The Inheritance

When she sat down Audrey said, "You've been talking with Anthony again. This was one of our favorite meals." Tears formed in her eyes.

"Guilty as charged. I knew you'd be busy and wouldn't eat. Besides Anthony and I now have an understanding. He understands that I'm firmly hetrosexual and that I don't care if he's gay but that I care very much that he is a very fine chef.

Anthony stepped up behind me and said, "And I understand that Ryan cares very much about the people who work for him and tries to take care of them. Especially you Audrey. He's very much like Roger."

She answered in a low soft voice, "I know Tony. Only Roger would have given me a foot rub after such a grueling day. Only Roger and now Ryan. Only those two would have had you prepare a special meal for me. Only those two... I think Roger chose wisely."

We finished our meal and I walked her to her room with strict instructions to shower again and go to bed.

I went back to the lounge area and looked out over the dark bay, watching the lights of an occasional boat. I sat for about an hour trying to sort out all the things I'd learned from the reading and from the two people in Uncle Roger's house and life.

As I went to my room I heard Audrey weeping in Roger's bedroom. I stepped into the room and said, "Audrey are you alright" I could see her kneeling naked at the foot of Roger's bed.

She sniffed, "Yes, I'm fine."

I knew that was a lie. "Stand up and come to me." I couldn't help but notice how graceful she was.

She stopped in front of me and said, "Yes Ryan."

"You slept with him every night didn't you?"

"Not with him actually. I slept at the foot of his bed every night except those when he wanted me with him."

"Like a good little sex slave."

"Yes sir, exactly like a good sex slave."

"Tonight I want you to sleep with me. Come." I turned and walked the two paces to my door and walked thru it leaving it open.

I walked to the bed and turned around. I was working on pure instinct. "I want you to undress me and give me a shower."

She glanced up at me and a slight smile flickered around her mouth. "Yes Ryan." She closed the distance between us and started unbuttoning my shirt. Once she had me naked we went to the bathroom and she started the shower. She sat me on the toilet. When I'd finished she pulled me into the shower.

"Ryan, how do you want me to wash you?"

"Start with my hair and work your way down, please. Did you ever wash Roger?"

She smiled, "Yes. All the time. He liked to have his hair shampooed first too. He never told me why."

"I don't know why Roger wanted it done that way but It only makes sense to me to wash the hair first because that way I don't have dirty water running over areas that have already been washed. It may sound silly but that's my reason."

She giggled, "That's as good a reason as any. It sounds like Roger's reasoning."

She finished washing me and carefully dried me. I took a towel and dried her, over her objections. Then I led her into the bedroom and ordered her to get in bed.

"Ryan, I usually sleep at the foot of his bed."

"Tonight I want you to sleep in bed with me."

She nodded and slipped under the covers. "Ryan, thank you for this. It may not make sense to you but it helps me. It helps that you ordered me to bathe you and now sleep with you."

"I'm glad this helps. I like to sleep in the nude. ... Will you answer one question for me?"

"Anything. I'll answer any question you ask."

"Thank you. Is the door between your room and the master bedroom there for appearances sake?"

"Yes, exactly. When there were guests I always went into my room and waited until Roger came for me. I waited kneeling in the nude until he came. Tonight you came for me just like Roger. Just when I needed it most. Thank you."

I pulled her close and kissed her on the forehead. "You're welcome," I whispered. I turned her over and spooned with her. She gave one sigh and went to sleep. It took me a while longer. For one thing I wasn't used to holding a woman in my arms, especially a beautiful naked woman. It took considerable restraint to keep from taking what she so obviously would give me freely. In her sleep she took my hand and pulled it up until it covered her breast.

She mumbled, "Mmmm, so good Master"

I stayed awake for another hour thinking about Audrey and Uncle Roger, their relationship and the implications of me being the only one invited to Roger's house before I finally drifted off.

The next morning I woke to find Audrey was gone and it was eight-thirty. I got up and went to the toilet. When I came back out she was standing by the bed holding a tray with my breakfast on it.

As soon as she saw me a bright smile bloomed on her face. "I brought you breakfast in bed."

"You didn't have to do that."

