Chapter 22
During dinner everyonegot to know one another, and no talk of what had been happening with the Firths was mentioned. Once everyone was done, and the cleanup was done, the two children were set up with their toys in the living room. The adults settled back around the dining room table, and Clark began. Before he could begin, there was a knock on the door. Because he was closest, he went to answer it. When he returned he had another man with him.
“Guys, this is Carter Manning, he’s from the Yellowstone, Wyoming area, and he said Jake Cogburn sent him.”
Introductions were made, and as Carter filled a plate from the offerings still on the counter, Clark told everyone why they were here.
“This is Jared Hillard, he’s a local judge, and he and I were best friends since we were young. Tessa also went to school with us. Jared is currently a judge, and I asked him to look into why the Firths keep getting out on bail when they have pending charges, as well as felonies thrown at them.”
“I’m sorry, but can you hear this information?” Carter asked.
“Yes, I was able to investigate some, but not all of what’s happening. This case will never come before me, and if by some chance it does, I’ll recuse myself.”
“Why wouldn’t it come before you?” Pru asked.
“Because I’m basically a traffic court judge.”
“Ah,” everyone said, and nodded.
“Okay, Clark filled me in, and because I have access to the files without needing a court order, and I’m only looking at information, all I can tell you that the Firths’ defense attorney is a guy by the name of Craig Lansing. I have no idea who he is, but I’m assuming he’s good if he’s getting these people out on bail. I cannot tell you who is posting their bail, all I have is the name of the bondsman.”
“We don’t want that,” Erin said quickly. “We don’t want you to get into any trouble for helping us.”
“Yeah, I’m sorry I can’t be of any further help.”
“I might be,” Carter said as he set his plate aside and withdrew a folder from his briefcase. “Jake contacted Hank, who contacted my boss, who had me look into a matter concerning a Ms. Alcott.”
“That would be me. Are you talking about the target on my back to make a certain life insurance policy pay out?”
“Yes, if you mean the holder of the policy is one Benson Alcott.”
“Yes.”
“What do you have?” Clark asked as he reached over and took Naomi’s hand in his.
“Okay, I drove here, but on my way, I had several conversations with Jake, and others helping me. It seems like everything is loosely connected.” He picked up the last bite of mac and cheese from his plate, closed his eyes as he chewed, then set the plate on the counter behind him. He opened the file and sighed heavily.
“Now, I need to give you a little background first. Years ago, there were three little boys around the age of ten that arrived at a foster home in the same month from different areas of the state. They grew up to be best buds. Fast forward to after they aged out of the system. One went to college and became an upstanding citizen. One went to college and became a very successful businessman. And the last one didn’t go to college, but he became successful. Guy one, though he was an upstanding citizen, he became a thief that stole from his customers. Guy two, became rich and lorded it over anyone that wasn’t guy one or three. Anyone else in his circle was stupid to him. I guess you could call him a narcissist. “
“What about guy three?” Naomi asked.
“Guy three became a thug.” Carter looked at everyone around the table, then looked at Erin again. “Are you Erin Riceman?”
“I am.”
“Okay, then all this starts with you.”
“How?”
“Do you know Paul Miller that tried to kill the women here and take the horses from you?”
“A little.” Erin nodded as she explained to the others. “Paul was our contact with the SPCA. He would call us when there was an abused horse and we would go pick them up.”
“That’s how the Firths knew to come here?” Reid asked her.
“I think so.”
“Okay, but other than being an agent with the SPCA, do you know who Paul Miller actually is?”
“No. Should I?”
Carter scrubbed his face and sighed heavily. “I’ll try to get this out in the right order. Please, hold your questions until the end. This gets confusing.”
“Okay.” Erin nodded and gripped Reid’s hand.
“Paul Miller is the son of Paul Senior and Lily Miller.” He looked at Erin, and at her blank look, he smiled. “Former bank manager and accountant. Husband and wife.”
“Holy shit, the guy I accused of trying to rob me blind? SPCA Paul is their son?”
“Yes.” Carter held up his hand. “Paul Senior is also foster brother number one that became a successful businessman that robbed his customers. You stopped him, and because of your actions, he’s doing time, as is his wife.”
