had seen more hard work in its sixty years than most men could experience in two or three lifetimes. He looked so much smaller in a hospital bed than he did when Angel had wheeled and dealed with him over oil wells. When he sat across a conference table from her, haggling over the price of a well, he seemed to be ten feet tall and made of steel. Tonight, he looked like someone’s grandpa, with wispy red hair turning gray and deep wrinkles around his mouth.
“Afternoon, you two kids.” Red smiled and a bit of color returned to his face. “Glad you are here. Saves me a trip up to your place, because I was determined to see you even if I had to crawl out of the bed and check myself out of this place.”
“Red, you old devil.” Clancy bent over the bed and hugged him. “You’ve given us a scare. Angel cried all the way down here, and I couldn’t swallow the lump in my throat.”
Angel had to tiptoe and then bend over to kiss him on the forehead. “The trip seemed like it took two days instead of a little over an hour.”
“I’m glad y’all love me that much,” Red said. “It’ll make what I’ve got to say a lot easier. Now I’ve been asking—even begging—you to come to work for me, Clancy. You’ve always been like a son to me and Anna, the son we couldn’t have.”
Red paused and took a deep breath. “Not that you’ve been around much lately. But you’re a grown man with your own life to live, and I know you have liked teaching high school kids. I’m too old for the stress of running an oil company. I’ve got to slow down. I don’t just want you to work for me. I need you to help me.”
“All right.” Clancy nodded. “I was going to call you next week with my decision anyway—”
Red held up a hand. “Now hear me out. I’m talking about more than just a job. I figure I’ve got a few years left, and anything I can’t teach you, Angel can. She’s smarter’n me, anyway, but I’m older and I’ve got more experience, so you’re goin’ to learn from me first. Me and Anna had our wills drawn up a while back, and Texanna Red will be yours when I’m gone. All of it, lock, stock, rigs, and barrel. And the time has come for you to start learnin’ how to run it. You’re throwing away that degree in geology and chemistry, as far as I’m concerned.”
“Red, I can’t let you do that, not when you’ve had a scare like this,” Clancy said.
“Hush, and let me finish. Patty told me last week about you two. You and Angel can be competitors, or you can be partners. I don’t give a damn if later on down the road you consolidate Texanna Red and Conrad Oil, or if you keep them separate and fight over who makes the most money. I want you to know how to run the company so I won’t cash in my chips worryin’ about some smart woman like Angel takin’ advantage of your lack of knowledge. I’d like to see my two favorite people together before I die.” He closed his eyes and took another deep breath.
“Red, I’ll work for you, but you don’t have to leave the oil company to me,” Clancy assured him.
“It’s already done. Now, get on out of here,” Red whispered dramatically. “Come see me tomorrow. First, I have to teach you to run it. Half of the company is yours right now, the rest when I’m gone. Maybe before that day, I’ll get to bounce a grandbaby on my shaky old knees?”
Angel suppressed a chuckle. “Red, you connivin’ old cuss, you’re not about to run my life, even if you did have a heart attack. You might have grandchildren someday, but it won’t be because you pretended to be sicker than you really were. You’re tougher than shoe leather and buzzard bait combined. I’m goin’ home, and when we get back tomorrow, you better be sittin’ up in bed, unwired from all these contraptions, and makin’ oil deals on the phone. Good night, you old sweetheart.” She kissed him on the cheek and headed out the door, then turned around to wait on Clancy.
Red opened one eye. “I’m not one bit tougher than you are, smarty pants. And, Clancy, I’m holdin’ you to your word. Call that school and