Part 5: The Ledger

Nina's attorney compared the ledger, the bank statement, and the invoices. The records showed several equipment payments but did not clearly identify the final balance. She recommended that Helen and Teresa seek independent advice before deciding how to handle the old drawings and equipment.

The women met with a mediator. Julian and I did not attend. We had our own proposals to prepare, and we did not want to become representatives for a dispute we had learned about under a tablecloth.

After the meeting, Teresa called Julian. She said Helen had apologized for assuming she had taken clients. Teresa had apologized for refusing to discuss the equipment once the partnership ended. They had not agreed on every amount, but they had agreed to review the records together with their advisers.

Helen told me the same thing later, with an additional complaint about the mediator's coffee. I asked whether she wanted me to recommend a better café for the next meeting. She said yes, then asked whether Julian and I were dating.

“We've had dinner,” I said.

“Do you like him?”

“I do. Please don't schedule the wedding.”

“I hadn't.”

“Mom.”

“I had only thought about a venue.”

We laughed, but I told her I was serious about making my own decisions. She agreed not to arrange introductions or share details about my relationship without asking.

Nina selected both of our firms, subject to contracts and a coordinated schedule. My team would handle lighting design. Julian's team would handle restoration. A separate contractor would address wiring, and the project manager would coordinate the work. We reviewed the terms with our respective advisers before signing.

The first project meeting was less charming than dinner. We disagreed about where a lighting track should run near an old ceiling beam. Julian wanted to preserve the beam's surface. My designer wanted even light across the exhibition wall.

Nina asked us to present alternatives rather than argue over one drawing. We prepared three options with costs, maintenance requirements, and effects on the historic material. A conservator reviewed the beam. The team chose a solution that preserved the surface and provided sufficient light through a separate mounting point.

After the meeting, Julian asked whether I was angry.

“I was frustrated,” I said. “You answered before my designer finished explaining.”

He nodded. “I did. I'll apologize to her.”

He did so the next morning and asked for her assessment before the next decision. The apology mattered because it changed how the team worked, not because it ended the conversation.

That evening I visited Helen. She showed me the old ledger. Her handwriting was precise, but several entries used abbreviations only she understood. She explained two and admitted she could not remember a third. We marked it as uncertain rather than inventing an answer.

Inside the ledger was a photograph of Helen and Teresa carrying a lamp through the river building. They were both laughing, and the lamp was tilted at an angle that looked unsafe.

“Did it survive?” I asked.

“Barely. Teresa insisted we put it down before we reached the stairs.”

I asked whether she wanted a copy sent to Teresa. Helen looked at the photograph for a long moment, then said yes.