Honor Thy Inheritance

“Excuses are a waste of breath John, much how you are a waste of flesh. The desecration of my estate has already sealed your fate.”

           John awoke with a start, the words of his grandfather still looming over him like a phantom. The chandelier above his bed surged accusingly with electricity, blinding him. It was one of the last ones in this house remaining that had not been replaced with a modern light fixture yet.

           John flicked the light switch, turning it off. He would get the wiring fixed and replace the chandelier soon enough. The grandfather clock downstairs struck midnight, like an angry gong. Perhaps he would pass it down to his niece, who appreciated antiques more than him. Although, he wasn’t sure if she would like it much after he painted its wood grey, to match the modern vision he had for this house. With most of the wallpaper removed, almost every wall had been painted grey, beige, or white. Neutral and less of an attack on the senses, at least in his eyes.

           He waited until the grandfather clock finished its count, before shutting his eyes. All these relics tended to do was wake him up in the middle of the night. How his mother or father ever got any sleep in this house after inheriting it from his grandfather, was a mystery to him. By the second night he had taken down every wall and mantel clock and stored them in the ballroom with their pendulums removed.

2

           His niece, Lily, showed up on his doorsteps the following afternoon. She had been even more distraught about his mother’s death than him. His mother raised Lily after the death of her own parents (his brother was Lily’s father) at a young age.

           When Lily stepped inside the house, her heart seized in her chest.

“I’ve done some renovations, but don’t worry. I’ve kept all your grandmother’s antiques in the ballroom during the remodel.” Her uncle John said.

           Lily giggled in disbelief, on the verge of hysterics. It wasn’t fair. How could the house be left to someone who was set on erasing history rather than preserving it? Lily wiped her nose with the back of her hand.

“Oh dear.” Lily chuckled, unsettling him.

           The back of her hand was bloody from her nose. Lily fainted and collapsed on the floor before he could catch her.

3

           When she awoke lying in bed, John handed her a glass of water.

“Are you feeling better now?” He asked.

“No.” She whimpered.

“I know this all comes as a shock, but this house needed a renovation to keep it from falling apart.” John said.

           After finishing half of her glass, Lily splashed him in the face with the rest.

“Then you restore its history instead of erasing it with dull modern crap!” Lily spat after standing.

           His hand latched around her left wrist as she tried exiting the room. Lily yelped and clocked him square in the nose with her right hand, making him squeal and reel back. She contained a fair amount of strength and fury for a small girl of her size, much like her grandmother. Although, an outburst like this was rare, which took John by surprise. Lily was usually a shy and meek girl, but was quite sweet once she felt comfortable around someone.

           She stomped down to the ballroom, her footsteps echoing with rage through the house, and locked herself inside.

4

           Lily flicked a switch and a massive chandelier in the center of the room buzzed to life, along with four smaller ones in corners of the room. Fortunately, as she could tell, no renovations have been made here yet. It would be a crime to do so, and rather difficult with the vaulted ceiling. Lily could only imagine the parties her great grandparents held in this ballroom in the roaring twenties, if only it could tell her its stories.

           Her grandmother’s antiques were all stored here, bringing tears to her eyes. Lily choked back a sob and quickly covered her mouth with her hands. She breathed a few shaky sighs, trying to ward the tears away. But then she saw a painting of her grandmother with her grandfather, and the tide came roaring back.

           Lily curled up on her grandmother’s Victorian couch and sobbed, pressing her shirt against her face in shame.

“Lily?” A voice spoke through the locked ballroom door.

           Lily whimpered shakily, hating herself.

“I’ll be gone for a few hours.” John spoke.

“Okay.” Lily squeaked, with a cold fear rushing through her.

           Would he turn her in for assault? If so, she could be prosecuted, and he would take her portion of the inheritance too, Lily feared. Then her grandmother’s legacy in this house would surely be doomed.

           Lily sat for a while, trembling with fear. She caved and took out her cell phone soon enough. A simple I’m sorry text could solve everything, but she turned her phone off instead. Lily’s pride had been wounded enough.

           She walked to the bar on the other side of the room, and found several bottles of her great grandfather’s whisky, collecting dust on the shelves.

“A little slow tonight, isn’t it Lloyd?” Lily chuckled sadly, picking up a bottle and a glass.

Drink up, little one. We both know my prissy grandson could never stomach the nectar of the Gods. Alas, it mustn’t go to waste. Lily pictured her great grandfather saying and giggled to herself. She washed and dusted them off. Then, Lily sat behind the counter of the bar and popped open the whiskey bottle. Don’t forget, proper hydration my dear. She could almost hear her grandmother saying.

“Of course.” Lily chuckled and walked to the sink.

           To her delight, the ice dispenser was still operational. Lily poured herself a glass, and the cold fear melted away.

“What should I do?” Lily’s voice echoed off the vaulted ceiling.

           Outside the ballroom, the grandfather clock echoed through the house, answering her.

