Epilogue

Four Months Later

Hadley pushed herself off the old wooden fence, her gut wrenched with memories, and walked back to her car. She took a minute to compose herself before she restarted the drive. She managed to avoid these roads until now, never wanting to know what happened to Dorothy's land. Even though Dorothy told her she sold the farm, she tried to pretend it wasn't real. She saw now that a developer must have come in and taken the majority of land. Identical houses, stacked side by side, filled the land she used to explore. She was delighted to have seen a horse but when looking around there were no signs of a big farm, just a small corner patch of open land. It must have been a pet, probably forced to live on a half-acre property.

She regretted not fighting her dad and not finding a way to continue helping Dorothy. The life that Dorothy built with her husband was reduced to several cul-de-sacs of matching homes. The guilt flooded Hadley's system. She shook her head, frustrated, and focused back on the road. Her thoughts wandered to why she was here in the first place. Hadley's father sold off the house and all of their belongings a few months before he died. She wondered what kind of paperwork she needed to sign. She assumed it had to do with unpaid loans or past due accounts. A man who drank as much as her father surely accumulated debt. She didn't know what the rules were around passing debt down once you die but she prayed it would be something that could be paid off slowly over time.

Before long, Hadley pulled up to a small brick building on the edge of town. The beautiful black metal placard next to the burgundy red main door read "The Law Office of Goldman and Kirk." Hadley took a deep breath, adjusted her pleated gray skirt, and walked inside.

"Hi, my name is Hadley Martin," she said to the woman at the front desk. "I got a phone call from Celeste about paperwork to sign."

"Okay," the young receptionist replied simply. "My name is Jennifer. Let me see if Celeste is free now."

"Thank you."

"Mhm. You can have a seat over there while you wait," Jennifer said, pointing to a short row of black metal chairs. Hadley was about to take a seat when a tall woman walked into the reception area.

"Hadley?"

"Yes, that's me," Hadley said with a smile as she admired the professional look of the woman in front of her. She wore a tailored burgundy pant suit with a black lace shirt underneath and a basic pair of black leather pumps that raised her already tall frame up three inches. She had almond skin and kept her straight ash brown hair tucked neatly behind her ears.

"My name is Celeste. I'm the lawyer for your father's will and estate. I have a few items to go through with you."

Hadley followed Celeste down a hallway toward a corner office. "Estate? I thought my father sold the house before he died."

"That's correct. I mainly tended to his will but there were a few outstanding items that I am also sorting through. Your help today will be appreciated."

"Okay," Hadley said tentatively. They walked into a beautifully decorated office. The cream walls held large, framed pieces of abstract art. The furniture was constructed from dark cherry wood and the chairs were upholstered with expensive looking leather. Celeste pointed toward a chair on the outside of the desk as she rounded the corner and sat in a high-back espresso leather chair, complete with diamond button tufting.

"Oh wow, your view is beautiful, and this chair is so nice," Hadley commented as she sat on a cloud.

"Only the best," Celeste smiled before digging into her filing cabinet. She pulled out a file labeled Martin, M. and placed it open on her desk. Hadley tried to peek at the documents, but the wording was too small for her to read upside down. "Would you like a coffee or water before we get started?"

"No, I'm okay. Thank you."

"Right. Okay, so we have a few things to go through. Like you said, your father sold the house before he passed away. The majority of that profit went to his medical and hospice stay bills. It was also used to pay off any outstanding debt attached to his name. Unfortunately, I cannot account for anything that was left in the house. Generally, it ends up donated, if not claimed." Hadley nodded, waiting for the bad news to hit. "It looks like there was a balance of $5,600 after paying off the debts and services I listed. You are the only name listed on the will, so this will default to you."

Hadley shook her head. "A balance?"

"Yes. I have a release form that requires your wet ink signature and then I will be able to send you home with a check."

"I'm getting money?" Hadley asked incredulously.

"Yes. Like I said, I know it's not much but the majority of the profit from the house went toward outstanding debts and covering your father's time at Wellspring." Celeste spoke matter-of-factly. "I'm sure it's not what you expected, but better than nothing."

