Everything was still hot and very good. The steak was perfection, and the tiny mushrooms were done just the way she loved them. There was even a strawberry shortcake, just like she’d had as a child, with more strawberries than cake. The ice cream was still frozen, and she ate every bite of it. When she was finished, as full as she’d ever been, she was escorted back to her cell, where she not only found a stash of bottled water but a soft blanket as well as a pair of beautiful slippers to wear around. Crying and holding her bounty to her, she heard Meadow speak once again.
The things in your room are from your sister. I told her what happened to you with Peter, and she wanted you to know she was thinking about you. She asked her to thank her. I will. She also said she’d like to help you. To get you some help. I think once this shit hits the fan, you’re going to need all you can get. Will you cooperate with us?
Yes. You’ve been true to your word so far, and I don’t know why. But yes, you tell me what you want, and I’ll make sure I do it for you. Meadow asked her if she knew the combination to the safe in Peter’s basement. I do, but it’s a decoy. The only thing in it is a will that was his father’s and some kind of codebook. I read it before I started writing up his notes in the one that Becky took from him.
I’m sorry. What did you just say? She told her that since she’d been a child, she’d been putting things into the book that Peter told her to do. Are there any more of them? Books, I mean?
Yes. I have them. You can have them if you want. Anything to make sure that…do you think I’ll have to serve much in the way of jail time? I know it’s a given that I will serve some time, but the more I think about it, the more I think I’ve been manipulated. By a grown fucking gay man. Margie laughed. Not that I care who he fucks when we’re not together, but I’m finding I don’t think I have ever liked him. Much less loved him.
I’m glad to hear you say that, Margie. There might be hope for you yet. So long as you don’t fuck this up for yourself by backtracking your ass back to Peter and telling him what you’ve been up to. If you do, then whatever happens to you in prison will seem like a leisurely bath compared to what I will do to you. Margie started to tell her she’d never do that, but she also knew Peter knew her better than anyone. She asked Meadow if she’d be there to help her along. Yes. And that’s a good sign as far as I’m concerned. Knowing that you can be manipulated is going to be very helpful for you in the long run. I’ll help you as long as you do just what you’re told to do.
The two of them spoke throughout the night. She even got to talk to Joey for a little while. It was wonderful to hear her voice, she thought, and not hear the anger in it. Joey was going to come and see her tomorrow, but she wasn’t to tell anyone. That was fine with Margie. She really did want to see her sister.
After the connection or whatever it was closed up, she thought about the things she knew about her mom and wondered if that would help too. Perhaps, she thought, but only if it was something that was hurting Joey. She didn’t think it was just yet, but Margie decided to keep her ear to the ground where her mom was concerned. She’d have to have help with that, of course. Meadow had been so helpful with things that she thought for sure she’d be able to trust her with this thing. Closing her eyes, thankful that she was doing something productive for a change, Margie fell into a dreamless sleep.
Chapter 6
With so many ideas buzzing in her head, Joey almost didn’t want to leave the new building she was working in. Harvey was working the phones for her today so she could work, and Cybill had come in to help out with getting things organized for her on the upper levels. It was wonderful starting fresh, she thought. And having more room than she’d ever dreamed of having. Turning when she heard her door open, she ran to Pierce and hugged him several times before she could speak.
“Isn’t this wonderful? I have so much room I just don’t know where to start.” He let her drag him around the large building. “I even have a place to pack things up before I send them out. Look at this. Demi thought they’d be much nicer for people to receive if they were packaged up with tissue paper. Do you have any idea how long I’ve wanted to do that? And my mom? Well, she’s had to go in the house for a minute. It was just too much new for her.”
“This is perfect. I can see you working against that wall over there. I did wonder if you’d want to block out the windows or not. But I can see now how helpful that would be, as people would be wearing their new things in the sunlight.” He marveled with her at the nice cutting boards she had, even taking her to the area where she had lots of extras hanging. “Demi was asking me if I’d see about the dresses you designed. She said that she and Lucian have this thing, and she wanted to see if you had something she could wear. All you women are so tiny, I bet it makes it easy for you to swap things around.”
He was so sweet, and she loved him for it. Dancing around the building, she pointed out things to him she’d only just discovered. When they ended up in the main part of the building again, she finally sat down when he asked her to. She was so giddy she had to sit on her hands while he spoke.
“I’ve finally gotten around to looking for the stuff Alan sent to us. There is a lot of it that I think we need to talk about.” Joey asked him if it was bad. “None of it is bad. Just a great deal of cash, as well as property that will have to be dealt with. A lot. And Gaea gave us some old seeds I’m excited about planting.”
“How much is a lot? By the way, I did go to the bank and put my name on all your accounts. Well, I signed my name to them. You have to do the same to mine that have been set up for us to share.” He nodded, but she could tell he was very distracted. “Whatever it is, Pierce, you’ve already proven to me that we can make anything work so long as we’re together. Just tell me. We’ll deal with it together.”
