CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
By half past ten, everyone in the house was a nervous wreck. Attorney Mike Vincent had arrived at the same time as Caleb. Penny tried to be calm but where were Jake and Bart? She thought she would explode from tension.
From out front the noise of car doors slamming preceded Jake, Bart, and a man Penny didn’t know hurrying into the house.
Sally rushed to hug Jake, making Penny wish she could do the same. “Jake, we were so worried.”
He patted her shoulders. “So was I. Excuse me while I shave and change out of these jeans.” He rushed up the stairs.
Caleb directed his gaze to Bart. “What was the holdup getting Jake released?”
Bart said, “Judge was late. Thought he was never going to get around to setting bail.”
Jake reappeared with his hair combed and wearing a clean pair of slacks. His stubble was gone.
A rap on the door sounded before an older version of Jake entered. He was dressed in jeans, plaid shirt, and a suede jacket. She admired his black boots with fancy detailing on them.
Jake rushed to shake his hand and hug his shoulders. “Since when do you have to knock before you come into your home?”
Bart greeted his father with a handshake and a clasp of his shoulder. “You haven’t met our guest. Dad, this is Penny Hardeman. We’ll tell you all about her after this business is over.”
Penny smiled at the older Knight. “Very nice to meet you, Mr. Knight.”
He extended his hand in greeting. “Name’s Howard. Nice to see a pretty lady brightening up the house.” He turned to Sally. “That makes two of you beauties.”
Sally rolled her eyes. “You are still full of charm, aren’t you, Howard?”
Caleb clapped his uncle on the back. “Full of something, right, Uncle Howard?”
Howard pretended to be offended. He placed a hand over his heart. “I can’t believe my favorite nephew would be so disrespectful.”
Penny was aware Caleb was Howard’s only nephew. All four of the Knight men paced the living room. Although her arm was still in a sling, Penny helped Sally set out refreshments. Coffee and breakfast rolls plus orange juice and ice water were arranged on the sideboard.
Sally acted almost as nervous as the men. Penny understood why. After all, this had been her home for twenty or so years plus she cared for these men as if they were her sons.
At five minutes until eleven, a limousine pulled up in front and four men got out.
Caleb pulled aside the drapes. “Here they are. They picked up the expert from the airport. I’ll bet they’ve already tried to convince him they have the real thing.”
Jake plowed his fingers through his hair, leaving it in disarray. “Doesn’t matter what they said to him, what counts is that we have the real land grant.”
Sally quickly smoothed his stray locks. “Keep your hands out of your hair. Go answer your door unless you want me to do it.”
Jake strode to the door. “Come in, Gentlemen. We’re meeting in the dining room. Please help yourself to refreshments.”
Penny almost passed out when she saw one of the men. He was the spitting image of her rotten cousin Charlie. But, this version of her cousin was cleaned up and wearing a fancy suit.
He must be a direct descendant. He helped himself to coffee and a cinnamon roll as if he owned the place—which she supposed he thought he did. His smug demeanor created an urge in her to smack him across the face.
She’d read that there was speculation Charlie had taken his wife’s surname and moved away. Now she had proof. But was this Charlie a crook or had he bought a family story?
Jake nodded to his father. “Gentlemen, this is my dad, Howard Knight. Next to him are our housekeeper Sally Rogers and her cousin Penny Hardeman. This is Charles T. Miller, his lawyers James Patterson and Ned Wimple.”
A short, older man with a large brief case nodded. “I’m Everett Baxter and my credentials are in antique document verification. Shall we get started?”
Jake indicated the dining room. “We thought you could set up in there.”
Mr. Baxter arranged his tools at the head of the dining table then took a seat. He spread a clean white cloth in front of him. “Will you produce your documents? I’ll view them side-by-side.” He donned white gloves.
With a gloating smile, Charles Miller opened his briefcase and extracted his copy of the land grant.
Oh, no, Penny recognized that document!
When Jake had carefully removed the genuine land grant from its oil cloth pouch he gently laid it on the table beside the other one.
Howard indicated the chairs. “We might as well make ourselves comfortable. I suspect this will take a while.”
Everyone but she and Sally took a seat. Penny caught Jake’s eye and motioned him to follow her.
He frowned, but stood. “If you’ll excuse me, I’ll return in a moment.” In the kitchen, he asked, “What do you want that can’t wait?”
