Chapter 13 #3
Mason noted, “I have asked Tesla to dig into Bugatti’s operations.
Working with Bugatti’s accountant, Tesla was told that he did see that tax payments and returns were submitted, but that was from a year ago.
He hasn’t done anything since and needs to but can’t get their signatures.
So, he’ll have to file in absentia—or something like that.
I don’t know if that’s what it’s called, but there’s a term for it and a process. ”
“No doubt. The government still wants its tax money, regardless of whatever else might be going on.”
After a pause, Mason added, “The question for you is whether you feel she’s still in danger.”
“We just had a gunman here, looking for a package. And that would imply that it was a package that was small enough for them to actually carry.”
“Yes, that’s possible, but again it could be a big one. We don’t know anything about these guys.”
“And that’s part of the concern. What exactly is this package they think Naomi and Ricky would have had, and is that all part of the mistake theory or is it something else completely different?”
“We have no way of knowing at this point,” Mason declared, “and that’s part of our challenge too.”
“Yeah, it seems like we can’t really be sure of anything yet,” Trent grumbled. “Everything is pretty upset around here right now.” The tiniest hint of amusement flickered through the phone line, prompting a glare from Trent. “I get it. You think it’s funny.”
“No, it’s not funny,” Mason countered, his tone serious now. “Nothing about this scenario is funny. Particularly,” he added, stressing his words, “for the ones involved. Now, where you personally are concerned, I have to admit there is an element of humor in all this.”
Trent groaned, trying hard not to let it out, but Mason was not most people, and it was easy to talk to him. “I absolutely didn’t expect to care.”
“No, we never do,” Mason said, his voice softening. “Still, it hits us.”
“And suddenly … you’re not thinking about just yourself anymore.”
“Exactly,” Mason agreed. “At this point, we must ensure they are safe, and we need a much better idea of what’s happening in terms of the family.”
“And what if we can’t find out?” Trent asked because that concern had been in the back of his mind throughout all the conversations he’d had with any of the guys.
“That would be extremely unfortunate.” Mason wasn’t denying it, but he wasn’t accepting it either.
He continued. “We will do all we can to avoid that. If we can’t find them, the status quo continues, until Ricky is old enough to either decide what he wants to do or we declare his family missing after a certain number of years.
Still, at that point, a good case could be made for keeping a lawyer on retainer.
If Bugatti, we need a second lawyer involved to keep the first one honest.”
“Agreed. That’s a hell of a note, when you have to hire a lawyer to keep your lawyer on the straight and narrow.”
Mason laughed. “We don’t often have to because we like to deal with things straightforward and upfront, and people are honest most of the time, but that’s not always guaranteed.”
“Do you think this lawyer is doing something he shouldn’t be?
” Trent asked Mason. “I can’t quite make up my mind about him.
I sensed something was off and knew he was hiding something, but now that I understand what it is, I guess I kind of understand his point.
Not to mention nobody ever surrenders important information easily. ”
“We always have to drag things out of people, particularly matters like this,” Mason stated, “where he’s been handling the legal affairs of what could be two dead people.”
Trent sighed. “And we just don’t know anything at this point. And if Bugatti’s not the guardian of the little boy, is he at least allowed to be doing what he’s doing? More than that, is he doing everything correctly?”
“More good questions,” Mason stated cheerfully. “Hopefully we can find more good answers. Do you think she will be okay to stay with Ricky for the moment?”
“I presume you mean Naomi, and there is no doubt in my mind that it would break her heart to leave him. But this is also not necessarily a good situation if things are going to change. If somebody steps in and says Naomi can’t be the guardian for him, Naomi will go ballistic.
That’s an awful lot for a six-year-old to be asked to deal with—finding out his parents have been long dead and then trying to strip Naomi from his life? ”
“No doubt.”
“It’s also a different story to actually be the guardian,” Trent pointed out. “That’s taking on a lifetime of responsibility, but Naomi and Ricky do very well together, and staying with Naomi would be the easiest on him.”
“Yes, but no one else can just make a decision for Naomi. She would also have a say because she’s been raising that boy for years. And there will be a certain sense of pressure over it too.”
Trent admitted that was quite possible. “I do know that she cares deeply for him and has been more or less trying to hide the fact that, at some point in time, she could be dismissed.”
“It’s not over.” Mason had a hint of flint in his tone. “Do you think that’s the best answer in terms of the two of them?” Mason asked.
“Yes, with no hesitation, hell yes,” Trent snapped, stressing his affirmation. “You should see them together. Nobody would ever know that they weren’t family.”
“As we well know,” Mason replied, “family does not necessarily mean blood relations. It can mean an awful lot of other things that are just as important. So, based on that, you think that will happen?”
“If we can’t get any kind of resolution about his family, it might need to be.
” He wanted to get the point across because he would hate to see Naomi lose Ricky—and vice versa.
“Even if we do have some resolution, but we can’t get …
We can’t confirm without actual bodies, there needs to be preplanning to ensure the boy stays with her. ”
“That will also be seven years in the making—or five years by Bugatti’s measurement.”
Trent stared off in the distance as he thought about how difficult that would be for everybody, then added, “It would absolutely be the best case to keep the two of them together. If there’s any way to make that happen, can you make sure of it?”
“Well, a certain amount of pressure can surely be applied, but I don’t know how the rules work in this case,” Mason clarified. “We can definitely be a character reference and can do anything else that we find in order to make sure it stays close to what it is right now.”
“I can’t even imagine separating them,” Trent muttered, “and honestly, I just can’t imagine anything getting in the way of that, other than the family stepping in to say that they don’t want Naomi taking care of the boy, or they themselves offer to take care of him.
Even if anybody were to understand how incredibly gifted Ricky is, the amount of training and teaching that he requires at this six-year-old level is pretty wild. ”
“Is he really gifted?” Mason asked, his tone calm, giving no leeway in terms of his actual opinion.
“Yes, he’s something else,” Trent declared and then went on to explain about the textbooks Ricky was currently reading.
“Oh, fascinating,” Mason said in surprise, “and pretty interesting choices, especially aviation accidents.”
“Yes, aviation accident research even. I’m not sure what the drive is there, but definitely something is behind it.”
“Well, we never really know what makes somebody interested in a topic.”
Trent continued. “Ricky’s also fascinated by mathematics and is doing trigonometry and algebra right now. Although I haven’t asked about his schooling other than to confirm that he’s in an accelerated program.”
“Also interesting, but good. And she’s capable of directing him?”
“That would be an understatement, as she has done a great job up until now of helping him. She is an experienced teacher in her own right, so she is uniquely qualified as his tutor.”
“So that in itself is probably a boon for him.”
“I would think so,” Trent replied.
“Okay, Trent. We’ll keep searching for information, with the one question we may or may not be able to answer being what ended up happening to Ricky’s parents, but we’ll do our best to sort it out.
You should plan on staying there for several more days while we figure out if any other danger is headed in their direction.
And let’s try to figure out more about the package that guy was looking for. ”
“I’m on it.”
With that, Trent hung up and just sat here for a long moment. When he heard a sound, he turned to see Naomi leaning against the wall, staring at him. She had a strange expression on her face as she walked toward him.