5

Lily carefully removed the pendulum and weights to the grandfather clock. Then, she tipped the clock back and placed a hand truck beneath it. She trembled as she slowly laid the grandfather clock against it. The clock towered over Lily, threatening to crush her if any mistake were made.

           After setting the grandfather clock down inside the ballroom, Lily went back to having another glass from the whiskey bottle, followed by another.

6

           When John returned home, he could hear music echoing from the ballroom. It was the L.A. Woman vinyl album from The Doors, booming from his mother’s record player. Lily fixed it. Impressive. But John couldn’t shake the feeling that this music meant she was up to no good.

           The paint scraper dropped from her grasp when the ballroom door opened. Lily had forgotten to lock it.

“Whoops…” She chuckled, swaying on her feet next to the grandfather clock.

           Behind her, all his mother’s wall clocks hung along the wall, fully wound up with their pendulums swinging back and forth. They all chimed together, along with all the mantel clocks on the dining tables, and the grandfather clock as well, in mocking defiance to John, announcing it was 6:00pm.

“I’ve awakened them from their ancient slumber, they say hello.” Lily giggled when the clocks relented.

“Have you been drinking?” John asked, taking the needle off the record.

“Why?” Lily asked.

           She burped loudly, then quickly covered her mouth and giggled. Lily reached down to pick up the paint scraper, when gravity suddenly shifted on her. She stumbled and fell on her bottom.

“I’ll take that as a yes.” John said.

“Fine, I admit it. I’ve been bad. Bad, bad Lily.” She said, extending her arms and placing her wrists together, as if she were about to be arrested.

“You’ll need some food then.” John said, gently taking her wrists in his right hand.

“No…” Lily moaned sarcastically as he pulled her away, her feet dragging limply against the wooden floor.

7

“What crime have I been charged with, officer?” Lily snickered in the hallway.

           John didn’t answer her, so she rambled on.

“You forgot my Miranda rights. Now I must go free.”

“You’re free to sleep in your car if you want to keep these antics up.” John said.

“I sowwy.” Lily replied.

           John rolled his eyes.

“So grouchy.” Lily said.

“What was that?” John asked, plopping her down on a dining room chair.

           Lily shrugged her shoulders and pretended to zip her mouth shut.

8

           While he cooked dinner, she took her phone out and turned it back on. Lily sent some pictures of the modern renovations to Wyatt, an older friend that happened to work in the local Historical Preservation Commission. My great grandfather built this Victorian house in 1921. My uncle is defacing and erasing its history. Please let me know if there’s anything I can do before it’s too late. Lily texted him, then put her phone away.

           John brought her a plate of steak, mashed potatoes, and broccoli, along with a cold glass of water.

“Just spare the ballroom from the renovation. Please? That’s all I ask.” Lily spoke as they ate.

           Having him believe she was willing to compromise could buy her enough time for the Historical Preservation Commission to step in and foil his plans. Lily hoped so at least.

“I’ll think about it.” John replied.

“You should save that room as a tribute to them. They deserve that much. My great grandfather even had Frank Sinatra sing here in 1958. You can’t erase that.”

“That’s what photographs are for. As I said, I’ll think about it.” John replied.

           Lily swallowed hard, fighting back tears.

“Please, the ballroom is all I have left.”

“Enough. We’ll talk about this later.” John replied.

           Lily looked down at her food and sulked silently.

“Who’s that?” John asked a moment later.

“What?”

“The guy you keep checking your phone for every five seconds. Got a boyfriend, don’t ya?” John teased, trying to break the tension.

           Lily’s face reddened. Drinking had made her less careful.

“No! Like I could ever get one of those.” Lily chuckled awkwardly.

“Right…” He replied sarcastically.

“Shut up…” Lily chuckled.

           He bought the ruse. Good. Once Lily had the Historical Preservation Commission involved in this, John wouldn’t be smiling so much. Wyatt would likely reply in the morning since he lived and worked on a farm. She would need to be awake for that.

“I think I’ll turn in for the night after a shower, thanks for the food.” Lily said, excusing herself.

“Goodnight.” John replied.

9

           After her shower, Lily walked to the nearest bedroom and grabbed a pillow.

“Where are you going with that?” John’s voice echoed in the hallway.

“To the ballroom. It’s the only place in here that still feels like home.” Lily replied, leaving him stunned by her directness as she walked away.

           She was still angry alright. His parents had not inherited this house until he moved out and was well into adulthood. Lily on the other hand was raised here by his mother after her parents died. It was her childhood home and yet he was given the house even though he shared few memories here.

           Lily carefully laid down on her grandmother’s couch and drew the ballroom as it stood now, until she eventually faded off to sleep, and the piece of paper floated slowly to the floor. The clocks woke her up several times during the night, otherwise she slept fine, stubbornly excepting their combined chaos at the top of every hour.

           A little after 6:00am the record player awoke her, playing Elvis Presley’s song; I’ll Remember You. As her eyes fluttered open, the chandeliers sluggishly buzzed to life. Lily let the record play, figuring John had intended to wake her up.

