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Dear Eze,
I’m sort of a high-profile person, and I have a bit of a problem, so I appreciate you keeping this anonymous.
Without going into too much detail, I have a certain relative that seems to be under the impression that I am a threat to what we’ll call the family business. They took over after my father passed a few years ago, and to be fair to them they’d initially done a fine job.
Very technically I am my father’s only heir, but because I was below the age of majority when he passed, it made sense for my relative to step in when they did. I was sent away to boarding school shortly after- my mother had already passed when I was a child, and her wife shortly after her, and there were no other relatives available to take responsibility for me -and, while my boarding school wasn’t always a perfect environment, I mostly view it as a positive experience.
After I finished school I was offered the opportunity to do something of a work-study/continuing education sort of thing in a field I really enjoy (call it an art discipline), so instead of returning home I went a little farther abroad to study under my mentor. I fell in love with the practice, and ended up studying under her for three more years.
But a few months ago an old steward of my father’s sent me a letter insinuating that my relative was not necessarily keeping up his obligation to our employees. This was obviously concerning, and I immediately made arrangements to travel home. When I arrived, it was to find that my relative had let go of more than half the staff- legacy employees that I had known since I was a child- and replaced them with people working for a fraction of the positions salary. Everyone who stayed was managing their own jobs in addition to a mix of responsibilities for positions that had been dissolved. Beyond that, all of our clients were receiving sub-par product for outrageous prices.
My father would be ashamed.
To be completely honest, I don’t have any particular desire to take over the business. I love the work I do in my field, and if I had it my way I would be able to entrust the business to my relative permanently while I pursue my true passion. That being said, I feel a strong sense of responsibility and obligation to these people. My great-grandfather sort of ran the business into the ground before I was born, and it was a combination of my grandmother, my aunt, and my father who put in the work to build a company we could be proud of. Frankly, I no longer feel that my relative can be trusted to continue their legacy.
Shortly after I arrived, I confronted my relative and told them that since they had shown themselves incapable of maintaining the business to our families standards they needed to step down and return the business to me as my fathers heir.
They took it poorly.
I could have possibly been a bit more diplomatic about my declaration, but I had just come from a tour of our facility and had found some truly appalling evidence of neglect. I did not feel like I could leave the transition another day.
Unfortunately, I had failed to recognize that my relative had gone to the trouble of employing some very capable bodyguards who are quite invested in their boss maintaining their position. I’ve been hiding out ever since.
Like I mentioned earlier, I’m an art major. I know the basics of business (my father let me learn at his knee pretty much from the time I was born), but I’ve never had to challenge someone like this. I know I need help, and very probably recognition from some outside authority to prove my claim, but I’m working with limited resources here and could use a hand.
Do you have any advice on the kind of people I should be reaching out to, or maybe just ideas about how to stay in one piece while I wait for my various calls for assistance to reach their destinations?
Thanks for listening,
Running in [REDACTED]
Dear Running,
Wow, it sounds like you're in a bit of a pinch!
First off, I applaud your commitment to your family legacy. It can be difficult to let go of ones dreams in the name of taking care of other people, but I believe your family would be proud of the way you are stepping up.
Now, I don't want to presuppose too much about your situation, but I'll do my best to highlight some actions that I strongly urge you to consider:
You are absolutely correct, you need legal counsel. I don't know where you are or if you have someone already familiar with your family's business, but I will say that a good place to start is usually local. If your family has an in-house lawyer, consider if they are a smart person to reach out to. If they've left the company, they might be worth speaking too. If they're still working with your relative, definitely proceed with caution. Get you hands on any legal documents that show you are the rightful heir, and find someone who can argue your case in court.
If your local constabulary is upright (hard to verify these days) I'd consider getting in touch, and maybe declaring Right of the Vulnerable- usually achievable, especially if you have evidence your relative has tried to harm you. If this is not accessible, for whatever reason, do the opposite and stay well clear. Getting the Watch involved is not usually my first recommendation, but it all depends on where you're at and what you're relationship is with them.
Definitely ask for help. I'm glad to hear that you have people in your corner, but this is absolutely a situation where more is merrier. You want as many people behind you as you can manage. If you haven't already, reach out to your mentor or another trusted friend with a detailed account of everything that has happened and everything you are experiencing. I've said it before and I'll say it again: Document Everything. You want recorded and verified testimony in whatever way you can create it.
As for staying in one piece- if you know your relative is searching the area, you have to weigh the risks of staying in one place and possibly being discovered against the risk of moving from location to location and getting discovered in transit. Both strategies have their pros and cons, and it's going to be up to you which one is the best for your situation.
In the staying put camp: you've got people who are invested in your safety, so it sounds like whoever you're bunking with will make the effort to keep you hidden if they get searched. It also doesn't sound like your relative has the legal grounds to be busting in and searching private property, so if you can count on them to mind their manners and keep their nose above board, you might be okay here. That being said, my understanding is that they're not too concerned with convention at this point, and they have a lot to lose if your case is heard.
In the staying mobile camp: again, you've got a crowd invested in your safety, and might have more than one person who can take you in for a night or two. Moving around may make it harder to pin you down, but it does put you at risk in a pretty significant way while you're exposed. You'd be relying heavily on your speed, and, unless you have some shapeshifting abilities (hugely helpful in exactly this scenario), you'd likely need to get good at disguises.
Other things to consider, regardless: you are sending out communications to allies, how are they going to get back to you? How long do you estimate you will need to be in hiding? At a certain point, staying in one place for too long becomes a bigger risk than moving. If you're planning on a longer engagement, it might be smart to get out of town (if you can do it safely) and come back with your allies, good counsel, and a authenticated writ.
I hope this finds you whole, hearty, and ready to move. If myself or anyone else at the Holler can be helpful to you, please reach out. We love a cause for the people.
Best of luck!
-EzeC
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