“All right, but I think he likes you better than me,” my father said as he walked out of the barn with Buckjoy behind him.
I didn’t think Buckjoy liked me better than my father. The horse probably just associated me with Garrett and was hopeful he would be back soon. But eventually Buckjoy, as well as the rest of us, would just have to learn to live our life without Garrett around. That was the reality of the world we lived in. Garrett was gone, in his place was a fancy-dressing, rich guy named Malcolm and I didn’t think Buckjoy would have liked that guy any more than I would.
I saddled up Bambi after giving her a good bath. It was still early enough in the day that I could have gone out to the river, but decided against that. Instead, we rode up north to the big barn that was at that end of the property. It was there that I had hid out with the ranch hands after the murders had happened. That was the only place I could go where I didn’t have a memory of Garrett standing next to me, or at least I thought it was the only place I wouldn’t think about Garrett.
Everything I saw and did at the ranch seemed to be covered with a memory of something funny Garrett had said to me. I was constantly inundated with memories of a kiss we shared, a witty remark he said, or something else that had happened between the two of us. It was so hard to be on the ranch and have to deal with those memories.
Even though Garrett hadn’t been to the barn up north, I sat there and still couldn’t get him off my mind. That night replayed in my head and I remembered the sadness on Garrett’s face as he stood over the two men who had been shot. I would never forget that night as long as I lived. No matter who Garrett really was, on that night I saw how much he hurt when those men were murdered, and I could only imagine the guilt he felt because of their death. I closed my eyes and his face came into full view for me; he was officially everywhere and I hopped back on my horse to head into the main ranch again.
It was going to take a lot of distraction for me to finally get over Garrett and that meant I needed some sort of project on the ranch to keep me busy. I didn’t care what it was; I just needed something to keep me busy. Somehow, I had to forget about the man that I had loved.
Chapter Fifteen
Malcolm
“It is with great pleasure that I announce the return of our beloved CEO, Malcolm Edwards,” my company VP said in front of a packed auditorium of our employees. “This man has proven what dedication he has to our company and to you the employees. He gave up his own freedom to keep us all safe and we will forever remember that. Thank you, Malcolm, and welcome home.”
The crowd cheered and stood up as I made my way from the side of the stage up to the podium. I hadn’t wanted to make such a public appeal to my staff; if it had been up to me I would have just sent out an email and called it a day. But Casey insisted that everyone needed the positive energy of an event and I was too exhausted to argue with him.
I was still in total shock that Frank had been murdered and I wasn’t going to have to testify. It was crazy how things had finally turned out and I had a really hard time wrapping my brain around it all. If I could have stayed in bed and watched movies for a month, it would have made me much happier than showing up to work and giving a huge speech for all the employees. I hated public speaking.
After more than a year in hiding and preparing to testify against Frank Gordano, one of his rivals had successfully murdered him in his jail cell. My information, the case we had against him, none of it mattered any more. Even the remaining people that were loyal to Frank were now on a hunt for his killer and didn’t care one bit about me. It was over in the most un-climatic of ways and I couldn’t do a damn thing about it.
Instead of getting justice for what Frank had done, I was left with an uneasy feeling and the disappointment of knowing I had given up a year of my life for nothing. Well, not for nothing. Obviously, my life had been in danger during that year. But it still felt like a lot of wasted time when there was no tried to go to and no closure for everything I had gone through.
As I addressed the crowd, I knew they weren’t there to listen to me whine about where I had been or the things I had given up for them. They wanted to get back to business as usual and that’s what I wanted for them too. The uncertainty of my disappearance was over and everyone could just move forward with their jobs and their lives now.
“Every one of you is special to me. I know that it was a difficult year and the uncertainty was very hard on you all. To get everyone back into the swing of things I’m going to be giving out bonuses to all employees.” The crowd started to go crazy. “These bonuses are because I care about you and your dreams. Use them for something fun, something that will better your life, or make your family more secure; but whatever you do, enjoy this offering as my gift to you.”
I could hardly hear myself talking as the crowd cheered and began chanting my name. They were excited about the money bonuses, but there was more than just excitement in the air: my employees were happy that I was home. The happiness in the air was so welcoming and something I would certainly never forget.
When I had first started my company, I couldn’t have imagined a moment like that ever happening for me. I had one pilot and one plane that I had financed with my local bank. My vision wasn’t to build a large corporation, only to have a small business that would actually pay my bills.
Luck played a big role in my successes over the years, but so did the hard work and dedication that I had for my company. I had given the last ten years of my life to my company and that was the only reason it was thriving like it was on that day. I had worked so diligently to hire the best of the best and to build a company that we could all be proud of and as I stood on that stage that was exactly what I felt: pride.
These people weren’t just random employees that worked for me. Many of them had been hired by me directly and had worked with me for the last five to ten years. I knew their families, I knew their passions, and I was proud to have them on my side.
In the last few years I had lost touch with what truly mattered and I hadn’t kept in close contact with many of my employees. Instead of keeping that personal feel that I loved when I started to build my business, I had started to worry more about how much money I could make.
That greed
had almost been the death of me and it had caused the death of a man I considered my friend. When I had returned home, I heard that Thomas Randal’s family had filed a wrongful death lawsuit against me and it hurt me all the way down to my core. He had been my friend as well as my coworker, and I did feel responsible for his death. It was going to be really difficult to fight a lawsuit when I thought they were exactly right to blame me.
When I was finally able to leave the stage, and make my way back to my office, it felt good to have some peace and quiet. There were so many things about my life that I wanted to do better now that I was back. My employees’ happiness had been first on the list, but there was so much more to come.
My job as head of the company wasn’t just about making money. I had to do a better job of participating in the culture of my company and really making a difference in the lives of people who worked for me. One of those people was my assistant, Jennifer. She had sacrificed a lot while I was gone and I was eager to share some news with her about a new position I was moving her to.
“Hey, Jenn, could you come in here for a minute,” I said through the speaker that went directly to my assistant’s desk.
Jennifer had worked with Casey while I was gone and I had heard she was indispensable to him. She knew my thoughts and actions better than I did, so once I was gone, she was able to work closely with Casey and ensure that the company continued to run smoothly, despite my long absence.
“What can I do for you?” Jenn asked as she walked into my office.
Her hair was pulled back into a bun and she had on a very classy-looking, blue suit. She was the picture-perfect assistant and I was crazy for even thinking about letting her go. But what I was about to do was for her good and not my own. For once in my life, I was going to start doing things for other people and not just for myself.
“Shut the door and come sit down,” I said with a stern look on my face.
She did as I asked and then sat nervously in the chair across from me. I got up and went around to the other side of my desk so we could talk better. I had heard some amazing things about what she had done while I was gone, she had acted more like a chief financial officer than a secretary.