Unforgettable Christmas Dreams: Gifts of Joy

by Rebecca York

  Todd jumped up and paced around the kitchen, circling the table as he did so. “I can’t see that happening.”

  Carlton smiled at him. “The future is uncertain. We just need to figure out a way to keep your uncle from getting this property cheap, right now, and throwing both of you off.”

  “I’ll stop my college courses. That would save us some money.”

  “Not enough. We need to sit down with your mother, after your uncle leaves, and go over the books.”

  “Would you help us?”

  “Of course. As much as I can.”

  “Really?” Todd stopped to look at him, incredulous. “You’d do that for someone you hardly know?”

  “Why not? I don’t like seeing someone thrown off their land, especially by a relative who doesn’t care about kin. My family has always stood by each other.” Thinking about what he’d just said, Carlton decided Frank might see another way to help. He’d have to ask his grandfather.

  The kitchen door slammed open and a man stepped into the room, speaking as he entered. A tall, heavily-set man, dressed in jeans and a heavy leather coat, full of bluster. “Todd! Tell your mother—” He stopped, stared at Carlton. “Who are you?” His demand, arrogant and forceful, would have made Carlton afraid if he was not a man. How was Helen holding up to this creep?

  Helen darted into the kitchen behind him. “He’s a traveler, stranded by the storm,” she said. Her eyes pleaded for Carlton to agree with her. “He had to stay until the plows came through.”

  “Is that right? Where’s your car?” Ben shouted, his face twisted in arrogance.

  “In the snow,” Carlton said, following Helen’s lead. “Somewhere out there. I lost all direction.”

  Ben glowered at him, as if he were an intruder from outer space. “The plows have already come. I want you gone,” he demanded, pointing his finger towards the door.

  Carlton stared at the man. Was he an idiot, talking this way to someone he didn’t know? He was taller than Carlton, but he probably didn’t have the skills Carlton had learned in the military, including numerous ways to kill a man. Or seriously injure him. Or simply disarm him.

  “And hello to you, too,” he said, with a big smile that he knew didn’t reach his eyes. He didn’t feel at all friendly towards this man, but for Helen’s sake, he would act as if he were. “Would you like a cup of coffee?”

  “What? Coffee? No! Not coffee.” Ben shook his head, reminding Carlton of a threatening bull.

  “We have both instant and regular,” he said, trying to imitate a waiter. “Which do you prefer?”

  “Neither. I want—”

  “Oh. Tea then. You’re a tea drinker.”

  Helen was watching them with a bewildered look on her face.

  “No!”

  “Milk?”

  “Don’t be ridiculous! I don’t want anything to drink!” he shouted.

  Carlton kept his voice soft. “I’d offer you some whiskey, but since you’re driving, you shouldn’t—”

  Ben stamped his foot, hard, making the kitchen utensils which were hung on the wall start to swing. “I’m not driving anywhere. Not until I’m ready.”

  “I hope you’re not walking back to town. That’s a far distance. If I had my car I could give you a lift.”

  The man blundered forward, chin thrust out as if daring Carlton to punch it. “Get out or I’ll throw you out!”

  Carlton had had enough of this man. “I’ll go when my ride arrives,” he said, still keeping his voice quiet, but this time he used a tone of authority. “No sooner.”

  “You’re trespassing.”

  “I’m here with the lady’s permission.”

  “This is my ranch,” Ben shouted, emphasizing the word ‘my.’ “You don’t have my permission to stay any longer. Now get out.”

  “I understand this is her ranch.”

  “I’m buying it.”

  “That’s future tense,” Carlton pointed out.

  “What?”

  “Future. You haven’t bought it yet. Which means it is still her ranch. She still has the say over who comes and goes.”

  “Not much longer. Get out!”

  “Or else?”

  “I’ll charge you with trespassing and have you thrown out.”

  “Only if the real owner asks me to go. And she hasn’t. I’ll go then.” He could tell Ben was ready to explode. Rather than put Helen in a tight spot, he added, “And I won’t go if she asks me to after she’s been bullied into it.”