"I know but I wanted to. You helped me so much last night."

"All I did was try to comfort you. I could tell you were worn out and emotional. That is, if ordering you around like a slave is comforting. I'm glad I could help."

"Ordering me about like a slave is what helped most. Roger was my master. Last night you took charge of me like you were my master. You are so much like him. When you took charge it helped ground me. I was still a submissive and I still had a strong, gentle master to guide me. I promised your uncle that I'd help you no matter what but you've made it a blessing for me. You've taken care of me. No matter what happens at the reading of the will today I'll do my best to help you anyway I can. It'll be, almost, like Roger never died. I think I'm starting to fall for you."

"Am I really that much like Uncle Roger. That's a hell of a lot to live up to."

She set the tray on a table. "More than you know you're like your uncle. You're doing a great job so far. Anthony likes you and I adore you for taking care of me the way you have. You were right to put me to bed yesterday afternoon. I was at the end of my rope. Then last night, I can't think of anything you could have done better to help me grieve than what you did."

"But I ordered you to bathe me like a slave, with no regard for your feelings."

"Exactly! That's what I needed. I needed someone to take control of me and take my mind off of Roger. You did that wonderfully! You gave me some service and then you took me to bed and just held me. It was exactly what I needed."

"Did you know you pulled my hand up to your breast?"

"I don't remember doing that but that is the way Roger always held me when we slept together. I wondered why you were holding me like that when I woke this morning... I'm sorry I keep comparing you to your uncle but you two are so similar it's hard not to."

"Well so far all of the comparisons have been favorable. Some time soon I want to sit down with you and just talk about Uncle Roger and Aunt Abigail."

"Anytime after the funeral. I didn't know Abigail very well. Roger only hired me about six months before she died. We weren't intimate until several months after she died. Roger was really broken up and sort of withdrew from life right after her funeral."

"I'm sure you were a great help to him in his grief. Now help me dress and I'll eat in the dining nook."

She smiled at me. "Yes Ryan." She went to my suitcase and unpacked it into the drawers and the closet. She hung my one good suit out and got me some jogging pants and a sweatshirt to wear. She knelt down and put my socks on and helped me into my running shoes. Once I was dressed she picked up the tray and carried it out of the room.

She sat with me and just chatted about inconsequential things as I ate my breakfast. I was somewhat surprised until I remembered my edict about no work at meals. I studied her as we talked. She was wearing a lilac silk blouse with a floral pattern and a light tan skirt that hugged her waist and flowed gently over her hips, falling to just below her knees. She had sandals on her feet. "Audrey, you're lovely in that outfit. I really like you in a full skirt and the blouse is amazing."

She blushed and whispered, "See what I mean. This was one of your uncle's favorite outfits. I sort of dressed for him today. He bought me this blouse. He bought all of my clothes."

"Uncle Roger had great taste. You're beautiful in it and it fits you perfectly."

She blushed and ducked her head but she had a smile on her face.

We spent the next two hours going over the papers he'd left for me then Audrey hauled me off to the bedroom to change. The reading of the will was at one o'clock. I noticed that my travel rumpled suit had been freshly pressed along with my shirt and tie. My shoes had been freshly polished. I dressed and was struggling with the tie when she stepped in front of me. She said, "He could never tie his tie right either." I stood still, watching her face, as she expertly tied it. She stepped back and nodded.

I looked at her. She looked very professional in a tailored pinstripe suit. She looked uncomfortable on another set of five inch heels. "Audrey don't you have any lower heels? I'd like you to put on a pair with no more than three inch heels if you have some to match."

It was hard to read her face. A whole gamut of emotions flashed across her face. She stepped forward and kissed me on the cheek. "As you wish Ryan." She quickly disappeared into her room. She reappeared in some shoes that matched her outfit better and they had less than three inch heels. She was much more stable on them. She asked, "How did you know?"

"Know what?"

"Know that I had shoes that had lower heels. Know that your uncle didn't like to see me in the five inch heels."

"I didn't know. It's just that you looked so uncomfortable on the higher heels. I want you to be comfortable. Why were you wearing them?"

She lowered her eyes. "Mr. Wilson. He told me I was to wear the higher heels from now on."

