Chapter 34: In re Estate of B.

Fortunately, the authorities were relatively efficient. The body was removed, and they were gone from the premises in fairly short order. Carolina made a pot of coffee and started going through Bea’s papers. Then her phone rang.

“Hello, Leah. Yeah, everyone has left; the body is gone. I’m just trying to focus on practical matters and not let my emotions run away. I called her asshole ex-husband, he should be here in a half-hour or so. He sounded very irritated and not at all interested in his children. I think he’s looking for a way to avoid being responsible for them.”

“Really? All right, Carolina, listen to me. I’m coming over. You are not going to deal with this on your own. I have money socked away to hire a lawyer if need be for Nan and the boys. Let’s find out what his angle is and then decide what to do.”

Fifteen minutes later, Leah was there, and ten minutes after that, Felipe arrived in a tiny Mercedes SLC—a flashy sports car with only two seats.

“I’m Carolina Santos, this is Leah Bailey. I’ve got your twins, and her family has been hosting Fernanda since Bea went into the hospital. Bea and I have been close friends for several years.”

“I see. So, what do you want me to do?”

“I’m getting the picture that you aren’t interested in parenting your three children. Is that right?”

“Exactly so. I haven’t had any significant contact with them for years. I’ve been paying Beatriz $2,200 monthly to care for the children, plus she owns this house free and clear, there’s no mortgage. The children have investment accounts for their education that by now should be worth at least $100,000 each.”

“You speak of the children, not of MY children, Mr. Soares. You are making it abundantly clear that you don’t wish to see or interact with these great kids you helped to create. Why is that?”

“I don’t want to or need to explain myself. I’ll just say I had a wretched childhood, worse than you can even imagine, and leave it at that. I care about the children’s well-being. I just can’t be part of their lives. So, I am going to do something that I never do. I’m going to beg.

“Carolina, will you please take care of my children?”

Leah, silent until that point, gasped, then quickly covered her mouth with her hand.

“I need to think, Mr. Soares. There’s coffee in the kitchen. I’ll come get you when I’m ready. Oh, and her, I mean, the bathroom is down that hall on the right.”

“Are you actually thinking of accepting this? Er, accepting them?”

“Leah, I’m already fond of those kids, they call me Tía, which is Portuguese for aunt. I’ve watched them grow. Isn’t Fernanda sweet on your Ted?”

“She is, and I’m not saying anything against them, they are good kids. But you would be adopting all three, essentially.”

“Yeah. But listen, Nan and Abel are out of high school in less than three years. Then it will be just the twins and me. I can raise boys, I’m good at it. Abel is the proof!”

“Can’t argue with you there. Val thinks he’s the cat’s pianos. Alright, if that’s your decision, I’ll support you as best I can. I am going to hire a lawyer for you because there are a lot of things that have to happen for you to become their legal guardian. Trust me, I know all about that. More important right now; you have to be really strong with him.

“What he did with Bea is the minimum of what needs to happen going forward. He needs to make sure that ownership of all property that belonged to Bea all goes to Nan and the boys. That means her car, this house, her accounts, and her retirement funds. So that they don’t go to the state, and definitely not to Felipe. It’s up to you whether the $2,200 is enough for your expenses or if it should be more, since the kids are older now and have more expensive needs.

“Another problem. We have to figure out housing. We have three Soares, two Santos, and six Baileys, and none of the three houses are a good fit. We can’t figure this out tonight, though.

“Leah, I don’t know what I’d do if you weren’t here. Thank you! I’ll get Felipe.”

Across the board, Felipe agreed to Carolina’s requirements. He wrote out a simple contract stating that he would be paying $2,900 in support to Carolina Santos as their guardian on every third day of the month until his youngest son turned 18. Bea’s computer printer had a copier function, so they all had copies with their signatures (and Leah’s as well as a witness).