"I'm all ears, hun." William smiled.
"There's a large corporation in New York called Davis Enterprises. Have you ever heard of them?"
"I sure have. They're real estate developers. Several of the buildings in Manhattan belong to them. I read an article in a magazine about the company last year. Do you know them?"
"I do now. Grandpa wanted to leave me something when he died, so he sold the fifty-thousand acres."
"Oh no!"
"For five million dollars. A few days before his death, he had the hospice nurse leave for a bit so he could talk to the jerk in private. My grandfather and I talked for years about turning the land into a nature preserve. They led him to believe that that's what they were going to do with the land. But it was all a big fat lie. Davis Enterprises is putting an airport here. I saw Grandpa's attorney, Jason Montgomery, out in Clarkston. He didn't know about my grandfather's sale of the property either but informed me that the documents were legal. They own it. All of it."
"Emily, this is devastating..."
"The only way I think I can fight them is through the media."
"I'll get on a flight as soon as I'm able and pay Mr. Davis a visit!"
"I don't think you need to bother with flying out to New York, William. He's in transit to Colorado. I'm at my grandfather's house trying to sort through his things."
"Let me get a couple of articles typed out for tomorrow, then I'll grab my camera and head on over. The one thing companies hate more than anything is bad press. Let's give them some." William hadn't been this pumped up in a long time.
***
Emily had quite a large pile of things to donate, as well as a big area full of boxes to fill with treasured items. She would definitely have to fork out money to rent a truck, but it was an expense she couldn't avoid. There was no way she was going to leave family heirlooms to be destroyed. But then again, she had no intentions of leaving the house.
At three in the afternoon, Emily spotted William's Jeep driving toward the house. A magnetic sign was on the driver side door that read "Baldwin Tribunal". He stepped out of the Jeep holding a camera and wearing a very old blazer with leather padding on the elbows. Emily smiled at him with warmth.
"Emily! How are you? It's good to see you again."
"William, thank you so much for coming out here. It's good to see you too."
"Oh, here, hold this a second." William handed Emily the camera and walked to his Jeep. He came back carrying a bag.
"What's this?" Emily's mouth watered at the smell. She realized then that she hadn't eaten.
"Martha's hot beef stew, rolls, and cherry pie. If I know you, you haven't eaten anything."
Emily laughed, hooked her arm in William's, and headed inside. The food was amazing. William's wife was one of the best cooks ever, and Emily was eating like a horse.
"Have you heard anything?"
"Not a word. Wow, tell Martha I said thank you. She's such an amazing woman."
"I'll do that." William smiled.
"I don't think we'll see anyone from Davis Enterprises today. It's getting late and I'm sure he's not going to trek all the way out here."
"Maybe I should just stick around, Emily. I hate to have all this going on and you being out here by yourself."
"I'm not afraid of anyone from that company. Besides, I know this property like the back of my hand. He doesn't. If I needed to, I could head for the hills. He'd never be able to catch me." Emily gave William a wink and reassuring smile.
"I'm not buying it, Em. Why don't you come back to the house and stay with me and Martha. I wouldn't worry then."
"Thank you, William, but I still need to finish up packing some rooms. I'll be okay."
"You call me first thing in the morning, you got it?" William looked at her sternly.
"Got it." Emily smiled, hugged William, and watched as he drove off.
The chill in the air was getting more evident as the sun started to set. Emily walked in the house and flipped the light switch up. Nothing happened. Dragging a chair into the middle of the kitchen, she changed the bulb and then flipped the switch back up. Again, nothing happened. Emily hated when the power went out. She bundled up in warm pajamas and blankets and decided to get some sleep. Hopefully everything would be back on in the morning.
Chapter 4
Parker Davis hung up the phone. Getting the utilities shut off was just the beginning. He'd get this Miss Carson off his property. Driving to the land last night and seeing the wild woman's silhouette walk past the window was confirmation that she was there. The check for twenty million was ready to go. It will definitely come in handy when she has to get her vehicle out of impound. Parker gave himself a nice smile in the rearview mirror.
Emily woke up to a cold house, even though the sun was blaring through the windows. She desperately needed a cup of hot coffee. Emily put coffee grounds and water in the old percolator and sat it on the gas stove. But nothing happened when she tried to turn on the burner. What the hell? She picked up the house phone. No dial tone. Fishing out her cell phone she called the utilities. Gas, electric, and phone service had been shut off. Her battery was almost dead. Walking outside to charge it in her Explorer, Emily stopped in her tracks. Where is it?! Her vehicle was gone and her phone battery indicator was blinking. Suddenly she heard tires on the road near the house. When she saw a Mercedes approaching, she knew it had to be someone from Davis Enterprises, probably one of their many attorneys. Damn them! She stood there watching the car. She was still wearing her large jersey and grandfather's shoes.
Parker stifled a laugh as he stepped out of the rental.
"What the hell are you doing here?"
"Miss Carson, I just want to talk to you, so don't swing at me." Parker approached with caution. If the circumstances had been different, he would have used his charm on this beauty.
"I want to give this to you." Parker handed her the check.
"So you think that paying me more money is going to change my opinion of you? Make me walk away from property that's been in my family forever?" Emily crumbled up the check and threw it at him.
"Let me introduce myself. My name is Parker Davis." Against his better judgment, he offered his hand.
Emily pushed his hand away from her. "Get out of here!"
"Miss Carson, I don't have to leave, I own this property. It's you who is trespassing. You're aware I can have you arrested?"
"What did you do with my vehicle?" Emily was fuming.