Chapter 15
Chapter
Fifteen
Sawyer locked up his office at four-fifteen and drove to Bill Packman’s place.
It had been a good couple of weeks for him professionally.
He had gained several new clients and been to court twice.
Most of the law he practiced now was family law, dealing with things related to a family and domestic issues.
He handled the creation of things such as wills, pre-nups, adoptions, and child custody issues.
He hadn’t found any paperwork in Isaiah Smith’s files regarding Bill Packman.
He had met Bill several months ago at Dizzy’s diner.
They were both eating alone and sitting at tables next to one another, so Sawyer had invited Bill to join him.
They gray-headed older man was full of interesting stories, including several about his wildcatting days in oil.
He had seen Bill a few other places around town, usually at lunch, and had always taken a moment to speak with him.
Sawyer supposed today’s meeting was to discuss writing a will.
It had surprised him when Bill asked if they could meet at his house instead of Sawyer’s office, but he didn’t mind making a house call. Bill lived only a few blocks from the house Sawyer was now renting, so he would be even closer to home.
And Paisley.
He was glad she had appreciated his gesture of sending flowers to her on her first day of school.
He hadn’t been sure if it would go over well with her or not.
Although they were seeing each other exclusively, he still felt she was a bit tentative about their relationship.
The fact that she had referred to herself on the phone as his girlfriend had bolstered his spirits, though.
Once he arrived at Bill’s house, he noted it was a modest brick with a neatly manicured lawn and lush flower beds. Bill was standing in front of one of the flower beds, a hose in his hand as he hand-watered marigolds and zinnias.
Sawyer climbed from his car and called a greeting.
“Just giving my babies an extra drink,” Bill said genially as Sawyer approached. “Let’s go inside and have ourselves some lemonade.”
Bill turned off the water, and they entered the house. To the left, which would usually serve as a living room, was an office. To the right, the dining room stood empty of furniture, which he found a bit curious.
He followed Bill into the kitchen and took a seat at the table while his host poured tall glasses of lemonade for them.
Setting the glasses on the table, the older man said, “Crushed ice in here. Makes everything taste better, in my opinion. I buy a bagful of it at Sonic each week. Best money I spend.”
“Lemonade is always good in the summer,” Sawyer agreed. “It can make a hot day better.”
They spoke for a few minutes about things going on in Hawthorne, and then he asked, “Why am I here, Bill? What do you need a lawyer for?”
“I need a good one and think you fit the bill. I’ve researched you on the internet, and you’ll do.”
He bit back a smile at the backhanded compliment. “Well, I’m glad to hear that, Bill. What services are you interested in me providing to you?”
“I’m seventy-two. In good health. But that can change quickly.
A fall where you break a hip. A sudden heart attack.
I need to make some end-of-life arrangements and get my finances in order.
Tie a bow on everything, if you will. I shouldn’t have let it go this long without doing anything, but I’m ready to finally get started. ”
Sawyer opened the briefcase he had brought, pulling out a yellow legal pad to take notes.
“You’re going to need a will. We can also talk about a general and medical power of attorney.
Who would be in charge of making those decisions if you’re incapacitated.
Even a living will, if you’re interested in that.
I can explain each of these things to you.
Do you have your beneficiaries in mind? Someone to serve as the executor of your estate?
Your executor acts in the best interests of you, the deceased, to settle your estate as efficiently as possible.
That being said, they can also be a beneficiary. It’s more common than you think.”
Bill gave him a sad smile. “There’s no one but me, Sawyer.
I never married. Never fathered a child.
A long time ago, I fell in love with a pretty little thing.
I was young and immature, though, and didn’t think I was ready to settle down.
She was. When I told her I wasn’t ready for marriage, she moved on. Married a solid guy. Had three kids.”
A faraway look came into Bill’s eyes. “She’s gone now.
And I regret every day that I was fool enough to walk away and not make her mine.
No one came close to touching my heart after her.
I concentrated on my career. Making money.
