Chapter 9

When we boarded the plane at the Fairhope Airport, the temperature was in the high fifties, but we knew the forecast was for the New York temperature to be in the low thirties. We brought cold weather clothes on board the plane with us. Cold temperatures made for little turbulence and a smooth flight. At altitude, I looked back into the cabin and saw that everyone seemed comfortable. I was glad my plane had a pressurized cabin and very comfortable seats in the passenger area, even if she weren't as fast as Beau's turbo charged twin Beech, I preferred her. Grandfather dozed, Will read business documents and Brooke cared for Nicole. I knew Brooke had to have had some apprehension about returning to Long Island and Roselawns; I certainly did. When Grandfather awoke, I landed at the closest airport, the Cleveland Tennessee Airport, just outside Chattanooga. I topped off the tanks, while Grandfather and Brooke went to the restrooms. We were back in the air quickly.

Back in the air, Grandfather took Nicole, Brooke tilted her seat back and relaxed, and Will continued to read work papers. About thirty minutes south of Petersburg, we ate the lunch Bessie had made for us. Over Richmond, I entered the air traffic control system. About two p.m., we landed at Martin State Airport, north of Baltimore. I had the tanks topped off, while everyone made a restroom stop. The turnaround was slower than at the Cleveland airport, but it was much faster than at large airports. Martin was an Air National Guard Base.

We got away quickly and an hour and a half after we left Martin, we landed at Macarthur. We taxied to the hangar where Thornton waited with a limo. I expected the limo, but was surprised to also see Erin with the pickup. We deplaned and unloaded our overnight things into the limo to go to Roselawns. Thornton had arranged for three men to unload the plane's cargo into the bed of Erin's pickup. It didn't take them long to offload the small amount of cargo from my plane into the truck bed. By the time I finished my log and handed the plane over to the ground crew to have her put in the hangar, we were ready to go to Roselawns.

It was the first time Brooke and Will had been back to Roselawns since the attack. I was glad Thornton was there, his presence was reassuring. Thornton sat in the limo's front seat with the driver on the ride from the airport to Roselawns. The rest of us rode in the back. Erin followed in the pickup. Will held Brooke's hand on the short ride to Roselawns. An off duty policeman was at the gate to the house. The house's outside was decorated for Christmas. As soon as we stopped at the side door, the au pair, who had come back to Roselawns, when Nicole went from Summerdale to the bayhouse, came out of the house and took Nicole.

Will and Brooke went into the house alone. Thornton, Grandfather, and I lagged to give them privacy. Brooke and the housekeeper came out a minute later. Brooke said, "Bring the things in."

Thornton, Erin, and I unloaded Will and Brooke's things from the truck. The limo driver took in the overnight bags. I noticed there was new furniture in the glassed-in porch, where the attack happened. I also noticed it had been freshly painted and had a new carpet.

The housekeeper had dinner cooking. The fresh bread smelled wonderful. I was really glad to see that Brooke seemed to handle returning well. I knew Erin had the Southampton's house ready, if staying at Roselawns were a problem for Brooke. I hoped they would be able to continue at Roselawns.

When I finished unloading Erin's truck, I found Will was on the phone with someone in the W & R office. I sneaked in a quick call to Heather's agent. I was disappointed when I found that Heather was on tour and wouldn't be in town until after the first of the year. The driver and I switched Grandfather's things from the truck to the limo, while Grandfather spoke with Thornton privately. After Grandfather finished with Thornton, Thornton briefed me on what had happened at the office and about the office party that was in a couple of days. Thornton reported that everything related to the acquisitions in Alabama had gone smoothly.

Thornton and Eunice had reservations on an evening direct flight to Birmingham through Atlanta. Thornton took the limo with Grandfather's things to Grandfather's apartment. There the limo driver unloaded Grandfather's things into the lobby. He then took Thornton and Eunice to the airport and then came back to Roselawns. By the time he returned to Roselawns, Grandfather and I had finished supper with Will and Brooke.

After supper Brooke told us that we were welcome to stay, but she didn't need us to stay. She said that she would be fine. Grandfather was tired, but decided he'd rather go on in and not have a drive the next day. He wanted to be able to rest the next day at home. The limo driver took Grandfather and me into the City. We got to the apartment at ten.

The doorman had a note for me from Carolyn. It read, "If you're not too tired, come down and have a drink after your Grandfather goes to bed."

Grandfather went to get ready for bed as soon as we got in the apartment. I took a quick shower and then called Carolyn. "Is it too late?"

