Chapter 20
It took Kit quite a while to rationalize Jessie's news, given everything else that had happened in just one day. The euphoria and relief at finally freeing himself of the chains of his family was just a platform the news of his impending fatherhood used to catapult his mind into a state of near rapture. It was the next day before either of them thought to start spreading the news.
News that would have different reactions once it reached certain ears, he was sure. Some reactions were easy enough to predict. Vil, Sandy, Sam, the crew, the friends in the complex, the sorority, they'd be ecstatic. But when word of Jessie's pregnancy went past Vil and reached the aunts and uncles, he was rather sure that there wouldn't be any celebration. Another reaction that would be very hard for him to gauge would be Hannah. She had been against the marriage, and now her daughter was pregnant, something Hannah would fear given that she was still convinced that Kit was going to leave Jessie within two years. How would she react? Some part of her, he was sure, would be overjoyed. Even if she wasn't so sure of the ability of the marriage, the idea of being a grandmother would have a certain unmistakable appeal.
They should have started making phone calls that very night, but Kit was all but shellshocked from Jessie dropping that bomb on him the day he freed himself from his family. He walked around in a kind o giddy stupor once the true impact of it hit him for most of the afternoon, and Jessie was forced to keep a handle on him, which precluded her from starting the tasks of making phone calls. Jessie had bee forced to make Kit heel by evening by keeping him entrenched on the couch, snuggling him through his happy disorientation, giving him a fuzz therapy only Jessie could really supply. When she decided that he had too much nervous energy, she took him back to the bedroom and wore him out.
Since he was back and had no excuse–truly, had not even told anyone that he was home–the crew was quite shocked to see him all but dance into the office the next morning, a huge, stupid smile on his face. "Kit!" she gasped. "I thought you were in Boston!" She nearly smacked him when he pulled her out from behind the desk and spun her around the lobby, then looked utterly confused when he set her right back on her chair and all but did a jig on his way down the hallway into the main office. She followed behind him as the rest of the office saw him, and he was swarmed over by the crew.
"Trial? Oh, the trial's over," he said with a huge grin.
"Already? Sheila isn't back yet," Rick noted. "It was supposed to last at least a week–"
"Well, it's still going on, I suppose," Kit shrugged, scratching his muzzle. "My part of it's over, I should say."
"Why didn't you call and tell me you were back, son?" he asked. "And why didn't Sheila check in last night? I was about to call her. She may be up there for her family trial, but she's also up there to keep us informed."
"Call? Oh, sorry. It's been kinda wild since yesterday morning."
"Well, why? We're dying to know!" Mike chimed in.
"I think you'd better tell us what's going on, son," Rick said, sitting at the main table.
"There's so much, I don't know where to start."
"Try starting at the trial," Barry said.
The offices emptied and everyone gathered around the big table. Kit sat on the edge of it and went over what happened the morning before, about what happened at the trial. They gaped when he told them about him being called to testify, and then the fatal testimony of Basil Hawthorne. The crew had not known about Cybil's involvement in Kit's shooting, and they were floored by that bombshell when Kit described how Vil's lawyers verbally strangled Cybil's case when they cross-examined the rabbit butler. "I have no doubt that Cybil is back in England," he finished. "The look on her face when she realized we knew was just sheer terror. I'll bet money she had her driver take her straight to the airport after the courtroom adjourned. If she hangs around here, she might have an arrest warrant being nailed to her door."
"Well, that does explain a great deal of it," Rick said with a nod.
"Why didn't they arrest her right then?" Lilly asked.
"Because Vil got hold of the evidence illegally, and the evidence was itself illegal. It was part of an illegal federal wiretap, part of that homeland security crap. I guess they've been illegally tapping pre-paid cell phones," Kit answered. "But that doesn't matter in a civil trial. As long as the evidence is factual, it's admissible. And Vil had an affidavit from the FBI and everything to prove it was factual."
"Ohhh," she said, nodding.
"But, now everyone knows that Cybil tried to kill me," Kit continued. "And it was all just a part of a plan to distract my family long enough for her to sneak back to England with half of my family's money."
"What a bitch," Lilly grunted, which caused nods of assent.
"Anyway, all of that is over," Kit said happily. "I don't need to be there for the rest of it. I have no doubt that Cybil is back in England, and the bombshell destroyed her case. My family has already agreed not to oppose Vil's case, so I figure that it'll all be done by Friday."
"So, Vil will win and you'll get the money?" Jeffrey asked eagerly.
"Vil will win, but I won't get the money," Kit answered. "I've already signed an agreement that leaves the part of my bastard father's will intact that dealt with the division of the family fortune. Since that was what my family was fighting to maintain, they had no objection to allowing Vil to void the will. They just care about their money. The voiding of the will does mean that my sister and cousins can socialize with me all they want without any fear. In a way, that's what my sister has been fighting for, getting me un-disowned. Her case will do that. I'll no longer be disowned, but I still will have nothing from the family fortune. Given that, and Jessie, and my feelings about my family, it's still the same to me. I disowned them six years ago. I want nothing to do with them."
"So where exactly does that leave you, son?" Rick asked.
"At work," Kit grinned. "I'm still the poor kid you all know and love. I signed away control of that money before I ever had control of it," Kit chuckled.
"Wow," Jeffrey breathed. "You signed away over a billion dollars!"
"Without batting an eye," Kit nodded. "I want nothing to do with it. That money is curse, it is a curse, and I'm more than happy with this life." There was a long silence, and Kit laughed. "So, get those dreams of yachts and Lamborghinis right out of your heads, you pack of leeches!" he barked with a teasing smile.
They all laughed, and Rick patted him on the shoulder. "Well, for one, I'm glad you came home, son. This place just wouldn't be the same without you."
"Him and Vil," Mike grinned.
"Well, that might explain why Sheila hasn't called or touched base," Barry said. "If the Vulpans feel the trial's over and they won, I think there's some celebrating going on up there. Sheila may still be drunk."
A few of them chuckled, and Kit could only nod. "Muffy said something about them going out to celebrate, and Vulpans know how to party."
"That's parrr-taay," Marty corrected, snapping his fingers.
"How do your family thinks of you?" Savid asked.
"They think I'm stark raving mad," Kit answered honestly. "They don't understand. They can't understand. All they have ever known is money. It's all they know, and all they ever want to know. They can't fathom that anyone could ever be happy without it."
"Well, I guess I'll just have to try being happy poor," Marty said melodramatically. "All my dreams of a handsome sugar daddy, dashed! Oh, the anguish of it all!"
"Keep tryin', Marty," Rick chuckled.
"So, no more extended time off, eh? You're gonna be like the rest of us wage slaves?" Mike grinned.
"Thank God," Kit said with an explosive sigh. "Believe me, I appreciate you guys being so understanding. First I get shot, then the marriage, then this. I swear, I owe Rick so many vacation days I won't be setting foot out of the city for two years."
"You'll earn it back, son," Rick grinned.
"Now, the other news that rocked my world yesterday," he said with building excitement, "which was why I was so scattered I never told you guys I was back." He put on a foolish grin. "Jessie's gonna have a baby!"
It was as if he dropped a bomb at the table. There was instant bedlam as the crew all laughed and shouted and jumped up, and he was pulled six different ways as he was hugged and his paws were shaken, often at the same time. "Ohmygawd, I gotta call Jessie!" Lilly squealed, reaching for her Blackberry."
"Jessie's in class, so don't bother her!" Kit warned. "And don't spread it around just yet. Me and Jessie are going to tell everyone today, so let us tell the important people. If Vil finds out from someone other than me, she'll have a conniption. And God help us if Hannah hears it second hand," he said with a shudder.
"Now that I can understand," Mike laughed.
"When is baby due, Kit?" Savid asked.
"We're not entirely sure. Jessie's only between one and two months pregnant, she got suspicious when she missed her period, and went to the university clinic yesterday and they did a pregnancy test. One of the things she asked me to do today was start researching obstetricians, we need to find one."
"I'll have her call Martha," Rick said quickly. "Our doctor knows every doctor in Austin, he'll know exactly who to recommend, given how shy and modest Jessie is. Let me go put her on the job," he said, then he hurried into his office.
"So, there's going to be the puttering of little feet in the Vulpan apartment," Lilly grinned, hugging him yet again.
"Not the one we're in now," Kit chuckled. "Lupe says we'll be in our new apartment around August. They start construction on the Westwood expansion in a couple of weeks, as soon as they finish getting all the permits, and from what Lupe said, they're building our apartments first, ours and Lupe's. It's gonna be a townhouse-style condo by the pool. We'll be in one and Lupe will be in the one next door, connected to us."
"I should talk to Lupe about moving into Westwood," Jeffrey said. "My apartment is getting small, and my roommate is getting totally annoying."
"Go for it, Lupe's a great landlord," Kit told him.
Kit did have one more important person to tell today, and after he extricated himself from the others and got into his office, he attended to that. He used his work cell phone, his Blackberry, to call Vil. Kit was tasked to tell his side of the family and the crew, and Jessie would tell her side of the family and the sorority. Kit would also tell Lupe and Kevin, that was how they decided to divide the task of letting everyone know. Vil didn't answer her phone, it went straight to voice mail, which told him that she wouldn't answer it. He realized that she must be in court, since he was pretty sure that the trial didn't just end yesterday. They had other things to do, and Vil would be there while it was happening, as would most of the family. Kit had no doubt that Vil was sitting in the same aisle with his aunts and uncles–except maybe Uncle Tom, he always was a reclusive one–and most of the older cousins. He couldn't just let it go, though. She wouldn't answer the phone, but he had no doubt that she'd read it if he text-messaged her, something he rarely did:
Sis. Important news. Call me ASAP.
He waited for about five minutes, and when she didn't reply, either by text or calling, he sent her another message:
CALL ME NOW!
