Chapter Eighty-Three

Trapper poked his head in Leah's office door, and seeing that her back was turned as she spoke on the phone, he entered, setting his satchel down next to the chair in front of her desk which he occupied after preparing a cup of coffee.

She turned briefly to see who had come in, then turned right back around, apparently listening intently to whoever was on the other end of the phone.

"So, Leah," said Albert. "It's finally over. You've won."

"I don't feel like I've won anything. The price for their negligence was too high. Do they even get that?" she snapped.

"Leah, dear, I've dealt with their lawyers from the beginning. I never saw the first one of them."

"Can they appeal this one?"

"No. This was their last appeal. This is it. Where do you want it?"

"Put it in an account I can get to easily. I may be using it soon. Use the same beneficiary designation we discussed earlier for the other accounts. And if anyone calls for a statement, send them to me. I most definitely will be making one," she said emphatically.

Albert could hear the slowly rising rage in her voice. "Now don't go spouting off. You could get yourself into trouble."

"I won't be saying anything that isn't true, Albert. They've settled to try to save some of their reputation, knowing full well if this had gone to trial, their negligence would be all over the news. This way no one has to take any personal responsibility. This is the coward's way out."

"Do you want me to turn them down?" he asked quietly.

There was silence as she seriously thought about it, eventually admitting to herself that she had to let it end. Letting out a long, slow breath, she said softly, "No. It's been going on too long. It needs to be over."

"All right. I'll take care of everything. You're not going home by yourself tonight are you?"

She chuckled. "Why is that any of your business?"

"I just don't think you need to go home to an empty house," he answered with concern in his voice. "You'll do nothing but dredge the past back up and end up a pitiful mess."

"You know me too well, Albert." She spun around in her chair, looking at Trapper who was wearing an apprehensive look with his arms were crossed and one hand over his mouth "I'll be spending the evening with Dr. McIntyre. We're flying to Washington tomorrow."

"Good. I'll let you know the details as soon as I can. Have a good trip."

Twisting her mouth, she slowly reached across the desk and hung up the phone, then studied Trapper. "Please don't worry. It's the last piece of the past that needed to fall into place."

"I didn't realize a lawsuit was still going…or even that one had been filed," he said softly.

"Albert filed it before I even woke up. It seems the chains holding the logs on the truck had been improperly secured. It wasn't the first time either, and when the other drivers for the company were questioned, they all said they were rushed to get the logs loaded and moving to the mill. If they had taken another half hour to secure those logs the right way…." She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, fighting off the wet warmth that was already stinging her eyes. "They settled for three million for each of their lives and one million for my injuries." Chuckling sourly, she said, "I would love to meet the person who thinks they know the dollar value of a human life. But at least, something good can come out of it. Not only can I build the children's hospital, but I can help your laser and microvascular surgery centers as well," she said, closing the folders on her desk and moving some to a file drawer and some to her briefcase."

Trapper stood. "Let's get out of here. Dinner first."

"I'm not very hungry."

"You still need to eat. Come on," he said, holding out his arm to put it around her when she came from behind her desk. "You'll feel better with a full stomach."

"I really wish you had eaten more," said Trapper, holding a wax-coated box stuffed full of Chinese food.

Leah pushed the security code into the gate's keypad and held the gate open for him. "I'll nibble on it tonight while you pack."

Trapper put the food in the refrigerator, and then followed her into the bathroom and to her large walk-in closet. She pulled out a Pullman bag and a garment bag, hanging the latter on the open closet door. He watched her pull out several business suits, skirts and jackets, blouses and slacks, breathing a sigh of relief when she packed several pairs of jeans and casual tops. Then she pulled out two formal dresses. "What are those for?"

"Do you have a tux?" she said, carefully moving the suits and formals into the garment bag.

Trapper looked at her sideways with narrowed eyes. "Why do I need a tux?

"Because there are always dinner parties…formal dinner parties in Washington. If we get invited, that means someone is interested."

"Yes, I have a tux," he answered after a long exhale.

She stopped and smiled at him teasingly. "You don't like to play dress-up?"

"Are you done with these? I'll take them out to the car," he said, ignoring her repartee.

