Chapter 19
19
The lawyer’s address was a post office box in Gatlinburg. He had a website and a chatbox, but no phone number.
Great.
“I can’t believe that Principal Sykes would go to these kind of lengths to get me to stop the suit. I’ve got to call Sue. I mean, is her job on the line or something?”
I looked at Kai who was still looking at the letter, while I was holding my tablet and trying to google any information I could find on this lawyer or any dirt I could dig up on Loretta Sykes.
“I’m not sure this is related to the guys who ran you off the road,” Kai said quietly.
“What do you mean?”
“Why would someone go from trying to kill you, then go to trying to harass you? That makes no sense.”
He was right.
“Then who is doing this to me?”
“Maybe this isn’t about you. Maybe it’s about the house. Maybe somebody’s out to steal it from under Beau, because they know he hasn’t lived here for so long.”
“Only people here in Jasper Creek would know that. I can’t imagine somebody from here trying to do that, can you?”
Kai shook his head. “I say it’s time to call the sheriff. This whole thing stinks to high heaven.”
“I’m not leaving here until Beau tells me to,” I told Kai.
“Thatta girl.”
He wrapped one arm around my neck and pulled me in for a kiss. Suddenly I could care less if we went to visit the sheriff.
“I had Lacy call the county courthouse,” Nash said. I could see by the look on his face, I wasn’t going to like what he was going to say next. “This is legal. According to what’s on file, someone provided the deed to the house, and it was in their name. They made it clear that they did not give permission for anybody but himself to be living there.”
“Do I even have to ask who he was?” I was getting a bad feeling.
“Arthur Beaumont,” Nash said reluctantly.
“And where is Arthur Beaumont?” I asked as my blood pressure skyrocketed.
“Now Kai, we need to handle this by the book. You know and I know that this can’t be legal. That asshole ran out of here almost fifteen years ago. He left your Mama to pay on that mortgage. There is no way that house is his.” Nash’s soothing voice grated like sandpaper.
“Where is my father?” I asked for the second time. Nash must have realized I wasn’t fucking around.
“We don’t know. Per the county clerk, the only time they can get ahold of the attorney is when he has a court appearance, otherwise he’s in the wind.”
“That can’t be right,” Marlowe said. “He has to get new clients some way. And if the judge really needs to get ahold of him, he’d have to be available. The county clerk is wrong.”
Marlowe was making sense.
“You’re right, but so far, she’s the only one I’ve talked to,” Nash admitted. “Look, I’ve got two guys out with the flu for the third day in a row. I’m swamped.
“I’ve got you,” I said. I plucked the letter out of Nash’s hands. “We’ll work this out.”
“What are you going to do, Kai?” he asked.
“We’ll keep you informed.”
As soon as we stepped out onto the sidewalk, I could see that Marlowe was antsy. “What is it, Sweetheart?” I asked.
“I really need to get this food to Chaos, and I’d really like to spend some time with her.”
I realized the antsyness was probably rooted in anxiety over the house, and nothing soothed Marlowe’s anxiety like spending time with Chaos. “Okay, let me drop you off.”
“Where are you going?” she asked as she climbed into my truck.
“I’m going to check in with a new friend,” I said as I started the engine. “I’ll let you know if anything pans out.”
Onyx Security wasn’t in the middle of town like the rest of the businesses. Somebody must have decided that Jasper Creek and Gatlinburg needed office space between the two cities and built some back in the early 2000s, then came the crash and they were stuck with unrentable space. Simon was probably their first tenant.
When I pulled up I saw that there was only one small sign on one of the doors, and it read Onyx Security. I let myself in. An older woman was manning the desk. She looked all-business.
“Can I help you?”
“I’m wondering if Simon Clark is available. My name is Kai Davies.”
“He’s working on a hot project at the moment, but I’ll see if he has time to see you.” She stood up and went down a hallway. Something told me that’s what she always said to anybody who didn’t have an appointment. Two minutes later she reappeared.
“They can see you now.”
“They?”
“Simon Clark and Roan Thatcher. They head up Onyx Security,” she said proudly.
I wondered if that meant they were the only two employees besides her. When she ushered me down the hall, I was happy to see they weren’t living in the lap of luxury. That meant they were saving their pennies on important stuff, like guns, ammunition and surveillance equipment.
I sat down in the small office. Simon gave me a nod and the other man smiled at me.
Simon looked irritated. “I told you I’d give you anything as soon as I had it. I don’t have anything yet.”
“I’ve got something new.”
Suddenly Simon didn’t look nearly as irritated.
“Don’t mind him, he hasn’t had his fourth cup of coffee today.” The man seated across from Simon stood up. “I’m Roan Thatcher. I work with this grumpy old man. It’s nice to meet you, Kai. What branch of the service did you work in?”
“Army.”
Roan didn’t say anything. He crossed his arms and waited.
“Delta,” I finally muttered.
“Was that really so hard?” Roan asked.
“Since we’re in the share circle, what units did you work in?”
“I was a Navy SEAL Commander,” Simon admitted.
“Marine Raider,” Roan said proudly.
I filed that little nugget away. It would be interesting to know if he and my brother ever served together.
“So what do you have for us?” Simon asked. He was not a patient man.
I threw the letter on his desk. “That.”
Simon took the letter out of the envelope and quickly scanned it, then passed it over to Roan who did the same thing. Simon was now looking at the envelope. He looked up at me.
“What have you found out so far?”
“According to Nash, it’s legit. He said it’s been processed through the Sevier County courthouse. His contact is a clerk by the name of Lacy. He’s had two guys out with the flu for three days and he doesn’t have the manpower to check this out. Marlowe and I have gotten only so far. I want to hire you.”
“You’ve found out more than that, haven’t you?” Simon wanted to know.
“I found out the attorney on the return address has a website, but only has that PO box. He doesn’t have a phone number, only a chatbox on his site.”
“The court has to have a way to get ahold of him,” Roan pointed out.
I held back a sarcastic response. “Agreed.”
Simon tapped the envelope. “We’ll take it from here.”
“I haven’t gotten to the good part yet.”
Simon raised his eyebrows.
“According to the county clerk, a guy by the name of Arthur Beaumont said that he has the deed to the house, and he hasn’t authorized anybody to be living at his residence. That’s the reason he filed for an Unconditional Quit Notice.”
“Fuck. Is that who I think it is?” Roan asked.
“Yep, that would be my dad. Or my dad’s original name, Arthur Beaumont. I don’t know how he has the deed to the house, but he just up and left my mother and Grady almost twenty years ago. He hasn’t paid a dime on that house. How in the hell he figures he owns that house, is beyond me. Not only do I want that attorney found, I want my fucking father found. And when you know where he is, I want in on the takedown. Are we clear?”
By that time I was looking straight at Simon.
“Crystal clear. I don’t blame you one damn bit. I’m sure we’ll find your dad through the attorney. Give us a day.”
I nodded and got up from my seat. “This is still second priority. First priority is Marlowe’s welfare. Let me know if you find out anything about who is behind running her off the road.”
“We need to talk to her about the state senator,” Roan said.
“I’m on it,” I bit out. “She doesn’t need to talk to anyone else today. She’s over at the vet, making sure her dog is okay.”
“Understood.” Simon stood up and leaned across his desk to shake my hand. Roan held out his hand as well.
“Expect to hear from us no later than tomorrow,” Simon called out as I was leaving his office.
“I’ll hold you to it.”