Page 47 of Shameless

It’s unbelievable that Eddie, of all people, would solve my biggest problem by kicking the bucket.

“How much is the cash the first clause was talking about?” Crew asks.

I hate to admit it, but good question.

The lawyer has the best poker face I’ve ever seen, he would have a great career in gambling if he ever got bored practicing law. “Each share of the liquid assets in Mr. Branagh’s bank account as of today amounts to ten million US dollars each.”

The words slip out of my mouth before I can think any better of it. “Ten million dollars? Each? Like, our father had forty fucking millions in the bank when he died?”

I almost expect Mr. Spencer to start laughing and telling us that this is all a big joke, or one of Eddie’s scams.

He doesn’t.

“That’s correct.” He’s as serious as a heart attack. This guy oozes professionalism from every pore.

“Fuck,” Crew runs a hand over his face. “I never thought I would say that, but thank you, Eddie. This solves a lot of my problems.”

He can say that out loud.

“I accept the inheritance.” I say, feeling the same elation that’s etched all over Crew’s face but trying to play it a little cooler.

“Me too.” He nods.

The lawyer looks at Stefan, but my little brother is sitting next to Crew with a stony expression on his face.

“I don’t know. This isn’t as simple as it looks.”

What the fuck is he on about? “Stef, don’t be an idiot.” I chastise him. “I know Eddie was an asshole to us his entire life, but at least in death, he did good. I would say he fucking owes us.”

To my surprise, Crew agrees with me. “That’s right. Mr. Spencer just told us that there’s actually real money there, not a pile of debt. So take it and use it to live your best life as a giant fuck you to our deadbeat father. He even said it in his letter that he would rather have taken it all with him. He would hate seeing us enjoy it and I’m going to take great joy in that fact.”

Jeez, when did James become so fucking wise?

My brother has always been a stubborn little shit and that hasn’t changed now that he’s an adult. “Yeah but first off, Eddie didn’t have a heart attack or went out in a blaze of glory racing his boats like he said. He was murdered. Brutally murdered. Can’t y’all see that this gives the three of us a fucking motive?”

Holy shit.

I’ve always thought Stef was the smart one and I guess I wasn’t wrong. “I hadn’t thought about that.”

The lawyer explains that Stefan has a valid point. “I’ve been in touch with the sheriff in charge of the murder investigation,” he informs us. “Mr. Branagh’s assets have been frozen effective immediately until the police have exonerated the beneficiaries of this will from the murder.”

Crew sighs. “Shit. That could take weeks. Or even years.”

Mr. Spencer agrees. “Indeed. We can only hope the investigation comes to a swift conclusion.”

It’s hard to tell if Mr. Spencer’s tight smile means that he finds just the idea of one of us being a murderer ridiculous or if he thinks that he might be sitting at the same table as someone who unloaded a shotgun in his client’s face.

“In the meantime,” I bite out, frustrated. “We can go back to work. Maybe see if we can still pursue the world record with the electric boat? That would generate more sponsorships that wouldn’t be frozen. We can cooperate with the sheriff too, the sooner this mess is solved, the better for all of us.” I say. I definitely have my differences with Stefan and Crew, but I don’t really think they shot those three people at the stables.

“Can we work and race while Eddie’s assets are frozen?” I ask.

Mr. Spencer nods. “You can. Technically in Mr. Branagh’s absence, his deputy Mr. Braverman would take charge of Star Thunders. Since he’s also deceased, the helm passes to the new owners. While you can’t make use of any liquid assets, you can continue to work while the police investigation is ongoing.”

I’m relieved to hear that, if we can continue to work, we can get paid and that means I can keep Jasmine happy.

“Right.” Stefan doesn’t look convinced. “Is everything else in order with the company? Aside from what happened in Twinberry Cove? Nothing irregular or that we should be concerned about?”

The lawyer reassures Stefan that, as far as he’s aware, everything is fine.

---