A Bequest From Aunt Edna

"Mr. Thompson, this is Attorney Kirshenbaum's office," the call started.  "I'm calling in reference to your Aunt Edna's estate."

Aunt Edna?

"In what regard?" I asked.

"I assume you've been notified of your Aunt's tragic demise?" the caller responded.

"Ahh...  Not really," was my reply.

"I'm very sorry to notify you this way," she said.  "Edna Hanson, your Mother's sister, disappeared in a boating accident on Lake Victoria in Kenya."

"Oh, yes," finally figuring it out.  "I don't remember her.  She left for Africa when I was only 1 or 2 years old.  None-the-less, I'm sorry to hear that she's gone.  Particularly in an accident.  What happened?"

"If you could come down to our office," she said, redirecting the conversation, "Attorney Kirshenbaum can answer your questions and fill you in on your Aunt's estate."

"Why?" I asked.  "Did I inherit something?"

"Well, yes," she responded.  "I can't go into the details of course.  Attorney Kirshenbaum can fill you in on everything."

She was determined to get me down to that office.

"OK," I said, giving in, and setting the appointment for the next day at Noon.

I was finally starting to get somewhere at Demers' Investments, so I didn't want to lose critical time during the market day.  Noon is dead time, however, so if we could finish in under an hour, I'd be good.

I should have remembered that lawyers are expert at talking for hours without saying anything.

I was ushered into Attorney Kirshenbaum's office by his praetorian guard of a secretary.  The office turned out to be a pleasant surprise.  A large wall of windows made it bright.  Comfortable chairs for his guests that weren't intended to intimidate them.  He came out from behind his desk to sit with me.

Aunt Edna at least had good taste in Attorneys. 

Attorney Kirshenbaum, Frank to his friends, started in with an expression of regret for my loss.  He continued into a litany of Aunt Edna's inspiring work in Africa, carried on about how she believed what she'd left me would turn my life around, and was well into a discussion of inheritance law that I didn't have a clue about, before I realized that it was already 1:30.

"Sir," I said, "I hate to interrupt, but you lost me at least 30 minutes ago.  I work for a living, and have to get back to that.  Can we wrap this up?"

"Of course," he replied.  "I was only trying to explain so that you'd understand how unique your Aunt's will is.  I've never seen anything quite like it."

"In any event," he continued, "if you'll sign these forms, I can arrange to have your inheritance delivered to your home this evening."

"Isn't that unusual?" I asked.

"Well, yes," he answered, "only one of many unusual things about this bequest.  But there it is."

"OK," is all I said.  I'd have probably signed a confession to being the Easter Bunny to get out of there.  Now I knew how captured soldiers would confess to just about anything.

The stock market was slow the rest of that afternoon.  I'd have been better off to listen to good old Frank.

"Delivery," the answer came when I responded to the buzzer.  "From Attorney Kirshenbaum's."

"OK," I said, opening the door.

Another form to sign, then the guy waved his partner forward.  They moved a large carton into my living room, took it off their carry-all, and left quickly it seemed to me.  None of the usual small talk that guys like to engage in to break the monotony of the day to day grind.

There were a fair number of what appeared to be air holes all over the carton.  When I went to move it, there were two surprises.

It was much heavier then it looked, and the reason for that was that the cardboard carton was really only a cover over a heavy metal frame.  A cage if you will.

"What needs a cage?" I thought out loud.

The answer to that turned out to be a lion.  Can you believe that?  I wasn't sure that I could.

A young lion from the looks of things.  A young lioness to be more accurate.

The stare that her golden eyes were giving me was one thing.  The way she was licking her chops was another.

"How am I supposed to take care of you?" I asked, half expecting an answer.  I tripped over the coffee table onto the couch when some kind of noise came from her.  It sounded like "feed me."  If you'd been there, you'd have been out the door and half way out of town by then.

For some reason, however, I stayed.

With one of her paws, the tawny cat pushed what appeared to be a notebook out of the cage.  Then she nodded as if indicating that it was for me.  Lions can communicate?

The first page was a picture of a vigorous looking, attractive brunette, dressed in safari clothing.  It was signed, "With Love, Edna."

So that was Aunt Edna.  The picture was a really nice touch.

What followed was a shock.

"Charles," it started.

"Please bear with me until you've read all of this.  If you throw it away without finishing this, we will have both lost out."

OK, I made a promise to her and to myself, to finish reading it.

"Before you is Kolkali, a Princess of her tribe.  I know, I know, you see a young lioness.  In many ways Kolkali is that.  But, she is in reality a Princess condemned to life as an animal unless the curse can be broken."

"Both she and her older brother were cursed simultaneously in revenge against their father.  Her brother is the love of my life.  With your help, and love, both can be rescued."

"Kolkali?" I asked of the cat.  From her reaction, the way she preened, she sure recognized the name.  I went on with my Aunt's narrative.

"If you accept her as your wife, both she and her brother will be freed.  Both you and I will have life partners that neither will ever regret.  Please do this for all four of us."

"With a prayer that you accept, and with my love, Edna"

"PS: As a sign of trust, you must open the cage and kiss the Princess."

"PPS: You should feed Kolkali before you open the cage.  She has a healthy appetite, but isn't fussy at all."

A Princess and a lioness for a wife.  There has to be a strong sense of adventure running through our family's blood, because I was attracted to the thrill of that just as Aunt Edna obviously had been.

Hmm...  What could I feed a lioness.  Being a bachelor, neither my pantry nor freezer were exactly full.  The best I could come up with were a couple of 'Hungry Man' pot roast dinners.  The irony wasn't lost on me.  I micro-waved them for the allotted time, dumped the contents onto a plate, and pushed it into the cage.

The Princess seemed to enjoy it, and I swear thanked me politely.

It took me a few minutes of examining the cage to find a way to open it.  That stare following me the whole time.

Finally I figured it out.  Might as well find out how this adventure was going to end.  Faint heart and all that kind of stuff.

I unhooked the gate to the cage and swung it open.

With a languid stretch, Kolkali moved out of the cage and approached me.  A paw went up on each of my shoulders, but lightly which I took to be a good sign.

I closed my eyes as we came together.  In all honesty, the kiss started out a little wet and sloppy, but oh, how it ended.

"Thank you Charles," Kolkali whispered, as her limbs changed to arms and legs.  It hadn't occurred to me that she wouldn't have any clothes on, so it took a few minutes for me to match her state of undress.

At least once during that long first night, Kolkali partially blended back and forth between a spectacular woman, and a lithe tawny lioness.  Having her tail caressing me was something I could never have imagined.

In the morning, she told me there was something I had to remember.

"My people have always had the ability to be both human and lion," she explained.  "All that the witch did with her curse was make it impossible for me to change.  Now and forever, I will have that ability."

"That's wonderful," I said kissing her gently.

"One thing," she said, pressing her hand against my lips.  "As your Aunt Edna implied at the end of her note, I have to eat regularly.  If I get very hungry while in my lion form, well..."

Of course, I'm no longer a bachelor, so as a family man it's to be expected.  Believe me, we always have a full pantry and freezer.