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I'm nervous and happy. I'm glad this horrible chapter of my life will finally end, but I'm sad I lost Foster in the process. I feel terrible he left thinking I'd betrayed him and our love.
I check the phone Foster gave me for the zillionth time. I keep charging the battery just in case he calls me. Oh my gosh. This time there's a text.
Unknown: You've been named as a beneficiary in the living trust of the Twist estate. Please message me to schedule a time to meet and discuss.
My chest tightness like the air has been sucked from the room.
With shaking fingers, I reply.
Me: I am available now. Are you near Manhattan?
For five minutes, I sit on my bed with my stomach in my throat. I can't breathe or swallow. All I can do is stare at the screen and pray for a reply.
Finally it buzzes in my hands.
Unknown: Mendel Law Firm 263 Madison Ave, Floor 24
Me: I'm on my way.
My heart takes off like a runner off the blocks. My throat clears and I can breathe again. I have a purpose and I need to race to get there. I hope the traffic in Manhattan isn't too bad. Aww, who am I kidding? I grab my running shoes and throw on my workout clothes. I can run there faster than driving.
My dad isn't home so I don't have to check in with him before I hurry out the door. Running down Madison Avenue feels symbolic. I'm running from my world to get to his.
I get a few looks in the gilded glass elevator, but I don't care. I want to get to that law office and find out what is going on.
I have to force myself to slow down and catch a breath when I reach the receptionist behind her wooden desk with a marble counter. "I'm Milana Bianchi. I'm here to see… I didn't get a name, but they said something about the Twist Estate."
She smiles and picks up her phone. "Of course. One second. Mr. Mendel, Milana Bianchi is here to see you." She hangs up her phone. "He'll be right out."
A tall man wearing a black suit and tie walks out. He looks young despite his receding hairline. "Milana? Come on back." He smiles and I feel relief. I feel like I can trust him for some reason. My dad always said not to trust any lawyers who weren't family, but I'm listening to my instincts with this guy.
In his office, he asks me to sit in the chair at his desk and he hands me a file folder. He doesn't say anything, just grins at me.
I open it and peer inside.
There's a typed letter to me from The Twist Estate on Mendel Law Firm letterhead. I scan it quickly but it just gives me a phone number to call if I have questions.
Behind the letter is a photocopy of an old legal document.
It's a deed.
Behind the deed is a handwritten note and a hand-drawn map. All of it scratchy and faint, but I can read it. My hands shake and I have to force myself to concentrate on the words.
Mila,
I'm a firm believer in passing on kindness and so I've left you a plot of land in the State Park in California. It meant the worldto me as I fell in love with my wife and started our family in the cabin there. Please visit the property as soon as possible. Perhaps it will become an important part of your life as it was in mine. All I ask in return is that you pay it forward to future generations so that they might also feel the love of Pleasure Mountain.
Sincerely,
Henry Twist.
Henry!
"Oh my God."
My heart lurches and my mouth goes dry.
Henry died?