"Nothing is what I expected," Hadley said with a laugh. "He has no debt?"

"No debt. Are you prepared to sign the release now?"

"Yeah, I can." Hadley's mind swirled. She expected to be buried under tens of thousands of dollars' worth of debt. Having this money will mean she could bump up the heat instead of throwing on a second sweater. It meant not stressing before every girls' night because she could afford to split the bill without dipping into her rent money. Hadley quickly signed the paper. Celeste called for Jennifer to make a copy of the signed paper and had it tri-folded and placed inside a white envelope alongside the check.

Hadley went to push out of her chair, commenting, "This was really unexpected. Thank you for contacting me."

"Not so fast. We have one other affair to coordinate."

Hadley sat back down and ran through a list of possibilities in her head. She couldn't imagine what was left. "Oh, sorry. Okay…"

"I have a trust account in your name. Seeing as you're older than twenty-one, it should have been released to you already."

"A trust? Sorry but there's no way my father had a trust fund for me."

"No, this isn't in your father's name. Hang on, let's see," Celeste trailed off as she looked through the file for the trust paperwork. "The origin is Dorothy Wellington. I assume you are familiar?"

"Dorothy had a trust fund for me?" Hadley's eyes quickly filled with tears. "I'm confused. What does that mean?"

"It looks like this trust was established several years ago. It predates my time representing your father, so I only have what is written. It looks like she sold a farm and 80% of that profit was placed into a trust fund. It was signed over to your father since you were under twenty-one at the time. He should have informed you but I'm guessing he didn't."

"No, I had no idea about this. I'm sorry, do you have a tissue?"

"Yes, of course." Celeste handed Hadley a box of tissues before using the intercom on her desk to request that Jennifer bring in a bottle of water. Celeste sat for a moment and allowed Hadley to collect herself. "I can go through the details whenever you're ready."

Hadley nodded. "Go ahead."

"Here's the deal, Miss Dorothy left you 80% of her profits as a trust. By state law, it became legally yours when you turned twenty-one. I don't have the knowledge as to why your father kept it from you. He had no legal claim to it. Maybe he forgot."

"I doubt he forgot. It's not surprising that he'd hide this from me. I briefly reconnected with her. I wonder why she never brought it up. Probably because I didn't. What does 80% even mean?"

"It shows she sold her farmland to a developer for $3,450 per acre. You were afforded 80% of that total, which is a sum of $579,600. After the tax and fees associated with the start-up of the trust, the awarded amount is $463,680."

"What?"

"463,680."

"Dollars?"

"Yes, dollars," Celeste smiled. "We just need a few signatures on the documentation, with Jennifer as the notary, and you can be on your way."

"On my way with four hundred thousand dollars?"

"That's right."

"Holy shit."

Celeste laughed before calling Jennifer in.

"I'm sorry," Hadley said, slapping her hand over her mouth. "I never curse. I'm shocked beyond shocked. This whole drive down I was convinced my dad was screwing me with an enormous amount of debt. I was ready to fall over at $5,600. Over $400,000 sounds ridiculous. This isn't a weird scam or anything?"

"No, ma'am. It's all very official."

"Wow. Okay." It took all of two minutes for Hadley to sign the paperwork and be handed a second check. "What do I do now?"

"Well, I suggest you get a financial advisor near wherever you live. They can help you organize your money properly. It's ultimately up to you how you decide to spend, save, or invest. The money is fully yours, with no restriction. Well, those are both certified checks, so they will take a few days to clear once you deposit."

"Got it. Wow. I mean, I think I got it." She stood up and blew out a breath. "Thank you for everything," Hadley said as she shook Celeste's hand. "This is life changing."

"Of course. It's always easier when I get to give happy news."

Hadley smiled as she said goodbye and walked out. Once she got into her car, she tucked the envelopes carefully into her glovebox. She drove in complete silence afraid that the music would wake her up from this dream. She drove for three hours, not stopping until she pulled up to Meghan's house.

She quickly got out of her car, locking it twice before heading down the sidewalk. Changing her mind, she ran back to her car, grabbed the envelopes, and walked back toward the house. She knocked incessantly on the front door until Meghan finally answered.

