This is the fifth part in a series, so if you have not already done so, you might want to read Part I, Part II, Part III, and Part IV before continuing.
While Tolbert tried to figure out if he should believe in this mysterious aunt of theirs, Maddy decided to go investigate their inheritance.
She started by filing the paperwork to get access to the bank accounts and investment portfolio and hoo boy!
It was more money than she had ever seen in her life.
A few signatures and she was suddenly rich.
She reminded herself that half of it belonged to her brother, but even divided, it was nothing to sneeze at.
She would need her brother’s bank account information to send him his half, but she could go ahead and deposit her half into her bank account right away.
She didn’t.
She couldn’t explain why she didn’t. It just didn’t feel right. It felt like taking the deceased’s belongings while the corpse was still cooling.
She decided to check out the real estate before moving any money around. She told herself it was a good idea to check out the entire inheritance before making any moves, but really she was just stalling.
Helen had said there was real estate in Chicago and real estate somewhere in Wisconsin. Maddy decided to start with the one close to home.
Turned out it wasn’t quite in Chicago. It was in Evanston, which was close enough. It was about an hour’s drive away from Maddy’s apartment.
Based on the amount of cash Aunt Alison had had on hand, Maddy was expecting to find a full-on mansion.
Instead, she found a small brick bungalow. At first, Maddy wondered why someone with so much money would choose to live in such a small house. That brought her back to the fact that she and her brother had inherited everything. That must mean Aunt Alison had lived alone and had never had kids of her own (or at least none that she liked). She didn’t want to putter around a big house all by herself. Maddy wasn’t sure if that thought made her feel sad, or just admire her aunt’s practicality and unpretentiousness.
Also, it was just one block away from the lakeshore, so it was probably worth a lot more than you would think on first glance.
Maddy used her key to unlock the front door, but she still felt like she was trespassing.
The front door opened into a small mud room that contained a row of hangers containing various jackets, sweatshirts and scarves. Maddy was suddenly unsure Aunt Alison had really lived alone, but looking at the footwear on the floor, there were only two pairs of boots: one for snow and one for rain. They were both the same size. Maybe Aunt Alison had just had a tendency to get cold easily?
Past the mudroom one direction was a flight of stairs leading to the basement. That was too creepy to start the tour with, so Maddy went the other way into a well-lit kitchen.
The counter was made of marble, so, yeah, just because the house was small didn’t mean it was cheap.
There was a dish drainer on one side of the sink, and on the other side was an espresso machine. That made Maddy smile because both her parents used their espresso machine multiple times a day. But this machine was much nicer than anything Maddy had ever seen at her parents’ house.
Next to the espresso machine was a grinder with various settings, and on the stove was what looked to be a well-used kettle.
Opening up a few of the cabinets at random, Maddy found pots, pans, skillets, baking sheets, a roasting rack, and more cake pans than she had ever seen in her life.
Moving on, she found her way into the dining room, which had a beautiful mahogany table and matching chairs, a cocktail cart with an assortment whiskeys, mixers, and glasses. Maddy considered for a second, then thought, “What the hell,” and poured herself a glass of the most expensive looking scotch.
Oh, that was good.
She stood at the window, admiring the view while she savored the scotch and thought, “Maybe Aunt Alison’s life wasn’t so sad after all.”
From the dining room, Maddy made her way to an open, airy living room with a massive TV mounted on the wall. It was surrounded by an impressive sound system and shelves of DVDs. Maddy didn’t think anyone used DVDs anymore, but apparently her aunt had been old school in that way.
Across from the TV was a huge sofa and a loveseat that would have been considered a sofa in almost any other living room. They were upholstered all in leather. Pillows and blankets covered almost every surface of both the sofa and the loveseat, making it look extremely cozy.
Maddy flung herself down onto the couch and immediately sank into heaven.
To be continued…