Chapter 267 – Friday Morning in Union City
Friday morning, Wynn and Elizabeth Rose were up early so they could get the children ready. They had a nice breakfast in the suit. It was still early, so Elizabeth Rose gave Cody and Becky their spelling tests. Elizabeth had seen the homework packet that had been sent. She did the tests, corrected them and showed the kids. She said she had to give them to Mrs Thornton, but they both did well. She went over their new spelling words and then helped Cody with his math before they had to leave for the science fair.
Wynn carried the crate downstairs. They sat in the lobby and waited. Dee was the first to come down and he was in uniform. Both his parents looked at him and then each other. They weren't sure why. Dee came and joined them.
"You didn't have to wear your uniform." Wynn said.
"You will understand why later." Dee said.
Wynn looked at him with a raised eyebrow. Dee just nodded to the children. Wynn nodded in understanding. He looked at his wife.
"Will you all excuse us for a moment." Wynn said. "We are still waiting for Frank and Abigail."
Wynn and Dee stepped over to the said, out of earshot from everyone else.
"What is going on?" Wynn asked.
"I have been in contact with headquarters here in town this morning." Dee said. "They are concerned about the jewelry shop owner. They have a Mountie in plainclothes watching the shop."
"Why?" Wynn asked.
"The shop he bought out in Fort Garry." Dee said. "Was his son-in-law's shop. That son-in-law is now working in his shop, along with his grandson."
"I am still not seeing the connection." Wynn said. "And what is so bad."
"The daughter was listed as one of the administrators at the orphanage where Cody and Becky came from." Dee said.
"Oh." Wynn said. "What is the plan?"
"Anderson wants to pick up the owner, son-in-law and daughter." Dee said. "Seize the entire shop, and verify if there are any other stolen items that are in the shop or had been in that shop. He asked me to come and help with the inventory of the shop. He knows my background in detail and thought it might be useful."
"What is he waiting for?" Wynn asked.
"He wants your approval to move forward." Dee said.
"Tell him to do it." Wynn said. "I want everyone connected to that orphanage to face the consequences of what they did. They stole from children who had nothing left and then treated them horribly."
"Calm down." Dee said. "I get it. I will go and do that. You will explain to the others. I will let you know what is going on. Hope to be back by supper time."
"Go do your job." Wynn said. "Everyone will understand. Do you want us to drop you off somewhere?"
"No, I will walk to headquarters." Dee said. "It is not that far and then I will ride with the group."
"Okay." Wynn said. "Keep me posted and if at all possible, please get Becky's ring released to you."
"I will." Dee said.
Dee gave his father a nod, then turned and left. He nodded to his mother as he went by. Just as Dee was leaving Frank and Abigail came downstairs.
"Morning." Frank said. "Where did Dee go?"
"Morning." Wynn said. "I will explain later. Becky, Dee wishes you luck and his is sorry he will miss it. He needs to take care of something."
"It is okay." Becky said. "I understand."
"That is very kind of you." Frank said.
"It is okay, Dad." Becky said.
Frank stopped and inhaled sharply. He knew how much it meant for Becky to call him that. Everyone saw Frank stop and close his eyes. Wynn walked over to Frank and put a hand on his shoulder. Wynn knew that Frank was getting emotional and needed a moment. Wynn looked at his wife and she understood.
"First time?" Wynn whispered.
Frank nodded.
"Greatest feeling in the world, right?" Wynn said.
Frank nodded again.
"Let's go, everyone." Elizabeth Rose said. "We need to make sure we aren't late."
Elizabeth Rose smiled at her husband and he nodded. Abigail and Elizabeth got the kids headed toward the car.
"Ready?" Wynn asked.
Frank took a deep breath.
"Thanks." Frank said.
"I get it." Wynn said. "I remember the first time that Dee called Dad. I cried. Granted he was eighteen months old. But the feeling was the same."
Frank blew out a harsh breath and took another deep breath. He was trying not to cry.
"Let's not keep everyone waiting." Frank said.
Wynn realized that Frank was avoiding something.
"Elizabeth will take them." Wynn said. "We can catch up in a minute. What is going on?"
The duo sat down and Frank looked at Wynn.
