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Chapter 34

Early the next morning, Lucas and Alexander met in the saloon and walked to Gowen Petroleum. After greeting Hickam, Lucas asked Alexander what his thoughts were about the report.

"I definitely believe I can help you on the financial side."

"That is good news," Lucas said. "I will take whatever help you are willing to give."

"I put together a preliminary financial plan based on the report. Mike and I can review the finer details if you want. I do suggest you meet with the head of the crew who recommended this consultant to find out if he knows what might be happening to your oil production orders."

"I was thinking about him, too. I should be able to meet with him today."

"Should we get started, Mike?" Alexander asked.

"I'm ready when you are," Mike said.

"I will leave you two to this task, and I will head out to the field. I do have one favor to ask you, Alexander."

"Sure. What is it?"

"Do you have the telephone number where my father is in New York? Or more specifically, do you have a direct or private number for him?"

"I do. It's in my room. I can give it to you whenever you want."

"That's great. I will be back this afternoon."

"I will have the number for you."

Francine entered the Infirmary and greeted Fiona.

"Hi," Fiona said. "Are you here for your meeting with Dr. Shepherd?"

"I am. I know I'm early."

"It's fine. He should be here soon. How is Henry?"

"He seems to be doing well. I do need to pick up a few things for him here, but I wanted to talk to Dr. Shepherd about them first."

"Let me know what you need, and I will fill your order."

"Thank you. That would be helpful."

"Of course. Is there anything else I can help you with?"

"I don't think so."

"I hope you feel you made the right decision to stay. I know Dr. Shepherd was very happy when you told him."

"I do feel good about my decision. This assignment is different than working in a hospital, but I get to use my skills and keep my patient comfortable. I like that."

"Good. I've seen you with Allie. She seems thrilled you are here."

"We have bonded quite nicely. She reminds me so much of her mother. I'm thankful to be able to spend more time with her."

"And Nathan?" Fiona asked, trying to sound casual.

"And Nathan," Francine said and smiled. "To be honest, I wasn't too sure how he felt about my being here, but now, I think he's okay with it and maybe even likes having me around."

"That's a good thing," Fiona said. "Maybe Mike and I will see you two at the café some time. Not so sure about the Queen of Hearts, though, which is too bad because it's such a fun place. I'm sure we would have a good time."

Francine gave a small laugh. "Yes. I would say definitely at the café if anywhere. I have enjoyed my stay at the Queen of Hearts, though. You're right about it being a fun place."

"Well, I hope we see each other, at least at the café."

"I hope we do, too."

Carson entered and greeted both ladies before asking Francine to give him an update on Henry which she did. Carson approved what she wanted to bring to her patient, so Fiona filled the order. Francine said goodbye and headed for Henry's home.

"I think Francine has been good for Henry," Carson said to Fiona. "I stopped in for a moment yesterday to check on both of them. He seemed to be doing okay and said he had no complaints about the care he has received."

'That's good to hear," Fiona said. "She told me she's happy here, so I'm sure that helps."

"Yes, it does," Carson agreed.

Fiona couldn't help but wonder if Francine would find herself helping another man besides Henry. She smiled to herself as she thought about the possibility of Francine and Nathan ending up together.

Lucas entered the bungalow; Sam rose from behind his makeshift desk when he saw his boss.

"Mr. Bouchard. What can I do for you?"

"Sam, please. I have told you to call me Lucas."

"Right. I keep forgetting. What brings you here?"

"Let's sit down. I need to ask you a question about one of the workers."

"Sure."

Sam sat at his desk; Lucas pulled up a chair.

"First of all, thank you for the recommendation you gave me to hire the consultant. He did a great job on the report. Someone is here helping me sort through the data. We want to be able to begin making some positive changes which should help keep this company going."

Sam sighed and ran a hand through his thick black hair. "That is good news. I probably shouldn't say this, but I kinda started putting out feelers. I gave my brother-in-law a heads up I might need a job. When he asked why, I told him what had happened. That's when he told me what his business in Union City had gone through and recommended that consultant. He used him and said he helped turn his company around."

"I'm grateful you and he talked and he gave you that recommendation. Let's hope we get the same results."

"Yes, definitely."

