Alone Again_After the Collapse

by John Sullins

  A photo under those was of a very large muscular man with fairly long blond hair and a big smile. Under the picture was the name, Buck (Ralph) Hunter, his great grandfather! Keith thought his great grandfather’s nick name must have been Buck.

  He wiped the tears from his cheeks and continued going from one page to another and studying the names.

  Chapter 43

  Keith put down the photo albums after about two hours and returned to the file cabinet and opened the second drawer from the top. There were no albums here. Instead he found an old leather case that was about twenty inches long, a foot wide and three inches thick. There was a Bear logo embossed in the center. He lifted it from the drawer and saw a long zipper along the edge. He opened the zipper and found an old bow. It was in three pieces, the center section was some type of metal and painted green. There were black metal latches on the top and bottom ends. The limbs were black with red tips. A string was twisted around itself and looked to be rotted. He picked up the riser with his right hand and held it out in front of him as if in a shooting position.

  He picked up the limbs and looked at the writing on the fat end above a rounded notch. He assumed that the markings indicated the length and poundage, but he was not sure. He put the riser and limbs back in the case, zipped it closed, and put it back into the drawer.

  The third drawer was empty except for a small box and another photo album which had a large yellow smiley face drawn of the front cover. He flipped through the pages of the album and saw photos of people swimming, people at cook outs, people standing in front of decorated Christmas trees, sheriff deputies at some type of awards ceremony, and people at family gatherings. A few of the photos were labeled with people’s names and dates, but most were not.

  He put the album back and opened the small box. Inside he found a man’s ring. He lifted it from the box and held it close to his eyes so he could see the small logo and letters. The ring was old and the letters were hard to read. As best he could tell, the letters in the gold above a square red stone, spelled Alabama. There were smaller letters below the stone but he was unable to distinguish them except there were probably eight letters, with a space between the first and second letter, another space between the second and the next six letters. He tried it on the ring finger of his left hand but it was too small to fit over the knuckle.

  He gently put the ring back in the box and closed the drawer. He then opened the bottom drawer. This drawer also contained only one item, a very old lap top computer. He felt sure a computer that old would not work so after turning it over in his hand to look at it, he put it back and closed the drawer.

  He went through the key ring and found a key that unlocked the second file cabinet. When he opened the top drawer he stepped backwards in disbelief. He stood motionless and stared at the contents for a couple of minutes before reaching out and lifting one of the dozens and dozens of stacks of twenty dollar bills. The entire drawer was full of neatly stacked bills. His hands were shaking when he lifted one of the stacks which was banded with a violet colored paper strap with the amount of $2000 printed on the strap. Each bundle was $2000 and the drawer was full of the bundles!

  He began breathing heavily, “Oh my GOD!”

  He pushed the drawer closed and opened the second drawer and was even more surprised. It was full of more bundles but this time the bills were fifty dollar bills and the brown paper strap indicated each stack was $5000, dozens and dozens of $5000 stacks!

  He swallowed hard as he closed the drawer and opened the third.

  He shouted, “What the hell is this?”

  The bottom drawer was full of more bundles of cash. This time the bills were one hundred dollar bills. The mustard colored strap showed each stack was worth $10,000! He picked up a couple of the stacks and carried it to the bed. He sat down and tore off the paper strap. He held one of the bills up to the light looking for any sign the bills might be counterfeit. He had no idea what he was looking for, but he did it just the same.

  He looked at the file cabinet and asked himself, “How much money is in there? Why would anyone keep that much money in a metal file cabinet? This makes no sense.”

  He got up and walked back to the cabinet, opened the top drawer, and began counting the stacks of twenty dollar bills. There were four stacks in each row across the drawer and a total of six rows from the front of the drawer to the back, and each were piled eight high. He verbally did the math, “4 wide, 6 long and 8 high. 4 times 6 is 24, times 8 equals 192 stacks. 192 times $2000 in each stack, that’s $384,000!

  He closed that drawer, opened the second drawer, and counted the stacks. These were stacked only seven high and he again did the math aloud, “6 long and 4 wide is 24, times 7 equals 168 stacks, times $5000 equals $840,000.”

  Sweat was dripping from his face as he began counting the stacks of one hundred dollar bills in the third drawer. These stacks were only four high. His voice quivered as he said softly, “4 wide, 6 long and 4 high. 24 times 4 is 96, times $10,000 per stack is $960,000!”

  He tried to add up the three totals but his mind was almost in brain lock. “384 plus 840 plus 960 is about $2,174, 000. He knew that might be wrong so he added it again doing it slower this time. 384 plus 840 is 1, 224,000, plus 960 is $2,184,000. That’s right, over two million dollars in cash in these three drawers. He then realized he had not yet looked in the bottom drawer.

  He closed the third drawer and took a very long slow breath. He pulled open the bottom drawer not sure what to expect. He looked inside and found a large brown envelope which was sealed closed. Hand written on the outside were the words,

  To be opened only by the beneficiaries of my estate.

  He nervously tore open the end of the envelope and took out a single sheet of paper. Hand written on the paper was one sentence and a phone number.

