Chasing the Son by Bob Mayer Read Free Book Online Page A

asked, finally understanding why she wasn’t willing to wait.
    “Of course it’s involved,” Mrs. Jenrette said. “There are no coincidences. There are no accidents. I need to find out how and why.”
    “And Senator Gregory?”
    Mrs. Jenrette closed her eyes briefly. “He is the most powerful man in the state and one of the most powerful on Capitol Hill in Washington. He has great plans for his son, Preston. Who, I believe, has even greater plans for himself. I had hoped that my dear Greer could work with Preston, the two of them forming a powerful union; his family’s political might with my family’s money. In fact, Senator Gregory and I had discussed it several times. But that is not to be.”
    Silence reined for over a minute. Rigney thought Mrs. Jenrette had fallen asleep, but her voice was sharp when she suddenly spoke. “I do not have much more time, Charles. I will have my satisfaction before I pass. This has gone on too long.”
    “Yes, ma’am.”
    “I will also have my legacy in Sea Drift.”
    “Yes, ma’am.”
    “You may go.” Rigney departed.
    Mrs. Jenrette looked out at Fort Sumter, the flag a distant, bright speck, illuminated by the spotlight. One could almost imagine the Stars and Bars there as it was impossible to make out details at this distance. It was a fantasy she indulged in sometimes. What a world that would be! Full of honor and elegance.
    She was not unaware that there had been a very dark side to that world and that it had been unsustainable from the start. The ability to be practical had always served her well.
    “Your thoughts?” she finally said.
    The butler broke his silence. “Doctor King said the law of an eye for an eye leaves everyone blind.”
    “For all his peccadillos,” Mrs. Jenrette said, “he was a wise man.”
    “But you’re going to ignore his wisdom, aren’t you ma’am?”
    “Yes, Thomas. I am old and not much longer for the world. And I know it is blasphemy to you and many others, but I do not believe there is anything beyond the stillness of death.” She chuckled with no mirth. “And if there is, I am surely damned for my long litany of offenses.”
    “That is true,” Thomas said.
    A wry smile twisted the old woman’s lips. “I can always count on your for honesty. Would you join me for a drink?”
    “I would,” Thomas said. He came out of the darkness and poured them each a full glass, handing one to her. He grabbed a nearby chair without asking and sat down in it with a grateful sigh. He was an old man, with a fringe of white hair around his wrinkled black skull. He wore glasses with thick black frames. His dark suit was crisp, the white shirt starched, the bow tie perfectly knotted. He took a sip. His hands betrayed a harsher life, the fingers gnarled and twisted with arthritis.
    “They came after my grandson, Thomas. My grandson; the last of our family name. I did not expect that.”
    “You can’t be certain it wasn’t an accident, as they said it was.”
    “I can’t afford the luxury of chance,” Mrs. Jenrette said. “Maybe it was just bad luck and cruel fate. But I don’t have the time to believe that. I must act as if there was, and is, a plan afoot and poor Greer’s death was part of it. You understand, don’t you?”
    “I do.”
    “And the timing of these inquiries via Farrelli. Just days before Sea Drift is to close. That cannot be coincidence after a year of nothing.”
    “It is odd timing,” Thomas said. “But the connection is not apparent.”
    “That is what we must uncover in the next few days,” Mrs. Jenrette said.
    “Yes, ma’am.”
    “Something is on your mind?”
    “I do not believe Mister Rigney is trustworthy.”
    “My husband trusted him. He graduated the Institute with Mister Rigney’s father, who handled my husband’s affairs and then his son, Charles, handled my son’s affairs. They developed the Sea Drift plan together. My son worked together with him for four decades.”
    “I know,” Thomas