"There was one troubling aspect of the report, though, I want to talk to you about."

"What's that?"

"Did you have a sense one of the workers might be trying to sabotage the orders or the shipments? It was mentioned in the report."

Sam nodded solemnly. "I wondered about that. One of the other workers thought he saw some things that weren't quite right."

"But we have quality controls in place, right?"

"Yes, but you know, we work in shifts. Not everyone is here at the same time. We don't always see the same people working on various orders."

"That may be something we need to address. Do you have a name of the man who seemed to be here when the orders were not being produced correctly?"

"I heard his last name. I think it was Whitman?"

"Whitman? Why does that name sound familiar? Whitman? Mike and I can check the payroll records and find out what's going on with him."

"Yeah, 'cause like I said, we don't always see him around here, which I find strange because it seems when we do, we have trouble."

"Okay. Thank you for the information. I will definitely try to figure this out. Depending on what happens with the people reviewing the report and maybe a consultant or two we may end up hiring, I want to let you know a restructuring may need to take place. I don't plan to let go of anyone, except maybe this Whitman person, but policies and procedures will most likely be modified so we can be productive once again."

"I understand. I've been expecting at least that much to happen and like I said, worst case scenario, I thought this company might fold. Let me know if I can help facilitate what you need to do."

"Thank you, Sam. I appreciate that and your cooperation very much."

"Of course. Henry brought me on when I didn't have much experience. I've tried to learn all I can and be a leader for some of the others around here who are learning as they go. I would say the majority of us wants this company to succeed, regardless of who owns it. But there always seems to be at least one who doesn't care or who doesn't realize what could happen if you are not able to turn things around. Please keep me posted."

"I will. Thanks again."

"Sure thing."

As soon as Lucas returned to the office, he began reviewing the payroll records.

"What are you looking for?" Mike asked.

"Does the last name Whitman sound familiar?"

Mike shook his head. "Not really. Should it?"

"Sam seems to think he might be the one causing some trouble. That name clicked with me, but I'm not sure why."

"What do your records show?" Alexander asked.

"Apparently, that he works very sporadically. It doesn't appear we have paid him for a forty hour work week in quite some time."

"Is that unusual?" Alexander asked.

"Looking through the other records, that's very unusual. I wish I could remember why that name sounds so familiar."

"Did Henry mention him to you?" Mike asked.

Lucas shook his head. "Not that I recall. I don't think it was Henry, but maybe…"

Lucas snapped his fingers.

"I know. The Queen of Hearts. He used to come in all the time. But he started some trouble there, too. I remember Rick got his name, and we told him not to come back. I think it was Whitman. I'm going to have to check, but I think I know who he is."

"So he's getting even with you?" Alexander asked.

"Henry and me, I believe. I think this started under Henry's watch. If it's who I'm thinking of, I believe Henry won a lot of money from him during several poker games. That's when the trouble started, probably at work and in my saloon."

"You're definitely going to need to address that issue if that's the case," Alexander said.

"I know, and I will. I'm going to check with Rick to make sure I'm thinking of the right man, and then I'll check my records at the saloon, too."

"Mike and I were able to make some good progress. The next step, Lucas, is for you to decide how you want to proceed. I can give you more names if you want other types of consultants, but if it were me doing this, I would definitely look at hiring someone who knows the oil business to get you educated in that aspect and then someone for your organization and personnel."

"I was thinking that, too, on my way here. I mentioned some of this to Sam and told him there most likely will be a change in policies and procedures."

'I agree. You do not want to see another report like this one if you plan to stay in business."

"Exactly. And my plan is to stay in business. Now, whether I am the owner when all is said and done remains to be seen, but I sincerely hope I am not in charge after these changes have been implemented."

"Oh?" Alexander said. "I didn't realize you didn't want to keep this business for yourself."

"I do not," Lucas said, "but if that's what it takes, I will stay here for as long as I have to, but no. My business is the saloon, and that is where I want to be."

"So you may end up selling?"

"I don't want to. I want to keep this local. My hope is Henry can somehow take back this business, but I'm not sure how that would work either."

"Well, if you were able to involve more investors, that could happen. He just wouldn't be majority owner, but that doesn't mean they wouldn't let him be the one to run the company. Under their watchful eye, of course."