"Sorry." Frank said. "I am just overwhelmed today. Last night was nothing like I ever thought it could be. Then Becky called me Dad, it just opened something inside of me that I thought I had long buried. It wasn't until she called me Dad that I realized I gave up the opportunity to have my own child. Don't get me wrong, I will love Becky and Cody like my own, but when I was younger, I always thought I would have a son to pass my name on to. I love that Cody and Becky are taking my last name, but I have a feeling that Cody is going to regret it later in life."
"Cody is old enough to understand what he chose." Wynn said. "Abigail is not that old, children are not out of the question."
"She told me that she and Noah had trouble just having Peter." Frank said. "So I wouldn't count on it."
"Have a little faith." Wynn said. "You never know what God has in store."
"I could say the same thing about you." Frank said.
"I am pretty sure my wife's days of that happening are over." Wynn said. "She is forty-six and I will be fifty-five in October."
"And my grandmother was fifty-two when she had my mother." Frank said. "So never say never. You are the one that said to trust God."
Wynn looked at Frank with a raised eyebrow.
"You don't need to say anything." Frank said. "I know the look of a man in love and physically satisfied. You have had that look more and more since Easter."
Wynn blushed and ducked his head.
"Let's get going." Wynn said.
"Your secret is safe with me." Frank said, laughing.
Wynn just shook his head.
"Watch it or we will both have little ones running around after Jack and Beth's little one next year." Frank said.
"Bite your tongue." Wynn said.
"Like my grandfather said." Frank said. "Careful what you pray for. He prayed for the safe delivery of a grandchild and ended up with my mother."
Wynn shook his head. The two men left to check up with their wives and the children.
Elizabeth Rose and Abigail got to the school and got Becky registered for the science fair. She was told where she could set up and then she needed to be back at her station by one thirty for the judges when they started going around.
"Go with her." Elizabeth Rose said. "Cody and I will have a seat here."
Abigail took Becky and got set up in the large auditorium. She found her spot. It had her name and town on a little card. She quickly set up her bridge and the poster with the calculations. She made sure everything was just right and then stood there.
"It will be fine." Abigail said. "See those two standing over there (pointing to two young men who looked to be standing guard)."
"Yes." Becky said.
"It looks like they are standing guard and making sure that everyone's projects are safe." Abigail said.
"Okay." Becky said. "This looks like more people than I thought."
Abigail looked over the room and saw twenty stations set up.
"There are nineteen other projects." Abigail said. "But you are smart and this is great. Trust yourself. We believe in you."
"Thank you, Mom." Becky said.
"You are welcome." Abigail said. "Let's go. I am sure Wynn and Frank will be here soon and then we can go grab some lunch."
"Okay." Becky said.
As they walked out, Abigail said how glad she was that Becky decided to call her mom. Becky said it felt weird, but it was what Cody wanted. Abigail was grateful that Becky was trying so hard for Cody. Abigail knew that Becky was going to probably be away at school by the fall, but at least she was trying for her little brother. At that thought, Abigail felt bad that she wouldn't be able to give Frank a child of his own. She said a quick prayer that God bless their family and if He saw fit to bring other children to them.
Dee arrived at headquarters and spoke to Captain Anderson. He relayed what his father had said. Captain Anderson said he would see what he could do about the ring, but the fact they had already filed paperwork about a stolen ring helped. The two men, along with five others then set out to arrest the jeweler and his family.
Captain Anderson and Dee walked into the jewelry shop and looked at the two men standing there.
"Can I help you with something?" The older man asked.
"Oliver Wensel?" Captain Anderson said.
"That is my son-in-law." The man said. "He is not here right now."
"We have some questions for him as well as you and your daughter." Anderson said.
"What is this about?" The man asked.
"We will explain in a bit." Anderson said. "First, where is Oliver?"
"Dad went home for a few hours." The younger man said.
"And you would be?" Anderson asked.
"James Oliver Wensel."
"How old are you?" Anderson asked.
"I am seventeen." James said. "And before you ask, I am done with school and have been learning the business for Dad and Grandpa."
"You are going to have to close the shop while you answer some questions for us." Anderson said.
Dee stepped out for a moment and spoke to the other Mounties. He let them know that Oliver and his wife were not there and to go to their home, get them and take them to the station. Dee then stepped back into the shop and nodded to Anderson when he looked at him.