"Come down. I'm anxious to hear how things went."

Carolyn opened the door and gave me a brief kiss. She looked good; she didn't look forty. She was dressed in a white sweater and charcoal colored slacks. She looked trim and fit. She gave me a warm smile.

I said, "You look terrific." She didn't pull away when I hugged her. I let her go and we separated.

I gave her the wrapped box from the University bookstore. "You can open it now. It's not a Christmas present."

She put the sweatshirt on. She asked, "You're going to law school?"

"In the fall"

She asked, "Brandy or hot chocolate? I have warm pecan squares."

"I think I better stay with the hot chocolate. It's been a long day."

She said, "We can talk later if you're too tired."

"I'm not too tired for you. I've missed you. You look so good; you may have problems getting rid of me."

She smiled. "How's Brooke doing?"

"Very well; I was worried about how she would handle going back to Roselawns, but she seemed to handle it well. I'm worried about Grandfather. He's very weak and tired."

Carolyn sat next to me. She gave me a quick kiss. "What you did for Brooke is even more than I expected, and I have very high expectations of you."

I asked, "How are you doing?"

"I'm feeling old. I've been affected by Brooke's attack more than I expected. I haven't been going out." She paused, then continued, "Do you have a girl now?"

"Fraid not. I lost interest for a while after Brooke. She's recently pushed me out, but I've just begun to be interested again. And I didn't want to feel I was forcing myself on anyone."

She nodded.

I ate a couple of pecan squares and finished the cup of hot chocolate. Carolyn finished her brandy. We were quiet.

I said, "I better go." I stood.

She stood and kissed me longer and with more passion than she had in some time. I was surprised and confused.

She said, "You don't have to go. Am I too old for you now?"

I was confused but not totally stupid. I picked her up and carried her to the bedroom. She giggled like a schoolgirl all the way. We undressed quickly. We were like we were when I first met her. I couldn't get enough of her, and she wanted all I could give her.

We were good together. I didn't go soft after the first time. We made love, slow and with real feeling. Then we cuddled.

Carolyn said, "If you won't talk about getting married or being together long term, I'd like for us to be lovers again, until you go back to school."

I said, "You know I love you."

"I love you too. I can't handle the other part though. I'm serious. It's important to me that you be able to find someone."

I kissed her ear, cupped her breasts and pressed against her backside. I asked, "Is something wrong?" I was worried something was wrong with her health.

"What you did for Brooke really touched my heart. Brooke and I had some long talks on the phone while she was in Alabama. She told me everything. You were such a gentleman and so loving. I wanted to be with you again. Would you like to stay the night?"

"I'd like to stay, but I need to set the alarm. I want to eat breakfast with Grandfather."

She pushed back against me. "I'm going to be sore tomorrow, but it was worth it."

Spooned with Ania couldn't compare with being spooned with Carolyn. I was happy to be with Carolyn, but I was more than a little sad for Ania. I slept well.

I awoke early and slipped out of bed quietly. I turned the alarm off before it went off and went back to Grandfather's, where I took a shower and was ready when he came to breakfast.

Grandfather said, "You look chipper this morning."

"I stayed with Carolyn last night."

He gave me a questioning look.

"I was surprised too. We're back to friends with benefits, but that's as far as she'll let it go."

"I'm glad. Carolyn is a fine lady. I'm going to rest and have a quiet morning. I need to go to the office party tomorrow afternoon. I'm going to see if I can get an appointment with Eugene Carson Blake for this afternoon. And I'd like for us to have a talk this morning, while I rest."

I nodded. After breakfast, I called Brooke. I asked, "How are you doing?"

She said, "I'm alright. Will's gone into the office. A couple of my friends are coming by to visit, and Erin's staying in the guest quarters until my parents come. She's going to stay close. Nicole and I are doing fine. She's with the au pair right now."

"Call if you even think you need me."

"Go on and have fun. Stop worrying about me. A rent-a-cop is at the gate."

Grandfather called the Riverside Church and made an appointment for the afternoon. He talked with me more than he rested, but it was clearly important to him to talk with me. He told me about his concerns with Will at the law firm and the bank. We talked until lunch time. At two we went to Riverside Church. I rode with him, but didn't go in the church office; I waited in the chapel. On the way back from the church, we went to the cemetery where Father and Grandmother were buried. I saw the dual headstone at Grandmother's grave that already had Grandfather's name and date of birth chiseled on it. We didn't stay long at the gravesite.