Penny grabbed his forearms. “Jake, that man is the spitting image of my rotten cousin Charlie. I know he must be Charlie’s descendent. Miller was the maiden name of Charlie’s wife.”
Jake still looked perplexed. “That’s a surprise but what does that have to do with calling me out of there?”
Penny was frantic and almost afraid to admit the blame. “Because I’m the one who wrote the document this Charlie has. I know we can’t tell them that but you’ll think of a way.”
He stood with his hands at her waist. “Explain, Penny.”
“When I was twelve and Charlie fourteen, he was really sad about not being able to inherit the ranch even though he knew he’d inherit his dad’s mercantile. That’s how things were split when Grandpa died. Daddy got the ranch and his brother Charles got Grandpa’s house and the prosperous mercantile in town. The division of property was fair.”
Jake motioned her to continue.
“This was before I knew what a rat my cousin was. I wanted to make him feel better so I got the real land grant and copied it but I put the name of Charlie’s father there. It did make him happy. That has to be the one that they’re presenting now.”
“So either this guy thinks it’s the real deal or he’s pulling a con. We better pray Mr. Baxter knows his business.” Jake squeezed her hand and went back to the dining room.
Penny and Sally waited in the kitchen. They were listening to any conversation from the dining room. All was quiet.
Penny took Sally’s hand. “I can’t stand this. Let’s go back in there where we know what’s happening.”
Without making a sound the two women crept back into the dining room and each took a seat. Charlie and his lawyers frowned at them but Penny and Sally ignored the stony stares.
Lighted magnifier in hand, Mr. Baxter bent over the two documents. Occasionally he’d mutter unintelligible sounds but he made no comments. Once or twice he referred to books he’d brought with him.
After thirty minutes of this, Charles Miller slapped his palms on the table. “Well, man, aren’t you going to share your verdict?”
Mr. Baxter glanced up briefly. “I didn’t come all this way to give you a hurried opinion. I pride myself on being accurate. There are certain steps to my process and I won’t be rushed.”
Jake leaned forward. “Take all the time you need, Mr. Baxter. My home is at your disposal. If you need to take a break or to take longer, please feel free to use our guestroom.”
Mr. Baxter smiled. “I don’t think I’ll need that much time, Mr. Knight. However, I certainly appreciate your hospitality.”
Charlie stood and poured himself a glass of water. He was so taut Penny feared he’d burst into pieces. He stood and paced the dining room, which won him a glare from Mr. Baxter.
Mr. Patterson left his seat and signaled Charlie to follow him into the living room. They conferred quietly then Charlie remained in that room. He spent several minutes staring at the portrait over the fireplace. Penny could see him clearly from where she sat.
He stood gazing at the portrait and then at her then at the portrait then back to her. She wondered what he was thinking and had trouble keeping a neutral expression.
At noon, Mr. Baxter looked up and laid his tools aside. “I am afraid I have bad news for you, Mr. Miller. Yours is a copy and not as old as Mr. Knight’s.”
Charlie rushed back into the dining room. “You’ve made a mistake. That’s been in my family for 180 or more years. In this case, you are totally wrong.”
Mr. Baxter shook his head. “Judging on several criteria, I estimate your document is not much more than a hundred and twenty-five years old. In situations like this there has to be a winner and a loser. Mr. Miller, you are the loser. Take your defeat with dignity.”
“Like hell I will. There are other experts and some of them will know a genuine land grant from a fake.”
Jake stood. “Perhaps I should tell you about a story in our family. When Harmon Terry’s daughter was young, she copied the real land grant that Mr. Baxter has just verified to placate her cousin Charlie. He was sad at not being able to inherit the ranch even though he would inherit other property just as valuable, his grandfather’s home and the mercantile in town. Obviously, you have come into possession of the copy. You had no reason to know it was a copy but now you do.”
Charles Miller’s face was livid with anger. “It’s not a copy I tell you. You’re not cheating me out of this ranch.”
Caleb said, “There are ranches this size for sale all over the state. Why not purchase one of them? For what you’ve spent on this case, you could’ve purchased one outright.”
Miller stomped his foot and pointed at the floor. “It has to be this one. I tell you, it has to be this one. This ranch should be mine. I won’t rest until it is.”
Jake walked over to Miller. “Why does it have to be this one?”
Charlie’s expression changed until he resembled a fox. “Never mind why. This is the ranch that belongs to me. You’re not going to keep it, Knight. I’ll see you in hell first.”
