Chapter 13
The next day, Thanksgiving, Jason, Ilsa, and Kevin made their dishes to pass, well, Ilsa and Kevin did, while instructing Jason on how to help them.
He was coming along nicely in the cooking department, he had learned to make coffee, as well as several breakfast items. He was hesitant to try anything complicated, but with practice he should be okay in the future.
Around two o’clock, with everything done, they made their way over to Erin’s Way for the dinner to start at four.
They figured if they were there early, then they could help with anything that needed to be done.
They promised they wouldn’t work on the case for that day.
At the office slash meeting barn, several people were going in and out, and Jason looked around and swore when he saw they had left the ‘murder’ board out. He walked over to Pru to apologize.
“I’m sorry,” Jason said quietly, and he saw the woman studying the board intently.
“Don’t be, what’s this?” Pru asked as she pointed at the board.
“Normally, it would be considered a murder board, it’s something the police put together to have all the players in one area, and we can study it. Since there’s no murder, it’s just our information board with everyone that’s involved with the case.”
“Ah, I understand.” Pru nodded and went back to studying it.
“If it bothers you, I can remove it.”
“No, please, no. It doesn’t bother me, I find it fascinating.”
Jason took her word for it, and left her to continue to study it when he was called away to help put some tables together.
The rest of the afternoon and evening was spent enjoying a holiday meal, and talking and laughing with everyone involved.
Other than that time he found Pru studying the board, no mention of the case was made.
By ten o’clock that night, for the first time in years when he climbed into bed, he had a smile on his face about how relaxed he felt and knew beyond a shadow of doubt that he would hit the road running the next day with renewed vigor to attack this case.
If all went as planned, shortly after the first of the year, arrests would be made.
On the following Wednesday, Pru walked into the back door of Gunny’s Bed and Breakfast with her usual delivery of eggs.
“Hey, RJ, how was your holiday?”
“Good, Pru, you?”
“Good, we had a great meal and spent it all together. I have some bad news for you.”
“What’s that?”
“This is the last of the eggs for the year. My chickens are beginning to slow down on their laying of eggs. According to Ducky, it’s because of the time of year. They should pick up again in the spring. So, this is the last shipment until then.”
“Thank you for letting me know, Pru,” RJ nodded as she took the eggs from her. “When production picks up, will you think of me?”
“Yes.” Pru nodded and looked around.
“Was there something else?”
“Yes, is Jake around?”
“I’m here,” the man in question said as he walked into the kitchen. “Good morning, Pru, how was your holiday?”
“Good, yours?”
“Good. Did you need me for something?”
“Please, I need to talk to you about something.”
“Is everything okay out at the ranch?”
“Oh, yeah, this is something else.”
Jake looked over her head at his wife, and she only shrugged in confusion, then Jake asked Pru to follow him downstairs to the office. As soon as he entered, he subtly shook his head at Stone, the only other man there.
“Stone, do you remember Prudora Tibbs?”
“Carter,” Pru said with a smile as she held out her left hand. “Remember, Ryan and I married a couple of months ago.”
“That’s right, and I was there,” Jake chuckled. “Sorry.” He settled in his chair and offered the one next to his desk to her, but she opted to remain standing.
Pru drew in a deep breath and let it out in a huff. She rubbed her forehead, and sighed again.
“Is everything okay with Ryan?” Jake asked quietly after exchanging worried looks with Stone.
“No, we’re fine. This is something totally different.” She looked at both of them, before sitting down heavily in the previously offered chair. “Do the two of you know my story? About how I got TBI?”
“No,” they both answered.
Pru took the next fifteen minutes to tell them what had happened, and they stared at her in shock when she finished.
“I’m okay, the doctors say that the neurons in my brain either fire too rapidly, that’s when I get overly excited, and there are other times when they are sluggish. That’s when I space out.”
“Wow, I’m so sorry that happened to you.”
“Nothing you could do, it was Hot Dog’s fault, if you want to blame anyone. I don’t because he perished in that accident, along with three other men. I think it was the two men in the back of the helicopter that threw themselves across my body that saved me.”
“Still, I’m sorry. There’s nothing the doctors can do?”