He put the Blackberry aside and put his attention on his computer when it beeped, warning him that Rick was putting something in his in-box. His Blackberry started ringing with the short tone that told him it was a text, and he picked it up as his assignment appeared in his in-box:
Bro, trial still on! My lawyers moved 2 throw out bitch's case. Judge hearing arguments, no ruling yet. Will call @ lunch break. TTYL.
He texted her back:
OK. Don't forget 2 call. BIG BIG NEWS!!!
He turned his attention back to his job, and saw that he was being assigned another interview. Rick, that sly dog, was already abusing the connections he'd made during Kit's wedding, for Kit was being assigned to interview Congressman Lamar Smith. Smith and Rick had met at the reception and had had a very congenial conversation, ad Rick new that Smith would never dare to decline an interview with Kit, for fear of angering Vilenne Vulpan. Politicians tread very lightly and carefully around the name Vulpan. Kit and Barry had interviewed quite a few local and state politicians and election officials already, part of the extensive and detailed overage the magazine had devoted to the upcoming national election, turning the magazine into a real magazine. Smith would be the first federal office holder the magazine would interview, and Rick was wisely assigning the reporter to which Smith could dare not say no when he requested the interview.
He considered the assignment. He'd need to research Lamar Smith exhaustively before the interview. Kit wanted to know absolutely everything there was to know about the man; his voting record, his personal history, his platform, his vitals, his job goals. He should also research Smith's potential competition for his House seat, both any possible challengers in his primary, as well as the candidates in the other party. And make sure there were no serious third party contenders as well. Kit wanted to be armed with every possible scrap of information he could find to ask tough yet fair questions to Congressman Smith, so the readers could fully understand where he stood and be able to decide for themselves if he was a fur for which they could vote or not. He would approach the interview as a neutral observer, with the objective to give the readers as much information about Smith as possible without ambushing him, but also asking tough questions about controversial issues, so the readers would know exactly where he stood.
He got so involved with his assignment he lost track of time. The ringing of his phone surprised him as he was putting the finishing touches on a detailed outline of information Kit needed to research to prepare for the interview, and he saved it with the mouse as his other paw picked up the phone and connected the call. "Lone Star Magazine, Kit Vulpan," he said in his ritual greeting used on the company cell phone.
"Now, what's this big news?" Vil asked, her voice a touch amused.
Kit laughed. "Are you sitting down, sis?"
"No, I'm standing out in the atrium in the courthouse, with a pack of nosy reporters hovering around me. That's right, nosy!" she called loudly, away from the phone.
"Well, this can wait until you're somewhere more private," Kit chuckled. "I don't want you looking un-Vulpan in public. Image, you know."
"Okay, you just got me real curious," she told him. "Let me find an empty room somewhere, and I'll fill you in on what happened today while we're moving."
"Sounds like a plan to me."
"Okay, basically, it's over," she began. "This morning when the trial resumed, Cybil wasn't here. She's back in England. From what I was told, she went straight from the courthouse to the airport, and boarded the very first plane to Europe she could find. She ended up in Paris, and took another flight from there back to London. That bitch was in no mood to stay where I can get my claws in her," she said with a dark laugh, "but she's gonna find out I can reach all the way to England. Anyway, her lawyers tried to ask for a continuance, but the judge shot them down. Then my lawyers moved to have her entire case thrown out. They argued about that all morning, and the judge adjourned us for lunch by saying he'd rule on it tomorrow. We should have adjourned for the day with that, but we're going back in after lunch so the lawyers for the family can drop their opposition to my case and allow it to move forward with only Cybil opposing it. That's much simpler, so the judge should rule on that today, which is really him just acknowledging it. The main message it sends, though, is that the Vulpans are moving forward united, and that will probably influence the judge's ruling on dismissing Cybil's case. I mean, Cybil doesn't really have a legal leg to stand on, and now it comes out that she's the prime suspect in your attempted murder," she said with a wicked little snicker. "That does put just a little bit of a shadow over her entire case," she said lightly. "We're also going to introduce the agreement you signed this afternoon, so everyone can just get it in their heads that you're no longer part of this, and to leave you the hell alone." There was a brief pause. "Okay, I'm in an empty room, bro. What's this earth-shattering news?"
Kit laughed, took a deep breath, then blurted it out. "Jessie's gonna have a baby!" he said gleefully.
Vil actually screamed, a high-pitched squeal, and it sounded like she dropped her Blackberry for a second. "Oh my God!" she cried ecstatically. "I can't believe it! Congratulations, bro!"
"Thanks, sis," he said happily. "Jessie told me yesterday, but it was so crazy with me coming back and the trial and signing the agreement and all, this was the first chance we've really had to start spreading the news."
"Who cares about that!" she laughed. "Oh, bro, I'm so happy I could cry! I am crying!" she announced, then she sniffled as if to prove it. "I–I have to call Jessie! Does she have a doctor yet? When is the baby due? Have you told her folks? Please tell me you're moving out of that closet and getting a proper house!"
Kit laughed lightly. "Jessie's in class, so don't call her. Rick and Martha are asking their doctor for the name of a good obstetrician right now, we don't know exactly when the baby's due yet, I don't think Jessie told her folks yet, that's her job, and we weren't planning on moving out of the complex. We're staying right where we are, thank you very much. I like not having to mow the lawn!"
Vil laughed again. "Don't even think of telling me I can't put a paw in about this, bro! My sis-in-law and my bro are having a baby! I'm going to find the best OB-GYN on the freakin' planet and send him to Austin, on me."
"I don't think we have to go quite that far, but I'll gladly let you pick up the tab for the doctor. This is about the health of my wife and my baby, I won't say a word."
"You damn well better not!" she said with a happy little giggle.
"Watch your mouth, young lady!" Kit teased.
Vil laughed brightly. "I can't wait to tell the family. God, will they ever blow a fuse! You know this won't stay secret for very long, bro. The press has been all but crawling up my skirt since the trial started. I wouldn't be surprised if there was a reporter hiding in the air duct listening to me right now."
"That can't be helped. I just didn't want you to look flabbergasted when someone mentioned it to you, sis. You deserved to hear it from me."
She laughed. "Well, thanks for that much. I'm gonna be an aunt," she said with a thrilled lilt to her voice. "I'm so happy I could walk across the harbor!"
"Given it's probably frozen over, I think you might pull it off," he teased.
"Stav is giving me the warning, court's about to go back in session, so I gotta go, bro. I'll spread the word up here."
"Okay. Tell Sheila as soon as you can, and you can call Jessie later tonight. She's gonna call her folks as soon as she gets out of class."
"Alright, I'll make it a late call," she promised. "Talk to you later tonight, bro, and congratulations!"
"Thanks, sis," he said, and he ended the call. He wasn't done yet, though. Vil would spread the word to the family and to Sheila, who was up there to attend the trial, but Kit still had two more people to inform, Lupe and Kevin. He dialed Lupe first, since now it was very important to know exactly how this construction and move was going to go. Kit didn't want to be hanging in limbo waiting when Jessie was nine months pregnant. He wanted to move before the delivery if at all possible, he did not want to try to execute a move with a newborn child.
"Westwood Apartments, Lupe speakin'."
"Lupe, it's Kit."
"Yo, brah! How's Boston?"
"I'm back home. Didn't you see me leave for work this morning?"
"Brah, I was late gettin' into the office this morning. Why didn't you call me or drop by? What happened up there to bring you home after just one day?"
"Things were crazy," Kit chuckled. "But I'm home for good. I never have to go back."
"That's good to hear."
"Listen, speaking of home, when did you say they'd have our part of the new apartments finished and we could move in?"
"Umm, July, brah, at least that's what I was told. They're starting construction on them on Thursday, and they're gonna go twenty four seven til they're done. They gotta get the far side up so we can move everyone over and tear down these old buildings."
"You're positive about that?"
"Pretty sure, yah. Why?"
Kit beamed at the phone, which Lupe naturally couldn't see. "Lupe, Jessie's pregnant."
He flinched when Lupe whooped loudly into the phone. "It's about time, brah!" Lupe laughed. "All that sex you two have, I'm shocked you didn't get her knocked up sooner! Congratulations!"
"I'd like to be moved before she delivers, Lupe, so it's kinda important we're sure about when we're moving."
"Shit yah," he agreed. "I sure as hell won't want you two in limbo with a baby on the way! Lemme call the contracting company and get a solid estimate, brah. I'll have to make sure they're available to move in before Jessie's so big she can't stand up by herself!"
Kit laughed. "I wouldn't say that to her. She'll sock you."
"When she's too fat to do anything but waddle, I'll get all kinds of brave, brah," Lupe said wickedly. "Lemme get on this. I sure as hell don't want you two trying to move when Jessie's big, or you already have the baby. Only problem is, if you move too early, you'll be next door to a major construction site," he grunted. "I dunno if the baby's gonna like that. May have to hang in your apartment until they're about to tear them down, then move over. Eh, lemme talk to my guys and get an idea. I'll call ya back, brah."
"I'm at work, so call me here."
"Got it."
Kit moved on to the last person he was tasked to tell, Kevin. Kevin, like all associates in his firm, had both a private number that reached him directly and an office number that could reach him through the office switchboard. The direct line was for his clients, so they could always call him directly without going through the switchboard. "Kev," Kit called before he could go through his ten second long introduction.
"Hey, Kit! How cold is Boston?"
"I have no idea, I'm back home," Kit answered.
"Already? How did it go?"
"For me, great. For Cybil, it was brutal," he answered, which made Kevin chuckle. "I have some different news for you, though."
"Cool, what is it?
"First off, don't tell Sam. Jessie wants to tell her herself."
"I'm interested," Kevin told him.
"Kev, Jessie's pregnant. We're gonna have a baby!"
"Really? That's wonderful!" Kevin gushed. "I'm so happy for you! When is Jessie due?"
