Chapter 30: Legal Matters

Overnight, Shane had chewed his fingernails down to the nub worrying about Megan’s decision. Hazel caught hell from him for her outburst at the reception. He was convinced that after that episode, his sister would try to stake a claim to the family fortune just to make his life difficult. It wasn’t a good sign that she was late for their meeting with the lawyer. In his troubled mind she was off at another lawyer, getting her ducks in a row for the final showdown.

And so, he was slightly relieved when Megan walked into the waiting room of Muybridge & Associates with only Greta at her side.

“Did you consider my offer?” he asked, trying to sound personable.

“Don’t worry, Shane,” she assured him. “I’m sure what I have to say will make you very happy.”

Ryan arrived soon after that. Once everyone was ready, Dennis Muybridge invited the family into his office and offered them all seats. Megan sat on one end, Ryan on the other, with Greta, Shane, and Hazel in between. Hazel was hungover, but her mood had improved once it seemed she hadn’t ruined everything for her and Shane.

Dennis Muybridge was on Shane’s side. He was yet another person whom Shane had played football with back in high school. He was known as the most underhanded lawyer in town, also the most successful. Collectively, Muybridge & Associates had a success rate near ninety percent. They operated as a general law practice, but primarily serviced typical Putnam Townies. Shane was the epitome of the kind of client they represented.

“First of all,” Muybridge said to everyone, “I want to offer my condolences on your terrible, terrible loss.” The second ‘terrible’ told Megan that he didn’t really care. The amount of money in the Kroeger estate would yield a hefty percentage for the attorney and all he saw were dollar signs.

“Look, can we just cut through all the nonsense,” Megan said, anxious to be done with the whole thing and in her car back to Washington. She turned to face her older brother. “Shane, you can forget your offer.”

His eyes bulged as he despaired at the thought of her contesting the arrangement.

“I don’t want any of the money,” she finished, Shane relaxing back into his seat, his heart racing from the shock. “I’ve said that from the start, but none of you believed me. But it doesn’t matter. Whatever I do, you’re still going to find ways to continue this grudge. So let’s just get the papers out and I’ll say or sign anything you want me to.”

Once again, Shane was shocked. He couldn’t believe that she wasn’t at least taking the settlement offer. Someone else might have thought he’d misjudged her. Shane immediately started wondering what her angle was.

There were several smiles competing for the greatest display of elation in the room at that moment. Hazel was already thinking of ways to spend the money. Shane was celebrating the affirmation of his status as the new patriarch. Dennis Muybridge was deciding whether to upgrade to the next class of Mercedes, or to finally buy the boat he’d always wanted.

Greta hid her reaction behind an expression of neutrality. She had hoped that Megan would at least take Shane’s offer, knowing that her niece would put the money to good use, better use than any of the other recipients ever would. But she chose not to speak, respecting Megan’s decision.

Ryan was silent and aloof. No one could tell whether he was happy or not because he maintained a permanent scowl. He was sober for the first time in two days and everyone just chalked it up to the silence of recovery. Inside he felt pulled in two directions. The money would mean security, enough that he might never have to work a day in his life. But it also meant being under his brother’s thumb, crawling to him to dole out the funds. Ryan didn’t like answering to anyone, and Shane’s recent embrace of power left a bad taste in his mouth. He knew what it was like to have someone holding something over him and he didn’t like it.

“Well, in that case,” Muybridge beamed, “I guess I’ll get the forms.” He spun around in his chair and walked over to a file cabinet against the wall. In the second drawer from the top he flipped through folders, pulling out a thin stack of papers.

As he arranged the papers, his secretary opened the office door a crack and leaned in. “Dennis, there’s a Mr. Kroeger here to see you,” she said.

“I’m in with the Kroegers right now,” he told her dismissively.

“Not all of them,” a man said before barging into the room. He was Peter Kroeger, also known as Roland Balthasar. Standing beside him, holding a manila folder, was Eddie Sanchez.

“Peter?” Greta said, rising slightly out of her chair. “What…?”