“So, Paul Jr. is getting back at me for ruining his parents?”
“That’s what we’re thinking. When Mr. and Mrs. Miller were facing charges and were on administrative leave from their jobs, they contacted foster brother number two, the rich narcissistic bastard. The Millers told him how you tried to frame them, and he backed their court case financially.” Carter looked around the table and shook his head. “He paid their bail, then for their defense attorney, who happens to be Craig Lansing.”
“The same guy representing the Firths?” Clark asked.
“Yes.” Carter looked at everyone before he dropped his next bombshell. “This rich bastard is also paying the Firths and young Miller to get out on bail.” Carter looked at Jared. “I don’t know if you have any pull, but you might want to talk to some higher-ups at the courthouse to see if the judge that let them out on bail is on the take. I have some paperwork that I can give you. It doesn’t pertain to what’s going on here, but you’re going to want to see it.” At the shocked look on Jared’s face, Carter nodded. “It can all be substantiated.”
“Wow,” everyone around the table said, with varying degrees of shock in their expressions.
“Okay, now that we know that foster brother two is footing the bill for everything, do you want to know his name?”
“Yes,” everyone practically shouted as they leaned forward.
“Do any of you know a man by the name of Rudolph Royal?”
“Are you fucking shitting me?” Erin screamed as she jumped to her feet in anger. She looked down the table at her brother, then at everyone there.
“Who?” several of the people at the table asked as one.
“Mr. Royal Pain In My Ass!” Erin shouted, and the others started yelling right along with her. Clark noticed that Carter, Jared, and Tessa all exchanged shrugs. When Erin calmed down, she sat back down and explained her dealings with Mr. Royal over the last few years.
“Shit,” she said at one point, then rubbed her forehead and shook her head. “Mr. Royal PITA showed up here inquiring about using my stallions to breed a mare of his about six months after the Millers were sentenced to serve time.”
“Did he use their services? Did his check clear?”
“Yes to both.” Erin shook her head, then explained her last encounter with Royal when he tried to steal Triton from them when she refused to allow any of her stallions to breed a mare that wasn’t ready. “After that incident, I have police reports, but after that incident, because of what happened with the Firths, I was issued a restraining order. It’s against him not contacting me. Royal isn’t allowed on Riceman property.” Erin shook her head. “I’m assuming Royal PITA is foster brother number two that became rich, but is an asshole.”
“You would be correct. Now, this is where it gets a little confusing. The three brothers all knew of the problems the Millers were facing. For clarity’s sake, let’s continue to call Mr. Royal, PITA. PITA and brother number three, the thug, took Paul Jr. under their belt. My research said that Paul Jr. was on the straight and narrow until that incident with the stallion happened. PITA and Thug got together and basically brainwashed the kid that what you were doing with the horses wasn’t rescuing them. With the help of the Firths they convinced him that you basically stole prime horseflesh right out from under their noses for pennies on the dollar.”
“Bullshit,” everyone at the table said as one.
“I know that, because in the course of my research, mares slotted to go to the glue factory isn’t very prime horseflesh in my book.”
“Exactly,” Erin said. “Does this thug have a name?”
“Percy Biggins, and he refers to himself as Mr. Big.” Carter looked directly at Naomi as he said this and he nodded when there was absolutely no recognition on her face at the guy’s name. “He’s a loan shark out of Cody, Wyoming.”
“The guy Benson’s basically in bed with?” Naomi asked in shock.
“Yes, I met him, and though he’s not a narcissist like PITA, he’s got this way about him that makes people want to do his bidding. It’s hard to label it.”
“Charisma?” Pru asked.
“Yes, and it’s weird, because he’s nothing to really look at. If you saw him on the street, you wouldn’t know you even passed him.” Carter opened the folder before him and withdrew a photo of Percy Biggins. The others had to agree with him, that his features were unforgettable.
“I don’t know everything, but when Benson Alcott realized he was in too much with Mr. Big, he tried to sell off a portion of the Double A.”
“He can’t,” Naomi said confidently.
