Chapter 3 #3
“Are you going to eventually tell the people you work with?” Wes asked.
Gunner shrugged. “Not on purpose, although I suspect they’ll figure it out later. I don’t intend to become their bank and money lender. I’m not looking forward to the big reveal. I don’t like turmoil in my personal life.”
“Understood,” Wes said as Gunner moved into the lane on the right and took the exit ramp off the bypass and onto Stemmons, straight to the Dallas Claims Center.
A few minutes later, they were in the claims office. After a brief explanation of their visit and a quiet round of congratulations, Gunner and Wes were escorted into the boss’s office. The winning ticket was presented, verified, and the paperwork began.
* * *
It took a bit less than two hours to complete the change to Gunner Kingston’s life. He and Wes left the claims office as calmly as they’d entered, and then Gunner returned Wes to his office.
“I’ll message you with specific details regarding the change in my will,” Gunner said.
“And I’ll send you the details to the best financial planner in Dallas, although you won’t really need him until the payout shows up in your account,” Wes said. “In the meantime, what’s next?”
“Back to the case my partner and I are working on,” Gunner said.
“Are you going to tell your partner?” Wes asked.
Gunner didn’t hesitate. “No.”
“Really? Why not?” Wes asked.
“Long story. He gambles. He already owes me more money than he will ever repay. I’ve already cut him off, but he’ll see me now as his personal piggy bank, and…I don’t entirely trust him anymore.”
After that, the conversation ended until Gunner pulled up in front of Wes’s office building again.
“I really appreciate that you rearranged your schedule for me this morning. Don’t forget to bill me for the time,” Gunner said.
Wes grinned. “I’ll add it to the charges for reworking your will. Take care of yourself. I’m wishing you a long and happy life, and that you loosen up and spend a little of your fortune along the way.”
Gunner reached out and shook his lawyer’s hand. “Thanks. I’ll be in touch.”
Wes was headed for the entrance when Gunner took off like he’d been shot out of a cannon, tires squealing as he left a little bit of rubber behind. Wes shook his head and watched until the sports car slipped into the traffic flow and disappeared, and thought how aptly that man had been named.
* * *
Gunner went straight home, got out the copy of his will, and read it through before deciding how he wanted it reworded, then emailed his notes to Wes.
Only after he’d done his due diligence did he grab a cold pop from his fridge and go outside on his patio.
He sat down in the shade and kicked back in one of the Adirondack chairs before he popped the top on his drink.
It was still fizzing when he lifted it in a toast to himself.
“Gunner Kingston, you are one lucky son of a bitch,” he muttered and took a big drink.
He knew his dad and both brothers would be at work, so he sent a group text to all three of them with a single cryptic message.
We need a family meeting. Make yourselves available for a 10:00 p.m. call tonight. Highly confidential.
* * *
Asher Kingston was in Austin on a stakeout when he got his youngest brother’s text. He frowned when he read it and wondered what fresh hell he’d gotten himself into now, but he made a mental note to be available when the time came.
Dylan Kingston was at a job site, waiting for a city inspector to pass judgement on the electrical and plumbing work so they could begin putting up sheetrock. When he saw Gunner’s text, like Asher, his first instinct was to wonder what kind of trouble his little brother was in now.
Jacob Kingston was behind his bar, hooking up a fresh keg of beer to the tap when he heard his phone signal a text. He finished what he was doing, then wiped his hand and picked up his phone.
He read the text with interest, wondering what Gunner had to say. Maybe he’d finally met a girl. Maybe he was getting a promotion. And there was always the possibility that he was up to his eyeballs in a mess not of his own creation, but not once did Jacob ever doubt his sons’ honor or honesty.
Now he was curious, and more than a little anxious about the call. Tonight, he was closing the Tumbleweed Bar a little early and hoping for good news.
* * *
With the business of becoming shockingly rich out of the way, Gunner drove to his dealership to get his car serviced.
He was sitting in the waiting area of the showroom while the maintenance crew was rotating his tires and changing the oil.
Waiting with nothing to do was pure torture for him, so he’d brought his laptop with him to continue gathering background on the case of the hanging man.
After learning there was a hefty payout from a life insurance policy belonging to the deceased, Barry Caldwell, and that his twin brother, Perry, was the recipient, he began digging into the living twin’s background.
Perry was gay and living with his partner of seven years, Ron Ames, but witnesses they’d spoken to were clear about how close the two brothers were, and that they were in business together.
What he did find interesting was the amount of debt that Ron Ames held.
He made a note to tell Cliff they needed to find out if Perry Caldwell knew his partner Ron was in financial trouble and see if that went anywhere, so he made notes to that effect to share with Cliff.