Lots of it. I told you some of my stories about the old days and oil. I became rich off that.”
His words surprised Sawyer since the house was so unpretentious. He didn’t know when Bill had come to Hawthorne or why and asked that now.
“If you have money, Bill, why did you settle here?”
“I moved around a lot over the years. Made myself and others quite a bit of cash. Lived in Houston a while. Ft. Worth. San Antonio. Big cities never were for me. I came from a small town in West Texas, and I was drawn back to one five years ago. I was driving through Hawthorne after I sold my business, and my gut told me this was the place I’d end my days in. ”
“Since you don’t have a will drawn up, that’ll be where we start. If you would like, I can serve as the executor of your estate.”
“I like what I’ve seen of you, Sawyer. If you’d be willing to step up and hold the power of attorney for my financial and medical needs, as well as act as executor of my estate, it would give me peace of mind.
I know I do want one of those DNRs. Do Not Resuscitate.
There’s no sense in prolonging my time on earth when the end comes. Nobody’s going to miss me.”
“Don’t sell yourself short, Bill. I see you at lunch and around town with others. You always have a smile on your face, brightening someone’s day. You enjoy others’ company, and they enjoy yours.”
“I have made some friends here in Hawthorne. I like this town. I like living in a small town. I do want you to talk to me about the difference between a will and a trust, though. Been reading about trusts on the internet.”
Sawyer explained how both were ways to acknowledge who would receive Bill’s assets, with the chief difference being when they went into effect.
“Nothing happens with a will until you pass. Then your executor notifies the court, and the probate process can begin. With a trust, it goes into effect immediately, the moment you sign and fund it. With a will, your estate is required to go into probate. That’s averaging about nine to ten months in Texas, which means it’s almost a year before your affairs can be settled.
If we set up a trust for you, it’s slightly more complicated than a will, but you can avoid probate altogether. ”
He paused, letting Bill process what had been said.
“Under a trust, we can set it up for future situations. For example, what should happen if you become physically or mentally unable to make decisions for yourself. It specifies what your wishes are during your lifetime and when you’re gone, so the guesswork is removed entirely.”
His new client nodded thoughtfully, asking a few questions, which Sawyer answered.
“I think I’ve given you plenty of information for you to think about.
” He reached into his briefcase and pulled out a manila folder, passing it to Bill.
“This contains written information about what we’ve talked about.
I know a lot of people are visual and need to see things to truly understand them.
It also gives some examples of situations.
If you’ll read through what I’ve included, I think it may help you decide what best suits your needs. ”
Wrapping up their time together, he said, “Take your time. Review these papers and what your goals are. When you’re ready, make another appointment with me.
If you have sizeable assets, let’s do an entire day together.
We can go over things in the morning. I’ll have some general templates, and we can adjust them according to your needs and the decisions you’ve made about your estate.
We could take a break and have lunch together.
Come back and finish up in the afternoon. How does that sound?”
“I would like some time to mull things through,” Bill agreed. “Not too long, though. I’ve dilly-dallied enough as it is, and I want my money to go to some good causes, especially ones right here in Hawthorne.”
Curious, Sawyer asked, “Do you have a ballpark figure of how much your estate and its assets are worth?”
Bill rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Depends upon where the stock market closes today. I’ve been investing for years, buying and selling stocks on my own.
I’m damned good at it, and pretty lucky, as well.
I invested early in things such as Apple.
. I would say probably somewhere between forty and fifty million. ”
Shock rippled through him. He couldn’t believe Packman hadn’t planned better. Then again, it sounded as if his new client was a self-made man and had never depended upon financial advisers or attorneys. “We’re talking serious money, Bill.”
The old man shrugged. “I know. When I lost my girl, every thought I had went into making money. Foolishly, I thought I might even win her back if I became rich. By the time I had enough money to offer her the sun and the moon, she was pregnant with her second child. I knew she was happy, and I wasn’t going to tempt her or fate by dangling my worldly goods in front of her.
She’d made a good life for herself with a good man. I never contacted her.”