The Power of a Legacy Page 3
Chapter 3 - Threats at Christmas
“Sir, the foul odor of Mortimer the Prince of Greed and Worrell the Violent has been detected in the valley. We have also been informed that many of their dark companions are growing in strength and numbers. What are your orders?” Eli respectfully requested.
“Destroyer of Dreams! They haunt the sons and daughters of each generation always seeking someone to devour. Their arrival was expected. Alert Commander Crystal and his Radiant Ones! Have his armies position themselves as anticipated and wait for Beloved’s call. You and Jasmine know my heart. Stand guard and remain vigilant,” instructed Papa.
Shortly after Isabella had moved to Millwood, Old Man Wilson who ran the Millwood Feed Store invited her to go with him to the Spokane Valley Horse Auction. That’s when Bella first met Orion. The moment she looked into his eyes as he stood inside the stall before the auction, she knew they would be best friends for life.
But Isabella soon discovered owning him was not going to be easy. As one of the ten most popular horse breeds in the world, many ranchers from around the country wanted the same Arabian black beauty. Bidding throughout the auction was fierce. A rancher from Coeur d’Alene was especially eager to purchase the magnificent stallion. But in the end Bella heard the Auctioneer finally say, “$375,000 is our last bid. Going once! Going twice! Sold to Number29!” It was a lot of money but to Bella, Orion was worth every penny.
During the next few months, owner and horse learned a great deal about each other’s personalities. Bella learned Orion was especially fond of baby carrots, apples, and carob-covered peanuts. And the beloved stallion seemed to enjoy Bella’s singing as she brushed and cleaned his body after every ride. The way his tail swished back and forth to the melody, Bella sometimes wondered if Orion was singing along.
Not long after the auction Isabella discovered Mr. John Minion, the other rancher who bid so fiercely against her at the auction, had already placed ads in several newspapers about the stallion. His ad stated, “Arabian Stallion, Easy breeder. 95% guaranteed to produce same size, color, strength, and temperament. Champion-breed. Available for Lease at Stud. $25,000. Contact 520-937-8062.”
“What arrogance!” thought Bella. “John did not even own the horse yet and was already trying to rent Orion out as a breeder. What some people won’t do for money.”
After telling her father about the article, Isabella learned some disturbing family history. It seemed that the Minions and the Caldron’s had actually been enemies for generations.
“John’s grandfather and your great Uncle Zach were bitter rivals when the railroad came through,” Bella’s dad began. “There were rumors around town that the Minion brothers tried to sabotage the land sale negotiations by hijacking the stage coach carrying the government official from Washington, DC to Spokane. But somehow the official managed to escape and the sale was eventually finalized, deeding ownership of the land to the federal government and making Uncle Zach a very wealthy man. The Sheriff was never able to gather enough evidence to prove any wrongdoing by the Minion brothers, so no criminal charges were ever filed.
The Minions were not gracious losers and have been jealous of the Caldron family fortune ever since. Honey, I’d stay away from John if I were you. He’s still got a reputation for being ruthless when it comes to getting what he wants.”
“No problem!” Isabella told her father. “I never liked him to begin. But not to worry, I doubt I will ever see him again.”
But there was a man Isabella definitely wanted to see more of. His name was Lance Carpenter. He was the Sheriff of Spokane Valley. He was handsome, smart, charming, and funny. He reminded Bella of her father. She first met Lance the day Mr. Meyers gave Bella her first tour of the Caldron estate. Sheriff Carpenter happened to drive by and asked if she needed any help. After he left, Bella thought, “If I ever get married, I want my husband to be just like Mr. Lance Carpenter.”
Isabella had no way of knowing the Spokane Sheriff had also taken special note of one of the county’s newest resident. And he was not about to forget her address. Not long after their first meeting, Lance asked Bella out to dinner. A sweet romance soon developed. Even with their busy schedules Lance and Bella managed to find time for many trail rides and long conversations in front of a warm fire at Camp Orion. As their relationship grew, both Lance and Bella sensed God was bringing their hearts together as more than good friends. Late one starry night in front of a cozy campfire, Lance got on his knees and asked Bella to marry him.
“Oh Lance.” Bella hesitated for a moment then looked longingly in his eyes and replied, “Please understand. You know I love you. But with the all the responsibilities of the ranch, the riding school, and the summer camps, I don’t think I’m ready to be a wife just yet.”
Lance said he understood, but Bella knew he was disappointed. They continued dating but Lance never had the courage to bring up the subject of marriage again. Bella secretly hoped one day he would.
Lance’s father was head pastor at the Spokane Christian Fellowship Church just down the road from the Bigelow Bread and Breakfast. Old Man Wilson once told Bella, “Just call that big ol’ hotel the ‘3B’s.’ It’s a whole lot easier to spit out.”
Isabella’s parents became quite good friends with Mr. and Mrs. Carpenter. Year after year, both families enjoyed getting together, especially at Christmas. Winter was always beautiful in Spokane and Christmas was a particularly lovely time. Every December 1st the city was transformed into a dazzling display of blinking colored lights, complete with angels singing, Santa’s on street corners, and flying reindeer hanging above major downtown intersections.
But Bella’s favorite holiday displays were always at the 3B’s in Millwood. The hotel was meticulously decorated especially for the tourists coming into town on the Sequoia Union Railroad for the local festivities. Christmas trees, evergreen wreaths, ornate glass balls, red ribbons, and carved candles were placed in every room. Bella was a little disappointed her parents would miss the Millwood holiday cheer this year. They had decided to spend Christmas in Florida with her brother’s family instead.
One crisp December afternoon on her way home from lunch with the Carpenters, Isabella decided to stop by the Millwood Feed Store to pick up some supplies. As she was paying for her items, Old Man Wilson said, “You’ll never believe who I saw in town today?”
