Page 15 of Venom's Sting
I smile, “She doesn’t think so, but in the years that followed, she got her GED. She was still too sick to work regularly, but we managed. She scrimped and saved and bought me my first camera. After I graduated from high school, I got lucky and found myself a job at a photography studio helping out. I couldn’t afford college, but I learned on the job. Eventually, I started my own small business and made enough money to afford a nice apartment in a secured building.”
“You sound like you take after your mom,” Ven says and gives my hand a squeeze. My heart races at the unexpected contact. He’s not wrong, people look at women like my mom and think of them as weak, but what they don’t see is the sheer determination they need to fight the system and the years of conditioning.
“I guess it rubs off,” I smile, but feel myself getting teary-eyed. I wish I knew what had happened to her, she has to be alive. I’m sure if she wasn’t then I’d feel it.
“And she disappeared while the two of you were living there, right?”
I nod, unsure how all this information is going to help them find my mother. Most of this was ancient history after all, “I was at work, and when I got back, she was gone. No note, no explanation, no clothing missing, nothing. It’s just like she vanished into thin air.”
Rigs flicks through the information again, I’m not sure he’s reading it, it’s more like he’s gathering his thoughts. He places the scrapbook on the table and fixes me with his serious, dark eyes, “Since the police checked out the train and bus stations and your mom doesn’t drive, the most logical explanation is either that someone drove her away, or she’s still here in Las Salinas. Your theory that your grandfather took her is the most likely scenario.”
Ven runs his hand through his hair. “So what did he do with her between the time his hunting dogs ran you off, and when the police arrived at his farm to perform the wellness check?”
Any hope I had falls flat in my chest. “That’s the bit I don’t understand. Sergeant Pike searched the entire property, even the living quarters above the barn where the farmhands stay.”
Ven wraps his arm around me, probably because my voice is trembling. I’m just so upset about not finding any evidence she was ever there.
He states confidently, “Then they moved her. That’s the only explanation I can think of—”
“Moved her, or did something else,” Rigs says darkly. I don’t want to think about that option, Ican’tthink about that option.
Glancing at one of his club brothers, Ven asks, “How much land is included in that farm of his?”
I almost choke when the man with the laptop responds, “A little over seven thousand acres.”
“Seven thousand acres? how is that even possible?”
He looks at his laptop, running his finger down the screen he explains, “It looks like he inherited two thousand acres and spent his entire life buying up more. He’s currently got two gas wells he’s leased to Las Salinas Oil and Gas. He harvests hardwood selectively every ten years and has several other business endeavors. The names are obscure, so I have no idea what they deal in. I’m assuming he’s leasing a lot of the property out, because his bank deposits have gone through the roof the last couple of years. Looks like he’s worth almost two million dollars at this point.”
I just sit there stunned, trying to reconcile this with what I know about my grandfather. He’s always been stingy, miserly, and mean as a rattlesnake. I can’t even imagine him as a millionaire. It literally doesn’t compute in my head. And this in the last couple of years? Then I have a thought, all this started around the time my step-grandmother died. Perhaps she was wealthy in her own right?
But however he came into the money, it’s all so odd. Elsie’s funeral was probably the last time I visited the farm before mymom went missing. After that there was no reason for me to see my grandfather, there was no love lost between us, and honestly, I just got a bad feeling being around his thuggish farmhands who turned up around the same time.
Ven can see how overwhelmed I am and hugs me tighter. I sink into him, feeling a little lost.
Siege fixes me a look, “With all that money, he can surely afford to hire a battalion of housekeepers. It makes no sense that he would be holding her at his house to cook and clean for him.”
“Then I’m at a total loss as to what’s happened to her,” I tell him, my voice cracking with emotion.
Ven states quietly, “I think we need to take a break. Amy’s been through a lot today. She needs to get some rest.”
I don’t even object because he’s right. I do need to get out of this room and take some time to decompress.
***
Ven’s suite is cool and clean, I don’t know what I was expecting rooms at an MC clubhouse to be like, but it’s really nice. He leads me to the sofa, and when I sink into it, I realize just how bone tired I am. Everything is hurting and my cut lip is burning, after talking with the guys and telling them about my mom, it’s like I’ve used up my entire day’s storage of energy. The next moment he’s handing me a glass of soda, which reminds me that I should be working instead of relaxing.
I take a sip, it’s deliciously cool and I ask, “So when does my shift start at the bar?”
“Don’t worry about that, there’s no rush. We have prospects tending the bar, if anything, suggesting you help out was more to make you feel better about accepting our help.” He leans over and moves a strand of hair out my face, his expression looks tender and caring.
“Thank you and your club for taking me in and for offering your help in finding my mother. You’ll tell them for me, won’t you.”
“Of course. Don’t worry, everything is in motion. We have thirty-two fully patched brothers in this club, and we’re all going to be working on locating your mom. All you need to worry about is resting up.”
“I just want to earn my keep around here. It’s just that I feel like a windup toy that ran out of energy all the sudden.”
“That’ll be the adrenaline wearing off. Rage gave you something for the pain, you still okay or do you need another dose?”