"I know there's a lot to figure out and decide. I think, at this point, would you agree I need to take this one step at a time?"

"Yes, definitely. As long as you have the capital to keep your day-to-day operations running while you make these other decisions, you should be all right."

"I do, for now, thanks to my uncle."

"He became an investor?"

"Yes, he did. He helped bail me out with my payroll and our vendors. I still need a lot of help, though. I need to do right by this company, the workers, and my uncle's investment in this company and in me."

Alexander nodded. "I understand. I will do whatever I can to assist in that effort."

"I appreciate that very much. Are you on a schedule, though, with my father? I know he's negotiating a major transaction in New York. Does he expect you to be back by a certain date to help him?"

"No, he doesn't. He told me when I left him in New York, you were my number one priority, and I was to be here for however long it took to make sure you had whatever help and guidance you needed. I am not on any type of timetable except yours."

Hearing those supportive words reinforced Lucas's need to get in touch with his father soon.

"I appreciate you telling me that. Did you have a chance to get my father's number for me?"

"I did. I left it on your desk."

"Thank you."

"Well," Alexander said, "I think Mike and I are done for the day. Tomorrow we can make some phone calls if you've decided how you want to proceed."

"Yes. I will look at the information you gave me more closely tonight and begin to make some decisions."

"I left the complete file on your desk, along with your father's private telephone number. I figured you'd want to see everything to determine how to proceed."

"I can't thank you enough, Alexander, for all of this. I want to get things rolling as soon as we can."

"That's why I'm here."

"Me, too," Mike said. "Whatever you need, Lucas. You know that."

"I do. Thanks, Mike."

"Do you want to go to the saloon for a drink?" Mike asked.

"I would like that," Alexander said.

"I'm going to stay here," Lucas said. "I want to review that file and make some decisions, so we can get started tomorrow morning."

"All right," Alexander said.

"If you need us to stay…" Mike began, but Lucas waved him off.

"No. You two go and enjoy your evening. This is work I need to do."

Lucas waited until he saw Mike and Alexander enter the saloon and then he locked the door. He sat at his desk and opened the file folder. He skimmed through the information, knowing he would need to make a decision or two, but what he focused on was the phone number written on a piece of paper. He picked it up and held it in his hands and then looked at the telephone sitting on his desk.

After taking a few deep breaths and sending up a silent prayer, he set the telephone in front of him, lifted the receiver to his ear and then gave Molly the telephone number and asked her to place the call. While he waited for the phone to ring, he scratched his beard as he tried to collect his thoughts so his words would come out right. He hadn't spoken to his father in almost ten years.

The loud noise jarred him from his thoughts. Holding the receiver to his ear and the transmitter near his mouth, he waited for Molly to speak.

"You are connected to your caller," she told him.

"Thank you, Molly," Lucas said.

He knew she would stay on the line until she heard both parties speak, so he started out with a simple "hello."

'"Lucas? Is that you?"

Once he heard Molly clear the line, he spoke more freely.

"Hello, Father. Yes. It's me. Lucas." He paused for a moment to catch his breath. "Your son."

A short time later, after bringing Helen another chapter she had managed to complete, Elizabeth exited the Queen of Hearts and saw Lucas sitting in his office. Upon arrival, she tried to open the door but found it locked. She knocked on the glass which stirred him from his reflective state. He rushed to the door and unlocked it so Elizabeth could enter.

"Hi," she said.

"Hello," he returned, offering her a seat.

"Why was the door locked?" she asked, as she sat across from him. "But more importantly, why do you look so relieved?"

"I just spoke with my father."

"Lucas! That's wonderful. Tell me everything."

"You were right about my father's letter. I read it three times last night just to make sure I was understanding it correctly. He ended the letter by saying he wanted to hear me call him Father again. Elizabeth, I never stopped calling or thinking of him as my father. Once I read those words, I wanted desperately to tell him that. So, I called him a little while ago. Alexander gave me his private number. We reconnected. It was so good to hear his voice. I think I shocked him by calling, but we had a very nice first, of what I hope will be many, conversation. I know there's so much more we need to say, but it's a start, right?"

