PART 3 — The visit from the past
That same afternoon I decided I couldn't wait. The letter indicated that immediate action had to be taken. I grabbed my old handbag, pulled my dark woolen coat back on, and walked down the hallway, past reception, and out of the building into the rain.
The rain had turned into a fine drizzle that cast a gray veil over the village streets. Notary Van Houten's office was located on the edge of the old center, less than a twenty-minute walk from the care home. My knees protested with every step, and the damp cold pulled through my clothing, but I pushed through. Every step felt like a liberation from the years of silence in which I had sidelined myself for a son who now treated me like trash.
When I stepped into the notary's office, a small brass bell above the door jingled. An older receptionist with glasses on his nose looked up from his computer screen. He recognized me immediately; after all, I had been there after Willem's passing.
“Mrs. De Vries? What an untimely return. Can I help you with anything?” he asked with a frown.
“I need to speak with Notary Van Houten,” I said, and my voice sounded more resolute than I expected. “It concerns the file of my late husband, Willem De Vries. And the additional clause that came into effect today.”
The receptionist looked at me in surprise, flipped through some physical folders on his desk, and then abruptly stood up. “One moment please.”
After a few tense minutes, I was admitted to the notary's office itself. Mr. Van Houten, an elderly man with gray hair and a neatly ironed suit, stood behind his mahogany desk. He silently pointed me to a chair.
“Anna,” he said earnestly. “I didn't expect to see you here so soon. I assume the envelope has been delivered?”
“You knew about this?” I asked sharply.
The notary nodded slowly. “Willem left these instructions with a very specific date of hand-over. Namely, the day Mark would force you to leave the house.”
I felt the ground drop out from under my feet. “So he knew... he knew Mark would do this?”
“Willem knew his son through and through,” Van Houten answered softly. “And therefore he had a clause included in the deed that changes everything. If Mark forces or tricks you out of the house, a legal mechanism comes into operation that immediately invalidates the transfer. But that's not all. There is a reason why Willem left the key in a completely different place than Mark thinks.”
