Black Single Dad Went Looking for Work on a Farm — He Didn't Know a Millionaire Would Make Him Rich
Chapter 14
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He turned around slowly. He placed both bleeding hands flat on the wet hood of the Dodge. The cold steel of the handcuffs closed around his wrists.Boyd walked a slow circle around the truck. He shone his flashlight into the bed, across the camper shell, the duffel bags, the box of picture books, and the rolled wool bedding."Where do you live, Mr. Callahan?"Luke stared at the rain running down the windshield. "Right here," he said. "This truck, for now."Boyd was quiet for a moment, then he let out a long breath through his mustache. "Well then," he said, "the county's going to have some questions about where that boy has been sleeping."The words landed like a fist in Luke's chest.That morning, he had owned $3, a dime, and a promise to his son. Now he had nothing at all. The job was gone. Whatever trust Clare had placed in him would be gone the moment she heard the word cashbox. His good name, the one thing his father had left him that no one could repossess, was lying in the mud beside the gravel drive. And now they might take Toby.Seven months ago, he had stood in a hospital corridor and promised Sarah that he would keep their son safe no matter what. He had sold everything he owned to keep that promise. He had worked himself bloody in a stranger's field to keep that promise. It had not been enough. It was never going to be enough.For the first time since the funeral, Luke Callahan's legs nearly gave out beneath him. He leaned his weight against the cold metal of the truck and closed his eyes. The rain kept falling. The thunder rolled away down the valley, and Clare Vance was still 30 miles away.Deputy Boyd walked back to his cruiser and climbed into the driver's seat to radio dispatch. Through the rain-streaked windshield, Luke could see him writing on a clipboard, the dome light glowing on his face.Wade Harland waited until the cruiser door was shut. Then he strolled over and leaned against the fender of the Dodge, close enough that Luke could smell the chewing gum and wet canvas of his slicker.For a while, Wade said nothing. He just looked out at the bank barn where 1,520 bales of dry hay sat safe under the tin roof."You know what you did today?" Wade finally said. "You cost some important people a lot of money. That field was supposed to rot. The bank was supposed to get its excuse. Then everybody goes home happy. Everybody except Ms. Vance."