"Is he your master now?" I saw tears forming in her eyes.

She sighed, "I don't know. It depends on Roger's will. I don't know who will inherit me."

I was a little shocked. I asked, "Do you want to be inherited? You told me Roger said you were to help me for at least six months."

"I don't know. I know that being treated like property feels right to me. I know that I'd love to have you inherit me."

"We can talk about this after the reading of the will. Do we have to pick up the others?"

She shook her head, "No, we don't need to pick them up. I left specific instructions as to where the will was being read and when the stretch limo would be outside the hotel to drive them to the law offices. If they can't follow directions then they'll have to hear things second hand." I was mesmerized by her soft silky looking hair as it flowed around the sides of her face. She gave me a quirky little smile when she noticed me staring.

We arrived just before the stretch limo carrying all six of my cousins. We all trooped into the elevator together and were shown into a tenth floor conference room with a huge polished mahogany conference table.

Once we were seated, I noticed that Audrey sat behind me against the wall, the lawyer came in and took his place at the head of the table. He was interrupted as Sherwin Wilson barged in the slammed door closed. He took a seat next to the lawyer.

Sherwin said, "Get on with this. I have a board meeting at four."

The lawyer looked at him with a sour face and said, "Mr Wilson you are not on the list of people to be present at the reading of the will."

Wilson glared at him and said, "I don't give a shit Reynolds! Read the fucking will! I need to know which of these assholes I have to deal with!"

The will reading went on for an hour and a half with small bequests to each of the cousins, small being on the order of seven hundred thousand to four hundred thousand dollars each. None of them got any stock.

There was dead silence when Reynolds said, "To my very able assistant, Audrey Livingstone, I leave five percent of the voting shares of the company on the condition she stay and aid Ryan Frederick for at least six months from the reading of this will." He looked up and said. "Ms Livingstone you should be seated at the table."

I looked back and Audrey was rooted to her seat. She gave a slight wave and sat back, a stunned look on her face.

Reynolds drew our attention back with an "Ahem." Once he had our attention he continued. "The last bequest is to Ryan Frederick. To Ryan Frederick I leave the bulk of my estate. Forty-seven percent of the stock in the company. My house, my cars, my boat, my various land holdings and the money in my bank accounts go to him with the proviso that he retain Audrey Livingstone as his advisor and personal assistant for at least six months. Lastly Ryan Frederick will take my place as chairman on the corporate board until a full election of the stockholders can decide if he belongs on the board ... That ladies and gentlemen concludes the reading of the will."

Williams popped out of his chair and shouted, "Bull Shit. That little no account shit doesn't get all those shares. I'll contest the will!"

Reynolds smiled a nasty smile at him, "If you wish to waste your money Mr Williams go ahead and contest the will. It has been vetted by the best legal minds in the country. It also has a proviso that no changes in operations of the corporation may be made while the will is being contested. That means that the board cannot make any changes even in the slightest to the operations of the corporation or it's subsidiaries. By all means contest the will if you wish."

Frustrated, Williams turned on Audrey. "Slut I told you five inch heels. I'll beat your ass black and blue for disobeying me." He started for her.

I stepped in front of him. "You'll do no such thing. I inherited Audrey as my personal assistant, at least for six months, and I ordered her to wear those shoes. If you lay a finger on her you'll be in court on your way to jail for assault. If you do it in my presence you'll wind up in the hospital before you get to jail or court. Now leave! My personal assistant and I have work to do." I stared at him for what seemed like half an hour but was really only a minute or so before he backed down. He left cursing under his breath.

Once Reynolds left, there was an incredible hubbub as all my cousins started shouting about how unfair this was and threats about contesting the will.

Harvey Reynolds quashed most of it. "Attention please ladies and gentlemen! As the will states, any person contesting the will forfeits his or her bequest. Unless you're successful you're throwing away your money. I assure you that you will not be successful. Your uncle drafted this will over a year ago and had it run thru the probate courts. If Mr. Williams can spend millions to contest it and lose; and he will lose; how do you expect to win? Mr. Dumas has been generous to each of you. I do not know his reasons for the bequests but I do know that this will is ironclad and unbreakable."