As he kept working, a bright light flashed through the plate-glass windows and into his eyes, causing him to look up, and he was surprised to see Cliff’s car pulling up to the curb across the street.
Curious, he closed his laptop and leaned forward, watching as Cliff got out and took a nervous glance around before slipping into the passenger seat of the car beside him.
Gunner was already suspicious of Cliff since that night in the warehouse, so he wrote down the tag number of the other car, curious about who Cliff was meeting. The car door opened. As Cliff got out, he slipped an envelope inside the inner pocket of his jacket, then got in his car and drove away.
At that moment, the skin crawled on Gunner’s neck.
If he’d been on a stakeout, he would have sworn he’d just witnessed some kind of payoff.
But he also knew Cliff was a notorious gambler, and that might have just been a payoff from a bookie.
The hard part for Gunner was the feeling that there was a dirty cop somewhere in Homicide, but he wasn’t at the point of placing blame.
He leaned back in the chair, stretching his long legs out before him as he began thinking of tonight’s phone call with the family.
He could only imagine what they must be thinking.
His brothers would think he was in trouble, and his dad would probably be hoping it would be news related to him finally settling down.
Being the only unmarried brother in his family meant he was the stooge for all of the single jokes and blind date suggestions.
At that point, his thoughts went straight to Holly Dillon.
Of all the people to run into. Having lunch with her had been an impulse, but it left him wanting to know more about her.
The skinny little redhead with the oversize baseball cap constantly blowing off her head had grown up to be a knockout.
He knew she’d be at work now. Maybe tonight after office hours he would give her a call and see if she was free to go out this coming weekend.
About an hour later, his car was ready to go.
The toast he’d eaten this morning was long gone, and he’d already missed lunch, but he hated eating in public alone, so he made his usual choice.
It was either food to go or food ordered in.
And today, it was barbeque to go from the Texas Smokehouse, which he picked up on his way home.
Today, the quiet of his house and the food going in his stomach was the solace he needed. In a couple of hours, Holly should be off work, so he occupied his time with doing laundry. The house cleaners would be here tomorrow, but he’d be at work, and they wouldn’t have to clean around him.
Despite his best intentions, it was after 8:00 p.m. before he sat down to call her. The phone rang enough times that he thought it was going to voicemail when he heard her answer.
“Gunner? Is this you?”
The quaver in her voice let him know something was amiss. “Yes, it’s me. If you are ill, or this is a bad time, I can call at a later date.”
“I’m at home, on the ranch. Mom was killed in a wreck yesterday. It’s absolute chaos here. We’re all between lost and losing our minds.”
Shocked, Gunner’s empathy was instantaneous. “My God, Holly! Honey, I’m so sorry. You have my deepest sympathy. Losing your mother at any age is devastating. Please give your dad and Travis my condolences. I won’t bother you further and…”
“No, wait. Don’t hang up. It’s good to hear your voice.
Talk to me about something you’ve been doing.
Oh, wait… You can’t talk about cases. So, tell me what’s going on in Big D that I might need to know about.
I heard on the news that somebody in Dallas finally won that huge Mega Millions jackpot last night. ”
Gunner took a deep breath. He didn’t want to lie, but he wasn’t ready to reveal it to the world.
“I know it happened, but no identification has been issued. I’ve just been chasing bad guys and keeping myself out of trouble,” he said.
“I don’t know how long you plan to stay, but I’m going to be heading to Crossroads soon for a quick visit with Dad and Pearl.
If you’re still at the ranch, maybe we could grab a meal at the Rose.
Pearl and Dad are together at his place now, but she’s still running the café.
It wouldn’t be the Yellow Rose without Pearl in the kitchen, right? ”
Holly sighed. “I would love that. I know this madness will fade and we will find our own levels of peace, but right now it’s all just so awful.”
“It couldn’t be anything else,” he said. “Of course, I’ll let you know my arrival date, and if you’re still in the area, we’ll make that happen. Again, honey, I’m so sorry.”
Tears thickened the words, making them hard to get said. “So am I, Gunner. God, so am I. Thank you for calling, and for not forgetting about me.”
“I already told you that’s not likely to happen. Feel free to call me any time you need to vent. I’m a good listener and a safe place to fall.”
The call disconnected in Holly’s ear. She was grateful that he actually called her, and for the honest empathy she’d heard in his voice.
And then she thought of the Kingston family history, and how young those three boys had been when their mother took her own life.
That was a whole other kind of tragedy. But all she kept thinking was that Gunner Kingston had kept his word and called her back.
Her eyes welled again. “Oh, Mom, how did this happen? I wish you were here to talk to. There’s no one left to share my dreams with now.”