Chapter 10

It hit him like a runaway truck. He had been so focused on everything else that he had missed all the glaring evidence that had been presented.

But now it was clear as daylight.

“Umm, Nia? Can I ask you a question and get a totally straight reply?”

“Yes love. Always.” She replied with some worry.

“Nia, how long have you been, or known that you were, an empath?”

Nia looked at him. Shocked.

She almost denied, but couldn’t. She could never deceive him.

“Since I was about 10-years-old.” She admitted. “Sometimes I just ‘feel’ whatever other people are feeling. Not all the time, and usually when it’s someone I have a strong connection with.”

“How did you know?”

He thought a moment, “I guess I didn’t until just now. But all the evidence was there. The way you always feel the emotions of others. The way you are always understanding of the way other people feel, and their needs.”

Nia laughed nervously.

“I guess you’ll think I’m a freak now. Like everyone else always did.”

He shook his head. “Not at all. I think it defines you.”

She just laughed. “You’re silly. Or you’ve watched too many ‘star-track’ movies.”

“Hey ... Not cool lady. No dissing the Trek.”

She stood and leaned in to kiss him.

Then she took his hands in hers and tugged lightly.

“Time for your physical therapy. Let’s go for a walk.”

He let her help him on with his shoes and help him stand up, and they walked out the back door onto the deck.

The air was fresh and kinda cool, but not cold enough for him to need a shirt. The sun felt good on his skin as they stood looking across the open land.

“What’s in the shop?” She asked.

“Go grab my phone and my keys and I’ll show you.” He replied. “Tell Skye we’ll be back in shortly.”

Nia did. And they walked slowly across the yard.

In the “back yard”, he pointed out the different areas of his pistol and sub-gun range. Targets of all sizes and at distances from 15 to 60 yards were spread and scattered all about.

Nia excitedly asked him if he would teach her all about shooting, and he happily agreed that he would.

He also pointed way off in the distance, 1000 yards beyond the back of the property, across the fence and on the neighboring land. There is a target array for rifle shooting practice.

A person can shoot at a choice of targets, set up at 50-yard intervals, from 100 to 1000 yards out.

He also showed her and explained the solar system with backup battery banks. And let her know that it provides 100% off-grid power to both the house, and a 30’ X 40’ metal shop building.

The 25kw diesel generator that is on standby for any glitches that may require it She was impressed when he explained there was also a 500 gallon above ground diesel tank for the genny, and for any fuel he might need in the Jeep or Truck.

The 1500’ water well, and the 1000-gallon septic system, were less of a novelty.

Opening the door to the shop, Tommy flipped on the lights. Nia slowly took in the array of stuff he had stored away.

His 1997 Chevrolet C3500 long bed crew-cab Dually was currently parked inside, as was the 1990 Jeep YJ.

A Honda VTX1800 Motorcycle, and the 1985 Honda ATC with a swapped in 750cc engine.

An ultralight airplane was folded against the back wall behind his air boat which is powered by an aircraft engine.

He also showed her the mowers and the 1965 Ford tractor he rebuilt with his dad.

And a various assortment of tools and sundries he has picked up or inherited through the years.

“Wow.” Nia said.

She giggled and added, “All the toys a growing boy could ask for.”

He just grinned.

“She looked at the bike and proclaimed, “I hope we can take some long rides on that. Maybe even a vacation to somewhere far away.”

Tommy assured her it was a done deal.

Leading her to the back, he opened a door into an enclosed area. Inside was wall to wall reloading and shooting supplies for all his firearms.

Nia was impressed. She took it all in, and even picked up a .50 BMG round, marveling at the size of the thing.

And in one corner, a metal plate covering an opening in the floor.

He levered it up with his good arm and flipped a switch on the wall.

Lights illuminated and revealed a stairway going down.

He gingerly walked down them and opened the thick heavy door, set 90 degrees back to the left.

Nia was wide eyed and amazed as they stepped into the 20’ X 20’ underground shelter.

He explained that it was blast rated and hardened to provide safety from even a nearby nuclear strike.

Fully stocked with everything they might need. A full one year of supplies for Six people.

He told her he already had plans to increase the supplies so that it could sustain all Nine of them.

Nia, himself, Skye, Bob, Shasta, Mia, Tia, Tammy, and Buck.

Back upstairs, the shelter secured, he walked over to a set of four tall gun safes.

Opening them in turn, he stepped back to let her peruse the contents of each.

The first held many handguns, of differing calibers and styles, than she ever imagined existed.

He reached in and pulled one out, setting it aside on a bench.

Closing that door, they looked into the second.

This one held an array of long guns. Rifles and shotguns of every type and caliber/gauge you could want.