  “Bullied?”

  “Right. You know the problem with being a bully?” He paused, knowing that Ben wouldn’t see any problem at all. “You get older and run into someone who doesn’t like being bullied, and who knows how to hurt you badly.”

  “I said, ‘Get out!’” Ben shouted, his face contorted in anger.

  Carlton glanced out the window. By now it was completely dark outside. “And will you kindly be giving me a lift back to town?”

  “No!”

  He smiled, having expected that answer. “Then I’m staying.” He paused. “You go.”

  When he heard the words, “You go,” Ben lost all control. He strode forward to stand toe to toe with Carlton, muttering threats.

  He swung his hand up as if to punch Carlton in the face, and Carlton quickly grabbed him by the thumb and bent it back, twisting Ben around so that his arm was behind him, and then pulling up on it to bring Ben to the floor. A thumb hold, while simple, gave the holder a disproportionate amount of leverage.

  “Let me go! What are you doing?” Ben screamed.

  Carlton looked over at Helen, who still had tears in her eyes. “Do you want him out of here?” he asked.

  She stared at him, her lips parted as if ready to speak, then she looked from him to Ben, writhing on the floor, and he saw her lips tighten. “Yes,” she said, nodding vigorously. “Yes. Get him out.”

  “Then out he is.” Using pressure on the thumb, he brought Ben back to his feet and frog-marched him to his car, where he shoved him inside. A nice car, he noticed. A brand new, expensive car. The money spent could have helped Helen pay off part of the mortgage.

  Todd followed them, carrying Ben’s coat, and he tossed it into the car, then stepped back. He lingered near, watching them to see what happened.

  “I’ll have the sheriff with me when I return,” Ben threatened, rolling down his window. “I’ll have you arrested for assault.”

  “You do that. Show him your thumb. In the meantime, stay away.”

  Ben rolled up his window, then started his car. He spun it around, backward, then threw it into second while yanking the wheel quickly, trying to run Carlton over.

  Carlton avoided the bully by simply hopping over the plowed-up snow-bank. Ben would be foolish to drive his new car into it, although he might just be mad enough to do so.

  He wasn’t. He swerved away before he hit the bank. As they stood in the snow and watched, Ben gunned the motor and sped away.

  Maybe he was the reason Helen kept a loaded shotgun in the house.

  “You got rid of him,” Todd said. “Thank you. Although I thought he was going to run you down, you’d made him so mad. I bet no one’s ever stood up to him before.”

  He smiled at Todd. “I don’t think he wanted to damage his car.”

  It was really cold out, and he followed Todd back into the warm living room. Todd was bouncing with pleasure, looking mighty pleased with the way things had turned out.

  Helen was standing in front of the fireplace, shivering in reaction to her encounter with Ben. She looked ready to collapse.

  “That was your brother-in-law?” Carlton asked as he walked up to her, incredulous.

  “Yes. He wants to take the ranch. He always thought it would be his. He came out to tell me we had to be gone the week before he took possession. I think by the New Year. That’s less than a week away.”

  “Right.”

  “I was so upset, I didn’t get the date. He promised to bring the sheriff
with him, and throw us out. Legally. He said there was nothing I could do. Nothing.”

  She swayed, and he reached out to catch her by the shoulders. “I wouldn’t wish him on anyone, much less a woman,” he said.

  She collapsed into his arms, her head against his chest, her tears running down her face and into her cupped hands. “I don’t know what to do. If the bank forecloses, like he said it’s going to do, we’ll lose everything.” She felt like she was ready to fall down, and he put his arms more securely around her to hold her up.

  “How much do you owe?” he asked.

  “Two hundred thirty three thousand.”

  She made it sound like several million. That really wasn’t very much, although it would be if you didn’t have it. “Surely the ranch is worth way more than that.”

  “Oh, it is. It’s valued at well over three million. But Ben plans to get it for cheap when the bankers put it on the market. That was why he was here. To tell me that they’re ready to foreclose, and that he has already made sure he gets it. I think he’s cut a deal with the banker, to give him a percentage out of the final sale.”

