Property of a Noblewoman Read Free

for three years, according to procedure, and they want us to empty it now.”
    “I’ll assign it after lunch,” Harriet promised as she hurried out.
    Jane went back to her office and ordered a sandwich from a nearby deli to eat at her desk. It seemed better than going out in the miserable weather. While waiting for her lunch to come, she did some minor paperwork.
    She had made good headway with the routine tasks she had at hand by the time Harriet came back from lunch, looking worried, and said her mother wasn’t doing well. Jane had left two completed files on her desk. It was tedious work, but Jane was meticulous and had made few mistakes while she was there and never the same one twice. She had been a paralegal before going to law school, and Harriet admired her work ethic and attention to detail. She had even told several people in the office that Jane was the best intern they’d had, but she was sparing with her praise to Jane. She called Jane into her office an hour after she returned from lunch.
    “Why don’t you go to the bank, and go through the contents and their inventory,” she said, referring to the Pignelli case. “I don’t have anyone else to assign to it for now.” She handed her back the sheet on the Pignelli case, and Jane nodded. She had been to only one other inventory since she’d been there, but it didn’t seem complicated to her. All she had to do was confirm the bank’s inventory, and bring the contents of the safe deposit box back with her, to be put in the safe at the surrogate’s court, until the items of value could be sold, and the papers archived for the next seven years.
    Jane called Hal Baker at the bank that afternoon to make the appointment, which was sooner than he had expected, and he explained apologetically that he was going on vacation for the next two weeks, and had a training session the week after that. They made the appointment for four weeks later, on the day after Valentine’s Day, which Jane didn’t point out to him, but it was fine with her anyway. There was no rush, and it gave them time to place the regulation ad in the newspapers. She jotted down the appointment and they hung up, as she took out the standard form for the notice. The process of trying to locate Marguerite di San Pignelli’s heirs had begun. It was just another ordinary day at the surrogate’s court, trying to track down heirs, and dispose of estates when there were none.

Chapter 2
     
    JANE TOOK THE subway to the stop nearest the Metropolitan Bank, four weeks to the day after her initial conversation with Hal Baker. It was the day after Valentine’s Day, and that morning and the day before had been rocky. She and John had had an argument while she was rushing to make toast, pour cornflakes into a bowl for herself, and make coffee for both of them. She burned the toast she had put in the toaster without bothering to check the setting, and spilled the cornflakes just as John ambled into the kitchen in boxers and T-shirt, looking dazed. He’d been out studying with friends the day before, at someone’s apartment. She had heard him come home at three o’clock in the morning, but fell back to sleep before he made it into bed. And he totally forgot it was Valentine’s Day, although she had bought him a box of chocolates and some cards, and left them in the kitchen for him that morning. He took the box of chocolates with him to share with his study group, and he had no gift, flowers, or cards for her. As far as John was concerned, Valentine’s Day had been canceled this year.
    “What are you in such a hurry about?” he asked, helping himself to the coffee she’d made, while she swept up the cornflakes and then buttered the piece of burnt toast for herself. He looked exhausted and was clearly not in a good mood as he sat down at the kitchen table and took a sip of coffee. He still hadn’t acknowledged Valentine’s Day, neither the day before nor today. He was never great about holidays, or