He selected a rifle from this one also, setting it on the bench top beside the pistol.

Closing that safe, Nia peered in and gasped at the contents of the third.

Little white containers, about four inches tall, stacked neatly in a sizable portion of the inside.

“Is that what I think it is? I believe I have seen those before.” She asked.

Tommy nodded. “Yes sweetie. It is silver and gold Eagles. One troy ounce per coin, Twenty coins per container.” My ‘Life Savings’ if you wish to call it that.”

She could only say, “WOW.” And curiously, “How much?”

“About $50,000 in silver, and $100,000 in gold.” He told her.

Nia’s eyes widened.

“It’s mostly Silver.” He explained. “Gold is too expensive and fluctuating too radically right now to make it worth purchasing.”

“How did you get all this?” She asked.

“Well, to be honest a lot of it was my parents. The majority of the gold at least. They bought regularly for years. Then I bought a lot of silver at under $10 an ounce for a while.”

Nia just shook her head in disbelief.

“It was all bought under the Roth IRA plan. I prefer that to a regular IRA.” he continued.

“Some I ordered from the US Mint and bullion companies, and some I got from pawn shops.”

Nia didn’t know what to say. She just stepped back as he reached inside.

His hand came back with a Sterling silver chain. Hanging on it was a sterling silver coin holder. And in the holder was a Half-ounce gold coin.

He looped it around her neck as best he could using only one arm.

Current spot market, and price of the jewelry, the necklace was worth around a Thousand dollars.

“This is for you.” He simply said.

She balked, “Oh no. I can’t. It’s too expensive.”

Tommy laughed at her for a good minute.

“I think you are missing the point sweetie. You need to realize that this isn’t MY life savings any more, it is now OUR life savings.”

Nia sat down on the chair. She looked at him in complete shock and disbelief for a minute, then the tears began to fall down her face.

“You are willing to share all this with me?” She asked him.

“Of course.” He told her. “All this and more.”

“Why would you do that?” She asked. “We’re not married yet. And even after we are, most men would want a prenuptial agreement.”

He stopped his efforts to work the chain under her hair using only one hand.

He cupped her under her chin, bent, and kissed her softly.

“Because you are my wife. I pledge to you everything I have, and everything I will ever have. And I give to you everything I am, and everything I will ever be. FOREVER.”

She caused no small amount of discomfort, and a little pain, when she suddenly stood and wrapped him up in a big hug.

She kissed him repeatedly as she told him, “And I pledge to you everything I have, and everything I will ever have. And everything I am, and everything I will be. FOREVER.”

Then she stepped back, gestured around, and added, “Even before you showed me all of THIS.”

He laughed, “This is just money and stuff sweetie. It means nothing compared to the wealth of having your love.”

She pushed him to a folding chair and stat astride his lap, facing him.

She kissed him softly and hugged him to her.

They held and loved on each other for a while. Then he had to stand and relieve his sore legs.

He had her shut the coin safe and spin the dial.

And he told her to open the Fourth one.

Her eyes really did bug out when she looked inside.

“Oh my god. Tommy. Where did you get all this?”

He laughed as she pulled out a stack of $50 bills, then a stack of $100’s.

Holding them in one hand, she also pulled a packet of $20’s.

“Is it all just 20’s, 50’s, and 100’s?” She asked him in a whisper.

“Yes.” He answered her in a stage whisper.”

“How much cash is here?” She whispered.

“About $180,000 last I counted it.” He whispered back.

“Where did you get all this?” She whispered.

“The Bank.” He whispered back.

“Not funny.” She whispered.

“Yes it is.” He whispered back. “Almost as funny as all this whispering.”

“I’m serious.” She said in her regular voice.

“Me too.” He said in his, as he laughed loudly.

She looked at him seriously.

“You’re worrying me now Tommy. I’m very serious. How did you get all of this?”

“I’m a bank robber.” He replied with a serious and stoic expression on his face.

She plopped the money down on the bench top and crossed her arms.

“If you don’t tell me right this second buster, I’m going to go inside and start packing. This is not funny. I want to know where all this money came from.”

“What would you say if I told you I stole it all from drug runners?” He asked.

“I’d take my broken heart and dreams inside, pack my stuff, and get Skye to take me to Bob’s.” She said. Looking a little more than upset.

“I don’t think I could stand it if I found out you really are a thief.”

He grinned at her, “I’m just kidding you. I’m not a thief sweetie.”

And for once, she was happy he had been pulling her leg.

“Check this out.”

He pulled an envelope from a pocket on the safe door.

“I keep this around just in case someone ever tries to imply I’m not an honest cop.”

Inside the big manila envelope were several documents.