"It certainly is. I'm so happy you reached out to him. I'm sure he was thrilled to hear your voice."

"I am, too. It's been almost ten years since that day in his office when we had our last hurtful conversation. I knew I missed him, a lot, but I didn't realize how much until I heard his voice. He's my father, Elizabeth. Of course, I want him to be in my life. And I want to be in his."

"Sounds like you and he are off to a good start."

Lucas nodded. "I think we are, too. I know he's busy; he knows I'm busy, but I think we will make time to talk again. Soon."

"I hope so."

"Now we both know the lines of communication are open. That's all I can ask for."

"I'm sure he appreciated your telephone call, sweetheart. I think you will hear from him. Soon."

"You've been right about everything, my love. Why would I start doubting you now?"

Elizabeth smiled. "I just want what is best for you."

"I know. And I want the same for you. I'm so glad you came by."

"I needed to drop off one more chapter for your mother to review. For whatever reason, I have been able to get my rewrites done faster than I thought I would. I must be inspired or terrified by the looming deadline. Anyway, I saw you were in here, so I wanted to see how you were doing."

"I'm sure it's because you are inspired to finish your novel," Lucas said. "There's no reason to be terrified of that deadline, sweetheart."

"I know, but I have had a couple of nightmares about missing the deadline or losing the manuscript when I was ready to send it. It's been a strange time. I will be happy when I know my novel is on its way to the publisher."

"Everything will work out fine."

Elizabeth nodded. "Well, I guess I should get home. Would you like to come with me to have dinner?"

"I wish I could, but I need to review this file Alexander left for me. We're going to try to hire a consultant or two to take a look at our personnel and our oil production. I want to decide who to contact. Alexander has been a great help with some of the financial issues. He thinks he and Mike can work on those. I just have to figure out how to get the production back on track and hopefully grow the business."

"Sounds like a lot. I guess I should let you get to that."

"I'm going back to my room to look at his notes."

"Are you going to eat?" she asked, concerned.

"Gustave has a hot plate waiting for me now. He's figured out my routine. I'll be fine. I'm sorry I can't join you."

"Me, too. Maybe in a few days if you have things somewhat under control. I would like to meet Alexander, too, since he seems to be a great help to you."

"I would like you to meet him, too. I really like him. I made sure to thank my father for sending him to me. My father indicated Alexander is his right-hand man. I can understand why."

"Maybe," Elizabeth suggested gently, "Alexander reminds your father of you."

Lucas shrugged and lowered his head. "I don't know about that. I certainly don't have a British accent."

Elizabeth chuckled and shook her head. "That's not what I meant, and you know it, Mr. Bouchard."

"You're always so kind to me," he said. "I don't know if my father sees any connection between Alexander and me, but I am grateful he has someone like him in his employ."

"And I'm grateful he is now helping you."

"Me, too. I will be so relieved if some of these issues get resolved. Which also reminds me I have to talk with Rick about a certain former customer at the saloon who caused problems there and now may be causing some problems with our oil production."

"That doesn't sound good," Elizabeth said.

"I agree. I think I know who this person is, but I don't want to jump to the wrong conclusion, so I have to make sure I have the right man."

"If it is the same person, what will you have to do?"

"Fire him, for one thing."

"Be careful, Lucas. It sounds like this type of business attracts some unsavory people."

"You're right. I think some of it is greed, and in this case, if I'm right, probably revenge is involved against Henry and me."

"I don't like hearing that! I know he's not your favorite person, but please don't forget about Nathan if you need help."

"I won't. Hopefully, this will have a peaceful ending. Speaking of Nathan, believe it or not, he invited me to have coffee with him last night when I was walking to the saloon after leaving your home."

"You're kidding. Why?"

Lucas shrugged. "I'm not sure. It was kind of a strange conversation. Not surprising, right? He started out by trying to apologize, I think for his part in what happened with you. I told him he needed to apologize to you."

"That's why he came by when school was letting out. He asked if we could talk in my classroom, but I told him I had to meet your mother at the library. I guess I need to make time for him."

"I think it would be nice for you to hear his apology. He said he still needed to tell me more, but I think what he really wanted to ask me was how to approach Francine to be able to talk to her as more than his friend."