There was a dead silence into which Audrey stepped forward. "Tomorrow night, after the funeral there will be a wake for Roger Dumas at his home, now Ryan Frederick's home. There will be a limousine to carry you all to and from the wake. It will arrive at the hotel at four in the afternoon and another one will be there every hour until eight in the evening. A limo will be available at the house to bring you back to your hotel any time you wish.

One of my cousins, Jerry Hastings, growled, "So where did mister big shot stay last night?

Audrey answered, "By Mr. Dumas' explicit orders, Mr Frederick stayed in the house last night in a guest bedroom. I'll be moving him into the master bedroom this evening."

Jerry shouted, "So honey are you part of the deal? Have you fucked him yet? Did you fuck him last night to keep your position? What position was it? Doggie?"

"As you heard, I'm required to be Mr. Frederick personal assistant for the next six months. That does not include sex. To satisfy your prurient interest, Mr Frederick and I have not had sex." Audrey turned to me and waited.

Jerry started around the table.

I stepped in front of him too. "Jerry, I'm full grown now your days of bullying me are long gone. I'm at least as strong as you and a whole lot more pissed off by your insults to this wonderful lady. Be a good little boy and go downstairs and take the limo back to your very nice hotel room." He froze. I took Audrey's arm and walked her out of the room.

I told the limo driver to take us to corporate headquarters. I wanted to be at the board meeting.

On the way Audrey asked, "Why do you think he gave me five percent of the stock? That's way more than my service has been worth."

"Do you want a guess?"

She nodded, "Yes I'd love to know what you think."

"Uncle Roger must have been pretty certain of me but I think he was hedging his bets. If I turned out to be doing something disastrous for the company you could stop me by voting with the other stockholders. On the hand if they were doing something both you and I agreed was bad for the company your vote would swing the decision our way."

She thought about this for a half a minute.. "So he gave me tremendous power over the companies. I don't understand why."

"Audrey, you're smart and knowledgeable and you know what he wanted, far better than I do. In this letter." I pulled his letter to me out of my pocket. "He told me to trust you implicitly. That tells me he trusted you the same way. I think he loved you." I put the letter away.

"So why are we going to the board meeting?"

"I think Sherwin is going to try something. I'm going to try and shut it down."

She used the internal phone to tell the driver to hurry back to the lawyer's office. When we got there she had them make a proxy certificate giving me the right to vote her shares for the next month. Once that was done we were gone, rushing back to the corporation headquarters.

I asked her, "Why give me proxy for month?"

"I don't trust Sherwin. He's up to something. He won't let me into the board meeting, I'm not a member of the board and I've never been allowed inside since Roger quit chairing the meetings. He thinks he's got forty-eight percent of the shares tied up and voting his way. You can find out what he's up to and stop him if you have my five percent. I suggest that all board meetings be postponed for at least a month when a full stockholder's meeting can be held and a new board elected. That's what I'd suggest but you're going to be on your own in there."

"Thank you. Thanks for the insight and for the proxy."

We discussed details of the corporation operations the whole way to the board meeting.

Just as she predicted Sherwin excluded her from the board meeting. In the meeting his plan became clear. He wanted to use more conventional less costly and less environmentally sound ways of doing seawater reclamation and wanted to take a larger percentage of kelp and fish from the kelp forests that the corporation was harvesting. This would take the harvest far out of the sustainable category. When the conservationists got a hold of it there would be hell to pay and the reputation of the company would be ruined. I voted against it as Audrey and I had discussed.

Sherwin blew up when I voted against the changes but settled down quickly. He gave me a nasty grin as the other board members sided with him and voted their shares and proxies. "That's forty-eight percent 'Yea' and forty-seven percent 'Nae.' The motion passes."

I said, "Just a minute. That's only ninety-five percent of the shares."

He gave me that evil grin again, "Yeah and the other five percent is sitting outside with that hot little slut Audrey and she can't vote them here."

I gave him an matching evil grin and said, "No she can't but I can. She gave me her proxy." I slid the proxy down the table. Her five percent are voted 'Nae.' That's fifty two percent against. The motion is defeated."