Bart strode to Charlie’s elbow. “Is that what happened to Tolbert?”
Charlie’s eyes widened and he took a step back. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. You’re not pinning his murder on me. I wasn’t the one who popped him in the forehead.”
Bart stared at Charlie. “Did I say how he was murdered? Strange how you know that.”
Charlie glanced furtively about the room. “I heard it on the news.”
Bart shook his head. “We haven’t released that information. Only my deputies, the coroner, and I know that detail—oh, and the murderer.”
James Patterson grabbed Charlie’s arm. “I think we’re through here for today. Charlie, we need to get back to the hotel now. Mr. Baxter, do you want to ride with us back to town?”
Howard nodded to Mr. Baxter. “I’ll see Mr. Baxter gets back to his hotel after lunch or whenever he wishes. I’d like to stay for the meal, though. Sally here is the best cook in the state.”
Mr. Baxter rubbed his hands together. “That sounds too good to resist.”
Ned Whipple rolled up the fake document and joined Charlie and Mr. Patterson. “I suspect you’ll be hearing more from us about this situation.”
Bart shook his head. “Charles Miller, I’m taking you in for questioning in the death of Doug Tolbert. I’ll also be asking you about shot that hit Miss Hardeman during the turkey shoot. That’s just for starters.”
Ned Whipple held up his hands and protest. “I was not here at that time, gentlemen. I only arrived last night.”
Charlie growled at the lawyer, “You’re fired, Whipple.”
“That suits me, Mr. Miller. I don’t like the way you do business.”
Bart pulled out his handcuffs and put them on Charles Miller. As he did, he read Miller his rights. “Mr. Miller will be riding with me. If either of you lawyers wants to represent him, he’ll be at the county jail in Terry Springs.”
As Bart guided him out of the house, Charles Miller yelled, “You’d better not desert me, Patterson.”
Although he looked disgusted, Mr. Patterson nodded. “I’ll meet you at the jail and be with you during questioning. Don’t say anything until I get there.”
Bart led Miller to his squad car. The two lawyers got into the limousine and followed behind them.
When they had gone, Mr. Baxter carefully returned the real land grant back to its oiled cloth protective pouch. “I must say seeing this document was a real pleasure for a Texan, which I am. It’s quite a treasure and I hope you keep it protected from heat and cold.”
Jake glanced at Penny before he looked at Mr. Baxter. “We have a special place for it and plan for it to remain in the family.”
Sally had left the dining room earlier but now came to the door. “Mr. Baxter, I hope you won’t mind eating family style in the kitchen. Our meal is ready.”
“Delightful. I’m always happy to dine with congenial people. You know, being a bachelor isn’t so bad except at mealtime.”
They filed into the kitchen. Sally had prepared pot roast cooked with potatoes and carrots, home-canned green beans, corn, and rolls. Penny knew there was a peach cobbler warming in the oven.
Jake whispered something to his father, who nodded.
Howard took his seat. “Too bad Bart has to miss this.”
Sally looked at the elder Knight. “I’ve saved him a plate. I don’t suppose he’ll be back until evening, though.”
Caleb sat but remained pensive.
Jake flicked his napkin across his lap as if he had a grudge against the fabric. “We still don’t know why Miller wanted this ranch. I sure wish we knew what his real motive was.”
Caleb stabbed at his meat. “Don’t guess we’ll ever learn why. I’ll bet he was the one who shot Penny. And, he’s the one behind Tolbert’s misdeeds and murder. He gave himself away there.”
Howard nodded and gestured with his fork. “Bart will find out what the man knows.”
Penny widened her eyes at Jake. She wanted to change the subject with the document expert present. “Mr. Baxter, can you tell us some of the interesting investigations you’ve done?”
The man brightened. “Why, I’d love to share some… only those that don’t involve anything confidential, of course.” He launched into an array of what he considered his most interesting cases.
Penny admitted they were fascinating but her nerves were still on edge. She smiled until her face felt frozen in that expression. She hoped she responded to his stories at the right times.
After the meal, Caleb stood. “Thank you, Sally, for another wonderful meal. I need to get back to the bank. Mr. Baxter, don’t let me hurry you but I can give you a lift if you’re ready to leave.”
Mr. Baxter laid his napkin beside his plate. “I’ll take you up on that offer. After such a large and delicious meal, I might have a little nap at the hotel. Not often I have the chance at either. Have to prepare my notes for a case I’ll investigate in San Antonio tomorrow.”