“No. Anyway, I told you my story, because then you might understand what I’m about to say.
Ever since I started school, hell, I think it started when I was two, maybe three, but whenever I did school work, or read, I retained it.
I was smart, I also grew up in a rough part of New York City. I had the reputation of being scrappy.”
“I know,” Jake chuckled. At her confused look, he explained, “Sheriff Jim and Sparrow came to me for video surveillance from the parking lot the night you and Ryan ran into those men trying to drag that young girl to their vehicle. You don’t pull any punches.”
“Thank you. Anyway, along with being scrappy outside of the home and school, when I was in school, I was labeled the bookworm. I kept my head down, and during certain classes, the other students hated me.”
“Why?”
“Because the teachers wouldn’t grade on a curve. I aced every test I ever took. My GPA was a 4.0 all through school. When I entered the Air Force, I aced everything there also. I’m only telling you this because I’m smart. I have my good days and bad, but I’m still smart.”
“Okay, no one is saying anything differently,” Jake said softly.
“Good, with all the background, now onto why I’m here. Do you know that Jason Black, Ilsa Miller, and Kevin Lassiter are here, and what they are doing?”
“Yes.”
“Okay, they have a murder board up, but you know, they’re not investigating a murder, but Babcock/Grayson, or whatever the hell name he goes by.”
“We know this.”
“Okay, did you know that on that murder board there is a possible connection between Grayson and Erin’s PITA, along with Miller Jr, and the Firths?
” She shook her head and held up her hand to stop them.
“Your guy from Yellowstone found a connection between Royal PITA, Biggins, and Miller that tried to take Erin’s Way away from Erin, and almost succeeded in getting Ducky’s ranch. ”
“Okay.” Jake didn’t know how else to respond.
“Maybe it’s my TBI, or something, but I would like to hire you to look into something. I could go to Duane, but I don’t want to sound like a mindless idiot.”
“What do you want to know?” Stone asked gently as he rolled his chair closer and started taking notes.
“On that murder board, there’s a connection to Royal.”
“Connected how?”
“Royal got his guns to take Erin down from someone in California. Duane was undercover then. We talked at Thanksgiving and Duane will be talking to the three investigators about how that deal came about, but I’m wondering something else.
Please bear in mind that it might not be helpful in this investigation against Grayson, but I had heard that Royal PITA’s trial will be coming up in May of next year. ”
“Holy shit, that fast?”
“It’s been over a year already,” Pru said.
“What do you want to hire us for?”
“It might be stupid.”
“Pru,” Jake said gently. “The only stupid thing would be not to voice your concerns. Not only will it help put these people away for good, but it will be helping Erin have peace of mind if there’s other information out there. Tell us what you’re thinking, and we can take it from there.”
“Okay, again, bear with me. It might be backtracking.”
“Pru,” Jake said gently, and nodded when she drew in a breath and let it out in a rush.
“Okay, here goes. Where did Royal get his money? I’m asking because he went around town throwing his weight and money around bragging that he was better than sliced bread, if you know what I mean.
Why would he try to go after someone who inherited a successful ranch that had been in her family since the eighteen thirties, with almost five thousand acres.
He, Royal, only had one horse worth any money, and only one hundred acres.
Did he try to establish his dominance over Erin because he’s a man, or because he had someone backing him?
” She drew in another deep breath and let it out slowly this time.
“I know it’s none of my business, but how was he able to get his hands on the guns in California that he drove back over state lines in order to take Erin out?
If you recall, Ryan had gone undercover working for him to try and get some information, however, he didn’t go to California to pick up the guns.
When Royal returned, he had several FBI agents with him, including Duane, but Royal didn’t know they were agents.
That’s when Ryan was reunited with Manny and Scott.
I’d like to know how much he paid for those guns, where did he get them from, did someone from the FBI get them for him, and where did he get his money?
Where did he come from before coming to Fool’s Gold?
We all know that he paid off a judge to get bail for all the felony charges.
Just how deep do his pockets go? If he’s so rich and powerful, then how come his ass has been sitting in jail for the last year, and Erin, the woman he says took everything from him, is free?
In my messed up TBI mind, something’s not adding up. ”