I reserved Saturday tickets to the Rockettes' Christmas Show at Radio City Music Hall and a table at Jack and Charlie's for after the show. After I made the reservations, Grandfather called Tuscaloosa and had the best Lionel train set sent to Dorothy for Freddy. "I know he's too young, but every boy should have a Lionel train. Did you have one?"

"No, but I had an imported Lego set from Denmark, Tinker Toys and Lincoln Logs."

Grandfather called the toy store in Tuscaloosa again and had sent out large Tinker Toys, Lincoln Logs, and Lego sets. Then he called F.A.O. Schwarz and had the train set and the same toys delivered to Roselawns for Nicole.

Except for Ania, Leon, and Ponder, I hadn't bought Christmas presents.

I called the needlepoint shop in the Village where Carolyn and I bought things last year. The shop owner recommended a needlepoint shop in Wallingford for painted canvas of the Philadelphia area. The shop owner had a painted canvas of the Dakota and I had it and the corresponding yarn sent it to Carolyn. I called the Wallingford shop and had a set of painted canvases of scenes around Wallingford sent to Brooke. I also ordered a nice sound system for Carolyn's apartment.

I called Mountain Brook and talked with Eunice. She said, "The house was decorated beautifully with a gorgeous tree. Thank you for the nice surprise. We're having a small party for some friends. I know this is a special time for you with your Grandfather, but I wish you could come. You know you're always invited to our parties."

"I'm sorry I have to miss it. I can't take credit for the decorating idea; Brooke suggested it. How was the trip?"

"Long, but First Class was nice. Coach seats weren't made for a pregnant woman."

I asked, "How would you feel about me giving Thornton pilot lessons for Christmas? I won't mention it to him if you are opposed."

"I think he'd enjoy them, if his boss gives him time to take them."

I said, "I heard he had a really nasty boss."

"He's never shown Thornton any appreciation; I say as I stand in this beautiful house and get ready to go to a member luncheon at the Mountain Brook Country Club, both of which his boss paid for. We do appreciate it. Thornton loves working for you."

"Merry Christmas, Eunice"

"Merry Christmas to you"

I envied Thornton and Eunice. They had family and a slew of close friends that went all the way back to grade school. And they were happy together.

At Thanksgiving I had arranged with Bill Buterworth to take care of telling me what the people at the VFW in Fairhope needed. I called and settled up with him. Thornton took care of 'my' Demopolis families and the VFW families there. I sent gift certificates for clothes to Dorothy, Eunice, Erin, Peggy and Karen. Richard and Jan got a gift of a new Cadillac. It came from my expanded dealership group that had opened a place in Bay Minette.

After Grandfather went to bed, I went to Carolyn's bed, where I was most warmly welcomed. On Friday, Grandfather and I went to the law firm's Christmas party, where Grandfather announced his retirement from the bar. Several of the firm's retired attorneys came back for the party. Grandfather seemed to enjoy talking with everyone. He talked a long time with a Federal Judge on Senior Status and three retired men, who he had been close to at our bank. While we were at the office party, Carolyn and her sister left for her parents' house to stay until after New Year. We hadn't been together again nearly long enough. The thought of her leaving saddened me. I wanted her as much as when we first met. I was going to have a very hard time leaving her. As New York office parties went, this was a tame one. I would have preferred to have been at Eunice's party.

Saturday, Grandfather and I enjoyed the Rockettes. After the show, we had a drink at 21. Grandfather talked with Jack and Charlie there. It was clearly a sad goodbye.

Sunday, we went to Riverside Church and heard a Christmas sermon from Eugene Carson Blake. Then we went to Roselawns where we stayed the rest of Sunday, all day Christmas Eve, Christmas, and two days after Christmas.

Richard and Jan called on Christmas. Grandfather laughed when Richard told him about how surprised he was when he found a new Cadillac parked in their drive on Christmas Morning.

The day after Christmas, I was surprised when I checked the service and found I had a call from Karen. I called her. She thanked me for the gift certificate. We didn't talk long.

I also talked briefly with Peggy. She said she was studying during the day and reconnecting with a group of girls, who had been close in high school. They called themselves the picnic gang. I noticed that Peggy's behavior regressed to a less stressful time, just like some men's did after the stress of combat. After I talked with her, I sent a 'thinking of you' bouquet of flowers to her house.

