Chapter 16

She cried all the way home, every last yard of the 230 miles back home. And he still might die! Jesus! She had to talk to her husband, and she had to do so immediately.

She pulled into the five-car garage, got out, and marched with a wet face into the house. His briefcase was gone. He was at his office in Phoenix. She had not called ahead. She called him now.

He answered immediately. Well, he did have one of those caller ID thingys that had just come on the market, well, as far as she knew they were new.

“Yes, honey, I need to see you ... yes, it’s much worse than we thought, much worse ... yes, I’ll come down there ... twenty minutes. Okay ... love you too.”

Her purse was still in the car, a testament to the truth that she was seriously distraught.

It took her twenty-two minutes but the last of those was in the elevator to the ninth floor.

The receptionist just waved her down the hall. “He’s dying, Carlton, well, maybe,” she said, sagging into the chair across from him even before he could come around to her.

He pulled up the other chair in front of his desk and took her hand in his.

“Okay, tell me,” he said.

“It’s like your friend, the warden, said, he’s in the infirmary. He’s bad hurt, bleeding in the brain. The doctor, who did see me, said no visitors, none for a while still,” she said.

“A fight, right?” he said.

“Yes, a stupid fight. You remember that special picture of me that he wanted and that I sent him?

“Yes, of course,” he said.

“Well, some other prisoner, grabbed it from him and he tried to get it back, and well, the other guy was not only bigger, he also had friends. They damn near beat him to death, Carlton,” she said, and she howled. “Over that damn picture!”

Carlton Hanson rose, and went to the phone.

“Yes, hello ... James, I need you up there in Winslow. Andrew was beaten. He’s in bad shape. I want to know everything ... yes, including the info on the bad guys ... and buy plenty of wood; I want the assholes burned at the stake ... No, I’m not kidding. What can be done must be done and now ... Yes ... okay ... Yes, good.” He said, and hung up. He came back to his wife.

“Lea, he’s about to get the best medical care in the entire world. Trust me on that one, and I will be working triple hard to get him out of there. The fact that those bad guys were able to do what they did to him, might give us some leverage with the court. And yes, that means we will be needing to do some serious planning, and that right away,” he said.

“I am so ashamed, Carlton. I am so ashamed, especially about Kari,” she said.

“We’ll make it right,” he said. “Trust me, I know how to do these things.” She nodded.

They were sitting in a conference room of the bank. Who were the they? Carlton Hanson, Lea Hanson, James Hightower, Bernard Costley J.D. Stella Perez bank manager; and there was one other man, Jesse Russo, the man’s lawyer for all of the last thirteen years.

“That does it,” said Stella Perez. “The man’s rich, well, he will be when he signs the documents.”

“Thank you Stella and you too Bernie for helping us out today,” said Carlton. “James here will be seeing to it that the man is informed of his change in economic status as soon as he is released. Which, I have on good authority, is going to be soon. We have our reasons for even waiting that long. It has to be a surprise.” He was smiling.

“Well it certainly will be that, I’m thinking,” said Stella. There were some chuckles around.

“Thank you, my husband. I just hope he is willing to listen to James when he tells him,” she said.

“He will. It’s twenty million dollars, Lea. James will definitely be listened to. Then, the three of us: you, me, him will get together and have our talk,” he said.

“Then the biggee,” she said.

“Yes, Kari,” he said. “If that goes well, we’ll all be home free.”

“I just hope that James is having a good day when he talks to him. I’m still not sure that we are doing this right. He is going to be really confused when I’m not there to greet him,” said Lea.

“It’s the best way. You being there would be way to emotional a starting point. He has to be rational at least for a few short minutes, the first few minutes,” said Carlton.

“Okay, but I don’t mind telling you, I’m scared,” she said.

“No need to be. Yes, the meeting with and about Kari will be the big deal, but we’ll navigate those waters carefully and with the love and respect the man deserves,” he said.