"That's amazing he would come to you with something like that."

"I know. I agree. I was stunned. He prefaced what he wanted to ask me by saying he had seen how you and I have been interacting. I guess the way he saw us together made him think I could give him some advice. I know Bill was very curious after seeing us together. I'm sure he grilled Nathan after I left."

"Maybe Nathan is trying," Elizabeth said.

Lucas shrugged. "I told him I never wanted us to be enemies, but I also told him I knew he had taken an instant dislike to me, for whatever reason, and I wasn't going to force him to try to like me. That's when he said he had more to tell me about why that happened. I told him I would listen whenever he wanted to talk."

"There may be hope for the two of you yet," Elizabeth said.

"We'll see. I don't wish him anything bad. I would be happy to see Francine and him together if it's what they both want. But I did tell him again as I was leaving that he needs to apologize to you. And I meant that, Elizabeth."

"That may be what he wanted to tell me, but I didn't want to keep your mother waiting. I think he understood so, hopefully, he will try again. I'm happy the two of you talked. It sounds like you had a somewhat civil conversation."

Lucas laughed. "Well, no punches were thrown, that's for sure. I'll be honest, Elizabeth. He's not an easy person to like, but maybe I'm not either. I don't know. I told him he sometimes assumes something about someone or a situation when maybe that's not what's going on at all. I don't know if he took my words seriously, but I felt I needed to tell him."

"I've mentioned that to him, too. He definitely has a different way of looking at people and situations. If Francine can help with that, I think it would go a long way to help Nathan change his outlook. At least a little."

"I agree."

"Thank you for telling me about this."

"You're welcome. With everything else going on, I forgot about it until you mentioned his name."

Elizabeth stood and so did Lucas.

"I'd better go so you can look into that man at the saloon, and I can get home to my son."

They walked to the door.

"I'm sorry I can't join you and Little Jack for dinner, but hopefully soon."

Elizabeth caressed his cheek. "I know you have a lot going on, but I'm happy some of it is positive and there seems to be an end in sight for the rest. I know it all takes time."

"It does, but we will get there, Elizabeth. And it will be the best day ever. "

She nodded. "I know we will. And like you, I can't wait for that day to arrive."

He wrapped his arms around her and gathered her close.

"I miss you already," he said, leaning his forehead against hers. "Every time you leave, I miss you more, and I wait anxiously for the next time I know I will see you. I love it when you surprise me."

Elizabeth nodded and swallowed as she looked at him. "I know. I felt that way last night. I was nowhere near ready to let you leave, but I knew I had to let you go. I find myself looking for ways to see you and spend more time with you."

He stroked her hair. "You know things will never be perfect, right? There will always be something else we need to resolve. Hopefully, not to the extent of what we are facing now, but I know there's always going to be something that needs to be handled. That's life. I guess what I'm trying to say, Elizabeth, is if we want to be together on a more permanent basis, when would the time be right?"

She swallowed once more as she looked at him, her expression somber. "I've wondered that, too, Lucas, because you're right. I'm not sure what the answer is."

"Is it when I'm back at the Queen of Hearts full time? Is it when your book has been published? Is it better to wait until Little Jack turns a certain age?"

Elizabeth shook her head. "No, Lucas. It's not any of those times. It can be whenever we want it to be."

"Are you sure?" he asked, surprised by the honesty and certainty of her response.

He thought she might have some reservations or hesitation.

She nodded. "Yes, I'm sure. I believe you and I are so in sync we will know when the time is right. It could be tomorrow or it could be next week, month or year, but whenever it is, darling, please know I will be ready. I want to spend the rest of my life with you, Lucas. You said you thought maybe you are hard to get along with, but you are not. You are very easy to get along with. You are also very easy to love, and I love you so much."

"You are very easy to love, too, and I cannot imagine us not spending our lives together. But before we can truly even think about a wedding, there is something I must take care of. I know it's the honorable thing to do, and I have every intention of fulfilling this particular ritual. It's something I've always known I would do once I met the woman I knew I was destined to spend my life with."

She looked at him with curious eyes. "What are you talking about?"

"Elizabeth, I need to ask for your father's blessing before I am able to propose to you."