Page 54 of Luke

“Thank you, sir.” Luke wiped his feet on the welcome mat before entering the warm house.

“Would you like some coffee?”

“If it’s not too much trouble.”

“Not at all.” Mr. Hancock moved around the kitchen, filling a mug with hot coffee and setting it down on the table. “Have a seat.”

Luke pulled out a chair from the table and sat down, keeping an eye on Mr. Hancock as he moved about. Once they were both seated, Luke spoke up again.

“I don’t have any updates on the missing horses yet, but Mr. Hancock—”

“Please, call me Fred.”

“Alright, Fred. You mentioned your son before. Where is he now?” Though Luke already knew the answer, he didn’t want to reveal that he had been checking up on Mr. Hancock’s family.

“He’s in Whitefish, last I heard. Why do you ask?”

“Well...” Luke hesitated before continuing. “I have reason to believe that he may have been involved in the theft of your horses.”

“No.” Mr. Hancock shook his head in disbelief.

“I understand you don’t want to believe it, sir,” Luke said sympathetically, “but your son has accumulated a lot of debt.”

“What kind of debt?”

“Gambling.” Luke saw the older man’s expression shift from disbelief to disappointment.

“Damn it,” he muttered under his breath. “I knew he hadn’t quit like he claimed. Last time I gave him money...”

“You gave him money?”

“Yes,” Mr. Hancock admitted with a sigh. “Not just once either. But that last time, heborrowedthirty thousand dollars from me. I knew I’d never see it again, but he’s my son and I wanted to help him.”

“I understand,” Luke said with a nod. “Does your son know about your cancer?”

“How did you...?” Mr. Hancock trailed off, then said, “Rafe.”

“Yes, he mentioned it when I spoke to him about your son.”

The elderly man chuckled. “My son and Rafe don’t get along at all. They’ve always butted heads.”

“Rafe seems like a good man.”

“He’s one of the finest men I know. I took him in when he was seventeen. His father was a real son of a bitch. Rafe is like a son to me, more than my own flesh and blood.”

“It’s clear that he cares about you,” Luke remarked.

“I know. And I’ll make sure to do right by him.”

“Do you mind if I ask what type of cancer you have?”

“Testicular. I haven’t told Rafe yet but I’m going to have surgery. Once they remove one testicle, I’ll have a five-year survival rate.” The older man chuckled. “Hell, at my age, I’ll take it. And to answer your question, no, my son doesn’t know about it.”

“Why is that?”

“Because he’d be hovering around, waiting for me to die so he can sell this place. So, he thinks.” Mr. Hancock winked.

Luke chuckled. “When is the surgery?”

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