Chapter 37: House Calls

Cade wondered what the outcome of his conversation with Drake would be. Somehow, he sensed that Drake was not going to give up. He kept continual tabs on his children and ended up buying a cell phone, so that Callie could reach him any time of the day or night.

Lonnie and Cade worked long hours, and Lonnie was glad that Cade finally got a cell phone. Cade's car was not a suitable work vehicle, so when they had to divide up the work, Cade left the car with Callie and drove the truck instead.

It was the middle of November. "We've got a lot of work to do today," Lonnie sighed. They looked over the list of calls. Lonnie already trusted Cade to do a lot of work on his own. Cade was a natural when it came to plumbing. Unfortunately, it would take a long time for Cade to complete his classes at the college to become certified, but eventually Lonnie hoped they would become full partners.

"I can take these jobs this morning," Cade said, checking off the ones he knew he could handle and copying down the addresses.

Lonnie watched him write down the addresses. "Gledhill Road," Lonnie mused when he saw that address. "I haven't been up that way in ages."

"Where's it at?" Cade asked.

"About five miles past the old abandoned mill," Lonnie said absently.

"Do you know the person who is requesting the work?" Cade asked.

Lonnie read the name. "I haven't ever heard of Edgar Reynolds." Lonnie knew everyone in town, and most of the people in the neighboring towns.

"Maybe he's new to the area," Cade suggested.

"Maybe," Lonnie said absently. Something about the address was familiar to Lonnie, but he couldn't put his finger on it.

"Do you want to come with me?" Cade asked.

"No," Lonnie answered. "We've got so many other jobs, I don't have time."

Cade nodded, "I hope my old truck makes it that far."

Lonnie laughed. "When are you going to invest in a better truck?"

"When my boss gives me a raise," Cade smirked.

Lonnie was grateful for his friendship with Cade. They had only been working together for a few months, but they had already come to rely on each other.

"Call me if you run into a problem," Lonnie said as he loaded up his truck. "I will," Cade assured him, but they both knew that Cade wouldn't be calling.

Cade enjoyed handling the calls on his own because it gave him time to think. When he and Lonnie worked together, Lonnie did a lot of talking and Cade was focusing on learning what Lonnie was doing. Cade climbed in his old truck and lit a cigarette. His first stop would be near the edge of town to see about a clogged drain. It sounded simple enough, and when he arrived, it took him less than a half-hour to complete the job.

Lonnie was far away on the other side of town working to install some new plumbing in a subdivision that was under construction. He hated working alone, and he preferred Cade's company. He could only do so much on his own without help. Plumbing the new construction was mostly a two-person job, but the contractors were relying on him and he knew he needed to show some progress or lose the contract. As Lonnie began working, an uneasy feeling began to come over him. He wasn't sure why. He took a break and called Cade to check on his progress.

Cade answered his cell phone right away. "I've done a couple of jobs this morning and now I'm heading up to Gledhill Road. I guess I better get that job out of the way," Cade informed him.

"Good idea," Lonnie agreed. "Let me know when you finish up there," Lonnie said as he hung up his cell phone and returned to work.

There was no cell phone reception as far away as Gledhill Road. Lonnie had been accurate when he said Gledhill Road was out in the middle of nowhere. When Cade finally arrived at the address, he didn't see any signs of life. The old place appeared to have originally been built in about the 1930's, and upgraded over the years. He knocked on the door, but no one answered. He checked his notes and the address, and then knocked a second time. "Come in," a voice called.

Cade wasn't certain he was comfortable entering the house without the person inside opening the door for him, but he turned the knob and pushed open the door. "Mr. Reynolds?" He called. There was no sign of life. The home was dusty, and had obviously stood empty for a long time.

"Come in," a man's voice called from the back. "I'm in the kitchen."

Cade walked slowly toward the kitchen and when he entered, he found himself standing face to face with Drake Pennington, who was pointing a gun at him. "Welcome," Drake said in a low voice.

Cade could see by the look on Pennington's face that he had walked into a trap.

