He drove them to Echo Lake and they got out to walk around and enjoy the scenery. Holding her hand, he led her to a picnic table near the lake and sat her down.
“Tell me what you know about your lawyer,” he said.
“I don’t know him that well, but he took care of everything for Vic and then Mom, before she passed. He was responsible for filing everything and seems to be competent.” She was wondering why he was asking. “Is something wrong?”
“Maybe, do you have copies of everything?”
“Yes, Mom insisted I keep a copy of everything. I have a lock box at the bank with copies of everything from my grandparents will giving the house to my mom and dad clear up to Mom’s will. Why?”
“There may be a problem. It appears the lawyer you are using drafted a deed in Joe’s name also, but if you have copies of all the wills and all the other paper work we will be able to fight it. We will have to go to court with Joe, but Kevin is confident that with the proper paper trail he can win.”
“Oh, God. I can’t lose the house, it’s all I have. What am I going to do. I can’t afford this. What a fucking mess. That asshole!” Theresa didn’t know whether to be mad or cry Then a thought hit her. “What if the paperwork isn’t correct? The same man has filed everything for the last fifteen years, what if he screwed with the rest of it?”
“We will take everything to Kevin and let him check into it, then we will fix what needs fixing if there is anything. We don’t know that he has done anything except the two deeds. Calm down until we know what we’re facing. I will help you get everything fixed. Please let me help you.” He held her hands tightly and looked deep into her eyes.
Theresa really didn’t have any choice except to trust Alan and his lawyer. She didn’t know anyone else to turn to and the person she had trusted had betrayed her. Just another letdown in her life.
Sighing, she said, “Okay, let’s get back to town and get to the bank before it closes. I want to get the paperwork to Kevin before today ends and see what he can do.” Now that she had a course of action, she wanted everything done with. The sooner it was done, the sooner she could get Joe out of her life and move on.
Alan saw the fire in her eyes and was glad. He was afraid she would let this get her down, and was glad to see her come up fighting.
He took her back to town and they got to the bank and Kevin’s office before closing. Promising to get back to them in a few days, Kevin’s paralegal, Pam, took Theresa’s copies and reassured them that she would get them to Kevin and he would start working on them right away.
Pam seemed nice, but there was something about the way she looked at Alan that bothered Theresa.
Theresa was working the next few days and glad of it. It helped keep her mind off things. Alan kept her busy the rest of the time. Joe still made his visits, but Theresa did her best to ignore his threats. There was nothing either one of them could do until the court date, and Theresa was tired of Joe trying to intimidate her.
It was Thursday, Theresa’s last night to work for the week. As much as she enjoyed the distraction of being at work, it was nice knowing she would have a few days off with Alan. They didn’t have any plans, just to enjoy each other’s company.
Theresa’s shift was almost over and she and Alan were sitting at the desk waiting to lock the doors for the evening, when Joe and some of his friends came into the Club.
Texting Evan and Dave, the owners of the Club, Alan stood as the men walked in, cursing and just being fools.
“Unless you have a membership here, you need to leave,” Alan told the group as he started crowding them toward the door. Dave and Evan happened to be in the Club that evening, and they came through the Club door in time to see Joe throw a punch at Alan, and a couple of the guys grabbed Theresa.
They quickly got between Alan and Joe, and handed Theresa to Alan. They really didn’t want Alan or Theresa going to jail and would like to handle the mess themselves.
“I just need to talk to my sis,” Joe started the same stuff again. “I need to get the money for the house.”
Alan answered him. “Joe the court date is set for Monday, and Th
eresa has a restraining order, you can’t come within one hundred feet of her. Unless you want to go to jail you need to leave.”
“I just need Theresa,” Joe said as he reached for her, apparently not wanting to or understanding what was going on.
Alan slipped Theresa behind him and turned to confront Joe. Dave and Evan got between Alan and Joe’s gang and started walking Joe and his buddies out of the Club.
“You boys, need to go on, now. Nothing is going to happen here tonight,” Dave said as he slowly walked them toward the door knowing once he got them out of the Club, he could lock the doors and let Denver Police deal with them. If Joe ended up in jail, it would be no loss. Alan and Theresa could stay at the Club as long as they wanted.
Dave and Evan got the men out and then locked the Club for the evening. “Let’s go have a drink and relax. Sadie was looking forward to talking to you, Theresa, she’s in our suite sleeping right now, but I know she’ll be awake soon,” Evan said, as he slipped his arm around Theresa’s shoulders and walked the group toward what used to be Dave’s suite, but was now a weekend retreat for Dave, Evan, and Sadie.
Chapter Twenty
Alan and Theresa ended up spending the night at the Club in one of the guest suites and the next day when they woke up, Alan had a surprise planned for Theresa. He knew she loved the mountains, and Kevin had a cabin they would be borrowing for the weekend. Somewhere out of the city where no one could bother them. He had it all planned and knew Theresa would love it.
“Where are we going?” Theresa asked Alan for the fourth time.
“I told you it’s a surprise. You’ll find out when we get there,” Alan answered for the fourth time.