and introduced himself. Jace shook his hand and then waited anxiously as the young man sat in a chair across the table and poured himself a cup of coffee before he spread open the large file folder he’d been carrying.

“Mr. Rutherford,” he began. “I have some paperwork to go over with you before I show the reading of the will. So bear with me; we’ll get through this as quickly as we can.”

Jace heard the word
will
and didn’t take in anything else the man said. “Excuse me,” he interrupted. “Did you say the reading of the will?”

“Yes,” the man replied. “You’ll be viewing a taped version. We do it this way to save time, especially when it’s as long and complicated as this one is. All parties view the reading in separate rooms. This way we can deal with your questions and concerns individually.”

“I don’t understand,” Jace inquired further. “Why do I have to be here for the reading of the will?” He was still under the impression that he was there because of the missing jewelry.

“Mr. Rutherford,” the young lawyer explained patiently, “all parties mentioned in the will, as well as anyone with a legal interest in the disbursement of the deceased’s estate, are invited to be present for the official reading of the will.”

Jace had to be sure he was hearing right. “Are you saying that my name is mentioned in the will?” he asked tentatively. “In Sophia Langdon’s will?”

“Yes, Mr. Rutherford, it is.”

CHAPTER 23

CASSANDRA LISTENED somewhat removed as Mr. Corruthers went over the paperwork with her father. She was interested to hear what was contained in her aunt’s final will and testament, yet her mind was on Jace and her plan to surprise him later. She found herself getting impatient as the time dragged on. Finally, the lights were dimmed and an image of Sophia appeared on the screen before them. A recorded voice began the reading of the official document.

The will held no surprises. After a lot of legal jargon, it confirmed that her father, Richard Van Broden, was the primary heir to his late aunt’s vast estate. A generous sum was to go directly to both Cassandra and Trevor. As well, several charities were to receive sizable donations.

The lights went on, and Mr. Corruthers stood up to address the family. “What you just heard was the will that I executed for your aunt fifteen years ago. The will stands today, although a recent amendment has been made, and as I mentioned previously, a law suit has been filed against the estate.

The lawyer had Cassandra’s full attention. She’d nearly forgotten that someone was interfering with the will. For a brief, regrettable moment she’d suspected Jace. Now she had no idea who it could possibly be.

“I’ll go over the amendment first,” he continued. “Approximately one year ago, Sophia purchased the building in which she was living. She also acquired the one next to it.”

Cassandra and her father looked at each other in surprise but said nothing.

“As part of her assets, these properties would normally fall under the terms of the original will. However, as you’ll see, the will was amended, and these properties are part of that amendment. Sophia contacted me about three weeks ago and informed me of her desire to have some of her assets bequeathed to a party that I will name shortly. She wanted it done in a way that could not be contested. I suggested transferring the properties to a holding company.

I won’t get into the details of the arrangement at this time, but I will let you know that the deeds to these particular properties, as well as a car that was recently purchased through the company, are not part of the overall estate. Those assets belong to one Jace Rutherford.”

Hearing Jace’s name filled Cassandra with delight. “Oh my God!” she exclaimed. “The apartment building, the car—they belong to Jace now? Does he know?”

“He’s being informed of it as we speak.”

As her mind registered the fact that Jace was there receiving the news, she glanced at her parents. Her father smiled and nodded his approval. Her mother had a look of indifference on her face, but offered a genial remark.

“That’s wonderful, sweetheart. I’m sure he’ll be happy to hear it.”

Knowing that Jace was present for the reading of the will, Cassandra wanted to go to him immediately.
He could be in the next room.
She bubbled with anticipation.
And he probably has no idea I’m here.
Before she could inquire about him, her father spoke up.

“So, Peter,” he asked. “Who filed the law suit?”

“That brings us to our next order of business,” the lawyer went on in his dry legal voice. “Several weeks ago, we were contacted by a London law firm representing one Bradford Langdon. He’s a grandson of the late William F. Langdon who was a half brother to Sophia’s husband, Lord Phillip.”

“So he’s a nephew,” Richard frowned. “Sophia never mentioned any family on Phillip’s side. I wonder if she knew about him. What does he want exactly?”

“The family claims to have had a verbal agreement with Sophia. Williams’ son, Thomas—who was Bradford’s father—negotiated the agreement on behalf of
his
father. She’s been sending them a sum of money every year for the past four years. Though Thomas passed away earlier this year, the family is claiming that Sophia’s promise is still binding and that the annuity should continue.

“I wanted to find out all I could before I met with Sophia regarding this. I called her the week before last, to schedule a meeting. Unfortunately…” He shook his head. “I suspect this nephew tried to appeal to her directly and she denied his request,” Peter added. “Since learning of her passing, Bradford is claiming entitlement to part of the Langdon estate.”

Again, Cassandra and her parents exchanged surprised looks. This time her mother spoke up. “You can’t be serious,” Helen exclaimed. “Does he really think he has a case?”

“We’re still looking into it,” the lawyer replied. “Apparently Phillip made several large payments to his half-brother when he was alive and a similar appeal was made after his death. All I can say at this point is that I see no grounds for contesting the will, but the claim for annuity may be more difficult to dispute. However, based on what we’ve learned about him, my feeling is that he’ll want to avoid the inconvenience of a lengthy court battle and be willing to settle.”

“Peter…” Richard stood up. “You may be right; I think we should look into this and consider making him an offer. Let’s schedule a meeting later this week to discuss it. But right now…” He turned to Cassandra and smiled. “There’s someone I’d like to meet.”