“Don’t worry Greta,” he said, holding his hand out for her to sit back down. “I’m here to correct a few mistakes.”

“You don’t have an appointment,” Muybridge told him, trying to maintain control of the situation.

“Trust me,” Peter told him. “You’re going to want to hear what I have to say.”

“What’s this all about?” Shane asked, not realizing the identity of the interloper. “Who are you?”

“This is your Uncle Peter,” Greta told him.

“As in your father’s brother,” Peter clarified to his eldest nephew. “Which means I have some say in what goes on here today.”

“Wait a minute,” Shane said. “If you’re Peter, then you don’t have any claim to anything. My grandfather disowned you years ago. He handed everything over to my father and you got nothing. You have no right to be here.”

“You’re not entirely correct,” Peter told him. “Your grandfather didn’t disown me. I left. Big difference. But that still doesn’t mean I have a right to the money.”

“See?” Shane said to everyone.

“The only person in this room who has a right to that money is Greta.”

“What?” Greta gasped in disbelief. “Peter, I don’t understand what you’re talking about. That money is Murphy’s.”

“And Murphy is giving it to you.” Eddie handed Peter the folder and Peter pulled out a document. He handed it to Dennis Muybridge for verification. “This is Murphy’s living will. It states very clearly, that if anything were to happen to him that left him in a condition wherein he was incapable of making rational decisions, that all assets of the Kroeger family estate be turned over to his sister, Greta Foster, formerly Greta Kroeger.”

“This can’t be real,” Shane argued desperately.

“Oh, it’s real,” Peter assured him. “If you look at the witness line on page four you’ll find my name. As witness and next of kin, my name carries a lot of weight on that document. I think you’ll find it will stand up with any judge you feel like taking it to.”

Shane looked at Dennis Muybridge. “I’m afraid he’s right,” the attorney said, hating the words coming out of his mouth. “The language of this will is pretty solid. Under the circumstances, there’s not a chance in hell that we can successfully contest it.”

“I don’t believe this,” Shane cried. He turned to his aunt, humbled and grovelling. “Greta, what are you going to do?”

It took her a minute to take everything in. When the shock finally wore off, a tight grin slowly carved itself across her face. “Don’t worry, Shane,” she told him. “You’ll get your share.”

“And how much is that?” he asked.

“I think ten thousand should be enough to keep you happy for a while.”

He’d been on the verge of millions, only to watch zeroes drop off the check like lemmings. It didn’t seem fair.

“What about me?” Ryan spoke up for the first time. Despite his concerns, he’d rather have the money and be forced to deal with Shane than not have the money at all. His mother was dead, his father lost in delusion; the safety net was being pulled out from under him. He was halfway across the high wire and is his uncle was shaking it.

“You’ll get the same as your brother,” Greta promised him.

“Ten grand?” Ryan shouted in disbelief. “Ten grand will barely get me through the rest of the year. What am I supposed to do after that?”

“Looks like you’ll have to get a job,” Greta told him. “Don’t worry, I won’t sell the house just yet.” In an instant the paradigm had shifted. Now she had the power.

“What are you going to do with the rest of the money?” Megan asked.

“I plan to give almost all of it to charity,” Greta announced, to the dismay of at least four people in the room and the delight of three others. “I’ll set aside enough that I can live out the rest of my years comfortably, I think that was partly what Murphy had in mind. But the rest of, I’ll find some way that it will do the most good. I think that’s also what Murphy had in mind.”

Sensing no money in it for him, Dennis Muybridge shuffled everyone out of his office and sat back behind his desk to sulk.

In the parking lot, Shane, Hazel, and Ryan went directly for their vehicles, defeated and not interested in hearing anymore of Greta’s philanthropic schemes. Greta took her brother aside. “I don’t understand,” she told him, confused. “Don’t get me wrong, I appreciate this incredible gesture, and maybe I shouldn’t question it…but how did you do this?”

“You mean, how did my name end up as the witness on a document Murphy prepared?” He smiled.

“You have to admit, it’s a little unexpected.”