"We don't know exactly yet, she has to go to an obstetrician and get an exam," he answered. "Now remember, don't tell Sam. Jessie wants to tell the sorority girls herself tonight."
"No problem. Let's have lunch to celebrate!"
"Sounds good to me," Kit said. "Chinese?"
"You know it! I'll be down in twenty!"
"Mind if I bring company? I doubt the crew'll let me sneak out, I already told them."
"No problem, I'll bet a couple of partners will want to come too. They're still trying to get me to talk you into retaining the firm," he laughed. "Just the prestige of representing a Vulpan would be a major coup, even if we never actually did anything."
"Them? Pft, you're our lawyer, Kev," Kit snorted.
"Wow, thanks, Kit," Kevin said cheekily. "Does this mean I can bill you for lunch?"
"Bite me."
Kevin exploded into laughter.
They met at the Little Dragon, and it did turn into an impromptu celebration. The entire office cleared out, they locked the doors, and hung a note on it as the entire magazine went to the restaurant to meet Kevin, and found that every partner and several associates had come down with him. The Little Dragon was still about the best place to get Chinese food in Austin, so they had trouble finding enough tables close enough together to remain concentrated. Kevin sat at a table with Kit, Rick, and Delores Kittimer, one of the partners at Kevin's firm, a small, thin cat with tabby fur and a serious expression. Delores was one hell of a lawyer, sharp and highly educated, and Kevin always had praise for her when he talked about his bosses around poker. Delores did break her professional veneer by hugging him and telling him "I'm so happy for you!"
"Aww, thanks, Delores," Kit chuckled as several of the crew rushed towards the buffet.
"I haven't heard Martha cry that much since the wedding when I told her," Rick chuckled as they sat down. "Poor Jessie. The second she gets out of class, she's going to be bowled over by calls."
"That's why she left her Blackberry at home," Kit grinned.
"Martha's bringing over a dinner and a cake for you tonight, son," Rick told him. "She started working on it as soon as I told her." He took a bite out of his sweet and sour pork. "She doesn't want Jessie to cook tonight. She figures you and her will be too busy."
"God, I love that femme," Kit laughed.
"She's taken, son," Rick grinned.
"Have you told your sister yet?" Kevin asked.
"And get murdered if she heard it from someone other than me? Do you think I'm insane?" Kit asked, which caused the whole table to erupt into laughter. "I have no doubt that my aunts and uncles know by now, and are cursing me out."
"Screw 'em," Kevin said. "They have no right to say anything."
"Amen," Kit agreed."
The group of them made it something of a celebration, even paid for by Kevin's firm, and neither the crew nor the firm got back to their offices before three o'clock. Kit found quite a few messages on his Blackberry–which he'd intentionally left on his desk–and office phone voicemail, all of them from his cousins Sheila and Muffy, Suzy, Clancy, and surprisingly one from his uncle Brian, all of them congratulating him. Vil seemed to have quickly spread the word, even outside the family, and Kit grimly guessed that the press had to have wind of it by now. He didn't get much more work done as he called them back, Clancy first and then Suzy, then Muffy, then Sheila. He chatted animatedly with all of them, but only breached another subject with Sheila. "Now that Cybil's gone, are you gonna change your plans about leaving Austin in the fall?"
"I'm kinda working on that right now," she answered. "I'll have a solid answer for you probably tomorrow."
"Alright. Were you at the trial today, or out getting drunk?"
Sheila laughed into the phone. "Both," she answered. "Man, what a circus," she mused. "But it's basically over. The judge may finish it all tomorrow."
"Vil told me about what happened up til lunch. What happened after that?"
"That's the only part of it I caught," Sheila giggled. "I was out with the Party Pack last night."
"Well, what happened? You know if you come back with nothing, Rick'll skin you. You're up there to work, you know!"
The family is letting Vil's case move forward unopposed," she told him. "But made it clear they'll still fight Cybil. But that's a moot point, just about everyone expects the judge to toss out Cybil's case, even the press."
"So, not much."
"Nope. I'm jut glad that the bitch is gone," she said with a sigh of relief. "Finally, I feel safe walking the streets of Boston again!"
"And free to return to your life of sex, drugs, and parties," he noted.
"Sex, drugs, and parties aren't as much fun as they used to be," she admitted with surprising candor. "Well, the sex is," she hummed, which made Kit laugh.
"Do my ears deceive me, or have Martha and Hannah done the impossible and tamed Sheila Vance Vulpan?"
"Bite my ass," Sheila grated, which made Kit explode into helpless laughter. "I'll probably be back tomorrow afternoon."
"I'll be here," Kit assured her.
"Oh, and grats again, cousin."
"Thanks."
After quite a few happy parting words, Kit left the office and drove home. Lupe rushed out of the office an shook his paw, and Mickey and Darn intercepted him before he made it to the door and added their own well wishes. Jessie still had a half hour before she got home, so Kit put on some water for tea, and had barely managed to take two steps out of the kitchen before the doorbell rang. "It's open!" he shouted, and saw Martha rush inside. The tall great dane laughed and gave him a crushing hug, slapping him almost painfully on the back. "I'm so happy for both of you!" she bubbled. "I brought you some dinner, Kit. I'll get to work heating it up for you. When will Jessica get home?"
"In about a half hour or so," he answered. "Need help?"
"Come help me get it out of the car," she told him.
The dinner she brought was almost a banquet. Tupperware dish after tupperware dish put in IGB bags, what had to be six courses, and a large rectangle holding a dark-frosted cake. "Rick said you were going to ask your doctor about obstetricians."
"I talked to our doctor," she nodded. "He knows just about all the doctors in town. He suggested a doctor named Sandra MacNair. She's supposed to be the best obstetrician in Austin, but she also has a very gentle and nurturing bedside manner. Given Jessica's personality, that's a very, very important quality."
"Yeah, it would be," he said as he got the last bag out of her dusty minivan and closed the back door. "She'd freeze up if it were someone with a gruff demeanor."
"She's such a dear," Martha said with a little smile and laugh. Since the wedding, Martha looked at Jessie as something of an adopted daughter, and called Jessie at least once every two or three days. "Have you told Hannah and John yet?"
"Jessie's going to do that when she gets home from school," he answered.
"I'm so glad I didn't call them, then!" Martha laughed. John and Hannah had struck up a very strong friendship with Rick and Martha after they met at the wedding. The two couples called each other often, and Rick was even talking about trying to go on the same cruise that Vil had given his in-laws for a Christmas present, sharing a vacation.
"Me too. We'd have seen the light from the explosion from here if Hannah gets the news from anyone but Jessie."
Martha laughed delightedly as they returned to the apartment. They unloaded everything on the kitchen counters and dining room table, and Martha swatted Kit on the backside when he started unpacking one of the bags. "Out, you!" she commanded. "This is no time for you to be worrying yourself with the little things. I'll handle this!"
"Just wait til I tell Rick you've been pawing my butt," Kit threatened, then he danced out of range as she sought to swat him again, and much harder. He laughed and evacuated himself from the kitchen, and turned on the radio while Martha's voice emanated from the kitchen, singing to herself as she took over the place. In moments, the smell of country fried steak wafted enticingly through the apartment as the matronly canine started heating up the expansive meal she'd brought over, enough food to feed the two of them for five days.
Jessie got home right about on time, laughing as she opened the door. Lupe, Mickey, and Dan were with her, Dan carrying her backpack, Mickey a Wal-Mart bag, and Lupe had his arm over her shoulder. "–just so thrilled for yah, hon!" Lupe was saying to her as they came in."
"Aww, thanks, Lupe," she smiled dazzlingly, then hugged him fondly. "And I'm not delivering tomorrow!" she accused Dan, giggling as she took her backpack back from him. "I carried this all day, all by myself, you know!"
The lion grinned at her. "Hush, you! You're more than entitled to a little pampering. You deserve it!"
"Stop putting the moves on my wife, guys," Kit warned playfully as Jessie gave him a loving hug, and kissed him on the muzzle.
"Then keep her happy, so she don't come to Doctor Looove," Lupe retorted, which made them all laugh.
"What are you cooking, love?" Jessie asked, sniffing the air in the apartment.
"He's not cooking anything!" Martha called, padding out from the kitchen and burying Jessie in a crushing embrace. "I'm so happy for you, sweetie!"
"Aww, thanks, Martha," she said with a laugh, patting the great dane on the shoulder.
"I'm cooking enough for a good sized dinner, if your friends would like to stay. I figured you'd have company tonight," she smiled.
Lupe laughed. "I don't never say no to free food!" he said. "But, I'll have to come back later, I'm still working on something."
"Yeah, we should give you some privacy to make some calls, hon," Dan told her. "We'll come back around six-thirty or so. That alright with you?"
"That's fine," Jessie told them.
"Now if you need any help with anything, you know where we are," Mickey told her. "We can't have you straining yourself in your condition!"
"Boys," Jessie accused, pushing them towards the door. When the three of them left, laughing, Jessie gave Martha a challenging yet fond look. "I can still cook for myself, you know," she teased. "You of all people, Martha! I'm shocked!"
"Tosh," she sniffed, smiling. "You'll be much too busy today to cook anything wholesome, and you're eating for two now!"
"It sure doesn't feel like it yet," Jessie laughed, patting her very slim belly. "I haven't even started getting morning sickness yet, knock on wood."
"How far are you along, dear?"
"I don't really know, somewhere between four and six weeks," she answered. "I found out because I missed my period. And I've been paying real close attention to it, kinda hoping this would happen," she said, smiling at Kit. "As soon as I realized I missed, I went to the clinic on campus and they gave me a pregnancy test. They gave me three different ones, just to make sure! I need to find an obstetrician now so I can get an exam and find out where I am."
"I found you a very good one, dear, who came highly recommended."
"Really?"
"Our own doctor recommended her personally," she answered with a nod. "Doctor Kantrell said she was the best OB-GYN in Austin, and we trust him explicitly."
