The City Girl's Homecoming. Kathy Douglass
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met the sisters a month ago when she’d been assigned their case by her boss, Daniel Sutton. Birdie and Bunny had grown up in this house and had lived here all of their lives. Neither sister had ever married. They were different as night and day, but fit together like puzzle pieces. If there was an area where one was weak, the other was strong enough to compensate for it. Bernadette, who was called Birdie by everyone, was tall and thin and in great shape. She was a no-nonsense type who didn’t tolerate fools, but underneath the gruff exterior, she was as generous and kind as could be. Gwendolyn, or Bunny, as she was affectionately called, was short and plump, with a heart of gold. She was a bit of a dreamer and a little too gullible and naive for Megan’s comfort—thank goodness she had Birdie around to protect her—but she was always positive and encouraging. Megan liked them both very much.
“Cade still outside?” Birdie asked.
“No. He left. He had something to get back to,” Bunny said.
Birdie only grunted. Megan hadn’t known Birdie long enough to know what that sound meant, but apparently Bunny did.
“Exactly,” Bunny replied. “I wrapped up some chicken and cake for him for the road.”
Working in tandem, the sisters filled three plates to overflowing. Once they joined her at the table, Megan spoke. “I have some information for you.”
“Not at lunch, dear. We never discuss business at meals. It’s not good for digestion,” Birdie said. “There’s plenty of time for that later.”
During her years of practice, Megan had had many business lunches and dinners. And she’d always discussed business between bites. Most times business had been wrapped up before dessert. But then, that had been in New York, where everything moved at a much faster pace and no second could be wasted. Some days there had been barely enough time to breathe, much less eat a leisurely meal. But she was in Spring Forest now, and clearly, they did things differently here.
Since discussing business was forbidden, Megan picked up her corn on the cob and took a bite. It was delicious. Before moving to North Carolina, she’d shopped at farmers markets twice a week. She’d been impressed by the fruits and vegetables she’d purchased there, which tasted so much better than anything she’d bought at the store. But as good as that produce had tasted, it didn’t compare to this. She’d never enjoyed such flavorful food before, and her taste buds smiled with pleasure.
“How are you adjusting to small-town life?” Birdie asked.
“It’s different from New York, but I enjoy it. I like the peace and quiet and the sense of community. I like the way everyone pulls together to help those in need.” Not that she hadn’t experienced a sense of support and community in New York. She’d had two good friends she could count on. And they would continue to be her friends whether she lived in the same building or in an entirely different state. But she’d needed a change. She’d had to get away from Tim, her former fiancé, and his family.
She and Tim had met on their first day of law school and quickly fallen in love. They’d gotten engaged after they’d both passed the bar. His parents and his sisters had welcomed her into their family. She’d spent holidays and vacations with them, and they’d always made a big deal of her birthday. She’d been so sure that after all those years of bouncing from place to place in foster care, she’d finally found a family again.
Then she and Tim had broken up. Since the breakup had been friendly, Megan had believed she would remain friends with his family. She’d been wrong. She’d made excuses for them when they stopped returning her calls. But when her birthday came and went without acknowledgement, she’d realized they’d well and truly cut her from their lives.
She’d decided that the best way to deal with the painful situation was to make a clean break. On impulse, she’d written the names of the forty-nine other states on slips of paper and placed them in a hat. She’d pulled out North Carolina and had begun her job search there. Last month she’d been hired by Daniel Sutton, turning his one-man law firm into a one-man-and-one-woman firm. Sutton Law Office was very different from the five-hundred-lawyer firm where she’d worked before. It was a change, but not an unpleasant one.
While they ate, Megan and the Whitaker sisters chatted about Furever Paws, the animal rescue the sisters had founded on their property. The shelter, which was run mostly by volunteers, provided a necessary service in the community. Lost or unwanted pets were housed until new families could be found for them. The shelter held adoption fairs providing opportunities for the humans and animals to meet.
Once they’d eaten their cake and finished their sweet tea, Megan was able to steer the conversation to the reason she was here—their finances. She pulled a file from her leather bag and then looked from one sister to the other. Life had taught her that there was no such thing as sugarcoating bad news. Since Birdie and Bunny were going to be hurt, there was no use in beating around the bush.
“Well, ladies, I’m afraid what I have to say isn’t good. Your brother Greg has been embezzling from you.”
Bunny gasped and clasped her hands together against her chest.
Birdie shook her head. “Are you sure? I can’t believe Gator would do that to us. Can you, Bunny?”
“No.” Bunny’s voice was barely over a whisper, but Megan heard the pain there.
Even though Megan had expected this response, her heart still ached for them. Bunny didn’t want to believe anything bad about anyone, and Birdie had a blind spot when it came to her baby brother. Nothing he did would ever be wrong in her eyes. Even now, faced with evidence of his crimes, she still referred to him by the family’s old, affectionate nickname.
Megan had the proof that he’d been stealing from them for years, but whether she could convince the sisters to do anything about it was anyone’s guess. Still, she had to try. Bunny and Birdie were more than her clients. They were her friends. They were friends of the community. They cared about everyone and everyone cared about them.
“I have proof,” she said, passing over copies of the documents to each of them. Neither sister touched the stacks of papers. They barely looked at them. “This is the information from the forensic accountant I hired. I have time to go through everything now and answer any questions you have.”
“I’m sure you do. We just aren’t ready to think about any of this right now,” Bunny said. “We need time to process what you’ve told us.”
“I understand that, but it’s important that we act sooner rather than later.”
“We know, but we have other things to deal with right now and can’t handle another.”
“Like what?” Megan knew the news must be hard for them to grapple with, but putting off thinking about it wouldn’t do them any favors—not when they were at risk of losing their home.
“Rebekah,” Bunny replied immediately, and Birdie nodded.
“What about her?” Rebekah was the director of the animal shelter and one of Megan’s new friends.
“There’s something going on with her,” Bunny replied. “She seems a little run-down and tired these days. I came upon her the other day and she looked positively ill.”
“I saw her a few days ago and she looked fine to me,” Megan said, hoping to end this discussion so she could get the sisters back on track.
“Do you think it could be stress from dealing with Grant?” Birdie asked as if Megan hadn’t said a word. “That nephew of ours is such a perfectionist. He might be putting pressure on her.”
“I wouldn’t be surprised,” Bunny said. “We should talk to him and make sure he knows how much we like Rebekah and how pleased we are with her work.”
“That sounds like a good idea,” Megan said. “But what are we going to do about your money? If Greg continues to steal from you, you’ll be in big trouble. It’s possible that you could lose everything, including your home, the rest of your land and the animal rescue.”