“It’s a lot unexpected,” he admitted. “Murph and I went at it tooth and nail for so many years, it’s hard to believe we could work together again on anything. Except when it comes to our sister. Murphy always felt guilty that dad left you with so little, because he knew that you were the most generous one out of all of us. He wanted to make sure that his estate ended up in the right hands. So he tracked me down. I can’t say we completely reconciled, it was more like we came together for the greater good, like enemies forced to team up in the comic books. He knew that if I came out of exile with a piece of paper signed by both of us, handing it all over to you, that no one would be able to fight it. He didn’t trust his kids to do the right thing, which is kind of sad. But maybe they’ll learn something from this experience. Who knows, someday down the road…”

“From your mouth to God’s ear,” Greta said. They stood there, looking at each other, smiling. “It’s good to see you, Peter.”

“It’s good to see you, too.”

“Is that where you were going?”

Eddie nodded. Everything was becoming clear to Megan now. She wanted to believe that she’d completely misjudged him. But there was still one thing that left her unsure.

“What about that business with Roland Balthasar?” she asked.

“That’s Roland Balthasar,” Eddie told her, pointing to her Uncle Peter. “He set this whole thing up as a test.”

“A test?”
“He wanted to make sure I was worthy to be in his family.”
“I don’t understand. So there wasn’t any chance of getting your powers back?”
“There was. He’d designed a machine to specifically deal with my problem. The guy really is a genius.”
“And you didn’t plan to take him up on his offer?”

“I’m not going to lie to you,” Eddie admitted. “I thought about it quite a bit at first. But something just kept getting in the way. Every time I tried to give serious thought to getting my powers back, I got distracted. I’d start thinking about whatever problem you were dealing with at that moment, or something you’d gone through recently. I found myself worrying about you so much that I didn’t have any time to think about your uncle’s offer.”

“Then how did you know about the will?”
“Your father told me.”
“You spoke to my father?”
Eddie nodded. “We had a long talk. One of the things he said was that he’d prepared a living will that would set things straight. He told me that the secret to finding it was with the last person anyone would expect.”

“So how does Peter tie into this?”

“When I first met your uncle, we were at the market, and he was calling himself Roland Balthasar. The next day, he came to the wake and Greta called him Peter. Knowing what I know about him, and the way your family works, I figured the last person anyone would expect your father to go to for help would be his brother.”

“But what about the test?”

“Peter gave me a choice. I could take him up on his offer, get my powers back, and go back to the life I was used to, or he could lead me to the will.”

“And you chose the will?”

“I chose the will.”

Megan thought it over. She was glad about the choice he’d made, but had to know, “What’s to keep you from just going back to his lab now that everything is settled here?”

“Making the choice involved destroying the machine that would give me my powers back and burning the schematics.”

That was all the explanation she needed. Megan leaned in to kiss him. To her surprise, Eddie stepped back.

“Your father told me something else,” he began. “He told me that I don’t really know you. And the truth is, he’s right. Meg, we shared the same address for years, but we didn’t live together. We were married, but we didn’t share a life. I love the kind of person you are, but I don’t know who you are well enough to make that kind of statement. I can say this, if it’s one thing these past few days have taught me, it’s that I want to know you. I want to take the time to learn as much about you as I can. And I want you to feel the same way. If we’re ever going to work, we have to do it the right way.”

She could hear her father’s wisdom in his words. He’d given everything far more thought than she’d given him credit for.

“So where does this leave us?” she asked him.

“It’s too soon to say,” he told her. “I don’t think we should rush to find the answer right now. We need to take some time. Now that I’ve accepted that my powers are gone for good, I’ve got a life I need to get back in order. I hope someday you can be part of it.”

Peter motioned to Eddie that it was time to leave. Eddie turned and walked away from Megan, leaving her standing there alone. He paused briefly to say something to Greta, then got into Peter’s car and drove away.

Epilogue: Halloween

The party ended and Megan left the apartment. She was dressed in jeans and a black leather jacket, with a blond wig on her head, which she promptly took off.