"Is that who it is?"
"No dear, that's our doctor. Her name is Sandra MacNair," she said as she padded back towards the kitchen. "I have her number, and she's expecting to hear from you tomorrow to make an appointment. But you have a few other calls to make," she prompted as she turned the corner and vanished from sight.
"Yeah, I do," Jessie said, blowing out her breath. "I guess we can't put it off forever," she said, steeling herself as she pulled her Blackberry out of her purse. Ever since she got it for Christmas, she almost never used her other cell phone… she just kept that one for emergencies.
Hannah's reaction was very much a wild card, and it was one of the reasons that Jessie wasn't entirely enthusiastic to make the call. Hannah had just started getting used to the idea that they were married, and now it was going to be complicated by this. It might make Hannah that much more paranoid that the marriage she felt was doomed to fail would be complicated by a child. Kit could see that Hannah would feel that Jessie would be that much more vulnerable; pregnant, still in school, and growing increasingly dependent on a husband that Hannah didn't entirely trust. That was one way she could look at it–the way Kit expected–but there was also the simpleness of it. Despite the situation and her reservations, some part of Hannah would have to be happy about the idea of being a grandmother, no matter how problematic it might be for her daughter. Kit left Jessie to give her a little space to make the call, joining Martha in the kitchen to help her.
"Is she calling Hannah?" Martha asked as Kit poured Jessie a cup of hot water for tea.
Kit nodded. "Now we find out if Hannah will be happy about this or not."
Martha tutted. "She'll be happy about being a grandmother, dear. How can she not be happy about that?"
"Hannah will find a way," he said darkly. "You know how she feels about our marriage, Martha. She thinks I'll abandon Jessie the instant things start getting anywhere near inconvenient. She's afraid I'll abandon Jessie the way her father abandoned her mother."
"Kit. If you have proved anything to Hannah, it is that you are not her father."
"God, I hope so," Kit prayed fervently as he heard Jessie begin to talk.
There was no shouting from the living room, which was a good sign. Jessie's voice sounded reasonable, then she giggled, then she was too quiet for Kit to hear as he poured green beans from a tupperware container into a pot on the stove, and Martha turned on the oven. Kit got too busy following Martha's orders to pay much attention, at least until Jessie called his name. He hurried into the living room, and Jessie held out the phone to him. "Here," she said, giving him a warning look.
"Hello?" he said, almost timidly.
"That was very quick work, Kit," Hannah's voice said darkly over the phone, as if on the verge of an explosion. Kit's tail stood straight out in sudden fear, which caused Jessie to erupt into laughter, and he heard Hannah laugh over the phone. "Congratulations, dear," she said in a much happier voice, but not too happy.
"Thank God!" he said explosively. "I thought you'd be angry! And you, you little sneak, are in so much trouble!" he said, snapping an accusing finger at Jessie. "You put her up to that, didn't you?"
"Mmmmaybe," Jessie grinned, putting her paws behind her back and assuming an almost unbearably cute pose and expression.
He heard Hannah laugh over the phone. "But seriously, Kit, this has come at a very awkward time. Jessie still has two more semesters to go. How is she going to finish school? What about her hopes to earn a Master's?"
"I know," Kit nearly groaned. "We didn't plan this–well, I didn't. Jessie's been hoping it would happen. But we'll have to find a way. Jessie's so close to graduating. She just has to finish school!"
"I'm glad you agree," Hannah said in a satisfied tone. "Now, what you two need to do is sit down and seriously think everything through. There is a lot you need to think about now. For instance, Jessie needs to find an obstetrician, and quickly. A girl can never have an obstetrician too soon when she's expecting."
"Martha helped us with that," he told her. "She had her doctor recommend one to us. Jessie's making her first appointment tomorrow."
"That's very good."
"And we will sit down and talk about this. I'm sure we won't think of everything though, that's why I'm so glad we have you, and Rick and Martha, to give us advice."
"I'm glad you'll be looking to them," Hannah said approvingly. "They're good people with a great deal of common sense. If you can't talk to me, dear, then Martha is your best alternative."
"She's here with us now," Kit chuckled. "When she heard, she rushed over to make us dinner!"
"She's there? Put her on," Hannah ordered.
"Martha! Hannah wants to talk to you," he called, going into the kitchen and giving her the phone.
"Hello, Hannah," Martha said happily. "Yes! I was shocked, but I'm very happy for them! Oh, country fried steak and lots of different dishes. I want them well fed today," she chuckled, and Kit wandered back into the living room. Jessie gave him a kiss, but she squealed and laughed when he grabbed her, turned her side to him, then reached down and spanked her.
"Bad kitty! I nearly had a heart attack!" he admonished her as she continued to laugh helplessly and struggle with her gorgeous longhaired tail writhing as he smacked her backside. Jessie struggled for a moment more, than surrendered by kissing him on the muzzle, which made him give her a gentle embrace. "How did she take it when you told her?"
"A lot better than I thought she would," Jessie answered. "She was speechless at first, and you know, that's when you wait for the explosion. But then she laughed and congratulated me."
"How did John take it?"
"Dad's still at school. He teaches an afternoon class on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Mom will tell him when he gets home.
"Well, that's a hopeful sign, at least," Kit said. "I was so afraid she'd blow a fuse when she found out."
"I'm sure she'll be less joyful when it sinks in," Jessie said. "But I think as long as I keep calling her and asking her advice, I can keep her mollified to where she doesn't start thinking negatively. I have to keep her focused on the good and not let her dwell on the bad."
Kit laughed and rocked her from side to side. "Good God, what did I do to you, my pretty kitty? What happened to that moral young femme who would never discuss manipulating her mother so blatantly I fell in love with?"
"I'm a Vulpan now," she giggled. "Am I proving it?"
"Wayyyy too much," he agreed. "I have got to get you away from Vil and Sheila before they do any more damage. But God help me, I love you."
"You better. I still own your contract," she grinned, giving him a passionate kiss that made his knees weak.
His Blackberry started to ring, and he held onto Jessie with one paw as he dug it out. "It's Vil," he said, reading the display, then he connected the call on speaker so Jessie could hear. "Hey sis," he said. "You done for today?"
"Yeah, we're all done," she said. "Is Jessie home?"
"I'm right here, Vil," she announced.
"Congratulations, hon!" Vil said brightly. "I'm so happy for you!"
"Thanks," she said with a light laugh.
"Kit has already knuckled under to me," Vil said victoriously. "I want you to go to an obstetrician, Jessie. Kit said you'd find one yourself, but when you do, give me the number to their office. I'm going to take care of all the doctor bills."
"Aww, that's so sweet!" Jessie gushed.
"This is about family, hon, and I won't let Kit's pride jeopardize your baby!" she said vehemently. "You'll get the medical care you deserve!"
"Well, I won't say no, Vil."
"You'd better not!" she declared, quite seriously.
Jessie laughed. "I'll call you tomorrow about it, alright? I'm going to make my first appointment."
"What's the name of this doctor?"
"Umm. Sandy MacNair."
"Sandra MacNair," Kit corrected.
"Give me her number. I want to call her and arrange paying for your appointment."
"Uh, Vil, can I make the appointment before you do that? She'll have no idea what you're talking about."
"Oh. Right," she said in a very unusual tone, which surprised Kit a little.
"Calm down, sis," Kit told her.
Vil laughed. "I know, but I'm just so excited," she said giddily. "Guess I'm going all spazzy on you guys, aren't I?"
Jessie laughed. "That's alright, I think it shows how happy you are for us," she said affectionately.
"God, am I ever!"
"How did the family take it?" Kit asked.
"About how you'd expect," she answered. "Muffy and Sheila are overjoyed, most of the other cousins don't really care all that much, and the aunts and uncles are up in arms. All but Brian, that is," she mused. "He seems really happy for you. He asked me to tell you congratulations from him, he knows you'll never talk to him if you know it's him."
"He's right," Kit said adamantly.
"But, it was good timing," Vil mused. "This news coming right behind us winning the trial. They're too busy celebrating keeping their money to worry too much about you."
"It's all over?"
"Not officially," she informed them. "The judge accepted the family's dropping their objection to my suit this afternoon, and said he'd rule on the motion to dismiss Cybil's case probably tomorrow. Everyone's predicting it's over, including Cybil's own lawyers," she snickered. "Bro, to say they were floored by our evidence was the mother of all understatements. You should have heard them today. They had nowhere to go, they had a dead case, and they knew it. We murdered their case. Where can you go when you find out the petitioner tried to have a member of the respondent's family assassinated just to help you win your case? Their arguments for not dismissing the case were pretty weak, on top of it."
"What happened to Cybil?" Jessie asked.
"She ran back to England before the judge finished banging his gavel yesterday afternoon," she answered with a wicked little chuckle. "She caught the first plane to Europe out of Logan, didn't even take any luggage with her. She ran, and everyone noticed it. It was all over the Herald this morning."
"Now what?"
"Now? I give her maybe five or six days to think the Vulpans aren't going to chase her across the pond, get her hopes up, then she wakes up and finds a damning story in the Globe and reporters banging on the gates of her manor in Cheshire," she said. "Then I'll call her and tell her that her bony ass is mine and would she please try to do something about it. Because I'll enjoy crushing her that much more if she fights than I will if she just meekly accepts it," she said with a vindictive growl in her voice.
"That's my bloodthirsty sister," Kit laughed.
"I'm glad you're keeping your promise to me, Vil," Jessie said heatedly.
"You bet I am, sis, I will make her hurt," Vil said intensely. "I will crush her and leave her totally destroyed. She'll have nothing when I'm done with her."
"My little barbarian," Kit laughed, squeezing Jessie.
"So I'm a barbarian," Jessie shrugged, which made Vil laugh. "Mind if we call this a little short, Vil? I still have some people to call."