"Again what is this about?" The man said.
"Receiving and selling stolen property." Anderson said. "Now, you are going to have to prove where every piece of jewelry came from. So put the closed sign up and let's get going."
"Stolen property?" The man said.
"Mr Gulliver." Dee said. "Don't lie to me. I can see from here that you have at least four rings that are very close to a list of stolen property from Fort Garry. And isn't that where your daughter and son-in-law were until recently?"
The man swallowed hard. James stepped forward.
"My family didn't do anything." James huffed. "We had to return here because the government came in and closed the orphanage where my mother worked with no warning. Dad closed up his shop and brought us here so we wouldn't lose everything."
"Shut up, James." Mr Gulliver said.
"No Grandpa." James said. "They are trying to say Mom and Dad did something wrong. Just like those other Mounties back in Fort Garry. Dad said they were just jealous and trying to ruin him. I won't allow it."
"Son." Anderson said. "I would listen to your grandfather. Your parents are in a lot more trouble than you realize. I have an arrest warrant for your mother from a judge in Fort Garry and depending on what we find, the list of charges could be growing."
Dee walked over to the case and looked over the rings and necklaces. He pointed to seven items.
"I want to see the paperwork on all of those to start." Dee said. "Also the ring you have on hold for a gentleman who is supposed to come this afternoon."
Mr Gulliver nodded and pulled the items out and then opened the drawer and pulled out several folders and set them on the counter.
"No, Grandpa." James said, and tried to grab the paperwork.
Dee grabbed James and Anderson quickly helped get him under control. Anderson then took him out and handed him to two Mounties and told them to take him to the station and then return. The group knew that they had a long afternoon ahead of them, even with the shop closed.
It would be while he was going through inventory that was not displayed that Dee would uncover something that not only would upset him, but change the course of not only his life but someone that he cared for. When Mr Gulliver opened the safe and pulled out a tray of rings that needed to be cleaned and graded, Dee gasped. He saw something that he couldn't believe. He immediately went over and picked up the small delicate ring.
"Where did you get this?" Dee demanded.
"I will have to look." Mr Gulliver said. "I was holding on to it because it was so unique and old. I have never seen anything like it."
Mr Gulliver went and found the paperwork that went with the ring.
"Here." Mr Gulliver said. "It was a custom ring made in eighteen thirty-six. I came from a designer in Ireland. I know this designer. Or at least his work. He made mostly custom pieces. When he passed away in eighteen fifty-three, he daughters refused to sell his designs. So the company went out of business. His daughters continued to repair custom pieces that their father had made until some time in the eighteen eighties. I don't know what happened to them after that. I know that finding his works are rare."
"What about this piece?" Dee asked.
"It was sold by a man in Toronto." Mr Gulliver said. "He had the original paperwork and showed that it was a one of a kind piece. The jeweler in Toronto then sold it to me as part of a antique collection. He thought that my clients might find them more appealing. I have all the original paperwork. Here."
Dee took the paperwork that Mr Gulliver held out. Dee's hands shook as he looked at the paperwork. There clearly typed in the paperwork was Annie's grandfather's name.
"How much is that ring?" Dee asked.
"Given that it is an original." Mr Gulliver said. "It would be hard to maintain if something happened to it, because the person wouldn't have access to the original designer. I would sell it to you as is for thirteen dollars."
"I will take it." Dee said. "I know someone who will be really happy to see this ring again."
Mr Gulliver looked at Dee.
"My girlfriend." Dee said. "Her family fell on hard times and her grandfather had to sell the ring that he had made for her grandmother."
"She will love you forever." Mr Gulliver said.
Dee just smiled, he couldn't believe he had found the original ring. The ring and paperwork was set aside and would be dealt with later. Dee and Captain Anderson would spend the better part of the afternoon at the shop and discover twenty-seven pieces of jewelry with questionable paperwork, all from the shop in Fort Garry. All the pieces were confiscated, along with the paperwork until the origins could be sorted and it was determined they were not stolen. Mr Gulliver was allowed to remain free, but warned to not leave town. He was advised to speak to his grandson. Mr Gulliver's daughter and son-in-law were being held on multiple charges, pending more information.