7. Jake #2
Then I remember. “Grandma’s place. It was one of the properties you wanted to buy from our father but he wouldn’t sell.”
“Right, but I thought you might be selling off some of the holdings. I’d like to buy that one, so here I am.”
I study him, genuinely confused. “Why?”
“For Abs,” he says simply.
My younger sister is about the same age as Luke.
Yes, my father’s wife and his mistress were pregnant simultaneously.
If that doesn’t make you want to wash your hands, I don’t know what will.
The curious thing is that Abbie and Luke were always close.
Of us all, Abbie was the one who had time for Luke. “Does she want it?”
“Maybe. She’s not going to ask for it, though. That’s not her style.”
“No,” I agree, intrigued.
Luke clears his throat. “The thing is, she left to get away from Patrick. Now that he’s gone, she might want to come back, but where would she come to?” He looks around. “Not here.”
“God, no.”
“Not the old house.”
“Only Mike saw fit to live there and even he said it was for the commute.” The old house, the one Mike and I grew up in, is right beside the offices for Cavendish Enterprises.
It has the company parking lot right beside it and a greenhouse dead behind it.
The choices made for the company have undermined the value of that piece of real estate, though that was done after Candace abandoned the house of her predecessor for this new splendor.
“She won’t ‘impose’ by staying with anyone, so where?” Luke asks, clearly not expecting an answer. “She always loved that house, and I thought I could facilitate things for her maybe.”
“You seem to be doing a lot of that lately. Facilitating.”
“I am.” He nods. “Trying to make the world a better place beats the shit out of making it a worse one.”
There is that.
“I have no objections to this plan. There’s a lot of real estate and I’m not sure how much of it can be sold. I would even toss in my share, whatever it turned to be, for Abbie’s sake.”
“I’d rather just do it myself, if you don’t mind.”
“Okay.”
“But?” Luke invites, his gaze intense. “It sounded like you were going to say but.”
He thinks I’m going to turn him down because of who he is, but he’s wrong about that.
He’s ready to be insulted and I don’t want that.
Okay, he had me with the defining characteristics of early Tutankhamen.
I liked that. I wonder if I could like him.
I loved the new café and if he’s responsible for its presence in town, well, maybe it’s time to be adults together.
He stepped willingly into this house, for Abbie. I totally relate to that.
So, I tell him the truth.
“But I don’t know how much money there is,” I admit and he sits straighter. “I’m starting to wonder if there’s any.”
“Go on,” he murmurs.
I raise my hands, then head for the big table and beckon to him. “Look at this. It’s the receipt for Candace’s SUV.”
He studies it. “Top of the line, Infiniti, all the bells and whistles. Paid cash.”
“More bells and whistles,” I say, handing him the customization bill.
He reads it and nods. “Okay. Fancy ride.”
Another receipt. I let Luke work it out himself, watching his gaze dart over it.
“He refinanced it,” he says finally. “He got most of the price back in cash, for a lien on the vehicle.”
“Look at the dates.”
Luke’s eyebrows rise. “Whoa. He did it the next day.”
“I’m going to guess he had it planned all along.” I gesture. “There’s Madison’s car, Ethan’s car, the house itself, the kitchen renovation, the pool installation, the cabana and the landscaping.”
“Everything is owned by someone else,” Luke says softly. “But where’d the money go?”
“I’m still looking.” I get the laptop and show him the thousand dollar balance in the bank account I’ve been reviewing. “I’ve got a pile of credit card bills here that there’s not nearly enough cash to pay.”
“That old fox,” Luke whispers, then raises his gaze to mine. “It’s all a house of cards.”
I nod agreement.
Candace’s voice echoes from the foyer. She’s calling the housekeeper, asking when luncheon will be served. Luncheon. Luke and I look at each other and I shrug.
“Is she worth it?” he asks quietly, giving voice to my own question.
I point to the last pile on the table. “Those files are from plastic surgeons. Not just invoices, but before and after pictures. I will never unsee them, and I recommend you don’t look.”
Luke chuckles. “That stuff costs big.”
“Especially when only the best will do. She’s been all over the world for her procedures.”
“Then there must be frequent flier miles.”
Now I chuckle. “Haven’t found them yet either.”
Luke surveys my temporary domain. “Do you want some help? I mean, I’m not some finance guru but I managed the funds for the band.”
“You did?”
He looks suddenly grim. “I learned how after we got ripped off on our first tour. We were famous and successful and dead broke.”
“Not anymore I’ll guess.”
“Not anymore.”
I can totally relate to the satisfaction in his tone.
“That ‘manager’ moved a lot of it offshore.” He gives the title air quotes. “I never got that part back, but he didn’t get any more.”
“Offshore. Interesting possibility.” I consider the piles of paper for a long moment. “I appreciate your offer. I really do. But one of the ways I understand a problem is by considering all of it.”
“You need to go over all of it yourself to find the pattern,” he says, to my surprise.
“Yes.”
“I get that. But if you want help or you just want to talk about it, let me know.”
“Offshore is a possibility I hadn’t considered.” I thank him and get his details. “You don’t have to do this alone for Abbie, Luke.”
“No, I don’t,” he admits with a rueful smile. “But my coming back to Empire is about getting it right. About making changes and doing better.” He eyes me. “You and I can do better.”
“We can and I’d like that.” I offer my hand and we shake on it.
“Abs is here, you know,” he says and I’m startled.
“Here?”
“Well, in Empire. She came for the concert. She’s staying with Cameron now.”
I have no idea who Cameron is and I’m sure it shows.
Luke smiles. “Cameron is the nurse who bought the house next door to Daph. She’s part of their group, who get together every Wednesday.
” He counts them off on his fingers. “Daph, Cameron, Mackenzie, Willow and Abs is a long-distance member. They used to take turns hosting, but they’re meeting at The Carpe Diem Café now, so Merrie and Sylvia can join them. ”
The only detail I get out of that is that Mackenzie is busy Wednesday nights.
That’s why she was at the café when I grabbed dinner there.
Cameron must have been the dark-haired one who hit on me.
I realize Luke is waiting for me to reply. “When is Abbie going back to Vancouver?”
“Tomorrow, I think.”
I make the offer before I think twice. It would be good to see Abbie. “I could give her a ride to the airport, depending on the time of her flight.”
“I think it’s in the evening.”
“I’ll give her a call. I could ask her about the house on the way. I mean, there’s no point if she doesn’t even want it.”
Luke nods. “Sounds like a plan.”
I find myself smiling as Luke heads out and shake my head at the sound of his bike.
Who would have thought that Luke and I could not only mend fences but understand each other so well? It wouldn’t have been me, but I’m really glad he took a chance and came here today.
Damn. There has to be some cash somewhere. There’s at least ten thousand in credit card bills due this month. I have to be able to find that much.
I have a terrible thought then. What if that’s not all of the debt?
I need all of their wallets and all of their cards, and I need them now.
This is going to go over well.
After that mission is complete, I’ll visit Mike at the greenhouses and give everyone a few minutes to calm down.
No, first I’ll stop at Rhodes Vineyards with this title that I found this morning. Maybe I’ll even catch a glimpse of Mackenzie, and have a chance to apologize.