"No problem, Jessie," Vil said. "I want you to call me the instant you get that appointment made. And I want you to push to get it as soon as possible. Tell her you'll pay him triple the usual fee if he moves you up to, say, tomorrow."
"Her. It's a her. Sandra MacNair," Jessie corrected.
"Thank God," Vil grunted. "Why males want to be obstetricians is beyond me. It's creepy. I always think they're sex perverts who are too ugly to go into porn."
Kit and Jessie both laughed. "I'll see what I can do, I promise," Jessie said. "But I do have class tomorrow."
"Pft, class is not your biggest priority now, sis," Vil said seriously. "You can always take classes over, but you only get one shot to have a healthy pregnancy."
"Well, I think I can have my pregnancy and stay in class," she said. "I'll finish this semester before I deliver. It's just the fall semester I'm worried about. I don't know when I'm due, so I don't know how that's going to go."
"Well, we'll find out soon, and then we'll all sit down and work something out," Vilenne said confidently. "Now I'll let you go so you can get some of that food Martha's cooking for you and finish making your calls."
"I will, thanks Vil."
"Aat, call me sis!" Vil said playfully.
"Sis," Jessie laughed.
"There, I feel better now," Vil giggled, then she hung up before they could say another word.
"Wow, she's all pumped up," Jessie laughed.
"Yeah, she sounds excited about it," Kit agreed. "Now call Sam and Sandy before Kevin spills the beans."
"You told Kevin already?"
"You told me to!"
"Oh. I did, didn't I?" she laughed, taking Kit's phone from him and speed-dialing Sam.
Kit could predict the squealing gushiness of Jessie informing the sorority, so he left her to it to go help Martha in the kitchen. He helped her knead homemade dough for bread while she finished up a pan of spiced cheese potato casserole and popped it into the oven. "How did Hannah sound to you, Martha?"
"Excited, but a touch nervous," she answered. "The same as any future grandparent. Don't worry, Kit, she didn't sound angry."
"I just can't stop asking," he sighed as he took his Blackberry back from her. "I'm terrified she's gonna change her mind and go against us, somehow."
"Show her the same faith she's showing you, dear," Martha chuckled, patting him in the shoulder. "Give her a chance."
"You're right, of course," he said, pocketing his phone.
"Of course I am, dear. I've been around the block a few times, after all," she smiled.
The dinner turned into quite a gathering. Rick was the first to arrive, and Kit was surprised to see that he wasn't the only one that decided to drop in on Kit after work. Jeffrey and Mike came over with him, since Jeffrey didn't have much else to do and Mike lived only about two miles away, and as soon as Sam and Sandy heard the news, they rushed over with the other Jessie, Danielle, Sherry, Lisa, and Charlotte from the sorority. Their apartment wasn't big enough to hold everyone, so it spilled out into the courtyard as Lupe, Dan, and Mickey came over. They set up tables, Rick went and got hamburgers and hot dogs, Mickey brought his big grill over, Kevin arrived with a big bottle of wine and a few pizzas, and it turned into a party. It was a bit chilly for some to be out grilling in February in forty-five degree weather, so Kit handled the grill while friends milled in and out of their apartment. Everyone was energetic and chatty, as some of their friends who didn't often see each other interacted. The sorority didn't often see the crew outside of Jeffrey, and it was fun to see the wolf, Charlotte, flirt with Mike as Danielle teased Jeffrey and Sandy, and the other Jessie talked to Rick about running his own business; Jessica was a business major herself. They had a great time. Jessie was radiant as the center of attention, and Kit was quite content to let her have her moment in the sun. So often, Jessie was overshadowed by Kit's family name, and she never complained. He was glad that this was about her, and almost exclusively her, and it was so wonderful to watch her smile and talk to their friends, and be so completely happy and content. Yes, everyone congratulated him, but she was the one that was pregnant, and she was the one that was the complete focus of their celebration… and he couldn't be happier for her.
God, what a femme.
Sandra MacNair was a gray vixen who wore large-lensed square glasses with gold rims, had a lustrous coat of charcoal-gray fur with a lighter gray ruff, a dark stripe over her muzzle, and sober amber eyes. She was middle-aged, thin, athletic, and wore a white coat over a University of Illinois tee shirt and a pair of black denim jeans. She called them by their first names, and insisted they call her "Doc Mac" or just "Mac." She didn't look like the best obstetrician in Austin, but Kit was never one to judge by appearances.
Someone had definitely pulled some strings, Kit figured. Jessie had called her first thing that morning, calling between classes from school, and it was just so lucky that Doctor MacNair just happened to have an open slot on her schedule between four and six… and Jessie just happened to get out of class at three o'clock on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.
It smelled strongly of Vil. They'd told her the name of the doctor, and Kit had a strong suspicion that Vil had had Stav or Marcus track down Sandra MacNair, M.D., and convince her to open her schedule for Jessie.
But, Kit wasn't going to complain. MacNair was unusual in that she demanded that Kit be there for the examination, feeling that having the husband there reassured the wife and also kept the husband completely in the know as to the needs of the femme, and it was time that Rick was more than willing to give Kit so he could leave early to take her. Jessie was just a little nervous and shy, at first, a reaction that got a little more intense when the doctor made her take her clothes off and gave her a thorough exam, which Kit saw in its entirety, even the embarrassing parts. She then took some of Jessie's blood and gave her a smile. "Now, how long ago did you realize you missed your period, hon?" she asked.
Jessie's cheeks frizzed a little. "About a week," she answered.
"And your period last month was normal?"
"Uh, yeah, I think so."
"Have you been taking any medicines since last month and this month?"
"Just Tylenol a few times," she answered.
"Alright, now, let me check this tummy one more time," she said, having Jessie lay back on her exam table, and probing Jessie's stomach with clawed hands. Kit wondered how she did her job with those wicked looking weapons sticking out over her fingers, but she seemed to have no trouble. She gently prodded Jessie in several places from her ribcage to her hips, then she nodded to herself. "Now, the blood test will give me a clearer picture, but I'm feeling a little something here. I'd say you're definitely expecting, and you're somewhere between three and six weeks into your term."
"How can you tell?"
"Changes in your uterus that someone with training can detect," she smiled, showing teeth just like Kit's, normal teeth with elongated canines on her upper and lower jaws. "Now, those I found with the cervical exam, not this," she winked, which made Jessie's fur ruffle again. "But your abdominal cavity feels entirely normal and capable of letting you bring a pregnancy to term with no problems. Now, since I need those test results back before I can do much else for you, I'll let you get dressed," she smiled. "You look perfectly healthy, so all I can really tell you right now is keep right on going, don't change or stop your routine because of your pregnancy. I want you to keep exercising, but I'd also like you to start taking multi-vitamins and make sure you get plenty of vitamin C and D. Your pregnancy will put a bigger demand on your body for vitamins, so you need to increase your intake."
"Okay. We'll stop at the store and buy some on the way home. Which brand do you suggest?"
"Any complete multivitamin will do," she said. "If you want to buy some expensive specialty brand from GNC, go for it. If you want to get the cheap Centrum clone from Wal-Mart, that works just as well. Just make sure it's a complete multivitamin, and make sure you take in at least a full one hundred percent RDA of Vitamin C and D from today on. My best suggestion is a glass of orange juice and a glass of milk every morning with breakfast to wash down that vitamin, and you're just fine."
"Okay. Umm, when will the morning sickness start?" Jessie asked nervously.
Doctor MacNair laughed. "It could start tomorrow, it may never start. But, you're about to enter the barf window," she winked. "So be ready for it."
"I will."
"Now, since you are pregnant, that means that there are some no-nos," she said seriously. "No more drinking, and if you smoke, then stop."
"I don't smoke, and I don't really drink much, so I won't miss it," she nodded.
"Good. Don't take anything stronger than Tylenol or Advil without consulting me first, make sure you keep exercising. As far as diet goes, at this stage, there's not much you need to worry about. Just make sure you get enough to eat, no dieting," she warned, "and take your vitamins. Your figure had better be the last thing you're worrying about right now. If you want to keep your figure, do it with exercise, not with dieting. I prefer to see you active right up until your labor, I'll never put you on bedrest unless you have a complication, so keep right on exercising, hon. Outside of that, if you wanna chow down on hot dogs and bacon three meals a day, go for it. Kit, do you take any medicines?"
"Me? No," he answered. "And I don't smoke, and the most drinking I do is an occasional glass of wine with dinner," he added.
She laughed. "Well, I've found that a femme is more likely to stop when her husband stops with her, so you're becoming a dry house," she ordered.
"Not a problem," he nodded. "I'll give my wine to a friend of mine, so it's not even in the house."
"That's a good attitude," she said approvingly. "And since she needs to exercise, then so do you," she told him. "That way you keep each other on the program. You'll keep her exercising, and she can take it out on you," she grinned.
"We have a membership at the Y," Jessie told her. "That's no problem at all."
"When you're further along, Jessie, I'll give you some exercise regimens to follow so you don't stress your belly or endanger your baby. But for right now, feel free to do any exercise you want as long as it's not something like boxing."
Jessie laughed. "Alright."
"She doesn't need to train for boxing, doc, she gets enough of that kind of exercise beating me up at home," Kit said dryly.
"Ah, she's a scrapper is she?" MacNair grinned. "Claws?"
"Pillows."
She laughed. "Ah, one of those. Well, she's free to keep you on the straight and narrow for a while," she winked at Jessie.
"I have him well trained," Jessie said primly. "Anymore, I only beat him up because he intentionally goes looking for trouble."
"Then it sounds like you have a good husband," she said with a laugh. "Males who don't stir up trouble are boring!"
"I'd have to agree," Jessie said seriously.
"Now, I've already been contacted by Miss Vilenne, Jessie, and she's already paid for your visit today, so you're free to go as soon as you're dressed. Stop by the store and pick up some vitamins on the way home, and I'll call you when your test results come in and schedule your next appointment, okay?"