           There was a knock at the door, making her suddenly think otherwise.

“Please Lily, it’s too early for this.” John spoke through the door.

           Lily opened the door to see he had been startled awake as well.

“You didn’t turn the record player on?” Lily asked him.

“No.” John replied, shielding himself from the light.

           A chill shot through her veins.

“I thought you were trying to wake me up. The lights literally turned on the second I woke up.” Lily said.

           John eyed her suspiciously, but the dark circles around her eyes gave her the appearance of a raccoon.

“Please John, I’m telling you the truth. If you have security cameras, check them.” Lily said.

“It’s the fucking wiring in this place.” John said, walking past her inside. “The light in my bedroom turns on randomly as well, that’s what I’ll be busy working on today.” He continued, carefully taking the needle off the record.

“But…I was playing The Doors yesterday, not Elvis. I don’t know how that record got there.” Lily said.

“You were quite trashed yesterday, Lily. You’re imagining things. It’s likely you switched the records and had no memory of doing it.” John replied.

“B-but I didn’t!”

“Drink some water and try to get some more sleep, or you’ll have a nasty hangover later. Goodnight Lily.”

“John?”

“Yes?” He sighed.

“I can pay to fix the wiring if you keep the ballroom as is.” Lily said.

“If you don’t give me anymore trouble while I work on the rest of this house, then we have a deal. But I’ll revoke it the second you give me problems.” John said.

“Okay.” Lily replied softly.

“Alright then. Goodnight.”

“Goodnight.” Lily said with an awkward crack in her voice.

“Drink some water.” He said as his footsteps echoed down the hallway.

Lily grabbed her pillow off the couch and walked to a nearby bedroom. She passed out until noon. A nightmare about her great grandfather had awoken her.

10

           John was sitting at the dining room table when she made her way into the kitchen. Lily’s face reddened when she realized she was still in her pajamas.

“Bad time to be barefoot.” John said.

“What?”

           He threw a plate, which shattered on the floor. Lily leapt back.

“John!”

“You contacted them, didn’t you?” John accused.

“Have you lost your fucking mind!?”

           John picked up another plate, and Lily realized it was a plate set from France that her grandmother was gifted in the 1940’s, after the Great Depression ended.

“No!” Lily cried.

“Answer the question.” John replied.

“Those are your mother’s!”

           He let the plate fall and shatter on the floor, and Lily flinched as if she’d been slapped. When he picked up another plate, her heart leapt into her throat.

“I texted a friend from the Historic Preservation Commission when I was drunk yesterday. Okay? Happy now?”

“A stop-work order was issued on my renovation. What could I possibly be happy about?” John replied.

“Then you should have followed the law and asked them about it in the first place. This house is in the historical district. You can’t just renovate it with cheap modern crap.” Lily said.

“Well, I guess it’s time I had a little chat with your friends then. In the meantime, you can get the hell out of my house.” John replied.

“It won’t be your house for long if I share the video of you smashing my grandmother’s antique plates. Is that what you want? The world to see you acting like a petulant child when you don’t get your way?” Lily jabbed back.

           John felt the back of his neck get hot. He could see the recording light and the camera of her phone sticking out from her pocket. Lily had bested him again. Smashing those plates had thrown her off for a second, but she recovered quickly. That crafty little shit. How he loathed her for it.

“You’re the one acting like a petulant child.” John snapped back, then left the house in a huff.

11

           Lily walked back to the ballroom, trembling as if she developed Parkinson’s. She hated confrontations and how shaky they made her. It also didn’t help that she would have to watch her back constantly now, keeping her food and water out of his reach. Lily curled up on the couch and laid down, waiting for her shivering fit to subside.

12

           The receptionist sent John upstairs to the office of Bill Jones. He was the man that John would need to negotiate with if he hoped to get any renovations done.

13

           The record player startled Lily awake an hour later. This time it was Midnight, the Stars and You, by Al Bowlly. Something was up. This wasn’t a simple electrical issue. It couldn’t be. Electricity couldn’t exchange through records on its own.

           Lily removed the needle, filling the room with deathly silence again. She was still shivering. The room felt rather cool like a cave, even though it was over 100° outside.

“A pleasure to finally meet you.” A voice spoke, rousing a startled yelp out of her.

Lily ran to the ballroom’s entrance, but the door hardly budged.

“He’s locked you in, I’m afraid.” The man spoke, his alpaca wolf head cane echoing through the ballroom as he stepped out from behind the bar.

           Lily could see the back of her grandmother’s antique dresser, resting against the door. There was no way she could move that herself. Lily whirled around, and it was then that the revelation hit her like a tidal wave, making her go pale as the moonlight.

The large photograph on the wall shared an uncanny resemblance with the man, striding toward her with his cane. A frightened moan escaped her mouth as she cowered against a corner of the wall, sinking to the floor.

“You need not be frightened my dear.” The man spoke, his voice holding such charm and authority, like the late Christopher Lee.