Page 66 of James

“I’m sorry, there’s no one here by that name,” she answered, puzzled by the call.

“You’re not Laura Taylor?” the man persisted.

“No, I’m Laura Turner. I was married to Jake Taylor once, but we’ve been divorced for six years,” Laura clarified. “What’s this about?”

“As I’m sure you’re aware, Mr. Taylor died last week.”

“Yes, I know.”

“As his widow, you’re responsible for his debts,” the man began.

“I’m not his widow,” Laura reiterated, annoyance slipping into her tone. She gripped the phone tighter. “I’ve already told you.”

“That’s beside the point, Mrs. Taylor.”

“That is entirely the point and as I keep telling you, my name isnotTaylor. What’s this about debts anyway?” Laura asked, curious now despite herself.

“You and Jake Taylor owe my boss a hundred thousand dollars,” the man stated.

Taken aback, she blinked. “What do you mean, I owe?”

“Your name is on the IOU.”

“I didn’t sign it, so I fail to see how that’s relevant.”

“Taylor used your house as collateral for the loan,” he went on, speaking right over her. “Which means if you default on the debt, we can legally seize it. If that’s the way you want to go —”.

The house? This conversation was getting stranger and stranger. “When did he borrow this money?” Laura asked.

“Over two years ago and we’ve been trying to collect ever since,” he replied.

“Well, I’m sorry you let Jake mislead you, but the house was sold six years ago in the divorce, so not only do I have no legal obligation to share his debt, you have no legal right to that house. But don’t take my word for it, by all means, go inform the new owners that you’re seizing it because you failed to check whether he actually owned the assets he used as collateral. Who are you anyway?” Laura inquired, pulling her notebook closer and grabbing a pen.

“My name is John Smith. Taylor gambled and borrowed money to cover his gambling debts from my boss. I’m the collector,” he explained. “Since you say you don’t have the money now, let’s discuss a payment plan. Why don’t we set the base payment at five grand a week? You should be able to manage that. And since you’re a widow and all, we’ll reduce the interest rate to five percent a month. I’ll call back in a few days and let you know where to bring the money. I suggest you take thisseriously, because you won’t like what happens if you don’t.”

“Is that a threat?” Laura asked incredulously, but the line went dead before she finished her sentence.

Laura knew she needed to call the police, but it was late and she didn’t want to explain to a stranger. She would wait and call Det. Stone in the morning. Her help had been invaluable before.

Her second thought was to call James, but she couldn’t dump this mess on him. She didn’t want to be dependent on anyone to solve her problems for her. Instead, she called her father – he was family at least.

“Hi, Dad, I know it’s late but do you have a few minutes? I have a problem,” Laura began and bit her lip to keep her voice from quivering.

“Of course, Laura, you know I always have time for you,” her father reassured. “What’s wrong?”

“I got a phone call from someone saying Jake owed him a hundred thousand dollars and since he was dead, it’s my debt now. Apparently, Jake somehow put my name on his IOU two years after we divorced. You know I don’t have that kind of money. I’m finally close to paying off the debts he left while we were married.” The words tumbled from her mouth and her stomach knotted. Bile threatened to rise and reflectively she swallowed against the burning pain. “What am I supposed to do?”

“Well, you don’t owe this person anything, obviously.” Concern laced her dad’s voice when he added, “Did he threaten you?”

“Not directly, but it wasn’t exactly a friendly conversation.” She tried to recall his exact words. “He kept referring to his ‘boss,’ as if that was important and he told me his name was ‘John Smith,’ of all things. He expectspayments of five thousand a week with an interest rate of five percent a month. That’s insane and it must be criminal.” A shudder ran through her.

“Sounds like a loan shark to me, honey. I think you’d better call the police and go see them. Do you want me to come with you?” he offered.

His support was like a ray of sun on a cold winter morning. “I think I can manage that part, Dad, but thanks. Mostly, I needed to talk to someone about it. I still have the contact information for the detective who helped when Jake accused James of assault. I’ll call her first thing in the morning,” Laura said, grateful for her father's understanding.

“What about calling James?” he suggested. “I think he would want to help.”

“No, Dad, that’s not an option right now and I don’t want to talk about it,” Laura replied, infusing steel into her voice.

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