"Okay. Thanks a lot, Doctor MacNair."
"Just Doc, or Mac, honey," she smiled. "You make me feel old when you call me that."
"Old? You?" Kit said with a scoff. "You look too young to be a doctor as it is, let alone the most recommended OB-GYN in Austin."
"You do have him well trained," the doctor said with a bright smile at Jessie.
"Of course I do," she said with a prim little smile.
Kit helped Jessie into the Pathfinder after finishing up the visit, and Jessie seemed quite excited. "I can't wait to find out when I'm due," she said happily, reaching over and patting him on the paw as he put it on the gearshift. "I was almost mortified when she made me undress in front of you!"
"Uh, love, explain how that matters," he said.
She laughed. "It's a difference between private and not private," she told him. "I don't mind taking my clothes off for you, it was taking my clothes off for a medical exam in front of you that made it creepy," she told him.
He chuckled "I'm so sorry for compromising your modesty," he teased. "I do hope this doesn't mean you're gonna start hiding under towels and robes at home."
She slapped him on his scarred forearm. "I wonder how she'll figure out when I'm due," she mused. "Do you think the blood test is that precise?"
"I think it's a combination of things," Kit said. "But if she couldn't predict your delivery date, she wouldn't be a very good obstetrician, would she?"
"I guess not," she giggled.
The next day was busy for Kit, and not just because of the life-changing news. He had an interview to do, and he spent all morning digging every scrap of information about Congressman Lamar Smith out of every dusty back corner of the internet and the Austin Public Library. Kit assembled an exhaustive bio on the fur, to the point of digging up the names of his four grandparents, then putting it all together to create an overview of his life history, his education, his political career, his platform and ideals, and his known aspirations for the future.
The crew was still a little giddy, but then again, so was he. He entertained quite a few pawshakes and hugs through the morning, and not one of them failed to come to his office and ask about Jessie. He told them all they'd see her tonight, for she was going to come to the office after class, and would get there around five-thirty, right around the time they did their Thursday wrap meeting.
Given it was Thursday and the last day of the issue, there was the usual bustle. Rick and Savid were making last-minute changes. Marty was riding Lilly about finishing the question posed to her in Ask Away, and was also editing down a mailbag letter that was going into the issue. Jeffrey was busy drawing for School Daze, working off writing Kit had already given him. Mike was working on The Scene on the website, for he was about to change the website's layout. Barry was out doing an interview with one of the Austin City Councilfurs, part of the election special. Denise was up at her desk, reading something Rick had given her. It was just another typical day at work.
But it wasn't a typical day. Kit kept daydreaming about Jessie's pregnancy, often going ten minutes just staring into space. What would it be like as her belly grew? What kind of food cravings would she get? Would she get morning sickness, and if so, for how long? He'd heard that some femmes had wild mood swings due to hormones, but had also heard that pregnancy seriously mellowed many femmes out. Both were probably correct, so he wondered which way Jessie would swing. How active would she be? Would her being mixed influence her pregnancy in any way? Would her sex drive change? Just what went on during a pregnancy anyway?
Clearly, Kitstrom Lucas Vulpan III, professional researcher, needed to do a little research about pregnancy. Since this was their first baby, Kit wanted to have an idea of what they could expect.
Of course, he still got some calls. Vil called him about an hour before lunch, and she was almost smugly happy just form the sound of her greeting him. "Let me guess," he prompted.
"It's over," she declared triumphantly. "The judge threw out Cybil's case. My case went through unopposed, and the judge voided Dad's will and accepted the agreement we drew up. Congratulations, bro, you're no longer officially disowned. The family's happy, I'm happy, you're happy, Cybil is fearing for her life… it's a wonderful day."
"Well, that's good to hear, sis," he told her. "I'm happy it all worked out for you."
"Not entirely," she grunted. "Uncle Zach is still trying to take my job at the company, but at least he can't badger me about Stonebrook anymore. Did I tell you he tried to sue me for ownership?"
"Yeah, you did," he answered.
"The bastard," she growled. "Anyway, I'm sure that Zach's gonna lay low a while and get his nerves back after he had to face the possibility of you disowning him, and once he feels himself again, he'll be back at it. One good thing about the deal is that Zach had to admit he doesn't own the estate in writing."
"Yeah, but you agreed to let him live there."
"He can live there all he wants," she snorted. "It doesn't change the fact that I am the one in the big chair. And our deal makes it clear to the family that I'm letting him live there, out of the kindness of my heart."
"I didn't think you had a heart."
Vil laughed. "I have a small one, and it's very well hidden," she told him playfully. "But, I'll enjoy the vacation until he starts stirring up trouble again. So, what did the doctor say?"
"To wait for the blood tests to come back," he answered. "She estimates Jessie's three to six weeks into her pregnancy, but she wants to look at the tests before she makes a more precise guess. Outside of that, Jessie's perfectly healthy, and the doctor doesn't foresee any complications."
"That's fantastic news, bro," she said with a sigh. "Just to warn you, Muffy's coming back with Sheila today."
"What about her school?"
"She's only taking two days," she told him. "Sheila said she has to start making arrangements."
"Yeah, I figure she'll go back home as soon as Rick finds an intern to replace her. Maybe not even that long."
"No, she's making arrangements to move down there."
"What?" Kit gasped.
"She's serious about it, bro," she told him. "From what I found out, she's made a deal with Harvard. She's going to transfer to U.T. and take culinary arts, but still do her business classes at Harvard through correspondence, through the internet and private correspondence with the professors. Harvard agreed to accept all her U.T. credits and shadow her through the crap requirements so long as she pays the tuition for them, and only come back up here for one semester to do her capstone project. That way she can graduate with her B.A. from Harvard in business and also get a B.A. from U.T. in cooking, since U.T. will take credits from Harvard. She has a pretty sweet deal. She'll only take cooking classes down there, only business classes through Harvard, and will graduate with two degrees in three years. I guess she's dead serious about opening her own restaurant, bro. She's taking steps to make it happen."
"Well, good for her," Kit said with a chuckle. "I'm surprised she wrangled that kind of deal out of Harvard."
"Well, bro, the Vulpan name is a big club here. But, I suspect she probably bribed them to agree to let her shadow the requirement classes, accept her credits for her classes down there, and just do the business classes, and still graduate. Sheila knows how to schmooze people."
"Knowing her, she banged the dean," Kit grunted, which made Vil laugh.
"She very well may have," she agreed. "But, her setting up this deal shows she's smart, she knew what to do to get what she wants, and she made it happen. She acted like a Vulpan," she said, with a little pride.
"She did at that," Kit agreed. "I think Great-grandpa would be proud of her."
"You know, I think he would. Sheila showed she's much more of a Vulpan than her mother," Vil told him. "After all, that's what being a Vulpan is about. It's about coming out on top despite the odds, about winning, not about being rich. And Sheila won."
"In a weird way, I'm glad she's staying here. God help me, I think I'd miss her if she left."
"She grew on you, eh?"
"Like mange," he grunted, which made Vil laugh delightedly.
"I can't deny, I'm kinda fond of her myself," Vil admitted. "She's definitely a piece of work. There's a mind hiding under that oversexed exterior."
"It took it long enough to start showing up."
"No, it just took her believing in herself," Vil said seriously. "When she ran down there to you, she found that she can make it on her own, I think. You and Jessie and Martha were a good influence on her."
"Martha and Jessie more than me," Kit admitted. "I just put up with her. Those two nurtured her. I guess I should tell Lupe she's here to stay," he mused, pondering it. Sheila really did prove that she was quite smart with this move, and displayed amazing logic and methodical execution. Kit realized that Sheila had, probably for the first time in her life, been confronted with the possibility that she wouldn't get what she wanted. But, instead of whining about it or running to her mother to have her make everything just right, she instead tackled the problem herself, took action to accomplish her goal. She wanted to open a restaurant, learn to cook, and what was most surprising, she wanted to stay in Austin. So she identified hr goal, analyzed the obstacles keeping her from her goal, devised a plan of attack to remove, circumvent, or counteract those obstacles, then executed that plan. Kit was quite impressed that his cousin, who seemed a Party Pack femme to the core, would demonstrate traits more in line with her parents or Vil than her other cousins. It just went to show that even someone like Sheila could change her tune when she wanted something bad enough. "Pretty amazing," he chuckled, mainly to himself.
"Sheila? Yeah," Vil agreed. "Next thing we know, Lynn and Bess will become nuns."
Kit laughed so loud that Mike stopped at his open door and looked in curiously, but Kit waved him on. "I have to ask, did you meddle with the doctor?"
"Just a little bit," she admitted cheekily. "I offered her triple her usual office fee if she could see Jess the same day."
"I thought so."
"Don't you dare bitch," she warned. "This is about Jessie and your baby!"
"Did you hear me complain?" he asked calmly. "I told you, when it comes to Jessie, I'll turn a blind eye as long as you don't go nuts."
"Good. You just saved yourself a hell of a lot of grief, bro," she told him bluntly.
"Like I think I could derail you over this. Like I would want to!"
"Ooh, sounds like I can slip in some first class meddling under the guise of the baby," she teased.
"Vil!" Kit barked.
"I gotta be me," she laughed lightly.
"You'll find your number blocked and your email on ignore," he warned.
"Well, better put on your fighting cap, bro," she taunted. "Because you and me are going to have a few little chats about your living arrangements."
"We like our apartment," he told her. "Even Jessie will tell you that."
"You're starting a family, you need a house," she challenged strongly.
"But they're so expensive," he complained, and immediately winced.
"Kit!" she gasped in shock. "You think I'd throw you a key and forget about you? Shame on you!"
"But that's the problem, isn't it?" he challenged. "How can I ever prove to myself that I can make it if you're always standing at the rudder, Vil?"
