The Heir

They should have seen it coming, the heir-hopefuls to lady Agatha's fortune.

She has named mister Maulus, her pet furrier, as the sole heir to her entire fortune should she come to pass. 

Furriers cannot manage wealth, but there is a way to make it work, by setting up a corporation for the special purpose of making mister Maulus's life comfortable and tending to his every wish. That corporation -run independently of the family- has been set up and has been made inheritor.

A furrier cannot be a Holder (at least not after the mad Emperor's decrees were revoked), so that title will go to her preferred great-great-granddaughter Irene Adelath. Needless to say, the rest of the family was furious. They pleaded and threatened, some tried to bargain to keep at least the race horses or the collection of old-timer three-masted sailing boats (including slave crews) of the late lord-consort. She did not budge. Maulus gets it all. He likes sailing, according to lady Agatha.

I was very much embarassed that the Societas and, indirectly, me are also part of the will - we will inherit the library of lady Agatha's late husband should the worst happen to her. According to lady Agatha, mister Maulus does not like reading stuffy books, and for chewing he prefers the latest fashion magazines. Nobody else in the family seemed to care about these books.

There will be tension over Youil dinner in House Adelath this year.

Salt, smoke and alcohol

Good news: lady Agatha is not terminally ill. But, she has to undergo surgery. Nothing very serious, they are replacing a few internal organs that were failing. However, for a frail lady of three centuries old, even standard procedures of surgery are never without risk, and will require a long period of revalidation. So, it is a wise choice to get the prayer of the sick. In addition, I also took confession. 

She does not use a standard confessional, but uses her Holder's prerogative to do this in the comfortable setting of her living room while having her afternoon tea and pastries. And gin. 

The latter may have contributed to the deterioration of her liver, according to her doctors. But she brushes away the doctor's concerns. According to lady Agatha, the best way to conserve food, or indeed anything organic, for a long period of time is either salting it, smoking it, or preserving it in alcohol. Why modern medicine advises her against salt, smoking, and alcohol is beyond her comprehension.   

She did not only complain about her doctors, but also about her grandchildren (her children and her husband passed away already). According to her, they are eagerly awaiting her death, in order to inherit the vast fortune of House Adelath and the Holder title. 

Now that she has to get surgery, the "vultures are circling closer", as she puts it. So, she has altered her will, and wants me as a witness tomorrow when the notary from the Amarr Civil Service administration comes to officialize the changes.

An urgent request

Unfortunately, I will not be able to attend this year's Saint Razhden's Day celebrations. I have received an urgent summons from lady Agatha Adelath, requesting that I administer her the prayer and anointment of the sick. This is a rite, not that common any more nowadays, that gives grace for the state into which one enters through sickness or injury, and asks God for strength and endurance of the ordeal of illness or infirmity.

The message was delivered by a courier, hand written on white silk paper with gold ink. The courier did not know what illness struck lady Agatha. Of course I am now very worried that she may be terminally ill. I grew fond of the old lady who was my travel companion during the cruise to Mezagorm...