Page 35 of More Than Anything

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When he steppedinto GoheenEquipment, Avery could see the confusion on the face of the white-haired man standing in the middle of the showroom floor on that Saturday afternoon. As he walked toward RodneyKinsey, the fellow stared at him. When Avery reached him, he asked, “Why are you driving my daughter’s car?”

“Sir, my name is AveryHolcomb.” He watched as Rodney’s brows rose. “Could I have a word with you? In private?”

“Sure. Come on back. Hey, Jim,” Rodney called out to a man across the showroom, “got some business to attend to. Keep an eye out?”

“Of course! Take your time,” the man called back.

“My boss. Wouldn’t want to get into trouble,” Rodney explained.

“Oh, no, sir. I don’t want to get you into any trouble. I just need to talk to you.”

Rodney led Avery into a large conference room and closed the door behind them, then pointed to some chairs. “So what’s going on?”

“Well, sir, first of all, I brought you these,” Avery said and handed him Lydia’s keys. “I’ll find a way home somehow.”

“I can get you home. But I don’t understand…”

“Lydia’s in the county jail. I had her arrested.” Rodney’s mouth fell open. “Criminal trespassing, terroristic threatening, stalking, harassment. She resisted the officer, so she may get something else tacked on.”

“Are you the guy who bought my grandpa’s farm?” Rodney asked.

“Yes, sir, I am.”

Rodney dropped his face into his hands before looking back up to Avery. “Oh, god, I was afraid this was going to happen ever since she came to our house blathering on about somebody stealing the farm.”

Avery dropped his eyes. The man’s pain was palpable, and he felt so sorry for the guy that his own heart ached. “Sir, she showed up out at my place, beating on the doors and screaming at me. She won’t leave me alone. I’ve done everything I can to make her go away, to make her understand that she doesn’t have any claim to the land, but she just won’t take no for an answer. And I can’t take it anymore. I warned her, even posted the property, and she just kept coming back. She’s insulted my friends, chased me down in public places, and made a general spectacle of herself?and me in the process. I’m new in town, and now everybody?and I meaneverybody?knows my name, and not in a good way. And I want it to stop, but I want to understand why she’s doing this. I’m not an unreasonable person, but?”

“Stop. I understand. I know you’re not an unreasonable person. An unreasonable person wouldn’t have brought her car to me here and wouldn’t be talking to me right now, trying to get a handle on the situation. And I do appreciate it. Really, I do,” Rodney said, a deep sigh escaping his lips. “She’s furious. She came in here the other day, demanding that I give her the money to prosecute and get the property back, but I explained to her that I’d talked to an attorney too and there’s nothing we can do. The title’s legal and we don’t have any claim to the land.” Avery nodded. “So frankly, I have no idea what to do. She’s just bound and determined that she’s going to run you off.”

“That’s not going to happen. I’ve got almost seventy head of cattle out there and I’m here to stay,” Avery told him. “And she called me irresponsible, said I shouldn’t have taken on animals when I knew I wasn’t going to be here long because she was going to toss me off the property.”

“Oh, lord,” Rodney moaned. “I’m so sorry she’s put you through all of this.”

“It’s not just me. She insulted a friend of mine.” When Rodney’s eyes questioned, Avery said, “DanetteMoyers.”

Rodney’s demeanor changed instantly. “Well, if DanetteMoyers is a friend of yours, that speaks volumes toyourcharacter, young fella.”

“Now see here.” Avery’s voice was kind but firm. “Danette’s trying to turn over a new leaf, and I’m trying to help her. She’s a nice person. She’s made some really bad choices, but there’s always a chance to start anew, I believe. What’s that they say, where there’s life, there’s hope?”

Rodney calmed. “That’s true. I heard she had an actual date.”

“She did. I haven’t talked to her since the date to find out how it went, but I was very encouraged by that.”

“True.” Rodney sat for a minute as though he were collecting his thoughts. “So, how can I help? I mean, other than bailing my daughter out of jail,” he said, never cracking a smile.

“I’m not sure, sir, but I felt like I owed it to you to come and talk to you. I know I’d want someone to do that if she were my daughter.”

“And I appreciate that.”

“But I’d like to know if there’s something, anything, that I can do to put out this fire.”

Rodney gave a sad snort. “Unless you plan to hand her the deed to the property, I’d say there’s nothing you can do.”

“I will tell you, I’ve gotten some stories from the locals, and I’m sorry your grandpa treated all of you the way he did. That right there, that’s just shameful,” Avery threw out.

“Well, it is what it is. He was mad at my daddy and my uncles for not staying on the farm and working it, and then my brother and I tried and he treated us the same way.”

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