  She wiped her eyes, but the tears continued to run down her face. “He’s going to sell it, pay the mortgage with what he gets, and pocket the rest.”

  “Can he do that, legally? He doesn’t own it, so how can he sell it?”

  “I’m not too sure how he does it, but he has a lawyer who sets it up for him. I think they borrow the money first, and then buy the land when it is foreclosed on and the bank puts it up for sale. The banker is in on the deal, so the sale ends before other people can bid. Next they sell it for what it’s really worth and make a profit.”

  “Have you received a foreclosure notice yet?” They’d have to notify her, legally.

  “No. I figure it will come in the mail.” She sniffed, fighting the tears, her fingers plucking at the neckline of his shirt. “There’s nothing I can do to stop it. I could sell all our stock, and still be over a hundred thousand short. And without the stock, we wouldn’t have a ranch anymore.” She paused, thinking. “Maybe I should sell the stock and take the money. Otherwise, we won’t have a thing.”

  She trembled, her entire body shaking. “I don’t know what we’ll do when he takes over. We can’t stay here, even if he allowed us to. As soon as he sells it, someone else will move in. They won’t want a family living here. I don’t think.”

  “Where would you go?” he asked, enraged at any man who would make this strong woman cry. He didn’t think he should mention the loan possibility until he had spoken to his grandfather. That company might not even be in existence today. “What will you do?”

  “I don’t know. I never went beyond high school. I don’t have any skills.”

  Carlton gazed down at her in amazement. Why would a woman who could homeschool a boy into college, cook a meal, rope a calf, balance books, run a ranch, shoot a shotgun, and make wonderful pies and bread, ever think that she had no skills?

  “How about your neighbors? Frank and Roberta?” he asked, naming his grandparents. “They wouldn’t leave you out in the cold.”

  “I haven’t thought about it. I guess I didn’t want to contemplate the inevitable.” She shuddered. “Thank you for getting rid of him. I can’t stand to see him. He’s the most awful man. He never ever tried to be nice to us, even while Ken was alive.”

  “I wouldn’t wish him on anyone, even my worse enemy.” Actually, Carlton didn’t have any enemies that he knew about, unless he had just made one. He wouldn’t want him for a friend anyway. “He must have followed the snowplows out, just to see you suffer.”

  “Yes. He probably did.”

  “Well, my dear, we will just have to see what we can do to comply with your father-in-law’s wishes.” Maybe he should mention the loan possibility.

  “My father-in-law?”

  “Todd said he put the ranch in a trust so that Ben couldn’t get it.”

  “Oh, yes. That’s right. That’s one of the reasons why he’s so angry. Their father formed that trust when the boys were in their early twenties. He had cancer, and he didn’t want Ben to be able to take the ranch away from my husband. We had just married. I was only nineteen, and didn’t really understand why he was so insistent upon the trust. I guess with a trust, you can’t contest it like you can a will.”

  “Right. A will isn’t as strong. And it also kept you and Ken from having to pay inheritance taxes when he died. That’s one of the big advantages of a trust.”

  “How do you know this?”

  “My grandparents have a living trust. My parents are successor trustees. And I am named as one of the trustees, somewhere along the line. It keeps the lawyers away and protects your inheritance from the government taking half of your property when you die. Wills can’t do that. Everyone should have a trust, just to keep the lawyers away, much less the government. It’s how smart families keep their wealth within the family.”

  “But Ben is going to get the ranch anyway, just because I couldn’t hold it.” She placed her head on his chest, her tears starting up again. Her grief just about tore him in two. He had to help her. He had to give her some hope.

  “You weren’t at fault for the medical bills,” he said. “I’ll see what I can do. I have to make a few phone calls and see how much money I can raise. We may yet keep the wolf from your door.”

  “What are you saying?” She paused. “How? I don’t understand. You say ‘we,’ but you’re just a student.”

