Crowns & Chaos

two

My dad narrowed his eyes. 

"What about my ancestry? We're a pretty normal family, we don't have anything to hide."

"No no, of course, it's not bad... just big."

"Maybe you should hold us in suspense a  little longer," my mom snapped.

"Mom!" I hissed.

"Well alright. Please keep your questions to yourself until I'm done explaining. Victoria Windham is not your mother's real name," he said, addressing my father, "because her real name was Lady Victoria Marie of Pembroke."

My dad choked.

"What?"

"She was the only child of the Earl of Pembroke. When she was eighteen, she tried to escape her family lineage by running away to Bristol and changing her name. She had you, Thomas, and after you two moved to Canada, her parents passed away, essentially eradicating the Pembroke family. She only came back to London after you were established and she was sure nobody would know who she was. I was the only one she trusted to keep her secret. She lived a double life, and only allowed me to tell you after she was gone."

My mouth was hanging open, probably ready to catch some flies. My mom's lips were moving but no sound was coming out and my dad looked vaguely dazed. 

I broke the deafening silence. 

"What exactly does that mean?"

He smiled at me.

"It means that your father is the true Earl of Pembroke."

I gaped at him.

After nobody said anything, Theodore awkwardly scratched the back of his neck. 

"Listen, I know this is a lot to take in, and-"

"No shit, Sherlock!" My mother rasped, desperately clinging to her husband's hand.

"So we're... we're technically part of the nobility?" My dad asked, hands shaking.

Theodore nodded. 

"I know it seems outlandish, but it's the truth. Presently, the earldom is being held by a distant cousin, but with some DNA tests and further proof, we could secure it."

"DNA tests?" My mom asked, at the same time that my dad said: "secure it?"

"We?" I asked under my breath.

"Well of course. After you've secured your rightful titles and such-"

"Okay, hold up. Who said we even wanted to?" My mom interrupted. 

Theodore looked taken aback.

"I didn't mean to sound presumptuous, I just assumed..."

"What would this even mean for our family?" My dad asked, running a hand through his greying hair. 

"It means you would take over the family name and the land owned by the family. You would inherit the duties as would Stacy and Evangeline."

"So what, I'd become Lady Evangeline Aurelia Pembroke?" My voice sounded sarcastic, still hardly believing what I was hearing. 

"Precisely. You would join the nobility's social circles, attend balls and charities and things. We would have to get you some etiquette lessons I'm sure, and you would have to move out of Canada. We would arrange for English citizenship."

I stared at him, dumbfounded. 

"But I'm... I'm just a history major from Vancouver! Dad's an accountant for gods sakes, and now you're saying we've inherited a freaking earldom?"

"I understand how difficult this must be for you, but please do think it over. The Pembroke name has been through a fair amount of scrutiny, and this could be a perfect chance to start to gain back the lost dignity."

"What if we say no?"

Theodore looked disappointed with my dad's question but answered it nonetheless.

"Then you go back to Canada, back to being Thomas, Stacy and Evangeline Windham, and the Pembroke Earldom continues to belong to a rather idiotic second-cousin."

"You keep saying "we". What do you have to gain from this?" My mom asked shrewdly.

Theodore smiled a slightly pained smile. 

"I was in love with Victoria my entire life. I'm afraid that never worked out, but I do know how much she loved you, Thomas, and how much she loved you, Stacy for him. And how much of herself she saw in Evangeline and even though she didn't want it, she wanted you to be able to choose this life if you wanted it. I thought the least I could do was help you all along the way."

My mom looked from my dad's face to mine before standing up.

"Listen, Theodore, this is great but uh, we are definitely going to have to talk this out as a family before we give you any firm decision."

Theodore nodded, placing the document back down on the desk and grabbing both his jacket and hat from the rack near the door.

"I'm truly sorry for your loss. I do hope that whatever your decision is, you won't allow this to tarnish your memories of Victoria. Good day to you all."

He left, slamming the door behind him. The sound reverberated around the house, every unspoken question trailing behind it. 

For four full minutes, (I timed it), nobody said a word. Finally, my mom checked her watch and stood up. 

"Thomas, I can see your brain freaking out. Evie, oh sweetie, please don't cry."

I reached up and touched my cheek, surprised to find tears there.

"I don't know what to do," I whispered.

Immediately both my parents were on their feet, sweeping me into a big hug.

"We are going to figure this out. It'll be okay," my dad whispered into my hair.

"I kinda wanna kick Theodore's ass for fucking up our lives. Is that wrong?" My mom asked.

I snorted.

"Only a little."

She smoothed my bangs away from my forehead and gave me a kiss on the temple. 

"Let's save the panicking for after supper because I'm actually starving. There's a Chinese place we can order from."

I nodded, going up to the bedroom I was using to change out of the funeral wear and into my pyjamas. I splashed some cold water on my face before going downstairs. My parents were taking in hushed voices when I entered. 

"I'm 22 guys, you don't have to try to shield me from everything."

"Ah yes, but you are still a baby in our minds," my dad teased.

"We ordered you veggie fried rice," my mom chimed in.

"Perfect."

And so we sat in the living room, eating out of takeout boxes on a rug more expensive than my first apartment, each lost in thought as the rain pattered down relentlessly against the windows of a house full of ghosts and secrets, each asking ourselves the same question. 

What the hell were we supposed to do now?