Found Money - James Grippando [40]
Maria was waiting at the entrance when Amy arrived.
“How are you, stranger?” she said as they embraced.
“So good to see you,” said Amy.
They kept right on talking as the hostess led them to a small table near the window. There was lots of catching up to do. Maria had recently bagged her eighth fourteener—Colorado lingo, meaning she’d climbed eight of the state’s fifty-four mountain peaks that exceeded fourteen thousand feet. Maria was a bona fide fitness fanatic, a fairly common breed in a city where winter snow-plows sometimes cleared the bicycle paths before the streets. She never ate meat and actually had a chin-up bar in her puny office. Amy was the only one in the department who had even come close to keeping up with her on the jogging trail.
The waitress took their orders, and then they marveled over the latest pictures of Taylor while sipping house chardonnay. Finally, the conversation wound its way down the career path.
“So, are you ready for law school this fall?”
“I guess.”
Maria smirked. “I’m glad to see your enthusiasm has grown since last we talked.”
“Actually, I have some potentially good news on that front.”
“What?”
“It’s highly confidential. If I tell you, you can’t tell anyone. Not even your husband.”
“Don’t worry about Nate, honey. I could tell him I just uncovered the secret formula for Coca-Cola, and his response would probably be something like, ‘That’s nice, sweetie. Have you seen my car keys?’ Come on,” she said eagerly. “What’s the big secret?”
Amy paused for effect, then said, “I may be reenrolling in the fall.”
Maria shrieked. Heads turned at neighboring tables, but she kept on gushing. “That’s great! It’s better than great. It’s fabulous. But why is it a secret?”
“Because the law firm I’m working for is giving me a partial scholarship to law school. If they find out I’m having second thoughts, I’m afraid they’ll pull the scholarship. If my astronomy plans don’t work out, then I’d be screwed all the way around.”
Maria gestured, zipping her lip. “Your secret is safe with me. When will you know for sure?”
“By the end of the week, hopefully.”
“God, I’m so happy you’ve had a change of heart.”
“My heart never changed. It’s more a change in circumstances. Money, to be exact.”
“What, somebody died and left you a fortune?”
“Actually, yes.”
Her smile faded. “Great. I mean, I’m sorry about the death. But good for you, in a way. Hell, you know what I mean.”
“It’s okay. I didn’t really know the guy.”
“Somebody you didn’t know is leaving you a pot of money?”
“Possibly, yes. I met with his son yesterday to make sure everything checks out. It’s a little sticky. He’s in the middle of a divorce.”
“Oh,” she said. It was an ominous “oh.”
“Why the look?”
“Some guy you don’t know dies and leaves you money. His son is in the middle of a divorce. Don’t you think you’re being a little optimistic about enrolling in the fall? Those kinds of legal problems can drag out indefinitely.”
Amy hesitated. It was even more complicated, but it was best to keep it simple. “He promised to have everything cleared up by next Friday.”
“Friday,” she said, drumming her fingers on the tabletop. “To be honest with you, that might not be soon enough.”
“What do you mean?”
“Don’t get me wrong. No one would be more excited than me to see you come back. But it’s already mid-July. I’m not sure we can line things up for the fall term.”
“What’s the big deal? I just pick up where I left off.”
“It’s not that simple. With