Rendevous Part 10

“He died at the hospital in spite of their efforts," Natalie stated in a sterile tone. " He was already paralyzed at the scene so he couldn’t feel his pain,” Natalie detailed. “I’m happy for that,” she added. “The funeral will be next week. Can you make it?”

“Make it?” Derrick thought as he looked at the calendar. “Shit! Why would she even want me there?” He thought to himself. “I’m afraid I can’t. I have court all next week. I’m sorry Nat, you know I would,” regret etched his tone. “But I…”

“It’s okay. I do understand. It’s not like you knew him anyway, but I…I’d…I’d just like to see and be around someone who wasn’t going to remind me of him in some way you know?” Natalie was on the verge of tears and her voice cracked under the weight. “I…I gotta go,” Natalie said feebly.

“Wait! Natalie?” Derrick heard her pause. “The family has a townhouse in Philadelphia, Society Hill section if you need to get away after the funeral. I can email the address to you and I’ll overnight the key to you if you give me your home address. Deal?”

As much as Natalie wanted to say no she couldn’t. Time away was something she’d absolutely need. She refused to stay at the home she shared with Lloyd and having her mother and sister fuss over her would make her feel bad too. Dorothy would take care of the business affairs and settle with the insurance company. She’d already been granted a leave of absence from work, so there was no need to turn down such a generous offer.

“I’ll join you after the case if you want the company?” Derrick went on before Natalie replied.

“Okay, I’ll do it,” she said finally. “Do you have a pen? I’ll give you the address now.”

Natalie rattled off the address and ended the call. She still had to meet with the funeral director and Dorothy. Derrick checked the time after he wrote down the address and sent his secretary to FedEx. He had less than half an hour to get home before the twins arrived.

The funeral was attended by hundreds of people and the settling of Lloyd’s affairs was grueling. Natalie was a beneficiary on two policies and to Dorothy’s dismay; Natalie remained a stakeholder in Lloyd’s business, though she chose to be a silent partner and allow Lloyd’s general manager the role of running the shops. Dorothy would remain chief counsel and would oversee the books periodically to ensure the business remained profitable or it would be sold. It took a few more weeks to completely settle the affairs before Natalie was able to leave and she couldn’t wait to go and looked forward to the solitude to give herself time to regroup and restructure her life. Natalie had called to say she’d arrived and found the accommodations to her liking.