The little black book in the mausoleum

Anna pulled into the McDonald's drive-through. The staff knew her by name and usually had her order waiting. One day I should surprise them, order something else, she thought. Oh who are you kidding, Anna, you're as likely to do that as stick up to your witch of a boss at work. If only she had made a similar impact on the staff at The Area News in Griffith. Sadly the staff at the newspaper she had recently become editor of neither respected or liked her. Anna blamed herself. She had made the mistake of coming in as the new boss with the aim of making friends. She also was of the belief that the editor was in charge of what was printed in the paper, not the office manager - Tracy - who had taken this on as her call.

Today, Anna was enjoying a rare day off. She had time to kill. After near skolling the first mouthful of the warm brew that would act as jumper leads for her weary brain, she found herself heading to the city's cemetery. It was an odd choice and one she never would have considered before moving to Griffith. She had been struck by the beauty of the expansive resting place, with its manicured lawns, over the top floral arrangements and flags signalling the sporting loyalties of the deceased.

Alan, the sales manager at work, had told her about the mausoleums at the back. The grand tombs that were purchased by the city's movers and shakers were a type of monument where a family could join together again when they passed to the other side. The mausoleums were a sight to behold, Alan assured Anna. He wasn't kidding. Anna glanced through the windows, surveyed the over-the-top flower assortments. She was just about ready to head back to the car when she noticed a much larger mausoleum. But it didn't catch her attention for that reason. Instead, it was because the grass in front of it was overgrown, a large tree overhead had spilled copious amounts of leaves on it, the windows were dusty and spiders had weaved an intricate design of webs across it. Anna walked up to the tomb and saw the name plaque was covered in a thick layer of dust and brushed it off with her jumper sleeve. Russo, the plaque read. Must be a different family, Anna thought. The Russo family was THE family in Griffith. They owned three wineries in the city. Their wine was exported to 70 countries across the world. Anna craned to see if she read anything inside. She looked around. She appeared to be alone, so she tried the door. "Shit!" She said as it creaked and then opened. She craned to see through the haze of dust and eased her way around the tomb, taking in the decades old portraits, the ostentatious vases and verses written in Italian. Wow, she thought. Anna was about to head out when she spied something that looked out of place. A little black book. She picked it up and blew the dust off its cover. The name Antonio Russo was inscribed in gold on the front. Surely not, Anna thought. Antonio Russo was the patriarch of the Russo family. Anna had a brief recollection that there had been some dispute between his six children over a will that had never been found, an assurance from their father's lawyer that he did leave one and all would be revealed. Antonio had passed away three years ago and, according to Alan, the will had not yet surfaced. Anna opened the black book. "Greetings," it started. "Today is your lucky day. And when I say lucky, I mean you have just stumbled across the jackpot, so to speak." Anna was confused. She looked around and then kept reading. "On my deathbed, I instructed my lawyer Sam Savage that my children would not be inheriting my fortune. They became greedy. They no longer cared about me or my wife. They never came to visit, if they did it was only to ask for more money. I wanted to know whether they may regret the way they treated me when I passed away. Perhaps they would come and visit me and ask for forgiveness. That is why I instructed my lawyer to leave this black book here. If it is you, one of my loved ones, thank you. But I fear that this is being read by a stranger. That is why I am signing over my $68 million fortune to you. All you need to do is go to my lawyer's office." Anna shook her head. WTF?

Anna exited the tomb. She picked up her mobile phone and called Alan. "Did I tell you I was going to the cemetery today?" She quizzed him. "Nup, why didn't you tell me, I would have tagged along?" "Are you sure," she asked. "Yes I'm sure. Why?" "Um, nothing. Do you know where Sam Savage's office is?" "Yeah it's on Kookora Street? Why?" "Nothing," Anna managed. She hung up the phone and headed for Kookora Street. A raft of emotions ran through her head. It had to be some sort of elaborate prank. She pulled up in front of the office. As luck would have it, Mr Savage was standing at the reception desk. She walked in, holding up the little black book. The lawyer's eyes lit up. "Ahh, I've been waiting for this," he told her.

Anna looked back as she said goodbye to Griffith for the last time. She was headed to a small seaside hamlet to the type of mansion she had dreamed about. It was also a place where she could escape the gaze of the jealous Griffith residents who wondered why they hadn't paid 'ole Russo a visit. And from the ranting, scathing abuse from a family of spoilt rich kids who were mad they hadn't got their own way.