“I called Alan. He was laughing so hard it was pissing me off. I asked him how he’d been able to give us this chest. After telling me how old he was and how long he’s been investing, I thought it was possible. So I called my brothers. We all have the same. Not that it would have mattered to any of us if one got more than the— Mom and Dad got a little more, I think, but that’s all right. And of course, Lucy did get some extra for her part in—”
“Just say it.” She was glad she was sitting down when he told her the number. “I’m sorry. Did you just tell me there is over a billion dollars in our house right now?”
“No.” She smiled at him, glad for the mistake on her part. “There is over eight billion in our house right now. Not including the gems he put in there, as well the fact that we own a great deal of land. Land in places that—”
She put her hand up to stop him. “Are you sure? I mean, did you count it?” He told her there was a note on top of each of their trunks breaking down what was in it. “He actually gave each of you eight billion dollars? Christ, what did he do, rob banks his entire life?”
“He told me he owned a couple of diamond mines. We own one of them, and Lucian owns the other. There are also other mines that the others own. They’re all high producing places too.” She asked if that meant there would be more. “Yes. Lots, I guess. But that’s not the point. What the hell are we going to do with that much money?”
“Spend it?” She shook her head and asked for a moment when he growled at her. “You’ve had more time to digest this, Pierce. I’m getting it all in one lump.” He told her he was sorry. “What do your parents think of this?” He said he wasn’t brave enough to ask them if they’d opened theirs yet. “Probably a good thing. I remember Cindy telling me how upset they were when Demi put money into their accounts when she came to be mated with Lucian. What on earth was he thinking? Do you think he had this just lying around his house all this time? I mean…well, not the property. That would be difficult to hide in a home, I guess.”
“You’re babbling.” She told him to fuck off. “Yes, that’s what I told Lucian when he started doing the same thing. Somethin
g about taxes on it would kill them. Putting them in a different tax bracket. I don’t think there is a tax bracket for this much money.”
“That’s more than likely why it’s all in cash.” He seemed to understand that as soon as she said it. “I mean, he wouldn’t have had to file a return. I think, from what I understand, Alan’s well over the age limit of having to do that. I’m babbling again. I just— Pierce, we could buy anything and everything we’ve ever thought of. Not that I want to do that. That would be like announcing to the world we’ve come into a windfall.” She giggled, then had to stop herself. “This is the strangest conversation I think I’ve ever had in all my life. What to do with too much money.”
She leaned back in the chair, wanting just a moment to change the subject. “My sister wants to see me. I’m going to go there tomorrow and see what she wants. Also, I’m to understand that Meadow has been speaking to her. Do you have any idea what she might have been talking to her about?” He said he wasn’t aware she had been. “I didn’t think you would be. When the officer spoke to me, I asked him what she might want, and he told me he thought Margie had been doing a lot of thinking. Soul searching, I guess. And that she’s made a few calls that have been recorded to Peter Hightower.”
“I can see Meadow having her do that. Perhaps to see just what sort of person he is. But as I said, I don’t know. Are you going alone? I can’t go tomorrow. We have to get the paperwork finished up today, so I can go into one of the buildings in Columbus and put in new cameras. They’re having a great deal of shortages.” She thought she’d ask Meadow to go with her. “You should take them all. Even if it’s a good meeting with Margie, they’d be willing to celebrate with you. If not, they’d be there to help you pick up the pieces.”
“What do you think of my mom going?” He stared at her for several seconds before asking her why she’d be worried. “I don’t know. I mean, she’s told me everything. I think. And I’ve been talking to Demi and Mel about the things going on with the video that surfaced. Blake whatshisname isn’t paying any more to Peter either, I’ve been told.”
“Do you think she’s lying to you about the thing?” She shook her head, as sure about that as she was anything. “Then I don’t see anything wrong with taking her if she wants to go. However, I’d ask Margie if she minds if she comes in to talk to her. If she really is doing some soul searching, as you think, you don’t want to hurt your chances of getting her to help you get Peter out of the picture for good, do you?”
“To be honest with you, I don’t know what to think. She’s been this person I don’t like for so long I find it hard to believe she would ever be able to change.” Pierce said he could understand that. “I’m going. I don’t have any problem with going to see what she wants, but I’m not sure what good it will do either of us.”
“Then you shouldn’t go.” Joey asked him why not. “Because you’ve already decided whatever she has to say to you isn’t going to matter, right? If you don’t want to go and have an open mind, too, then there isn’t any point in you going to hear what she might have to say. For all you know, it could be that she doesn’t want to see you again. And with the way you’re thinking, that would be all right with you. However, if she wants, after all this time, to make amends, then I’d say going there with a closed mind will do neither of you any good. But that’s just me. About this money. I think we should perhaps just leave it where it is for now and use it when something comes up we want to be a part of. I don’t know what that would be, but it would be nice to have in the event an emergency comes up.”
“What sort of emergency do you figure is going to cost eight billion dollars?” They were both laughing when he left her there to get to work, and she sat in her chair thinking about what he’d said to her. “I hate it when he’s right.”
It was nearly one when Cybill said she was going to the bakery. The kid was working hard here—she wondered how she wasn’t exhausted before going to her other job. But it was nice having someone helping her. There wasn’t any way she’d be able to get this up and running all on her own. Having the help was nice.
Harvey joined her for a late lunch. She’d ordered sandwiches from the Gathering Place.
“There are any number of people wanting to know if you’re going to be hiring. I’ve been telling them that for now, you’re just setting the place up. I’m to understand you’re going to be working with two other businesses in town in opening up a shipping store. That would be just the ticket, I’m thinking. Getting things sent out in a timely manner would be making you some happy customers.” They talked about the pretty way things were going to be shipped out. “I like that idea. When my missus used to order things from a couple of places, she’d get so frustrated with them when they’d just jammed something in a box and slapped a label on it. She’d tell me it would only take a couple of minutes for someone to put a pretty bow on the product or even to put in a nice little thank you card. She didn’t even mind that it was manufactured. She just liked the thought that went into putting it together.”
“Mel said that putting a coupon code in the box wasn’t all that good either. People would want coupons before they ordered. I’m not sure how I can make that work just now, but I’m thinking on it. She’s right, however. I don’t know how many of those things I put up to use later and would either forget where I stuck them, or they’d be expired when I went to use them.”
Harvey had a lot of good ideas to go along with shipping. His wife must have loved online shopping. “No, not so much online, but there used to be a lot of those television shows that would sell stuff to the public. She’d get on there once in a while and talk to the host doing the show. Some of the things she got made really nice gifts when we needed one in a hurry. Other times they’d just sit in the corner and draw up some dust bunnies.” He laughed a little, and it sounded so sad to her. “When she passed on, I found boxes of things she’d ordered that hadn’t been taken out of the box yet. She had it in her head, I guess, who it was to go to. There were little post-it notes all over things. I gave away those that I could and donated the rest of it. She was a good woman, my Milly. Didn’t spend too much, but she sure did like to give things away. I think she made herself a good bit of friends by doing that. Sure did make her happy.”
“That’s all that mattered to you, isn’t it, Harvey?” He nodded as he gathered up the papers his sandwich had come in. “Harvey, I have a question for you.”
After telling him what Pierce had said about Margie and for Joey to have an open mind, Harvey stayed seated as he seemed to be thinking on what she’d asked him. If she was going in there closed minded or not.
“You already know the answer, don’t you?” She didn’t want to admit she did but did tell him she was afraid Pierce was right. “There you go. You’ve admitted you’re afraid you’re going to close off your mind. So why subject yourself to all her negativity?” He stood up. “But, what if you’re wrong on all this? What if, after spending some time in a jail cell—which ain’t no place for a lady, I don’t think—she has had some time to think things over? What would you do right now if you knew if you didn’t go see her, she’d be dead tomorrow? All these things here, those are things you have to think about when you talk to a loved one. Because I’m betting no matter how dirty she treated you, you still love your sister.”
Joey watched his struggle with telling her that. As she watched tears roll down his weathered cheeks, something occurred to her about this man. He was hurting. Hurting deeply into his heart that very few ever knew about.
“I do. Your wife, Milly—you had a fight before she passed, didn’t you?” He nodded. “She loved you too, Harvey. No matter the spats that you might have had, I’m betting she not only forgot about how upset she was with you but that she also kissed you on the forehead and told you how much she loved you.”
He had a small burst of laughter before nodding. “She did at that. But with a little pop to the ba
ck of the head too. She didn’t want me to think I’d gotten too much by her.” He laughed a little longer this time like he’d forgotten how to laugh. “She was a pistol, my Milly. You’re like her, so you know. That’s why I wanted to work with you here. I have nothing back home to hold me there but some memories. Good ones, but too many for an old man like me to be around all the time. I like it here too. I got me a few friends that I have something to eat with in the morning. A good meal to take home with me. Milly, she’d be fussing at me about having food brought in, but she’d not mind too much knowing I’m having a good meal. Yes, sir. You’re a good deal like her.” He started to leave, then turned back to her. “If you don’t go and see her, Joey, you’re going to kick your bottom for a long time. What does it take for you to mosey on over there, have a talk with her, and come home? For all you know, it could be the best thing that ever happened to either of you. It certainly can’t hurt.”
She was going to do it. And in some way, she hoped, make some kind of headway into learning more about Margie. They were sisters. Not close, but sisters. Surely, after all this time, she could get to know something about her. Something good. Tomorrow morning she was going to do it, damn it. And she was going to make sure Margie didn’t need anything.
~*~
Peter didn’t know what to think about Margie and her calling him all the time. Damn it, did she think he didn’t have anything to do but to talk to her about coming down there to bail her out? He liked her there for the sole reason that he didn’t have to perform sexually for her. It had been getting harder and harder for him to even think about seeing her naked in front of him, she was so revolting to him. Not her, he supposed, but the things she’d require of him. Fucking her had become something of a nightmare.
Pierce: McCray Bruin Bear Shifter Romance Page 9