“Ok, I give,” Isabella replied teasingly. “Who?”
“Would you believe John Minion?” Wilson said.
“Boy, that’s a name I haven’t heard in a long time. I wonder what he doing in Millwood?” Bella wanted to know.
“No one knows for sure. But he and five of his buddies drove over from Coeur d’Alene this morning. They all booked rooms at the 3B’s. Owner says they’re staying in town ‘til Christmas. They pulled in with two horse trailers hitched to their trucks. Parked ‘em behind the church, they did. Kind of odd, don’t yah think?”
“Maybe they’re looking to pick up some horses during the holidays,” Bella speculated. “Anyway, thanks for the supplies. I’ve got to get back to the ranch now. Merry Christmas, Wilson!”
“It is curious,” Bella thought as she walked out to her truck, “John showing up all of the sudden like this. I sure hope he doesn’t hold a grudge against me for out-bidding him for Orion seven years ago.”
As she pulled out of the parking lot, she was awestruck by the beauty of the snow-covered Mt. Rainer in the western sky. “At sunset that giant mountain looks like a huge scoop of orange sherbet,” she thought. Then, caught up in the holiday spirit, Bella soon forgot all about John Minion.
Two weeks before Christmas, Isabella was cleaning up after dinner when the front door bell rang. Opening the ornately carved, solid wood door, she was shocked to find John Minion and two other men standing on her front porch. John Minion was a tall, large man, with broad shoulders, short curly black hair, and a mean look in his eye.
“Mr. Minion!” exclaimed Isabella.
“Good
evening, Ms. Randal. It has been a long time since I’ve seen you, but you’re still the same pretty young thing I remember. May we come?” John asked smiling from ear to ear and speaking with an exaggerated, fake southern accent.
“Well, it’s getting late and I…,” Bella started to say.
But interrupting, John persisted. “I assure you, Ms. Randal, I won’t take up much of your time. I have some business I’d like to discuss and it will only take a moment. Now, you wouldn’t keep an old man standing out in the cold, would you?”
“Whatever you have to say to me, you can say it from my front porch,” replied Bella firmly.
“Ok, Ms. Randal. Have it your way,” John said. “I’ve come to make you an offer for Orion. I have in my hand a check made out to you for $700,000. If I recall that is exactly twice the amount you first paid for the horse. As you can see, my men and I are prepared to take that stallion off your hands this very night. Now, if you will just sign this Bill of Sale, and show us where to find Orion, we’ll be on our way and you won’t have to worry that pretty little head of yours about a thing. Do we have a deal?”
Isabella could not believe what she had just heard. Doing her best to control the anger quickly rising in her heart, Bella calmly replied, “I don’t understand. After all these years how could you come to me with such an offer, expecting me to just turn Orion over to you like he was a common pack mule? That horse means the world to me! What on earth makes you think I would ever sell Orion, to you or anyone else?”
“My dear Ms. Randal, you are right about one thing. You do not understand the serious nature of this offer,” John said as he leaned in closer to Bella. Dropping the fake accent he lowered his voice and continued.
“You see, Orion should have been mine. I had big plans for that stallion. My associates were depending on that Arabian racer to make them a great deal of money. They were not happy with me when I lost him to a little girl from Colorado. Now my offer is more than generous, Ms. Randal. And with all that money, just think of the pretty new dresses you’ll be able to buy. So...how ‘bout it? Deal?”
Remembering what her father told her about the Minion family, Isabella replied, “Is money the only thing you care about?”
“Well, like they say,” replied John with a sly grin and a wink. “Money does make the world go round.”
Isabella looked John straight in the eye and firmly said, “Orion is not for sale. Not to you. Not to anyone. Not now. Not ever! Is that answer clear enough for you, Mr. Minion? Now you and your men get off my porch and off my property. And if I ever see you around this ranch again, I’ll have you arrested for trespassing.”
“That is a most unwise decision, Ms. Randal,” John said as his muscular companions began moving towards the open doorway. Isabella quickly shut and bolted the wooden door before any of the would-be intruders reached the threshold.
“Outrageous!” Bella said loudly. “The nerve of that man! Who does he think he is?”
Isabella stood with her arms crossed glaring at the men through the living room window. Turning their backs away from her view, the men whispered together for a few moments then walked off the porch and got back into their trucks.
John turned the key to start his pickup truck, raced the engine loudly then spun the vehicle in a circle around the water fountain twice, creating a thick cloud of dust. As he left the property and turned back onto the highway, he knocked over Bella’s large wooden mail box. The black, wrought iron figure of Orion which had decorated the top of the box fell twisted and broken into the gravel driveway.
“Outrageous!” Bella said as she dialed Lance’s home number.
“Well, technically he hasn’t broken the law. Let’s hope it stays that way. And besides, he’d just say hitting your mail box was an accident. But his behavior does concern me. John Minion’s got a violent temper and a bad reputation among the ranchers in Idaho. I know he and his men are in town for the holidays. So if you happen to run into any of them, just keep your distance. And to be on the safe side, I want you to double the security around the estate. Have your foreman, Mitch Zane, hire some extra ranch hands at least until these guys leave town.”
Still furious Bella shouted, “I’m not afraid of John Minion or his thugs. Just let him try to take Orion away from me!”
“Feisty tonight, aren’t we?” laughed Lance.
“Well you would be too,” Bella replied with a slight chuckle, calming down a bit. Lance seemed to always know how to defuse any situation and had a knack for saying the right thing at the right time.
“If you have any more trouble with Mr. Minion, promise me Bella you will call the Sheriff’s office. Promise me you’ll let the authorities deal with these characters.”
“Ok! Ok! I promise! I love you. See you soon.”