"Not quite," she said, taking a small accessory bag to the bathroom cabinet, packing scarfs, ties, pins, and jewelry, and then pulling underwear out of a drawer. She also took out several boxes of more expensive jewelry, setting them aside to go in a large purse she always carried with her when travelling. The accessory bag, underwear and makeup went into the Pullman with her casual clothes and shoes. "All right. I think that's it."

"That's it? You mean it's not going to take you hours to pack?" he asked with a playful smirk. She turned to him, looking happily up to into his eyes. "I hate packing. But it's nice to have someone to share my pain," she giggled.

He gave her a loud, wet kiss. "I'll show you pain. We haven't packed my bags yet."

Leah sat on the side of the Trapper's bed, listening to the groaning and grunting coming from his closet. When he finally emerged, he also had a Pullman and a garment bag. He parked the Pullman next to the bed, hung his garment bag on the bedroom door, and then disappeared into the bathroom.

"That wasn't very painful," she said loud enough to be heard in the other room.

"Well, I learned from you. I counted every suit, every pair of slacks, every formal gown, and every casual shirt you packed, and packed accordingly. The only thing I didn't duplicate was the gowns." He leaned out of the bathroom and winked. "I have only one tuxedo. Would you open the top drawer in the night stand and pull out two pair of the cufflinks?"

"Which ones?" she asked, opening the drawer. She stopped when she found his gun.

"Whichever ones you like?" he answered. Venturing another look from the bathroom, he stepped out when he saw her staring into the drawer. He took the box containing his cufflinks out and closed the drawer, handing her the box.

"Why do you have that?"

"For the same reason anyone has a gun. Protection," he said as he walked back into the bathroom.

He looked up from packing his shaving kit when he heard her voice behind him. "You need protection here?"

Smiling at her reflection in the mirror, he zipped his shaving kit and turned. "I'm finished here," he said, nodding at the door. As he packed his shaving kit in his Pullman, he explained. "I've been robbed before. The police couldn't do much about it other than keep an eye out for the things that were stolen. It certainly made me understand how someone feels violated when that kind of thing happens. So I have a gun." She handed him two pair of cufflinks which he wrapped in a handkerchief and placed in a pocket of his garment bag along with his ties and stays. "Does it bother you?"

She smiled. "No. I just wasn't expecting it. John kept a gun. He had a small safe installed in our bedroom just for the darn thing, so the kids couldn't get to it." Chuckling, she added, "I used to tell him he was paranoid. But then, we were never robbed."

Trapper took her hand and brought it to his lips, kissing her knuckles. "Let's go back down. I want to watch the news."

As Leah made herself comfortable on the sofa with her leftovers from dinner, Trapper turned on the television, poured two glasses of wine and joined her. They sat quietly listening, but both stiffened when a report started that detailed the inspection and investigation of a restaurant in the downtown, Namkoong's Kitchen.

"Four cases of botulism have been diagnosed at San Francisco Memorial Hospital prompting the county health department to perform a surprise inspection at a local restaurant. The owner, Young-Soo Namkoong, closed his business early for the inspection where the health department found no signs of the botulism bacteria. In addition all procedures for food safety were adequately being followed. But when Namkoong was questioned about his employees, he advised that one employee, a young man whose name we've been asked not to reveal, had been let go. Namkoong said the young man would not follow proper procedures for cleanliness and food preparation, prompting his termination. He also said that the discovery of an open wound on the employee's arm caused Namkoong to look more closely at his work, leading him to the discovery that the employee's work ethic was lacking. The health department obtained the young man's last known address from his former employer, but they have yet to find him. The investigation into the source of the infection is continuing. It should be noted that no violations were found at the restaurant at the time of the inspection, and the records show that all prior inspections revealed no violations."

"I don't understand," said Leah. "If there's nothing wrong at the restaurant now and the man's been fired, what else is there to find?"

Trapper sipped his wine. "They still need to find the source of the botulism, and apparently don't feel it originated at the restaurant. My guess is they believe the wound on his arm might have been the source of what we have at the hospital, but then they'd still have to find out where he got it. This may turn into a much bigger problem."

"You just need to remember it's not your problem for the next two weeks," said Leah, downing the last few drops of her wine. "I'm going to bed. We have to be up even earlier tomorrow morning. Are you coming?" she asked, standing.

He just laughed and shook his head.