One was a copy of sales orders for a bunch of stocks in AT&T ‘Baby Bells’.

One was a copy of sales orders for a bunch of stocks in IBM.

One was a copy of sales orders for a bunch of stocks in Microsoft.

One was a copy of sales orders for a bunch of stocks in various petroleum companies.

And one was a letter from the Arizona Lottery Commission.

She looked puzzled. So he decided to just explain it without joking around.

“Mom was a HUGE follower of the stock market and trends and such. She invested and sold for as long as I can remember or could understand the concept.”

“She also followed a lot of ‘fringe’ information groups, and they were heavy into analyzing the market for stocks that showed extreme earning potential in the future.”

“She bought and sold, making a little here and there, until she had invested heavily in those companies.”

“For example, she bought Microsoft within a day or two of its original offering.”

“I only found out about her stocks after dad died and she thought we would need the money.”

Nia was just standing there with her mouth open. Listening to him but not believing her ears.

He continued, “Her little hobby netted us a few Million when she cashed it all in. Not bad for a little old lady in a two-goat Texas town, huh?”

Nia shook her head, then asked, “Why are you working then? And why are you not living like some spoiled millionaire playboy?”

“Not my style, and not something mom & dad would have tolerated. You should know that about me by now sweetie.” He answered.

Then with a very serious expression, “And I work because what I do really does make a difference to my country and in peoples’ lives.”

He reached in the sheaf of papers and pulled out a set of documents.

“This one was a complete blindside. Never expected it.” And he showed her the Lottery paperwork.

He’d been in on a $12M Jackpot.

“I threw a $20 into a ‘pool’ with some of the office girls at a Desert Ops school a few years back. They bought tickets and we won. Split it 10 ways.”

He handed her a photocopy of a cashier’s check.

After taxes his check was for $612,917.00

Her knees almost gave out.

“You have all this money too?” She asked him.

“No.” He said, “I have SOME of the money. I gave most of it away.”

Nia looked shocked.

“You GAVE it away? Really?”

“Sure.” He said casually, “St. Judes, fallen law enforcement fund, fallen firefighters fund, the local volunteer fire and rescue squad, and I funded the bulletproof vests last year for the Police and Sheriff’s departments.”

Nia still looked at him like he was speaking Klingon.

“I also helped with the new bandstand/gazebo in the park down by the courthouse. And with the sidewalk at the courthouse, the one that’s made up of memorial bricks for our county veterans.”

He looked at her shocked expression and realized he wasn’t explaining very well.

“It was way more money than a guy like me could ever use or need. I needed a tax break on the inheritance and winnings. And there were others that really did need the help it could bring to them.”

He shrugged. “I just figured ... Why not have a little fun and help out other folks?”

She nodded, still almost wondering if this was one of his jokes. And at the same time knowing fully that it was just the type of thing her wonderful man would do.

He sat her down on the chair, then said seriously, “And this next part ... is the stuff you have to promise me that you will never ever, under any circumstances, tell to another living soul.”

She nodded. “I promise to keep your secrets about anything you ever ask me to.”

He grinned, “Well, I went to the bank and found out how much some of the important people in my life owed. It wasn’t easy, but a friend bent the rules a little and helped me out.”

He stared at her intently as he told her, “I paid off mortgages and loans for several people around here. And helped others any way I could.”

Nia smiled. It didn’t surprise her to hear he had done that.

“Can I ask who? Do I know any of them?”

He paused, then said, “Remember. Top Secret.”

She nodded.

“Mister James. Tammy’s house and the diner. Beth’s dad’s house when she moved into it. Shasta’s place, the house and the stables, as well as Mia’s and Tia’s college funds, their horses, and some other stuff. But none of them have a clue who did it.”

Nia told him, “I won’t tell a soul. I think it was very nice of you to do all that.”

He paused a moment, but then added, “And there’s something else. Something I really hope you will understand and never have any ill will about.”

He looked into her eyes with a hopeful expression.

“I still deposit money into her account on a regular basis, and it’s not just a few dollars. I make sure Shasta and the girls have a good life and want for as little as possible.”

He waited a moment for her reply.

She suddenly stood, picked up the bundles of money, and put it in the safe. Then closed it. Spinning the combination dial, she said, “I just remembered, we have business to take care of today.”

He asked, “What business?”

He saw the mischievous grin on her face change, then she said flatly, “Marriage License.”

He said sarcastically, “Now you get in a hurry. Maybe I shouldn’t have decided against that prenup after all.”

She smacked him on his ass and retorted, “Too late buddy. You already made the commitment.”

She Leaned up and kissed him, then took his hand and tugged him toward the door.

He stopped her and handed her the rifle and pistol, then picked up a shoulder bag and filled it with some other items.

