exclaimed.
“He keeps trying to impress her by showing her inside the safe. He’s done it several times,” Walter said.
“Combination safe?” Sebastian wondered.
“Yes.”
“Can she get it?” Bernard asked.
“She’s trying. She thinks she knows two of the three numbers.”
Everyone squirmed a bit as they excitedly absorbed the new information.
“So, two things here,” Walter said, as he looked again to make sure they were not being spied on. “Lucille’s granddaughter, Bailey, is in trouble. Her boyfriend’s beating her. She says he’s into drugs. And this guy at work is harassing her, hard. Basically she’s fallen in with a bad crowd. She knows it but says she can’tafford to get out ’cause her boyfriend will find her and just beat the crap out of her.”
Walter paused when the waiter brought their food. He took a sip of wine, glanced around the room when the waiter left, and continued, “So, Lucille told Bailey about our foundation…against my expressed wishes, by the way. At any rate, apparently this girl has her heart in the right place, and she immediately volunteers up this money…says she only wants twenty thousand dollars to start over somewhere. Her dream is to design clothes. She’s a really good girl, from what Lucille says, and she’s talented. I’ve seen some of her designs; they’re good, I guess. Bailey wants us to have the rest of the money for the foundation. That’s the kind of person we need to help. She’s practical. She’s willing to go to school and build a life for herself the right way. She just needs a little help up, not a handout.”
Sebastian took a big sip of his drink and let out a deep breath in obvious disgust. “For the record, after she’s someplace safe, I’m gonna castrate the boyfriend. He won’t even look twice at another woman when I’m done with him.”
Walter and Bernard stared at Sebastian. Walter went from stone-faced to a sly grin. He liked Sebastian. “He sounds like Earl.”
“Earl?” Sebastian asked.
“The Dixie Chicks,” Walter answers.
Sebastian said, “Oh yeah, and Earl had to die!”
Sebastian and Walter chuckled.
“Suppose the safe doesn’t have that much money. Why don’t we go to a casino and bet it all on a roulette wheel? We could double our money with one spin!” Bernard said.
“Or lose it all!” Walter said in disgust.
“Hey, that’s not a bad idea,” Sebastian offered.
“What?” Walter asked.
“Doubling our money…but let’s do it in the stock market. Let’s invest it. I hear about companies’ stocks exploding all the time on those money shows on cable TV.”
“It’s almost as dangerous as roulette.”
“Come on, Walter. You’re a smart guy. You out of all of us should appreciate the idea. This is the twenty-first century. Let’s modernize,” Sebastian said encouragingly.
Walter sat quiet, deep in thought.
The foundation needs an attorney for all things legal. A savvy investment manager could certainly earn his keep.
He was warming quickly to the idea, but for reasons of his own, he didn’t want to seem too enthusiastic.
“Makes sense to me,” Bernard offered.
“I know a stockbroker. Lives here in town. Good guy…I put a recoil reducer on a .243 rifle for him a couple of years ago.”
“Is he any good at investing money?”
“I don’t really know about that. He’s a nice guy, though.”
“Is he rich?”
“Well, he paid me four hundred dollars to make a rifle that barely kicks anyway not kick at all just so his daughter could shoot it…he’s got some extra money.”
Walter nodded his agreement. “I’ll Google him. If he passes that initial vetting, you can call him and set up a meeting.”
The three gray-haired men smiled as they looked at each other. Just like that, their adrenaline was pumping again.
Walter discreetly pulled out three rum-flavored cigars and handed them out like prizes. “Looks like we gotta lot of work to do, you guys.”
CHAPTER 10
F OR
“He keeps trying to impress her by showing her inside the safe. He’s done it several times,” Walter said.
“Combination safe?” Sebastian wondered.
“Yes.”
“Can she get it?” Bernard asked.
“She’s trying. She thinks she knows two of the three numbers.”
Everyone squirmed a bit as they excitedly absorbed the new information.
“So, two things here,” Walter said, as he looked again to make sure they were not being spied on. “Lucille’s granddaughter, Bailey, is in trouble. Her boyfriend’s beating her. She says he’s into drugs. And this guy at work is harassing her, hard. Basically she’s fallen in with a bad crowd. She knows it but says she can’tafford to get out ’cause her boyfriend will find her and just beat the crap out of her.”
Walter paused when the waiter brought their food. He took a sip of wine, glanced around the room when the waiter left, and continued, “So, Lucille told Bailey about our foundation…against my expressed wishes, by the way. At any rate, apparently this girl has her heart in the right place, and she immediately volunteers up this money…says she only wants twenty thousand dollars to start over somewhere. Her dream is to design clothes. She’s a really good girl, from what Lucille says, and she’s talented. I’ve seen some of her designs; they’re good, I guess. Bailey wants us to have the rest of the money for the foundation. That’s the kind of person we need to help. She’s practical. She’s willing to go to school and build a life for herself the right way. She just needs a little help up, not a handout.”
Sebastian took a big sip of his drink and let out a deep breath in obvious disgust. “For the record, after she’s someplace safe, I’m gonna castrate the boyfriend. He won’t even look twice at another woman when I’m done with him.”
Walter and Bernard stared at Sebastian. Walter went from stone-faced to a sly grin. He liked Sebastian. “He sounds like Earl.”
“Earl?” Sebastian asked.
“The Dixie Chicks,” Walter answers.
Sebastian said, “Oh yeah, and Earl had to die!”
Sebastian and Walter chuckled.
“Suppose the safe doesn’t have that much money. Why don’t we go to a casino and bet it all on a roulette wheel? We could double our money with one spin!” Bernard said.
“Or lose it all!” Walter said in disgust.
“Hey, that’s not a bad idea,” Sebastian offered.
“What?” Walter asked.
“Doubling our money…but let’s do it in the stock market. Let’s invest it. I hear about companies’ stocks exploding all the time on those money shows on cable TV.”
“It’s almost as dangerous as roulette.”
“Come on, Walter. You’re a smart guy. You out of all of us should appreciate the idea. This is the twenty-first century. Let’s modernize,” Sebastian said encouragingly.
Walter sat quiet, deep in thought.
The foundation needs an attorney for all things legal. A savvy investment manager could certainly earn his keep.
He was warming quickly to the idea, but for reasons of his own, he didn’t want to seem too enthusiastic.
“Makes sense to me,” Bernard offered.
“I know a stockbroker. Lives here in town. Good guy…I put a recoil reducer on a .243 rifle for him a couple of years ago.”
“Is he any good at investing money?”
“I don’t really know about that. He’s a nice guy, though.”
“Is he rich?”
“Well, he paid me four hundred dollars to make a rifle that barely kicks anyway not kick at all just so his daughter could shoot it…he’s got some extra money.”
Walter nodded his agreement. “I’ll Google him. If he passes that initial vetting, you can call him and set up a meeting.”
The three gray-haired men smiled as they looked at each other. Just like that, their adrenaline was pumping again.
Walter discreetly pulled out three rum-flavored cigars and handed them out like prizes. “Looks like we gotta lot of work to do, you guys.”
CHAPTER 10
F OR
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