the immediate topic of conversation. Phones began ringing and friends were talking, and everyone who wasn’t on the delivery route was looking for a copy. It was the first time in years that they sold out before noon, and no wonder. The story was both shocking and inspiring. Mavis Webb was a genuine wordsmith and true to her word.
What she had found out about Blaine Wagner’s bloodline and genealogy made him newsworthy, and when she learned the story had been picked up by the AP, she wasn’t surprised, nor was she worried. She’d been extra careful to couch her statements so that they were all worded as unsupported accusations. And that Mr. Wagner had been unavailable for comment, which was true, because she’d tried to call the number Cathy Terry had given her for her ex but it had gone to voicemail.
It wasn’t just the story the AP had picked up that was about to curdle the cream in Blaine Wagner’s morning coffee.
The sensationalism of the incident and the accusations captured on the video Junior Cooper had uploaded to social media had gone viral overnight, and the three-hour time difference between Blessings and Las Vegas had already given life to the story.
Half the country had already seen it, and some big shots on the East Coast were already making phone calls to their business partners on the West Coast—waking them in the wee hours of the morning to give them a heads-up about one of their own.
Rudy CaLucy was a big wheeler-dealer in Vegas. It was after 3:00 a.m. before he made it home, and he was getting ready for bed when his phone rang. When he realized it was the Chairman, he knew there was a crisis somewhere, and after hearing the story, he wasn’t happy about any of it.
“Is this going to fall back on us?” Rudy asked.
“It’s early on, so it’s hard to say,” the Chairman replied.
Rudy frowned. “It’s true that he’s really been stalking her?”
“According to my sources, yes.”
“This lends credence to the murder threat.”
The Chairman agreed. “Exactly.”
Rudy didn’t like where this was going. “Has anyone talked to Wagner?”
“I thought we all needed to know before we confront him. I’d like for us to be of one mind about how we deal with it,” the Chairman said.
“So…his option is stop it now. Back off his ex, or we clean house?” Rudy asked.
The Chairman paused for effect, then answered, “It would be a tragedy that the last living Wagner died without leaving an heir.”
“Are you going to do the calling?”
“Yes…later today. He doesn’t deserve a heads-up. This kind of strong-arm behavior doesn’t sit well with us. If she wanted retribution, she could have gone straight to the feds from the get-go. Instead, she went into hiding, which tells me Wagner made her fear for her life. We don’t need that kind of publicity with one of our board members. I’ll take care of it,” the Chairman promised.
Rudy was confident the boss would do what he promised.
“Then I will leave this in your most capable hands, sir, and go to bed.”
* * *
Gage Brewer’s lawyer bonded him out of jail the same day the story broke, and with the approval of the judge, Brewer was allowed to leave the state before his day in court.
Gage promised the court to publish a public apology to Cathy Terry, explaining her innocence in the whole matter, both in the local paper and in the Las Vegas papers as well, then flew back to Vegas in a private jet with the lawyer Wagner had sent.
With the lawyer’s assistance, Brewer wrote an apology to Cathy Terry and sent it as a paid notice to the Blessings Tribune, then sent an ad to the Las Vegas papers explaining his unintended part in frightening Blaine Wagner’s ex-wife, and that he had broken off all business dealings with Wagner. It was all he knew to do to clear up his reputation, which, up to this time, had been spotless.
Then he went home, packed a bag, and headed for Reno to spend Thanksgiving with his family. He’d have some explaining to do there as well, but he felt confident the worst was behind him.
* * *
Cathy was helping Duke make pancakes when her phone rang.
“I’ve got it,” Duke said, and reached for the spatula to turn the pancakes on the griddle so she could get her phone.
“Thanks,” she said, and ran to answer. “Hello?”
“Cathy, it’s Mavis Webb. I hope I’m not calling too early,” she said.