The elevator opened up and she stepped in. She looked at the button for the lobby and the button for the third floor. As the doors closed, she hit the three.

Her heart started racing as she walked down the hall, getting closer and closer to the door. She stopped and stared at the doorbell, considering the repercussions of her actions. Was she really ready for this, she wondered. It had been almost two months. He said they needed time to think about things, to be sure of their decision. Was two months too long?

She pressed the button and yelled into the door, “Trick or treat?”

The door opened to a man in a black leather outfit with a cape and cowl, a yellow belt around his waist. “Who are you supposed to be?” he asked

“I’m Michelle Pfeifer from Dangerous Minds,” she told him, holding up the blond wig. “You know, kick ass schoolteacher.” She made karate chops in the air.

“That’s a really awful costume,” he said.

“What about you?” she asked. “A therapist would have a field day with your choice of costume.”

“Yeah, but at least I’m Batman,” Eddie told her. “Still a hero, but he doesn’t have any powers.”

“There are all sorts of heroes, Eddie.”

“And all of them crazy.”

“So, are you going to let me in?”

Eddie moved aside and beckoned her into his apartment. They sat at the dining table in the little area between the kitchen and the living room. He offered her a drink and took down two wineglasses from the cupboard.

“How have you been?” he asked.

“Of fine. Still teaching.”

“You don’t sound too thrilled about it.”

“Actually, I am,” her tone turned upward. “It seems that everything I went through back home has rekindled my passion for shaping young minds. Not that everyone is thrilled about my new approach over at the Montessori school. We’re not supposed to say anything critical to the students, and I’m finding it a little hard to restrain myself all the time.”

“I’m sure the kids will thank you for it down the road.” He poured wine into the two glasses and set them on the table, taking a seat across from her. “So, have you heard anything else from back home?”

She rolled her eyes. “Shane’s called me a few times, always with a new scam to get the money back.” After sip of her wine, she gave Eddie a suspicious look. “Though I hear that all the money Greta had has already been spent on some new endeavor.”

“She told you about that?” Eddie asked, knowing what she was implying.

“Not too much. I think she wanted you to fill me in.”

“It’s called the Avalon Foundation,” he said smiling, proud of his accomplishment. “Greta and I started it with a few other backers. It’s a non-profit organization that provides crisis counseling, emergency assistance, temporary shelter, and job placement for victims of disaster caused by superpowered activity.”

His tone reminded her of the way he once sounded when talking about his superhero adventures, that rampant enthusiasm that said what he was doing filled him up inside. “You sound like a spokesperson.”

“I’m just a counselor,” he said. “Seems I have some experience with things being screwed up by superheroes.”

“Exorcising some demons, are you?”

“In a matter of speaking.” He took a sip of his wine. “But Greta’s the real hero in all this. She put the idea in my head and she’s the one really keeping it going. She’s an amazing woman.”

“You’re just saying that because she gave you a big pile of money.”

Eddie smiled. “Well, yeah.” A bead of sweat slid from his forehead, out from under the mask, and down his cheek like a tear.
“Are you crying?” she asked him, wiping the drop from his chin.
“Sweating,” he replied. It was then that he remembered what he was wearing. He stood up. “Listen, I’m going to go change quick. The heat in this thing is killing me. Besides, I feel kind of silly sitting around in a Batman costume talking about real world stuff.”

Eddie disappeared into his room, then reemerged a few minutes later in jeans and a T-shirt. He seemed much more comfortable with lighter clothes on.

“So, why are you here?” he asked.

“One of my students is having a party in your building,” she told him.

“And you just felt like dropping by after the party ended?”

“Not really,” she confessed. “The party was an excuse to get me in the building.”

“And once you were in the building, what were you planning on doing?”

“I thought I might look around,” she looked up at him with earnest eyes. “Maybe get to know someone.”

Eddie held a glass of chilled white wine in his hands. It was late October and the window near him was open, letting in a brisk, late-autumn wind. His powers were gone and he was wearing a T-shirt. Despite it all, Eddie felt warm.