“That is correct. No matter what he tried to do, he was stopped at every turn. As of a week ago, he’s into Mr. Big for two hundred and fifty grand. Mr. Big was the one that convinced him to take the ten-million-dollar life insurance policy out on you, and when he collects on it, then he is to give Big half of it.”
“Holy shit,” Pru said. “That’s one hell of a return on your investment.”
“Yeah, but Ms. Alcott, you’re going to want to hire a lawyer.”
“Why?”
“Because after Jake gave us copies of what Patrick Clemmons gave you, we contacted Cole Mercury. He has more paperwork, and videos of conversations with Benson and Big, and how they are plotting to kill you. They have named names, given locations, but rest assured, as long as you stay here, you’re safe.”
“How do you figure that?” Clark demanded.
“Because Clemmons reported back to Benson that he found Ms. Alcott in Miami. Big and Benson are making plans to show up after the new year to have a family reunion. Don’t worry, I can give you what I have, but there are also copies back at my home office in Yellowstone.”
“Do you work for Brotherhood Protectors?”
“I do. And like you men, I too am a former SEAL, but after I left the teams, I did mercenary work for a few years before getting out and joining Brotherhood. I know how to defend and eliminate. Now, I mostly do it through paperwork.” He put Percy Biggins’s photo back in the file, and pushed it to the center of the table. He looked around and waited for the questions. Though he was married, he smiled at the cute redhead toward the end of the table.
“Question.”
“What’s that?”
“Who exactly is Craig Lansing that PITA hired?”
“No clue.” Carter shook his head sadly. “We mainly concentrated on the information Jake gave us pertaining to Ms. Alcott, and the Firths. Our investigation connected the dots between the three former foster brothers. We ran with it, and didn’t really look into the defense attorney.” He turned his head toward Jared. “Do you know him?”
“No, I never heard of him either.”
“Well,” Pru said again with a shake of her head. “He must suck at his job.”
“How do you figure that?” Clark asked in shock at her statement.
“If he couldn’t get either of the senior Millers either a reduced sentence, or charges dropped, and they went to jail, then he isn’t that good. Any good defense lawyer could easily have argued to get a lighter sentence. I read the case on-line, they got the maximum of eighteen years each. They can’t get out until after they served fifteen of those. He could have gotten them reduced to at least eight to ten since it was their first offense.” She shook her head and looked off to the side, as she mumbled, “Makes me wonder which judge they pissed off to get the maximum time, or which juror for that matter.”
Everyone looked at Pru in shock, and when no more questions were asked, Carter said he would take his leave. He refused their offer to stay in the free cabin, and said he wanted to check in with Jake and the other Brotherhood Protectors over in Fool’s Gold. He also said he’d have Jake and his team look into Lansing, since the attorney was from this state and Carter was not. After he left, everyone sat around in stunned silence lost in their own thoughts. When the Hillard children came into the room saying they were getting tired, the group broke up and everyone headed out to their own homes. Clark tooted his horn when Jared pulled into the cabin and waved as he continued on to Naomi’s place.
Once they were in bed settled for the night, Clark wrapped his arms around Naomi. “You okay?”
“I don’t know. Hearing a complete stranger talk about my father was weird.”
“Weird how?”
“It was like he was talking about someone I didn’t know. You know how he described the brothers?” She shrugged as he agreed with her. “Nothing, no connection to them. I felt the same way when he talked about Benson.”
Clark sighed heavily. “I know this isn’t the time to discuss this, but I’m thinking that for the time being, knowing you are perfectly safe here on Riceman property, I think it would be best if we dealt with the Firths and Miller first, then concentrate on going after Benson and Mr. Big. I feel that with more planning on our part, we’ll be able to get them dead to rights, and they won’t be able to post bail, no matter how much money PITA has. Besides, if we play this correctly, then PITA will be taken down with the Firths and won’t have access to his money to help Mr. Big and Benson. Not that Mr. Big doesn’t have money, but with PITA out of the way, then he will have less to rely on.”
“I agree with you. Let’s just hope that Benson doesn’t get a bee in his bonnet and try to come after me sooner. I do know that I would love to be a fly on the wall when he reaches Miami and finds out he’s been duped.”
Clark didn’t know how to reply, and it wasn’t long before they both relaxed enough to fall asleep.