"Is everything okay?" Meghan asked as she opened the front door, not expecting to see Hadley.

"Yes.No?Yes.Can I come in?"

"Girl calm down, yes of course." The pair walked to the living room and settled onto the couch. Meghan stared at Hadley expectedly.

"So… I went to that lawyer."

"Oh no, did you get buried with debt?"

"Nope."

"No? Okay, then what did you need to sign?"

"Well, there was a small leftover profit from the house sale that was put in my name, so I got that."

"Oh wow, that's great," Meghan said with a little clap of excitement. "Now you can get a cellphone!"

"Yes, but that's not all," Hadley said with bulging eyes.

"It's not?"

"No. So, you know Dorothy…"

"Yes, of course."

"When she sold her farm, she took 80% of the profits and placed it into a trust for me."

"Holy moly.Really?"

"Yep."

"What does 80% of a farm look like?"

Hadley handed Meghan the envelope. She peeked inside before jumping to her feet. "Hadley!"

"I know! I don't even think it's real." Hadley pulled Meghan by her hands, so she'd sit back down. "The lawyer told me to get a financial advisor. Me. Someone who spent my teenage years hiding three bucks a week in a shoebox under my bed. Someone who wears two pairs of socks instead of turning up my heat. This is unreal."

"Hadley this is amazing. This is the ultimate security in life. What are you going to do with it?"

"I have no idea. I guess find an advisor and go from there."

"That's a good idea. What do you want to do with the money though? There's got to be something fun you can do with a little piece of it. You deserve something outrageous and fun. What about a trip to Paris! or Italy? You do love pizza!"

"Get a grip, Meg. I'm more likely to buy a pizza and eat it on the couch than I am to randomly travel around Italy."

"Okay. Well Josh pays for your monthly pizza hangs so there's no point in doing that," Meghan laughed.

"Yeah, don't tell Josh," Hadley laughed. "This whole thing feels insane. My whole life could change. I could do whatever I want. I just don't think I want anything to change. I don't have much but I'm happy for the first time in a really long time."

"Happiness is everything."

"It is," Hadley smiled. "I think I'll just find someone to help guide me on how to save this for the future. I mean, I've always wanted to see where my mom grew up. Montana is a far cry from Paris or Italy, but it would be really cool. Maybe one day I could do that?"

"That's a great idea, Hadley."

"I'd have to put more time and research into where exactly she grew up and all of that. For now, I don't think I want any big changes."

"That's understandable. How about we start by ordering dinner. Your treat," Meghan laughed.

Hadley laughed. "I think I could cover dinner. Chinese?"

"Definitely!" After placing an order, Hadley and Meghan laid on the plush carpet of the living room. They took turns rattling off ways to spend the money, laughter growing with each ridiculous plan they thought up.

"See, this is what I want. To belly laugh on the floor with my best friend. Money can't buy that."

Meghan laced her hand into Hadley's and said "There's not enough money in the world to buy this. You're the best fake little sister I never knew I needed."

Hadley squeezed Meghan's hand. "You're the best fake big sister that I always knew I needed."

A minute later, the front door opened and both girls quickly sat up. "Is that the delivery guy just walking into your house?" Hadley whisper-panicked.

"Aunt Hadley!?"

"Ohmigod," Meghan whispered. "I forgot Andrew was bringing her home." Hadley and Meghan broke out into another bout of laughter. "Come here, Meels," Meghan yelled. "Aunt Hadley and I are daydreaming about ways we would spend half a million dollars."

"I wanna play!" Amelia squealed before wedging herself between her mom and Hadley. "I would buy a unicorn!"

"Excellent choice," Hadley giggled. "Tell me more about this unicorn." Hadley rolled onto her side, absorbing every wild idea that Amelia had to share. While she knew she'd never spend her money on a giant fairy cottage or a hundred teacup pigs, she did feel a massive weight off her chest. She was happy knowing she'd never have to stress over the small stuff. Happy knowing that she found a family that was loving and accepting. In it for the highs and the lows. Turns out Dorothy was right all along – everything would be fine.

The End.