A Perilous Inheritance

The age of twenty, while at adulthood, is still a young and tender age. College age and old enough to vote, but still a year shy of legally having a cold one while watching a sporting event. Cassie Carver's at that very age of twenty, but a lot of unexpected things have happened to her lately. The sudden and shocking death of Cassie's uncle, Matthew Carver, four months prior, was heartbreaking; she was close with her uncle Matthew since her childhood.

Cassie also didn't expect that she would inherit Matthew's big house in Toronto; a house she remembers very well. Among many memories was as the joy she and her family felt in 2019, as they watched and celebrated the Raptors' NBA Championship, and Cassie suddenly ended up inheriting the very site of those memories.

There's also two more things that Cassie didn't expect. One, she didn't expect to be fearing for her life. Two, she didn't expect to be walking to the balcony at gunpoint.

As Cassie made the walk, with the mysterious criminal pacing behind her, she thought about her sessions with her therapist, Dr. Lana Richard, which began right after Matthew's passing. The loss was brought up in the first sessions, and it was two weeks later that the inheritance was received.

"That's a lot to take on at such a young age, Cassie," Lana said in a session that took place one day after the will was read. "Do you think you can handle it?"

"All I can do is try," was Cassie's reply.

Try was what Cassie did, all in dedication to Matthew. The attempts on Cassie's life started within the first month. Small at first, convenient faulty wiring, but she was later nearly run off the road while she was out walking. The attempts resulted in Cassie being nearly afraid to leave the house, but she wanted to continue the sessions with Lana, who opted to do video calls with Cassie.

Cassie's memory shifted to a month prior, when a video session with Lana almost ended up being her last. The session saw a masked figure, armed with a garrote, appear from behind and attack Cassie, who fought valiantly while Lana watched with deep concern. For a while, Lana couldn't see either Cassie, nor her attacker, but Cassie did emerge and called the police. When the mask was removed, Cassie surprisingly recognized that face.

"That's the man who tried to run me down!"

Details were revealed in the weeks that passed after the arrest. The man's name was Rodger Boucher, but he wasn't saying much until finally deciding to tell all in exchange for a plea deal. Rodger's announcement came two days ago. The following night, Rodger was deceased.

As for the present day:

"You'll never get away with this!" Cassie exclaimed as she reached the balcony, where she turned around and faced her foe for the first time.

"Dr. Richard?!"

"Cassie," Lana purred, her once genial Québécoise accent taking a sinister turn, "call me Auntie Lana. At least I should have been."

"What are you talking about?!" asked Cassie.

"That uncle of yours who you love so much?" said Lana. "We dated for about a year. We were so much in love... until he made promises he never intended to keep! He said he'd marry me! He promised me the world! But he went back on his word!" The rage on Lana was clear and present, but she managed to compose herself as she continued on.

"Matt said that he wanted space," said Lana. "Said he needed time. I gave him a single day to change his mind. He refused. Matt broke my heart. And with a single drug cocktail shot, I stopped his!"

"You killed my uncle?" asked Cassie. "And that Rodger guy?"

"Rodger was a patient of mine," Lana said with a wicked smirk. "He was infatuated with me from our first session. So I sent him right after you, which was a mistake. Knew he couldn't get the job done. That's one loose end I eliminated." Lana raised her gun back up again, pointing it directly at Cassie's head.

"And now," Lana said, "all I have to do is get rid of you, and I can take what's rightfully mine: this house!" Lana's attempt was halted when she heard police sirens closing in, Cassie turned around and saw a pair of cars entering the area, all the while, Lana's attempt to escape saw her run into one of the officers, who arrested her. Lana was cursing in both English and French as she was taken into custody, while Cassie learned that the police had discovered Lana's connection to Rodger.

Another car arrived at the area, and it was one Cassie knew well. Emerging from that car were Cassie's parents, Natalie and Chester Carver, the latter being Matthew's younger brother. The pair hugged their daughter, who revealed the details about Lana, leading to the following revelation from Chester:

"That Lana girl? Matt told me about her. They only went out on one date a year ago, yet it turned to Lana blowing up Matt's phone for months demanding a marriage proposal. I never thought it would lead to this."

It was the last shocking development in a number of months full of them. Chester and Natalie stayed with Cassie after it was all over, but while it was originally supposed to be for a week, Cassie wanted her mom and dad with her permanently, saying that "it's what Uncle Matt would have wanted." The Carvers went on to live in that house full of family memories together, and they spent time remembering all of the times that Matthew invited them over for family gatherings, all while remembering Matthew very fondly.

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Thank you for reading my story, which I entered in Sasha Desideri's Summer Mystery Unofficial Challenge: