Chapter 16
“Hold up!”Jake had to repeat his words several times, and it was RJ that whistled to get their attention. “I am aware of the situation, and that is why we are here.”
“Just who are you?” Pru asked. “I know you’re Jake, and you’ve helped us out a couple of times, but who exactly are you?”
“I’m Jake Cogburn and I operate the Colorado, specifically the Fool’s Gold branch of Brotherhood Protectors. The Brotherhood is the brain child of Hank Patterson. He owns all the branches. The first and main one he started is over in the Crazy Mountains in Montana.”
“I know where that is,” Naomi said. “I’ve driven through there a few times on my way to rodeo events.”
“Where are the other branches?” Clark asked.
“As I said, the main one is in the Crazy Mountains of Montana, I operate this branch here in Fool’s Gold, and there’s a branch over in Yellowstone, one down in Louisiana, and there’s a new one that opened over in Hawaii.”
“Who works there?” Pru scowled at him.
“All former military people. We are called in to protect people from their enemies. In this case, Naomi. However, we are going to be doing something different this time.”
“Why?” Reid asked. “How different?”
“All of you men are former SEALs, correct?”
“Yes, we’re all teammates and Clark was our leader.”
“Good, and you all work here on the Riceman ranch.” This time it was Stone who spoke for the first time. “I was here when the Firths tried to take you guys out. I know how you operate. I’m former military also. After going over the information Naomi has yet to share with you, Jake and I came up with a plan. We are going to reach out to Hank and see if he can help us. However, we have a few questions first.”
“Stone’s getting ahead of himself,” Jake said as he smiled at the other man. At Stone’s scowl, he nodded and pointed around the table. “They don’t know what we know.”
“Ah, sorry about that.” He looked at Naomi and nodded. “Go ahead.”
Naomi opened the file and as soon as she pulled out the flash drive, Jake demanded what it was. She explained and sat back to watch the expressions on the others’ faces as they watched the video. She had to tell them to wait, and that was when the rest of the video appeared, with the racing and times. It turned out they watched it three times before they looked at her.
Detective May was the first to speak. “I’d like a copy of that.”
“Not a problem,” Clark said, then turned the computer back and brought up the photo of Benson Alcott and turned it to him. “I don’t know if you guys want to snap a copy of this with your phones, but you’re going to want to have this handy.”
“Why? Who is it?” Pru asked as she pulled her phone and snapped it. The others quickly followed, as did Jake and the people that came with him.
“This is Naomi’s father. Benson Alcott.” He sat back down, and in the wake of shock his statement left, he and Naomi continued going through all the papers Patrick Clemmons had given them earlier in the week.
“Holy shit!” Pru shook her head in confusion. She turned wide eyes toward Naomi. “Your own father has a life insurance policy out on you?”
“Yes, and a very close friend of mine growing up gave me this information. Until I saw him earlier this week, I had suspected he had something to do with hurting Princess. As you saw on the video, it was my father and the woman he was with. Clem also told me that the woman isn’t my father’s girlfriend. It’s the loan shark’s girlfriend. Clem also said that from the life insurance Benson got from Princess, he turned half of it over to this bad guy. I have no clue who he is, and what hold he has over my father.” Naomi rubbed her head and looked directly at Detective May. “There might be a problem.”
“What’s that?”
Naomi pulled a different set of papers from a different folder and passed them across the table. “Those are the papers from when I bought Princess. That horse was mine, everything, the bill of sale, and the insurance policy was in my name. I even included a copy of the check I had written, and the bank account where it was cashed. The second set of papers I gave you are a copy of what Benson did. Look at the dates, and the names of the insurance company. I never got paid for the death of Princess, but Benson was able to collect money on her.”
“And,” Sparrow spoke then as she passed him another set of papers. “The horse autopsy showed the drug Xylazine in the horse’s system.”
“Shit,” Detective May said as he looked at everything present around him. He looked up and sliced his gaze between Jake and Naomi. “I’m going to want copies of everything you have.” He jerked his head back, then scowled at Naomi.
“Do you trust this Clemmons?”
“Yes.”
“He’s clean,” Jake said, and passed the other man a file, and Naomi felt a weight lift off her chest at those two words. She had known deep in her heart that he was a good man, but hearing Jake confirm it, allowed her to breathe easier for the first time in years.
“Where is he?”
“He left the area in case someone was following him. After he made contact with Ms. Alcott, he wanted to get away to keep her safe.”
“Smart. Do you have any contact information on him in case I want to reach out to him?”
“It’s in the file.”
“Thanks.”
“Okay,” Stone said. “I have a couple of questions. I read the file and it says that the Double A ranch is in your name. Why aren’t you there?”
“One, I had forgotten all about the ranch being in my name. I had filled out a power of attorney to have Cole run the ranch in my absence while I was out on the rodeo circuit. After the accident, Dad saw me come home from the hospital and things got ugly. I mean really, really ugly. It was so bad the local police were called. I’m sure there’s a report somewhere. Dad, Benson, was arrested, and the police suggested if I could for me to disappear. I had heard about Erin and Broken, so I contacted her. I packed a bag and Clem took me over to Idaho for me to get my head on straight before I set things in motion for changing my life. When I was ready, I came here.”
“Okay, who is the ranch foreman? And where is the ranch located?”
“Cole Mercury, and the Double A is over in Cody, Wyoming.”
“Did you investigate Mercury?” May asked Jake.
“Not yet, we didn’t know his name. To keep things close to our vest, I’m going to reach out to Hank and see if he can’t send one of his guys down to check things out. Maybe hire on as a ranch hand to see if he can gather information.” Stone looked over at Naomi and cocked his head to one side. “Is there anything that we might need to know to help us?”
“Don’t trust Benson at all. I didn’t tell you about him when I talked about my grandparents. Benson Alcott might have donated the sperm to start me, but he never, not once acknowledged me as a daughter. He’s narcissistic, privileged, entitled, and an overall asshole. Oh, and he likes the tracks.”
“What type of tracks?” Jake asked as he took notes. Naomi noted that Detective May was also writing furiously in his little notebook.
“Horse race tracks. If he’s not on the ranch, he’s there because the Double A are known for their racehorses. They’re not big on the circuit, and they won’t be triple crown winners, but our horses do some good on the local tracks. Last I knew, Benson had an owner’s box there, and he liked to flaunt it.”
“Maybe that’s where he came into contact with this loan shark,” Pru said as she looked up from the papers she’d been reading.
“Something to look into. Like I said,” Jake said as he shook his head and sighed heavily, I’m going to call Hank in on this. Maybe if he doesn’t have anyone, maybe someone from the Yellowstone branch can investigate. What can you tell us about Cole Mercury?”
“He’s a good guy, at least I always thought so. Whenever I asked him anything, he was truthful. One thing you probably should know is that Grandpa set up his salary through his will. I don’t know who handles it, but Cole gets paid that way. I haven’t seen him or Clem since I left Double A five years ago.”
“Thank you for what you’ve given us so far.” Jake looked around the table and nodded to the men. “I trust you to keep her safe here?”
“Yes,” they all said, and it was Clark that spoke next.
“Don’t forget, Naomi has a doctor’s appointment Monday night. I will be with her, but would feel better if one of your guys could be in the area.”
“I can do that.” Jake agreed.
“So can I,” Detective May said. He reached into his pocket and pulled out several business cards to hand around. “Let me know when Naomi will be in town. My direct line is on the back.” He flipped several pages on his pad of paper and ripped one of them off. “Could I get your names and numbers so I don’t ignore your call? I’d hate for something to happen to Ms. Alcott if I didn’t know who was calling.”
They agreed, and it started with Erin, who wrote her name and not only her cell number, but also the house number at Erin’s Way. When it came to Naomi, she did the same, and gave the office number of Broken. When he received the paper back, he shook his head. “I don’t mean to sound stupid, but what’s the difference between Erin’s Way, and Broken? What is Broken anyway.”
Erin laughed and explained about the two ranches, and when she was done they could tell May was impressed.
“Does Broken have its own entrance?”
“Not yet, I’m waiting until the spring to start it.”
“Okay, I know I have no right to tell you how to run your business, but can we hold off until we catch these guys?”
“Sure, but you’re going to have your work cut out for you, because we have absolutely no fucking idea who we’re looking for. I have Benson Alcott’s photo, but I don’t know anyone else.”
“I don’t have any pictures of Clem or Cole,” Naomi said. “When I left the Double A, I had only two suitcases with me, and they had my important papers and clothes.” She pointed to the papers before the Detective. “Besides my birth certificate, I grabbed the file for Princess.” At their confused looks, she sighed. “My horse that was drugged.”
Ten minutes after that statement, Jake and his crew left, saying he would get back to them if he learned anything. Once their guests left, Clark went around and refilled everyone’s coffee cup and settled back next to Naomi.
“What now?” Pru asked.
“Now we plan,” Clark said, and the men and women all straightened in their chairs, and the entire mood surrounding them just got serious. Naomi exchanged shocked looks with Erin, and both their expressions said the same thing. They just witnessed what it was like to plan a military mission.
At one point Clark turned to Naomi, and asked. “Are you okay with this?”
She shook her head in confusion. “I have no idea what you guys just discussed. I’m not saying I’m stupid, but can you dumb it down for me?”
“Sure. We all agreed that while you’re on Riceman property, you’re safe. Reid and the guys will get with the other employees of Erin’s Way and have them be on the look-out for any new people, or suspicious characters coming to the ranch.”
“Okay, I can live with that. What happens when I’m not on the ranch?”
“Someone, most likely, me, will be with you at all times. I will call Jake and Detective May ahead of time to tell them our plans. I will be telling them what our destination is, and what time we are to be there, but also what time I expect to arrive.”
“Will you tell them the route you’re taking?” Pru asked, and Clark looked at her in shock.
“Yes, but I don’t know if that’ll work if we’re being followed.”
“Why not?” both Erin and Naomi asked.
“Because there’s only one road from here to town. I sure as hell refuse to drive my truck over the fields to get to another road. One, it’ll take too long, two, with the rain and snow, there will be some places that will be mud pits.” He scowled when his sister and the three older gentlemen began howling with laughter, causing the others sitting around the table to look on in confusion. It was Wendel that recovered first.
“When Clark was younger, he was grounded. I forget how old he was, and what he was grounded for, but he wasn’t allowed to go to a school dance. He took a ranch truck and drove over the fields he just mentioned to get to the school for the dance. He never made it.”
“Why not?” Naomi asked.
“First, I was fourteen, and I didn’t want the girl I asked to save me a dance to think I stood her up. Part of my punishment was that I had my cell phone taken away, and I wasn’t allowed to use the house phone. The farm truck Wendel mentioned was like the truck we use for feed pick-ups. I didn’t know it at that time, but the transmission was slipping, and Dad had parked it in one of the barns on the outside of the ranch so he could work on it. Those were the barns we used as a garage and it didn’t matter how long the project took because it kept the mess away from the everyday workings of the ranch.”
“Okay, but why didn’t you make it?”
Clark shook his head and remembered what happened, when he looked up, his eyes glowed with laughter. “I miscalculated a mud puddle. It turned out to be a sink hole and I sank to the axles. After about five minutes of trying to rock it back and forth, not only did I go deeper, but the transmission finally shit the bed. I was covered in mud by the time I realized what had happened, and I had to walk all the way home.”
Erin laughed and took up the tale. “He came strolling in the barnyard just as Mom and Dad were going to the barn for the morning chores. After he told Dad what he’d done, Clark actually sat down and cried.”
“No.” Naomi looked at him in shock.
“I kid you not.”
“Did you father beat your ass?” Opal asked.
“No, he told me that I got it stuck, it was my responsibility to figure out how to get it unstuck. That’s all he said.”
“The funny part was…” Virgil chuckled as he shook his head at the younger man. “Clark never asked anyone for help.”
“Why not?”
“It never occurred to me. I thought Dad had said that I had to get it out myself. It wasn’t until three days later when I got it home that Dad repeated what he said. That it was my responsibility to figure out how to get the truck home. He never told me I couldn’t ask anyone for help.”
“What about the girl?” Adele asked with a grin.
“The dance I wanted to go to was on a Friday night. After that we were off for the next two weeks for Spring break. She was a townie, and I was a rancher, not that there’s anything wrong with either thing, but I was grounded, didn’t have a license, wasn’t allowed to use the phone for personal reasons, and couldn’t get into town at the drop of a hat. She broke my heart by hooking up with my best friend.”
“Oh my god,” Erin cried out and leaned forward quickly.
“What.”
“Correct me if I’m wrong, but wasn’t that Tessie? Tessie Gilbert?”
“It was.”
Erin turned to Naomi. “I believe that’s your doctor that you have to see on Monday. What is her name?”
“Dr. Tessa Hillard.”
“Yep, probably the same.”
“Damn, they’re married? The last time I saw them, I was heading to the Navy, and they were going to different colleges. Him for a law degree, and she was going for pre-med. Is Jared a lawyer?”
“No, he’s a judge.”
“Damn.”
“Do you still have feelings for her?”
“Naw, once I saw them together, I knew they were right for each other. After that, the three of us were together all the time. I never did ask another girl out, at least not seriously. When I asked someone to either one of my proms, I told them it was for that night only, no relationship would be formed from that one date.” He shook his head, then turned fully to Naomi. “I told them from the get-go that I was going to be a Navy SEAL, and I didn’t want any relationship to mess up my chances. I don’t know whether it was right of me or not, but I asked out girls that wouldn’t normally be asked by the popular boys.”
“I don’t understand.”
“I was a jock, and the president of my class since the eighth grade. I was also the caption of every team sport I played. Soccer, football, basketball, baseball. Jared, my best friend and the boy who got the girl, was always co-captain, he and Tessie were a couple since we were fourteen. The women I asked were the smart kids that cared more for their education than their popularity. The other jocks would mock them behind their backs.”
“Wow, that was nice of you.”
“Yeah, Clarkie was a good guy back then. He’s probably still a good guy, but it’s been years since I’ve seen him.” Erin laughed when her brother stuck his tongue out at her. They ended up spending a few more hours at Naomi’s, and even brought out the left-overs from their lunch to warm up for supper. Around eight that night, they all left, except for Clark. He only stayed for another thirty minutes to make sure all the chairs had been taken care of and she was comfortable. When he left, he again bent down, took her chin in his fingers, and lifted her face for his kiss. It was over before it began, and left Naomi wanting more.