Will was burning the candle at both ends. He seemed to want to make up for being away. Grandfather though he was trying to do too many deals, but Will wouldn't slow. Grandfather believed strongly that you got hurt if you associated with men of questionable character, no matter how good the deal. Will didn't turn away many deals he thought were good deals. I was irritated that he wasn't spending more time with his family and Grandfather.

Grandfather talked with me about his concerns with respect to having too much political influence and the problems that came with having a statewide network of the most powerful newspapers, television and radio stations, especially in small states like Alabama and Mississippi. We talked about dealing with colored people and how he expected me to be responsible with those new assets. He was glad I had sold off all of the newspapers, but the Mobile newspaper, and worried that Beau had become too closely influenced by Will. The Lauders kept the newspapers and the television and radio combinations in Mississippi. Strangely, Grandfather was much more comfortable with Hub's paternalistic Southern views than the aggressive New York style Beau seemed to be developing. Grandfather asked me to talk with Beau and to keep in touch with Lib. Grandfather was very fond of Lib.

Grandfather and I came back to Grandfather's apartment after supper at Roselawns on the twenty-eighth. We had kept Nicole while Brooke went to several holiday receptions. It was Grandfather's favorite Christmas present. Fortunately, Brooke's friends associated her absence with Will's injuries from a supposed automobile accident. It was an excuse that also allowed Will to skip the receptions. Brooke seemed to enjoy getting back into the social set.

Grandfather checked and rechecked to see that Thornton had his trusts as Grandfather wanted them. He transferred a lot of cash into insurance policies before a change in the tax law negated much of the tax benefit of those transfers. He asked me to restructure some of my off-shore trusts to better link with some things he was doing. He was vague about what he was doing, but I authorized what he wanted done without question.

New Year's Eve, we went to a church service at Riverside Church and then to bed early. New Year's Night we watched Alabama beat Nebraska in the Orange Bowl for the National Championship. I stayed up for the whole game; Grandfather went to bed at half-time.

Grandfather died in his sleep in the early morning hours of the second. Carolyn was already on her way back from skiing with her parents. Brooke came to the apartment as Will went to work. She stayed with me until Carolyn arrived, which was mid-afternoon. Thornton flew in from Miami, where he had gone to the game. Beau flew Lib, Dorothy, and Freddy up immediately in his Beech.

Carolyn and I sat. We didn't talk much. I was devastated.

Grandfather had made all the arrangements for his funeral. Will and Grandfather had been more estranged than I thought. Will didn't come to the apartment until after Beau and his passengers arrived. Carolyn and Thornton kept me from saying anything. Lib talked to me a long time about dealing with Will.

We had a closed casket visitation the next evening; Hub brought Richard, Jan, Fred, Ania, Libby and Eunice up in his Aero Commander. He arrived in time for everyone to get to the visitation. After the visitation, we opened the casket for the family to say goodbye. As was the tradition in New York, friends came to the visitation, not to the funeral. We had a small funeral and buried Grandfather next to Grandmother.

Grandfather had arranged for the pallbearers, which were Richard and some retired attorneys and bankers from the firm. I was more than a little surprised when Thornton asked that Hub and Lib stay over an extra day to attend the reading of the will and estate documents. Will pressed to have Grandfather's will read quickly.

Grandfather had named the Senior Federal Judge friend of his as the executor of his estate. The Judge read the will and estate documents to us. I was shocked. Since my maternal grandparents left most of their assets to me, Will and I had expected that Grandfather would leave most of his assets to Will. Grandfather left eighty-one percent of the law firm in trust to me, with the Senior Judge serving as trustee until I finished law school. I also received eighty-one percent of Jenkins Bank in trust with three trustees having control until I graduated from law school. Grandfather left his apartment building, the house in Southampton, and the real estate around the Lincoln Center to me. Grandfather had arranged the Lincoln Center properties into a limited partnership, with a Sub Chapter S general, with me being the only limited partner. I received an eighty one percent share of Grandfather's other real estate limited partnerships and Sub Chapter S companies. I had a clear controlling interest in everything but W & R.

Will was furious. He had pushed for the reading, expecting to leave with control of everything. He had planned to move the bank and firm to be much more aggressive. From the Senior Judge's tone, I could tell that wasn't about to happen as long as he was the trustee with the majority of the shares of the law firm, and the bank trustees were also known to be very conservative. Grandfather transferred irrevocable trusts to me before New Year's so very little came through testamentary trusts or his will. About the only distributions from the will were some personal property to Richard, and some charitable contributions. Grandfather had even prepared the estate and his final income tax return. The Judge made final distributions at the reading and filed the estate returns.