Page 22 of Rafe: Sins of the Father

“I’ve seen her. I just didn’t know her name, dumbass. What do you think she’s gonna tell you?”

He shrugs. “Don’t know ‘til I try. I’ll flirt with the old broad. See if I can find out anything.”

“Yeah, sure. You’re a real charmer. This oughta be good.”

“You want to do it?”

I raise my hands. “Nope. Give it your best shot, Romeo. This I’ve gotta see.”

We finish moving the pallets and load a couple of trucks. When lunch rolls around, Charlie heads out in one of the company pickup trucks, Sawyer Lumber emblazoned on the door.

Bubba and I sit in the parking lot on the open tailgate of Bubba’s Ford F150.

I’m eating a sandwich I brought, and he’s smoking a cigarette. Once the truck pulls out, he tosses it in the gravel and hops down.

“Wish me luck.”

I watch him enter the building, then glance at the time.

He’s in there forever, and I wonder what the hell he’s doing.

When the mail van pulls in, I push off the tailgate, making a beeline for it. I grin and extend my hand. “I’ll take that up to the office for you.”

“Thanks, man.” The postal worker hands me a stack of mail, then drives off.

I use it as an excuse to walk into the building.

When I come through the door, Cora Lee is sitting behind her desk, eating a chocolate chip cookie, her lunch spread out before her. Bubba is sitting in a plastic chair next to the desk, also munching on a cookie.

They both turn their heads when the bell above the door jingles.

I hold up the stack of envelopes. “Mail came.”

“Oh, thank you.” Cora Lee holds her hand out, and I pass it over. Her gaze drags over me. “Would you like a cookie?”

“She baked them herself,” Bubba adds. “Best cookies I’ve ever tasted.” He gives me a wink, and I wonder if his plan is working.

She passes me one, and I tip my head. “Thank you, ma’am.”

I slip out and return to the truck.

Twenty minutes later, Bubba joins me, lighting up another smoke and leaning on the side of his truck. “You set me back a good ten minutes, moron. You and your dumb mail stunt.”

I grin. “Find out anything?”

“She knew all about the guy in the sports car. Apparently, he’s some rich dude. Owns several vineyards. Cora Lee said Charlie told her he was interested in buying the mill.”

“Buying the mill?”

“Yep.”

“Is Sawyer lookin’ to sell?”

“Not that I know of. Hell, this place has been in the Sawyer family since the beginning. They’ve owned this land for generations. Can’t see why a man would sell his family’s legacy.” He shrugs. “But what do I know about rich people?”

“So, what’s Charlie doing with the guy?”

“I started here three months before you. Charlie was the foreman then, but according to Cora Lee, he’s only worked here two months longer than me.”

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