  “Right. But there are several places where I should be able to get some money. Put them all together and we might be able to pay off your mortgage and stop Ben in his tracks.”

  “Oh. Are you sure? It’s a lot of money.” She searched his face as she spoke, evidently trying to see if he was speaking the truth. He didn’t blame her, after Ben’s visit, beating her down verbally. She probably didn’t think anyone would help her. “You don’t know us,” she added.

  “I know your type. Hardworking and frugal. And I’ve seen plenty of bullies like Ben. I’d love to snatch the ranch out from under him and his banker friend. His mistake was coming out here to crow, instead of waiting until the day it was sold. He gave us time to gather funds, Helen, funds you might not have, but I do. Or at least I hope I can get them.”

  “Really?” She stepped back to look up at him. Her eyes were red and swollen, and filled with a shining hope. He’d never seen anyone more beautiful.

  “Maybe.” He shook his head, trying to warn her. Was he raising her hopes, only to have them dashed down again? “We can’t count on the money until it’s in the bank,” he said. “This might not work. I’ll need to call my grandparents and get some phone numbers. May I use your cell phone?”

  “Yes. Yes, of course.” She looked around and Todd grabbed it from the coffee table and carried it over to them.

  Carlton nodded to Todd as the youth handed it to him. “Let’s hope everything comes together.” He looked at the phone in his hand and realized that he didn’t know his grandparents’ number. It was in his phone directory, so he’d never bothered learning it. “Um, what’s their number?”

  Helen took the phone, opened the directory and handed it back to him. “It’s listed under ‘Roberta.’” she said.

  He dialed and his grandmother answered, surprised to find him being the one who called. He explained what had happened to Helen and Todd.

  “That’s terrible,” his grandmother said. “Isn’t there anything we can do?”

  “Maybe. That’s why I called. Do you have the phone number for the Trahern family business in California? I don’t know what it’s called as they didn’t put their name on it. The one that Cole set up in 1866, that makes small business loans. I assume a family ranch would be called a small business. His descendants still do that, don’t they?”

  “Yes. I think they do,” she said. “They had all that Spanish gold, and they were very careful what they did with it. Cole and Marisol even started two universities.”

&n
bsp; “But they’re still operational, as a loan company?”

  “Frank would know. They loan money out at a very low interest rate, just enough to keep them going, for you know there are some losses. But with the rate so low, most of the businesses are able to repay the loans. It just needs to be a viable business. They’ve helped thousands of small companies get started. Just a minute while I look it up.”

  He held the phone away from his face. Todd and Helen were standing there, staring at him, waiting. Even Rufus was sitting, just waiting. It seemed a long time before his grandmother returned and gave him the number, but was probably under five minutes.

  “How’s grandfather?” he asked, writing the number down.

  “Much better. He wants to see you, now that the roads are plowed.”

  Carlton lowered his voice in concern. “Will I need to take him to the doctor?”

  “No. He won’t go. He figures you get sick going to the doctors. Doesn’t have much to do with them.”

  “Ha! How’d he get sick this time?”

  “Doing too much without getting enough rest. I told him to stop. He says it’s hard to find good help nowadays. No one wants to work hard like they used to. If they can’t have a machine to do the job, they don’t want to do it.”

  “I understand. Tell him I’ll come over tomorrow afternoon.”

  “I will. Tell Helen to stay strong. We’ll all pull for her, and the ones of us who can help her, will do so.”

  He nodded, thanked her, and hung up. Helen stepped forward expectantly.

  “My grandmother said to stay strong.” He explained about his ancestor, Cole Trahern, who, just after the Civil War, tried to cross Texas and ended up with a Spanish girl and her gold. If their descendants had done their jobs properly, there still might be a chance for Helen to get a small business loan from them.

  “Do you think so?”

  “You have the ranch as collateral. I have some money, too, if they can’t give us enough. From my research grant.”

  “Will you have enough to live on if we use that?” she asked, sounding worried.

  “Oh, yes. I intended to invest it until I needed it. I’d rather use it for this purpose than for any other.”