A holster, mag pouches, spare mags, a belt, some ammunition, and a cleaning kit.

They locked the reloading room and walked to the shop door. He closed and locked it as well and they went into the house.

Skye was dressed and sitting in the living room reading a book. In fact, she was a little ‘over’ dressed for reading.

Tommy sat heavily in his recliner. He was feeling a little winded from walking back with the heavy box.

Nia asked her, “Going somewhere?”

Skye smiled, “Bob is coming at 3 and we’re going out to dinner.”

Nia grinned at her, then went and put the guns in the bedroom.

Coming back, she told Skye, “Can you drive us into town? We need to go to the courthouse.”

Skye sighed like she was exasperated. Then giggled, “Of course. It would be my pleasure.”

The license wasn’t as big a deal as they had thought. Twenty minutes, in and out.

The ride home was filled with more wedding planning, and Tommy got his first glimpse into the grand plan. It was a bit more elaborate than he’d thought, but he wanted Nia to have whatever she desired. It was her big day.

His was the day she had first said she loved him. In his mind, nothing could top that.

Back at the house, Tommy was pretty tired again from all the running around.

It irked him to feel this ‘puny’ when he was normally a fairly fit and active guy.

“Thank you, Aunt Skye.” Nia said to Skye. “Tommy is tuckered. We’re gonna go get him a nap now. See you later.”

And with a hug for both her and Tommy, Nia dragged him down the hall to the bedroom.

She kicked off her shoes and helped Tommy off with his, then stripped off his jeans and shirt.

She helped him pull on a pair of his thin cotton shorts, and laid him back on the bed.

She stretched out beside him, and they just stared at the ceiling for a long time.

Bob came at 3, and they came down the hall to say ‘Hi’ and ‘Bye’, then left.

Nia just enjoyed relaxing in the quiet beside Tommy. Thinking, and just watching the ceiling fan. Studying the texture pattern on the ceiling. And thinking some more.

Just about the time Tommy was really thinking she had fallen asleep or something, she spoke.

“I never would have guessed you were rich. And now that I know, I was wondering why you didn’t tell me sooner. But then I realized ... it was because you didn’t trust me.”

She turned her head and looked at him.

“I assume you didn’t trust Maria or anyone else either, so it shouldn’t bother me. But it does.”

Tommy started to say, “It’s not that...” But she stopped him.

“I’m glad you told me now though. It means a lot. Really.” She started to cry.

“As I was trying to say,” He said loudly as he suddenly sat upright. “It wasn’t that at all.”

He fell back on the bed and exhaled in exasperation.

She sat up, turned, and just looked at him. Then got a little worried.

He looked strange to her.

He said to her, “I was going to tell you, and then decided to SHOW you instead. But then we got so tied up and busy with all the crazy things happening. I didn’t get a chance.”

“Don’t think for a moment I didn’t want to to know, or that I didn’t trust you.”

He raised his knees for some reason, maybe because he felt lightheaded and didn’t want to faint.

His head was spinning. He heard his heartbeat pulsing in his ears. The room started to spin. He felt like the whole world might be crashing to a halt.

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

“Tell me one thing. Honestly.” She implored him. “Was today the first time, or have you thought about telling me before?”

“No. And Yes.” He managed to croak.

His body was trembling now, and he felt cold all over. His chest was getting tight and a dull ache was beginning under his sternum. And he felt like he might puke.

He tried to let her know when he knew he wanted to tell her about everything.

“Nia, I love you. Much better.”

“What?” She asked him.

“We trip fried place.” He said, opening his eyes and looking at her frantically.

He couldn’t catch his breath now. The room was spinning and tilting. He felt like he was sinking into the bed as a white fog began to block his vision like a camera lens closing.

Nia grasped his arm and said something.

He tried to speak, saying something, then ... nothing.

He woke to Nia holding him and begging him to wake up. She was crying and calling his name. And she was on the phone, telling someone to hurry.

He became more aware of his surroundings, and also remembered what had just happened.

He heaved in a breath and screamed, “WHATABURGER!!!”

She pulled him to a sitting position and sat behind him, his head on her chest, and held him.

She said to him, “I’m sorry. I love you. Please don’t die. I love you.”

He huffed in a few more breaths and managed to speak, “I love you too.”

She kissed him all over his mouth, and his face, and told him she loved him over and over. At least a hundred times.

And told him she was sorry just as many.

He finally managed to get a word in edge ways and ask, “What happened?”

“You quit breathing.” She blubbered.

“You tensed up, gasped out ‘Whataburger’, and then your eyes rolled back, and you quit breathing for at least two or three minutes. You were just shaking and trembling.”