  Important- contact the legal offices of Sullivan, Wright, and Darvish in Bangor Maine. 207-982-9595.

  Chapter 44

  Later that night, he laid on the floor in front of the fireplace again but was unable to go to sleep. His mind kept repeating the number “two million” over and over again like it was a song that would not stop. He repeatedly asked himself, “Why did she have all of that cash in the house? What should I do with it? Should I tell Joni about it?”

  He had no answers and the questions continued, over and over again. He finally gave up on sleep and began to wander through the many rooms of the big house again. There were two bathrooms on the first floor, two on the second and one on the top floor. He turned on the water in the sinks, tubs, and shower checking to see if they all worked. He searched the medicine cabinets but found nothing of interest except a very old bottle of a medicine he had never heard of, Rohypnol.

  He searched inside the bedroom closets, shoe boxes, and in every dresser and desk drawer. He did not know what he was looking for, he was only passing time because he was unable to sleep. He was in the kitchen about to fix breakfast when he heard a knock on the front door.

  As he passed a window he looked out expecting to see a car in the driveway but there was no car. He opened the door and saw Ed Roy with his hands in his pockets and a knit hat pulled down on his forehead and shivering.

  “Come in, where is your truck?”

  Ed Roy’s voice was quivering and he was barley understandable. “Ittttt’s dooown rooooad a couple a milesssss. It stoooopped ruuuuning.”

  Keith held open the door and helped him take off his coat.

  “Go sit by the fire. You look like you are half frozen.”

  “I ammmm. I nneeeed hot coffeeeee.”

  Keith picked up the blanket from the floor and wrapped it around him.

  “I’ll go fix us some.”

  Ed Roy was still shivering when Keith handed him a large cup. Some of the coffee spilled down his chin as he held the cup to his lips with his shaking fingers.

  “Do you know what’s wrong with your truck?”

  “It’s old, a junker, I need to find a better one.
”

  At that instant, one of his questions was answered.

  “I’ll be back in a minute.” He went upstairs to the top floor and unlocked the file cabinet. He lifted out five stacks of the one hundred dollar bills. He picked up the key ring from the top of the cabinet, carried the money to the bathroom and wrapped it in a towel. He went down the stairs, out the back door to the barn, and searched the key ring until he found a key for the Cadillac. He was surprised when the car started quickly. He drove it out of the barn and parked it beside the back porch. He left it running and went into the house.

  “Are there any open car dealers in town Ed Roy?”

  “Only one. There used to be three, but only one now, why?”

  “I need to take the white Caddy in for a repair. Can you go with me to show me where it is? I’ll buy us breakfast too.”

  “Sure,” He stood up and folded the blanket.

  Ed Roy adjusted the air vents so the hot air from the Caddy’s heater blew into his face. Keith turned the blower to high.

  Ed Roy held his hands near the vent, “That feels really good.”

  Keith looked at the green digits on a small indicator above the rear view mirror.

  “The gauge shows its fourteen degrees outside.”

  “Too damn cold to breakdown.”

  “How old is your truck?”

  “It’s a 53, thirty one years old. It was my grandpa’s”

  They were the only vehicle on the road all the way into town. They parked along the sidewalk in front of Manta’s Dinner and went in. Keith was pleased to see that Ed Roy had finally stopped shivering.

  The same waitress who was there when he and Joni was there brought them menu’s and took their orders. When she left the table Keith began asking questions he had been wanting to ask since last night.

  “How much do you know about my great grandmother?

  “I met her years ago, but all I know is what my grandfather and father told me. What do you want to know?”

  “It is obvious she was a wealthy woman. Do you know how she became rich?”

  Ed Roy’s chair was not close enough to the table to suit him and his legs were too short to reach the floor, so he stood up and pulled his chair closer to the table before answering.

  “I was told she was a sheriff. When her first husband died, his name was Brad, she got a lot of insurance money. Then after she quit the sheriff’s office she was a bounty hunter and captured a terrorist which got her a really big reward. If the story I was told is right, the guy had set off a bomb in Washington killing some Congressman or Senators, I’m not sure which. I think she made money buying and selling property too.”

  Keith nodded understanding, “Do you know if she kept any money in the house?”

  Ed Roy had a surprised look on his face.

  “Not that I know of. Why would you ask that?”

  Keith almost told him about what he had found in the file cabinet but stopped himself from telling everything.

  “I found a little cash last night. I was just wondering why she would do that.”

  Ed Roy shifted his weight in the chair, his feet dangling several inches above the floor.

  “I guess in this rotten economy, she wanted to keep some cash on hand.”

  “What about others in the family? Do you know any of their history?”

  “Again, only what I was told. I know she was close to her cousin and his wife. I think there are a few of them pictures in a photo album I found in the top of the hall way closet.

  David said, “I haven’t seen that album yet.”

  “I’ll show it to you when we get back.”

  The conversation continued in a similar fashion as they ate breakfast. Keith looked at the clock on the wall across the room.

  “Do you think the car dealership is open now?”

  Ed Roy looked at the clock, “Yes, it should have opened ten minutes ago.”

  “Good, we’ll go as soon as we eat.”

