As we drove back home to our house at Leeds. I realized my sister was more engulfed in phone, chatting with her friends and making lengthy calls. It made me wonder what the fate of her six hundred thousand pounds would be if I gave it to her. She was already an adult but clearly lacked the disposition to think of investing her money.
" Cathedral." I whispered as I drove in the land rover, which was now the last functional car of the family. She couldn't hear me. I called out again and realized she had headphones in her hood.
" Mehitabel!" I uttered and she shrieked from the impact of my voice.
" Oh Williams. You scared me." She said as she took of the headphones from her ear.
" Tell me. How you plan on investing your part of the wealth. It's a little above six hundred thousand pounds." I inferred as we drove down the highway that led to Leeds.
" Well. I want to invest in bitcoin. Cryptocurrency is the main deal. Then I would like to open a spar saloon. Then I will like to go shopping and have a vacation in Dubai." Cathedral replied, still paying more attention to her phone than me.
" You are eighteen years old. It makes you an adult. There is no money coming for you from anyone. Dad is gone and is gone for good. Make the best use of your last lifeline. You squander all your fortune. You would never rise again." I told her in an effortless tone, while gazing at the setting sun that loomed in the horizon.
" Trust me brother. I have my life planned out. Wait I thought we had to give the orphanage some money." Cathedral said, looking at me for the first time since we started the journey.
" Not any more. We have all the money to ourselves. Just be careful how you spend. The house in Leeds would be our home. It's were we grew up. We can't sell it." I said to her as I cruised the Rover.
" Sure that's not a problem. I hope to get married soon. Or make it big and build a house of mine." She said with great enthusiasm. The idea light of having more than she had expected had made her even excited and she had begun to chat on her phone again. I looked her at and didn't know which to feel for her. Pity or empathy. She sat their in all her innocence taking selfies and sending it to her thousands of friends on social media. She was simply a holy fellow who always had life going the smooth way. Now things had changed and she was too caught up in her fantasy to adapt to the change. All I could do was hope that her knowledge in college would suffice for daftness to reality. I couldn't count on myself to guide her. I was far from perfect myself. All I could do was pray she turned out well.
Soon, a week had passed by and it was time for Cathedral to return to school. She was in her final year studying psychology at the University of Oxford. It baffled me a lot, how she could only manage to think about her phone and catching fun with friends.
" Now that you have left the school of priesthood at Rome
Would you return to college and chase a degree?" She asked me as I drove her to the airport, where she was to board a flight to Oxford.
" I had been in that school for three years. I was able to learn a lot. It's only fair I consider on making forming my own church. As far as I am concerned, I'm a priest. They can't stop my destiny." I said to her as I drove the car.
" A priest doesn't take a wife. Can you really live without the succulent touch of a lady. Can you bro." She chuckled softly while turning to see my reaction.
" I can. I have been trained to. However I plan to start my own movement. I hold the rights to add and drop whatever I like." I said to her and spared a warm smile.
" Spice up your life bro. We live just once. Never on in a million years would I imagine becoming a nun. I mean Adonis hotness wouldn't even permit it." She said to me as she smiled in awe.
" Who is Adonis." I asked her, in a bid to know who her friends were.
" The hottest dude in Oxford. Very Rich to. A Lady like me only hangs out with best and nothing but the best." She said and showed me the picture of a ripped handsome young man on her phone. The fact that the young man had taken the picture inside a Lamborghini, made me believe he was one of those many spoilt dudes scattered around oxford.
" Be selective of who you hang out with. Father is dead and there is no one left to fund your account. Treasure your own share of the inheritance and guard it assiduously. Get a hold of the moment and make the best out of it." I said to her.
" Sure bro. Can you just chill. I can take of myself." Cathedral said and sighed deeply while she took a selfie of herself. They were the last word that was spoken in the Land rover before she dropped and boarded her flight back to Oxford.
[Three months Later]
I had been living in our house at Leeds, thinking of what to do with my wealth. My father's tobacco company had had been sold in a bid to fund his health bill. There was no more firms to rely on. That morning I sat by the pool enjoying the cool breeze that came with the spring season. The flowers were already in bloom, thus the fragrance in the air was awe-inspiring. It was a good morning to be alive. I did not smoke or drink. I had held tight to my values as a priest, thus getting my cathartic ecstasy from the beautiful creations of a merciful lord. Just then, my phone had rung and I picked It up knowing it was my sister who had called me.
" Cathedral. How are you?" I said to her, smiling warmly from the notion of hearing her voice.
" Not so good bro. I just felt rather lonely and decided to call you. I don't feel too well Williams." She said almost breaking down in tears.
" What's the matter. Is it your money? Are you already broke? Did someone threaten you? " I had found myself inquiring, About the cause of her predicament.
" No. Not at all. I'm fine. I just woke up remembering dad. His memories are priceless." My sister said to me and sighed softly.
" Yea we all miss him. Mehitabel talk to me. Are you sure all is well." I asked her, sitting up on my mat.
" I'm fine willy. Just some issues with Adonis. Don't worry about that, we are going to be fine like we always do." She said and chuckled lightly.
" Is he laying a hands on you. I mean is he being abusive…"
" No! Please . Williams No. He is such a sweetheart. Just that you men have their ups and down. I just called to say hi okay. Everything is good." She said and chuckled heavily. In a feigned tone. She couldn't imagine what her crush would look like, when his face was tested against the density of a hammer.
" Okay then. Have a good day then. Study hard and come out top. " I said and tried to cut the phone.
" Wait! Williams please wait." She said with the initial sad tone of her voice.
" Yes my dear. What is it." I said, expecting her to confirm my earlier suspicion.
" William. My investment in Bitcoin didn't really go as planned. If you saw the news last night, you would see that the price of bitcoin had crashed to an all time low. It's I could hardly salvage anything from my investment. I'm all broke Williams. I don't even have enough to pay my tuition fees." Cathedral said and burst into tears. I peeked at my phones screen to ascertain the month. It was just February's. She wasn't pulling an April fool's stunt on me.
" Oh Lord are you kidding me?" I muttered at her, feeling rather angry than surprised.
" I'm not joking Williams. I need some money to clear my bills. I know you save well. All I need is a hundred. I will repay it to you. As soon as my coins appreciate again. I left some there." She said and sniffed to ease her pain.
" A hundred pounds?" I inferred.
" No. A hundred thousand pounds. I will pay back. I promise." She said, sobbing emotionally.
" What ! That's a fortune. What do want it for. I can't let you squander it on your bitcoin again." I said feeling responsible for her excesses.
" I need it to pay my tuition fees. I swear the past week has been so hard for me. I can hardly feed well." She said as her sobs grew deeper. It broke me. The last thing I could bear was watch my sister suffer.
" That's really bad. Cathedral I warned you about safeguarding your inheritance. Look what you have done. It's been just three months. How would you cope in the coming years.?" I said, trying to talk some sense into her.
" You have to help me brother. Who else do I turn to. If I fail to pay up my fees before the month runs out, my education would be put on hold. I may be expelled. Please don't let that happen to me." She cried. The notion of expulsion, brought fourth a painful memory to my conscience. The thought Cathedral, getting expelled from college was overwhelming and I couldn't let that happen.
" Fine. I will lend you the hundred. You must pay back as soon as you have it. You know we don't have much anymore. Your only lifeline is your college degree. Work hard in school and you would get a good job that can fetch you a confident life." I said to her and sighed deeply.
" Oh Williams. You are such an angel. I promise to pay back as soon as I can." Cathedral said and hung up the call before I could say another word. I knew very well that she didn't do drugs. She was only broke because of her luxurious lifestyle.