"You're being silly," she told him. "You don't think surviving Dad answers that question? I'm not trying to take away your life and turn you into one of the Party Pack, bro. I just want to give you what you need, and what you deserve, after everything our father and our family did to you. If I really did do what you're suggesting, you'd be back up here in Boston, living with Jessie in Stonebrook, and you'd be sitting on the lion's share of the family fortune."
"That's a quick way to make me miserable."
"Pft," she snorted. "Bro, I think you'd be the best Vulpan to have that money, and the responsibility that goes with it. You understand what it means more than any of us, even me. I've never lived a day without my comforts. I wouldn't appreciate it the way you would."
"I don't want that curse."
"I think you can handle it."
"I don't want to find out."
"Pft. Baby bro, you are a Vulpan," she said seriously. "Now that you're doing more than slumming around hiding from me and the family, I don't see how you could possibly do anything but succeed. I'll bet you half my shipyard stock here and now that you're a self-made millionaire by the age of thirty-five."
"I doubt Rick will ever earn enough to pay me that much, Vil."
"I know you, bro," she said with a curious little lilt in her voice. "I know how that mind of yours works. Where do you keep the business plan you drew up about the magazine one day when you were bored?"
Kit's cheeks ruffled. There was indeed such a business plan, buried in his computer, which was a plan to expand the size and circulation of the magazine by increasing its coverage to more than just the college crowd. He was glad Vil couldn't see him at that moment.
"You are a Vulpan, bro, down the marrow in your bones, just like me," Vil teased. "Dad always thought you hated business, but he was wrong. You didn't hate business, you just loved the idea of being a pilot more. You hated him never giving you a choice. But you've chosen your battleground now, and now you'll start climbing that mountain. I give you one year before you're a partner at the magazine. I give you five years before you're running it, and Rick retires off the income you bring in for him. I give you ten before you're pulling down two hundred grand a year net off your profits."
"I seriously doubt that, unless you cheat."
"Cheat? Why would I even bother?" she challenged lightly. "You forget, bro, I talk to Rick. Who has he taught his accounting, and who does his books when he doesn't have time? Who does he send to meet with advertisers when he's busy? Who did he talk to when he wanted input on his idea to expand circulation? You. You have business in your blood bro, and Rick knows it. You have enough formal training to let those instincts run wild, and Rick knows he'd be a damn fool not to make use of all your talents. And Rick is no fool."
"Well," he hedged, but Vil cut him off.
"So, bro, either take my bet or shut up."
"I'm going to pass on that one," he chuckled.
"Wise decision," she murmured. "I'm making a special note of this day, bro, so when you make that first million, I'll be sure to remind you all about this little conversation."
I'm sure you will," he teased.
"Anyway," she chuckled. "We're sending you a little we won gift, bro. Believe it or not, it's from the whole family."
"No," he growled.
It's not just from me, Kit," she said seriously. "I told you, it's from the whole family. Think of it as a token of appreciation that you didn't disown them all and leave them broke and homeless."
"What is it?"
"You'll find out tomorrow."
"I don't like it, and I don't want it," he said hotly.
"Kitstrom!" she snapped, which got his attention quick. She never called him that unless she was sincerely angry with him. "You don't have to like it, but you will not bitch about it," she said hotly. "You will accept it with all the fake smile you can muster, and you won't say a single word! If you pitch a fit, I will come down there and beat you senseless myself!" she warned in an ugly tone. "I busted my ass to get Dad's will voided and get you back to at least this point with the family. You have no idea what I had to do to make them agree to it! The family sent you this gift in good faith, in gratitude for you not being an asshole and taking everything from them, and you will accept it with grace," she railed at him. "I'll be damned if I let your temper piss off the aunts and uncles to where they hate you even more than they do now!"
"Well, Jessie's pregnancy probably put them over the top."
"It certainly didn't help, but they're still giving you this gift. But I swear to you, Kit, if you raise a stink about the gift the whole family sent you as a token of good will, I will never forgive you."
"Alright, alright," he sighed. He could tell just how serious she was, and he knew better to cross Vil. She could be the Ice Queen even to him, for she would see his behavior as a direct insult after all the hard work she did on his behalf. She may love him, but she was still Vil, and he knew it. "But I don't want money, Vil. You know that."
"If we send you money, you will put it in a trust fund for your baby!" she told him.
Kit considered that… it was a pretty good idea. Knowing his family, they all chipped in their petty cash and sent it to him, the pitiable, broke, destitute Vulpan, who now that he was no longer officially disowned, might affect their social standing if people thought he was still dirt poor despite again being part of the Vulpan family. So, to alleviate their guilt over his poverty, each member probably chipped in about five hundred dollars, and they were sending him a check for maybe ten or fifteen thousand dollars. He was certain that it was a cash offering, either a bribe so he wouldn't embarrass them or some kind of token offer. Since they had money and he didn't, they couldn't understand that he was happy without it. They just couldn't understand, so they'd do the only thing that made sense to them, offer him money.
He wouldn't touch a penny of it, but that money would do quite well paying for his child's college education.
"Now that I can do, sis," he said in a mollifying tone. "I'd never touch that money, you know I wouldn't, but I can't deny that it would be well spent on my baby."
"Good. I'm going to go now, bro. I'll call you later," she said in a much calmer tone.
"Alright. I love you, sis."
"I love you too, Kit," she said, and she hung up the phone.
He sighed. That was close. She was really mad, and she was serious. He knew better than to rile his sister, so he'd take the cash and just drop it in an annuity for his baby.
It took him a little time to calm down, but he eventually got back into work. But after lunch, Doctor MacNair called him with information about the test results. "Barring any unforeseen complications, Jessica will deliver on September Thirtieth," she said with absolute confidence. "I've already called Jessica, and her next appointment is scheduled for Monday, February Twenty-fifth, at ten a.m."
"Next Monday at ten o'clock, got it," he said, scribbling it down on his planner. "You know, Jessie could have told me all this, Doctor. You didn't have to call me."
"Kit, I make it a policy of keeping the husband fully informed," she told him. "It ensures that you never miss an appointment, just in case one of you writes it down wrong. It also keeps the husband involved in the pregnancy, and as I told you, I like to keep the husbands as involved as possible."
"That makes sense," he agreed. "Oh, Doc, let me apologize for my sister."
"No apologies necessary, Kit," she chuckled. "Vilenne's a sweetheart, and she's very, very concerned that Jessica gets the best care possible."
"That's one way to say it."
"Well, she'll learn that she can't buy me," MacNair said with a challenging little catch in her voice. "When she called and offered me triple my usual fee to get Jessie in the same day, I already had an open slot from a cancellation," she admitted to him. "So I took her money and put your wife in the empty slot. I got triple fee, and nobody got bumped. The first time she tries that when I can't swing it, she'll find out I'm not quite so easy."
Kit laughed. "You'll do just fine, Doc. Not many can swindle my sister. And you keep right on doing it. It keeps her on her toes."
"Oh, I'll do that," she giggled, then said her goodbyes.
Kit hadn't thought much about the "present" that the family was sending him. He'd told Jessie about it, warned her that Vil had put some ugly warnings that he take it with a smile to keep the peace, and then let her putter through some banks checking annuity rates while he finished up his Lamar Smith research. Jessie was rather happy about the idea of it, certain that their child could easily go to Harvard on what that annuity would be worth when the child was 18.
He was right… and wrong.
It arrived at nine the next morning, and it was just luck that they were home. Kit and Jessie had gone to the Y to exercise, he was teaching her how to play tennis and she was teaching him to play racquetball, when the courier arrived. They hadn't even been home thirty seconds when the doorbell rang, and Kit answered it wearing his sweatpants and jacket. He recognized the courier for what he was immediately, a gray-furred wolf wearing a dark suit and carrying a briefcase. "Kitstrom Vulpan?" he asked.
"I think you know I am," Kit said calmly.
He chuckled. "The eyes are better than a fingerprint, sir," he said with a nod. "I'm carrying a package for you, from Boston."
"They told me it was coming," he said.
The man stepped inside when Kit invited him in. "Would you like some tea, sir?" Jessie asked him as she came out of the kitchen.
"Oh! Yes, please, thank you very much," he said with a grateful smile, taking the cup from her and sipping at it. "Ah, Lipton," he smiled. "Always a reliable fallback."
"It's about the best we can get down here," Kit grunted, which made the wolf nod knowingly. "These people don't know anything about tea."
"That's the honest truth," the wolf nodded. He drank down the tea despite it being piping hot, then handed the cup back to Jessie. "Thank you very much, ma'am," he said with a smile. "Now, on to the package. May I sit?"
"Please," Kit said, motioning. The wolf seated himself at the couch and put his briefcase on the coffee table.
"I have two things here for you, sir," he said. "I was told to tell you that one of them is from your sister. The other is from your entire family." He first held out a small packet. He opened it, curiously, and found himself looking at a thick stack of bearer bonds; special bonds that were negotiable no matter who carried them. With them was a note, which he read to Jessie. "Bro, Dad bought these for you when you were born. They're yours, and always have been. This isn't a handout, it's giving you what was always yours to begin with," he recited, then leafed through them. All of them were dated 1986, which was his birth year. Each of them was tendered at a face value of five thousand dollars, but that was just their face value. These bonds matured after twenty years, so each one was worth probably about six thousand dollars now, after two years of added appreciation.
And there had to be about twenty of them. So, a little over a hundred thousand dollars. He was impressed, they tried to buy him off with much more money that he expected they would.
But, he was right about the gift. Money. If he just dropped them in a safe deposit box, they'd be worth about three hundred thousand when their baby was ready to go to college, which should be more than enough to go to any college he or she wanted. Wise investments in annuities, other bonds, and other investments would probably stretch it out to half a million after twenty years. That was enough to send more than one child to any college they wanted to attend, and get them a Master's degree.