  Chapter 45

  Ed Roy followed Keith through the double glass doors of the Ford dealer. The showroom was illuminated by only three functioning overhead lights but Keith saw no employees. There were only four vehicles on the showroom, two pickup trucks and two SUVs.

  He walked to each and looked at the stickers on the windows before looking inside.

  Ed Roy said, “The service department is in the back.”

  An elderly man with long white hair approached.

  “Good morning gentlemen. What can I do for you today?”

  Keith responded, “Are these the only new vehicles you have?”

  “No sir, we have another half dozen in the back shop. We don’t keep near as many in stock as we did in the past. We used to keep the lot full, but not many people are buying new cars these days.

  Keith looked at Ed Roy and lied, “I don’t know much about new cars. If you were going to buy a new one, what would you choose?”

  “I’d buy another pickup. Both my father and grandfather drove pickup trucks. I grew up driving theirs. I like being able to haul stuff too.”

  Keith looked back at the white haired man.

  “Are these your only pickups? Do you have any in the back?”

  “Yes, two.”

  Keith asked Ed Roy, “What’s your favorite color?”

  Ed Roy began to get an idea of what might be happening. He stuttered when he said, “Red”

  “Are either of the two in the back red?”

  “Yes, one is.”

  “Let’s go look at it.”

  Ed Roy followed Keith who followed the white haired man through the doors to the back shop and to a beautiful red pickup with very big tires.

  “This vehicle has the off road options, tow hooks, bigger tires, all-wheel drive, engine guard and stronger shocks.”

  Keith opened the driver’s side door and got in. He looked at the dash, the seats, and the floor mats before getting out and looking at the sticker glued to the window. The only thing he knew about buying a new car was what his Army buddy had told him about how dealers always negotiate the sticker price.

  “What is it going to take to drive this one home?”

  “Are you asking about the price or the financing?”

  “Cash price, I won’t need financing.”

  The white haired man took a step backwards.

  “Cash price, you have cash?”

  Keith nodded to the affirmative.

  The white haired man looked at the sticker and rubbed his chin.

  “$39,000 out the door.”

  Keith asked Ed Roy, “Do you like this one?”

  This time Ed Roy nodded to the affirmative.”

  Keith held out his right hand to the white haired man, “I’ll take it, cash right now.”

  The white haired man wanted to smile but in his entire career he had never had a sale that went this easy. Not even years ago when people still had money to spend.”

  “Follow me to my office. I’m sorry, I did not get your names, I’m the owner, Harold Bonds.”

  “I am Keith Hunter, this is Ed Roy Short. Put the title in his name.”

  Ed Roy stopped in his tracks. “Wha………….?”

  Keith smiled, “I am buying you this beautiful red truck to show my appreciation to you and your family who have taken such good care of my great grandmother’s property. Don’t try to say no, you deserve this.”

  Chapter 46

  Ed Roy parked the new truck beside the house and slid off the seat onto the snow. Keith stood on the porch and thought Ed Roy looked like a child sliding off the saddle of a pony. He had a feeling of satisfaction of which he had never felt in his life.

  Keith unlocked the kitchen door and when he turned around the little guy grabbed him around the waist and hugged him hard.

  “Thank you Keith. I don’t know why you did this, but thank you very much. If there is ever anything I can do to show my appreciation………….”

  Keith held up his hands like a cop stopping traffic.<
br />
  “Ed Roy, I said you deserve the new truck for your loyalty to my great grandmother. But if you want to do something, I’ll tell you what you can do. Sit down here at the table and tell me everything you can about this house, this property and my family.”

  They both pulled out a chair and sat down.

  “What do you want to know?”

  “Just talk, tell me anything and everything.”

  Ed Roy shifted his weight in the chair, his feet being a foot off the floor, and grabbed the edge of the table and pulled himself and the chair closer.

  “I guess I’ll start with what my grandpa told me.”

  “OK.”

  “Do you know about Roy Hunt, the old man who originally owned this house?”

  “No.”

  “Well, from what I was told, the story begins with a big deer the locals named Big Ed. They named him that because my grandfather, Ed Short, wrecked his truck one night trying to avoid running over it. He was a small person, like me, so all of his buddies made fun of him for wrecking the truck and named the deer after him, but because the deer was so big, they named the deer Big Ed.”

  He shifted his weight again.

  “Anyhow, Roy Hunt was old at the time, but was still a serious bow hunter. Like every other hunter in the county, he wanted to shoot Big Ed. But when he went to the woods one day, he never came home. They had a big search to find him but the only thing they found before winter set in was his boat drifting on the lake. The next spring, all of his grandchildren, came up here from Georgia to get the house ready to sell, to settle the estate. I think they were college kids at the time.”

  Keith said, “If they were his grandkids, what would that make them to me, as far as cousins, uncle, or whatever?”

  Ed Roy smiled, “One of them was named Brad. While he was here, he met your great grandmother Sue. Together they continued to search for his grandfather’s remains after Brad’s sister and cousins gave up and went back to Georgia. About a year or so later, Brad and Sue were married, at least I think it was about a year, not sure.”