Ivo was anxious, worried that this meeting
would change the whole course of his life. Logically, he knew he was being
ridiculous, but he couldn't make the feeling go away. He was headed to see a
lawyer, after all. That thought alone kept the knot twisted tight in his
stomach.
He smiled at the pretty brunette behind the
receptionist's desk. "Hello. My name is Ivo Koubek. I have a two o'clock
appointment with Mr. Berkshire."
"Yes, of course, Mr. Koubek, Mr. Berkshire is
expecting you." She smiled widely as she waved her hand toward the seats by
the door. "Please, have a seat and I will inform him that you have arrived."
Wow, she was perky.
"Thank you." Ivo sent her a friendly smile
before turning and going to sit down. He tried not to let his nervousness show
as he sat there and waited. He didn't have long to wait. He barely got
comfortable before he heard his name being called out.
"Mr. Koubek?" an older man dressed in a dark,
expensive-looking suit asked as he walked out of the corridor to the left of
the receptionist's desk. Even his shoes looked expensive, and they were as
polished as the marble flooring.
"Yes." Ivo stood, casually wiping his hand on
his pants before shaking the extended hand. "Can you tell me why you wanted to
meet with me?"
"Why don't we talk in my office?" Mr.
Berkshire stepped aside, extending an arm, indicating which way he wanted Ivo
to go.
The guy seemed friendly enough, but Ivo was
still worried.
Once they reached the man's very posh corner
office, Mr. Berkshire waved to one of the leather chairs in front of his
glass-and-chrome desk. "Can I offer you something to drink? Some coffee
maybe?"
"Do you have any water?" Ivo's nervousness had
dried out his throat. He was surprised dust wasn't coming out of his mouth as
he spoke.
"Yes, of course." The man hit a button on his
phone. "Darcy, please bring Mr. Koubek a bottle of water."
"Right away, sir."
"Now." The man seemed even more imposing when
he sat behind his large desk than he did when Ivo shook his hand. "Thank you
for meeting with me so quickly. The matter I need to discuss with you is time
sensitive."
Ivo's throat grew even drier. His heart
thumped wildly in his chest at the many possibilities of why he was there. "Is
someone suing me? Because I don't have a lot of money, and—"
Mr. Berkshire held up his hand. "No, no, not
at all. I apologize if I gave that impression."
Ivo's confusion grew as he frowned at the
lawyer. "Then why am I here?"
"Do you know a Mr.
Maxmilián
Vítkovský?"
"Max? Yeah.
He's my next door neighbor."
Mr. Berkshire clasped his hands together and
let them rest on the desk in front of him. "I'm sorry to say that Mr.
Vítkovský passed away two days ago."
"Mr.
Vítkovský passed away?" Ivo felt a pang in his chest from the loss of
the older man who seemed to always be there. He played chess with Max almost
every Sunday and had helped his neighbor with getting groceries and stuff. Max
had been a nice old man. "How did he die?"
"Natural causes."
Made sense. Max had been older than dirt. He
had moved into the apartment down the hall from Ivo when Ivo was a child. Ivo
had grown up listening to the stories Max told of his homeland, wishing he
could visit the places Max described to him.
"The reason I asked you here is that Mr.
Vítkovský has left the bulk of his estate
to you, with one provision. He asks that you return him to his place of
birth."
"Prague?"
"Yes."
Ivo had to
think about that for a minute. Prague. That was half way across the world. He
didn't even have a passport or a visa or even a suitcase.
Mr.
Berkshire pulled a manila envelope out of a file on his desk and handed it
over. "If you choose to go, I've been instructed to give you this. It contains
directions to Mr.
Vítkovský's estate in Prague as well as a
letter that he wishes to be buried with him."
His
eyebrows rose. "A letter?"
"Yes, I
have not personally read the letter, but I believe it came from someone
Mr.
Vítkovský cared about many years ago, someone who passed away before
Mr. Vítkovský arrived in the United
States."
A love
letter from a lost love? That was both sad and sweet.
"Mr.
Vítkovský's will specifically states that
you are not required to go to Prague in order to receive your inheritance.
That was a personal request by Mr.
Vítkovský."
Ivo shook
his head. "This isn't about that. I don't have a passport or anything, and I
would have to take time off from work and everything. I'm just not sure I can
do it."
He had
bills to pay.
"That is
your choice of course," Mr. Berkshire said, but Ivo could hear the censure in
his voice.
"How long
do you think a trip like that would take?" he asked.
"No more
than a few days, I should think, Mr. Koubek."
"I could
ask my boss for the time off, but—"
"Mr. Koubek,
I'm not sure you understand. Mr.
Vítkovský left you his entire estate. You
could take all the time off you needed."
"No, I got
that, but what are we talking here? A couple of hundred dollars and some
antique furniture?" Mr.
Vítkovský had lived what seemed like a
simple life. While his apartment was always well kept, there was nothing in it
that would draw the interest of burglars.
"No, Mr.
Koubek, we're talking several hundred million dollars."
Ivo stared,
unblinking. He knew he had to have heard that wrong. "Could you repeat that?"
"Mr.
Vítkovský was quite well off, Mr. Koubek.
Between his investments and his holdings both here and abroad, he was worth
several hundred million dollars. He left all of that to you, Mr. Koubek. You
are his sole beneficiary. You inherit everything."
Ivo
swallowed tightly. "I guess I need to get a passport."
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