Ken shut his laptop, but the expression of determination on his face didn’t waver. “Is what you have enough for four full rides to college with all the trimmings? Jake is smart, it’s likely he could end up with a scholarship or two, but there are no guarantees. And what about Wes and Penny? Little Sean? You still have to pay for all these changes you’ve made to Finn’s. And that includes your employee health insurance package, as well as salaries for Fiona and Thoreau. The bands people love? The ones you keep hiring? You pay for them too.”
“Thanks, Tanaka. I don’t worry enough. I needed that reality gut check.”
Ken sighed and placed a hand on his arm. “Think about it, okay? The Finn name is good around here and you’re putting out a great product. Retail micro-brewed beer is popular and it has more longevity than other trends because…well, beer never goes out of style. If we did this right, you could put all your kids through school, take them on vacations, and build a nest egg instead of just scraping by.”
It sounded good. But so did winning the lottery. “So the government hacker thing was just a front, right? You’re really a business mogul?”
Ken laughed. “Not me, but my father was. And I might have one or two college friends who know what they’re doing. In fact, I got an email from one of them recently and he mentioned investing in a brewery.”
And there it was. All his senses went on high alert. “Really? Murphy’s got a silent partner right before I left Galway. Must be a trend.”
Tanaka looked down and opened his laptop again. “Must be. Maybe I should think about investing.”
He knew something. He had to. “This friend of yours, is he in town? We could invite him over for lunch and pick his brain.”
Ken frowned thoughtfully. “His home base is in New York, but he travels a lot. I could call him if you’re interested. At the very least he’d have consultant suggestions, and he’s always had great instincts about people.”
He says the same thing about you.
Tanaka didn’t know he was there. Seamus was grateful for that, at least. He liked Ken, and he didn’t want to think he was plotting with Bellamy. “We can hold off on that for now. I need to think about this idea of yours first. It’s a lot to take in.”
“Of course.” Ken’s expression was enigmatic. “I better get back home. Brady was spending the evening playing videogames with Owen and Jeremy, but he’s probably home by now.”
“Don’t be so sure,” Seamus joked as he watched Ken shove his laptop into a beat-up backpack. “Owen takes those games seriously.”
After he’d left, Seamus couldn’t stop wondering why Bellamy hadn’t connected with his old friend since he came to town. Clearly he was avoiding Seamus. If he weren’t, he would have called instead of getting the twins that outrageous birthday present. If he weren’t, he wouldn’t have done what he did for the twin’s mother, Presley—which was the whole reason he’d gotten Solomon involved in the first place.
How had Bellamy found out about her when he’d kept her a secret for so many years?
He’d have to go to Parkridge tomorrow. After that? He and “anonymous” needed to have a talk.
For the first time in months, Seamus felt his body come alive again.
Chapter Nine
Seamus walked through the doors of the Parkridge facility and headed straight toward the nurses’ station, pulling off his baseball cap and running his hands through his hair. “Can I see her?”
A smiling Cuban woman came around the desk and guided him to a nearby table. “Let’s talk for a minute before I take you back. How are you, Seamus? Have the kids had a fun summer?”
“We’re doing okay, Camille. They’re actually going on a cruise with their grandparents tomorrow, so I imagine they’re having a blast. How about Felicia? The last time I saw you she was about to go on her senior trip. Italy, right?”
Camille beamed. “Yes, she fell in love with everything. She wants to go back as soon as possible, but I told her not until she has her college degree.” She braced her hands on the table and sighed. “It’d been a long time since we had a good day. But it’s been a few weeks now, so this isn’t another false alarm.”
He nodded. “It was six months. I wasn’t sure Presley would come out of it this last time.”
Camille looked sad. “I don’t think she was happy when she found out she had. And I’m not sure how long this will last, but she does know who I am and where she is. And she’s been asking about you, of course.”
Seamus rubbed his forehead. Schizoaffective Disorder. That’s what the doctor called Presley’s condition. At first, they’d been hopeful she could improve with medication, but she seemed resistant to treatment, and she’d gotten worse in the last six years instead of better. For the past three she’d been slipping into catatonic episodes for months at a time. Now, other than care and comfort, the prognosis was nowhere near as positive.