Lonnie couldn't focus. "Gledhill Road," he mumbled. There was something wrong, yet he couldn't put his finger on it. He concentrated for a few more minutes. "Gledhill Road," he sighed. Why did he know that name?

Lonnie stood up and walked over to look out the unfinished window. His dad had gone to Gledhill road in his youth, because someone owned an old cabin up there. He racked his brain, but he couldn't remember whose cabin it was. He slowly turned his attention back to his work, and then he suddenly sat bolt upright, banging his forehead. "Fuck!" he swore, and then his mind began to race because he finally remembered that Drake Pennington owned a cabin out that way. He picked up his cell phone and quickly dialed Cade's number. There was no answer. He realized Cade probably didn't have any cell phone reception that far away. He raced for his truck, because he had to know that his friend was OK.

Cade stared at Drake for a long time, and neither of them said anything. "I was hoping you would show up here by yourself," Drake finally said.

"So you made your decision not to drop things," Cade said. Inside he was terrified because he was unarmed and he was sure this was the end of his life. He began to think of his children and Callie. "Don't you think when they find my body they'll know it was you that shot me?"

Drake laughed, "As if they are going to find your body. You should know by now that I own the town sheriff. Besides, people disappear every day."

Cade had to give Drake credit for originality. "They'll know my last appointment was at this residence."

"Like I said, I own the town sheriff," Drake reiterated. "You thought you had all the answers," Drake scoffed. "You think you're better than me, just like your father did."

"I've never thought that," Cade assured him. "I know you hated my father, but what in the hell did I ever do to you?" Cade asked. "My father was killed and I'm pretty sure you had something to do with that. He's out of your way now, so do you have to kill me too?"

Drake scoffed. "Why would I kill your father?"

"The least you can do at this point Pennington is admit that you killed him," Cade said. "You have no idea how bad you made my life when you took my father away from me."

"Your father was an arrogant son-of-a-bitch who deserved to die," Drake spat. "He was always bringing home the gold medals and trophies that should have been mine."

Cade didn't want to aggravate Drake, yet he felt compelled to defend his father's honor. "Whatever trophies my dad won, he won them fair and square."

"That's not true," Drake said with disdain.

Cade wanted to take the gun away from Drake somehow and pull the trigger. He seethed inside. "I heard that my dad was shot in the back."

Drake's eyes were cold and empty. "He was shot through the head."

In that second, Cade was certain that Drake had killed his father. He knew without a doubt, yet he knew he could never prove it. His life was over, but at that moment, he wanted to live more than ever. He wanted to see Ashley and Jessica grow up and become young women, and he wanted to see Harley become a man, but now that wasn't going to be. When Drake shot and killed him, he wouldn't be able to see any of that. He wondered if his dad had died instantly or was alive long enough to think about his life before he died. "My son will grow up and figure out what happened to me, the same as I figured out what happened to my dad, and he'll come after you for revenge. This cycle will never end."

"I don't give a rat's ass about your son." Drake spat. He was jealous of Cade's ability to reproduce, something else he had failed at.

They heard a car drive up outside, but Drake did not lose his concentration. "Get rid of whoever it is," he threatened. Drake's car was nowhere in sight, he had hidden it down the road. Cade slowly edged his way toward the door, but the person who arrived didn't bother knocking, they simply twisted the knob and entered. "Drake?" It was Gary Holmes.

Drake's mouth was dry and he stood looking at Gary in silence until Gary's eyes fell upon Cade who stood helplessly in front of Drake. Gary's eyes trailed toward Drake and he saw that he was holding a pistol. "What's going on?'

"Get out of here Gary," Drake said in menacing voice.

Gary wasn't about to leave. "Killing Cade isn't the answer Drake."

Drake was determined to kill Cade, and he wasn't about to let anyone stop him. Gary had helped him cover up his killing of Dusty, and Drake was certain Gary would help him again even though he had intended to leave Gary out of it this time.

"Think about what you're doing," Gary said, and the tension in his voice was evident.

"I can't stand him Gary," Drake said. "He thinks he's better than us."