That worked for him. The future of his children was secure, thanks to these bonds. And in some kind of strange irony, he guessed he had his father to thank for that, a father who would roll over in his grave if he knew, and would rise from the dead to stalk and kill Kit if he knew Kit was married to a cat.
"What are they, love?" Jessie asked.
"Savings bonds," he answered. "It looks like they were bought when I was born, so Vil wasn't lying about that. Yeah, here, this was a week after I was born," he said, pointing at the date on one of them, which was April 2, 1986. "These can put all our kids through college by the time they're old enough, if we invest them wisely."
"Good," Jessie said with a nod. "If there's anything I would ever want from your family, love, I just got it."
"There's a second item, Mister Vulpan," the wolf prompted, taking a small black box from his briefcase and presenting it to them. It looked like a jewelry box… some old piece of jewelry? Maybe the necklace his mother had always worn? Kit took it and opened it curiously, but found no jewelry inside.
Inside were a set of keys.
"What is this?" Kit asked, a bit harshly. "Keys? Keys to what?"
"A Cessna 400, sir," the wolf answered calmly. "Currently parked at Bergstrom. I take it you have a pilot's license, sir?"
"Well, yeah, I do," he said, his mind swimming. They gave him a plane? And not just any plane, one of the most expensive private planes one could own! It was one of the biggest planes a pilot could fly with a personal license, so long as they were qualified for instrument flight rules and was rated for a utility plane… which Kit was. Kit had a commercial license, earned from a Part 141 flight school in Massachusetts, and he was rated on utility class aircraft.
"Cessna? What is that?" Jessie asked.
"It's a plane, ma'am," the wolf told her. "A personal aircraft. It's very nice," he said with a chuckle. "I flew it down. I'm so glad I have utility rating," he said with an impressed expression.
"They gave me a plane," he said, a little dumbfounded. A seven hundred thousand dollar plane!
"Well, that's my delivery, sir. If you'd just sign this," he said, taking a form out of his case, which Kit numbly signed. "Thank you. You'll find all the paperwork for the plane in the plane itself, sir. It's already registered to you, no doubt through your family's connections. It's parked at Bergstrom, in their general aviation area, slot G fourteen, between hangar one and hangar two. The keys will get you inside it, and the paperwork is in the glove compartment. Good day to you, and enjoy your plane. I did," he smiled, then let himself out with quiet professionalism.
"Kit? Kit? What's wrong?"
"Jessie, love, do you have any idea how expensive that plane is?" he finally erupted. "It's almost three quarters of a million dollars!"
"Woah," she breathed. "Kit, we can just give it back."
"No. No, I can't. Vil made it clear she'll disown me if I raise a fuss about this," he said, thinking furiously. "I, I'll have to keep it," he told her. "I can buy a space somewhere, maybe there at Bergstrom, maybe at a smaller airfield somewhere near the city. Space isn't that expensive. Buying gas for it won't be cheap, though."
"You don't sound too unhappy," she noted, then she giggled. "So, Vil found something you wouldn't throw back in her face."
"I–well–I guess not," he laughed sheepishly. "Jessie, love, having a plane is very liberating. We can fly to the beach on weekends, or fly up to Cincinnati to see your parents. Cincinnati would be about five hours from here in a plane like that. We could leave on Saturday afternoon and come back on Monday evening. When we can afford the gas, anyway. It'd cost about a thousand dollars in gas to fly up to Ohio and back."
"Well, that does sound nice," she said. "Are you sure Vil would have a fit if you gave it back?"
"You didn't hear her, love," he said seriously. "She meant it. For some reason, she wants me to have the plane. And I guess I'll cave, just like I did with the car," he sighed. "I don't really need it, but what good is having a pilot's license when I don't have a plane?"
"Well, I think you can give yourself a little luxury, love," she giggled, giving him a kiss. "And I certainly won't mind being able to fly up to Cincinnati to see my family on weekends."
"When we can afford it," he grunted, clutching the box holding the keys in his paw. "We're still trying to recover from Christmas, and the wedding."
She laughed. "Well, I think we'll manage, love," she told him, giving him a gentle hug. "How much will it be to park the plane?"
"Depends, probably around a hundred fifty a month. Then there's maintenance, and gas, and registration, and taxes, and a lot of other things. Owning a plane isn't cheap, Jessie."
"Well, I think the first time we go see my folks, it'll be worth it."
"It can pay for itself if you use it a lot, just in not paying to fly commercial," Kit chuckled. "But I don't see me flying all that much. And don't expect to fly up tomorrow," he warned. "I have to do a lot of work before I can fly the plane. I'll have to get familiar with it, make sure my license is still good, and I think it's time for my yearly physical. So it's going to be a couple of weeks before we do more than take it for a spin around the airfield."
The phone rang, and Kit sighed when he read the display. "Vil," he told Jessie, and put it on speaker. "Hey sis."
"So, can I give gifts or can I?" she said with a laugh.
"He actually wants to keep it," Jessie laughed.
"I'm a little overwhelmed, sis," Kit said honestly. "Do you have any idea how much a Cessna four hundred costs?"
"Well, since I'm sitting here looking at the receipt, yeah, I think I do," she giggled. "And don't worry about paying for it, bro. It's a gift, it won't cost you anything. I didn't get you a space at Bergstrom, though, because I can't find any available hangar space anywhere in central Texas," she said with a grunt of annoyance; Vil wasn't used to not getting her way. "I bought you two months of tie-down space there at Georgetown, at least for now. I wasn't sure if you'd want to deal with Bergstrom and the rules for landing there, so I went with the closest small airport that still offered all the services you need. I'm still trying to find some hangar space, though. When I get my hands on some, I'll let you know."
"Thanks, sis."
"I just don't want you to have to drive up to that airport every time you want to use the plane, it's like thirty miles," she fretted. "Like I said, let me see what I can get. Maybe I'll buy some hangar space from one of the small airlines for you to park your plane inside. Anyway, I set you up with one of those transport credit cards you can use to buy fuel and pay for parking and maintenance and such at airports."
"I, I don't know what to say, sis," he said, a little bewildered.
She laughed. "Well, you can say thanks," she said winsomely.
"Vil, thank you," he said.
"It's the least I can do for my brother," she answered. "But I didn't do it alone. That plane is a gift from the family, bro. It's not money, it's not an empty token, it's something that I assured them you would appreciate and find useful. Everyone chipped in to help pay for it, even Uncle Zach and Uncle Jake."
"I think I'd better have it checked for bombs."
Vil gasped, then laughed helplessly. "That may not be a bad idea," she agreed with a little extra giggle. "But, I hope you enjoy it, bro."
"We were talking about flying to Cincinnati to see my parents before you called," Jessie said.
"That's exactly why I had the family buy it for you," Vil told them. "So you have more mobility, more freedom. You may even be able to use it for work, bro. Rick can send you out to interview people out of state, and you can do it on the cheap. You can fly out in your own plane."
"Well, it's a little small to take the whole crew, but I could carry a few passengers," he noted. "And when I first interviewed for the job, I told Rick I had a pilot's license, but wasn't sure what use it'd be to the magazine," he laughed.
"Well, it might be useful now," Vil told him. "Is it alright?"
"What do you mean?"
"I couldn't remember what kinds of planes you can fly, so I went with the safest bet. I remembered that you're rated to fly planes with two engines, but the new ones I looked at had the same basic abilities as the one I bought. Hell, that plane I bought you has more range than most of the two engine planes I looked at," she snorted. "That plane looked to be really nice, and the dealer said that anyone with a pilot's license could fly the plane I bought you, and he said it's about the best single engine plane for flying long distances, even better than some two engine planes. But if it doesn't work out for you, or it's too small or something, I'll replace it with something bigger."
Kit chuckled ruefully. "I'm not going to complain. How can I complain about a gift?"
"Well, that's sweet, bro, but if that plane doesn't work out for you, let me know, and I'll replace it with something that will. Did you get the bonds too?"
"Yeah, we have them, Vil," Jessie answered.
"Mother bought them for Kit when he was born," she told them. "They're his. They have nothing to do with the family, and nothing to do with Dad. So take them and use them well. Buy a house, invest for the future, it doesn't matter, so long as you don't burn them or throw them away. They didn't come from Dad, Kit, they came from Mom," she made sure to stress a second time. "So don't throw them away, bro. You'd insult Mom's memory if you did that. Use them. Invest them. Do something good with them."
"We will," he promised. "These bonds are sending our kids to Harvard," he declared. "Why did you hold onto them for so long?"
"Bro, the bonds fell under the proscription in Dad's will," she told him. "I couldn't give them to you until after it was voided, or I'd lose everything. Mom may have bought them, but they were considered Dad's assets because Mom died before you were eighteen. But notice, bro, that they got to you the day after the will was voided. I wanted you to have them, I wanted both of you to have them. I wanted to know that even if you won't come to me, you'll always have an emergency nest egg to fall back on when times get tight, and have something to ensure that your kids never have to worry about anything."
"You're such a sweet femme, Vil," Jessie said with a sniffle.
"I love you too, Jessie," Vil said gently. "And think, bro, if it wasn't for Jessie, you could have been rolling in money with no responsibilities or cares."
"I'll take Jessie over money any day," he said with conviction, putting his paw on her shoulder.
"And that's why you're the richest Vulpan of them all, bro," Vil said thickly. "Go check out the plane, you two, I want you to pick up that Transport card. You have to call a number on it to activate it, and I want you to do that today. And the airport wants you to do the safety briefings and walkthroughs, and they want a copy of your license."
"I can handle those later, but we'll go up and get the paperwork out of it before I have to go to work, I promise," he told her.
"Works for me. I'll call you guys later, alright?"
"Alright. Thanks again, Vil," Jessie said.
"Yeah, thanks, sis," Kit agreed.
"Any time, bro, any time. Goodbye."
Kit lowered the phone, then hugged Jessie. "God, I love that sister of mine."
"So do I, love, so do I."