folder in front of him on his desk ledger and retrieved a copy of what
I assumed was Dad’s will. He glanced at my mom.
"He's
left everything to you, Missus Sanderson with full discretion as to how you
want to deal with the property. If you hold onto it, and upon your death, the
property will be in turn handed down to your children. Frank did not specify
how the division of the property would work out, but did mention that you and
the children could discuss that if, and when the time came." He paused.
"Missus Sanderson, I'm not sure if you or Frank ever discussed the state
of the ranch in the event you both passed away, but I would strongly urge you
to have some discussions with your family, make decisions, and put those decisions
in writing so that there's no confusion regarding dispensation in the
future."
While I
realized that the attorney was right, I didn't want to think of my mom dying
anytime soon. Then again, I hadn't thought my dad would die so young, either. I
glanced at my mom and saw her nod.
"We
will deal with that very soon, Mister Bowman," she stated. "Can you
tell me what's going to happen now?" She shook her head. "Frank's passing
was extremely unexpected. I don't even know if I have access to some of his
accounts. We were joint account holders at the bank, and I know that both our
signatures are on the deed for the ranch when it was handed down to us, but I'm not sure about any
acquisitions he's made in the past… well, the past ten or fifteen years, I
guess."
I glanced
at Mom, and then at Tammy, who offered a slight shake of her head. Over her
shoulder, I saw Cameron frown.
"You
mean Mom might have some difficulty with any business dealings that have to do
with the ranch?" Cameron questioned.
The
attorney shrugged. “Probably not, at least not right now. There is documentation regarding the ranch finances, separate from the will,
which like I said, leaves all of his monetary assets - and debts - to you,
Missus Sanderson." He cleared his throat, glanced down at the papers before
him, and continued rather hesitantly. "However, I regret to inform you
that the ranch has been struggling for the past few years—"
"Exactly
what do you mean by struggling?” I broke in.
"To
be blunt, it's in the red," the attorney stated, studying the figures on
the paper. He glanced up. "I'll be giving you a copy of everything I have.
To be honest, the ranch is in dire straits—"
Mom
gasped, and I glanced over to see her face drain of color. Julie and Tammy
seemed just as shocked, and Shane pushed himself away from the wall where he
leaned, a look of confusion on his face.
"What?"
Cameron asked, a frown darkening his features. "You mean to tell me the
ranch is close to going belly up?"
He glanced
at Shane, the girls, and my mom, then back at the lawyer, his expression one of
intense surprise. He had not looked at me.
The
attorney nodded. "Unfortunately. According to the
bank note, property taxes have only been partially paid in the past few years.
The debts accrued by the ranch, for feed, livestock, and equipment have far
surpassed the profits—"
I sat
stunned. Dad was in trouble and hadn't told anyone. "How much debt?" I asked. The attorney glanced at
Mom, the girls, and then at me.
"Close
to one hundred thousand," he said quietly.
Mom let
out a soft wail of despair and both Julie and Tammy grew wide-eyed with shock.
Shane and Cameron exchanged glances and it became quickly obvious that I wasn't
the only one who had been left in the dark. "Foreclosure proceedings
haven't begun, have they?" I asked.
"Not
yet," Bowman said. "But if some of this debt isn’t repaid back by the
end of the month, the bank may very well press for foreclosure. What I need to
talk to Missus Sanderson about is the possibility of filing for bankruptcy—"
"The
Rocking S has been in the family since the early 1930s!" Cameron burst
out. "No one is selling a damn thing, and no one is filing for
bankruptcy." He moved toward the
I assumed was Dad’s will. He glanced at my mom.
"He's
left everything to you, Missus Sanderson with full discretion as to how you
want to deal with the property. If you hold onto it, and upon your death, the
property will be in turn handed down to your children. Frank did not specify
how the division of the property would work out, but did mention that you and
the children could discuss that if, and when the time came." He paused.
"Missus Sanderson, I'm not sure if you or Frank ever discussed the state
of the ranch in the event you both passed away, but I would strongly urge you
to have some discussions with your family, make decisions, and put those decisions
in writing so that there's no confusion regarding dispensation in the
future."
While I
realized that the attorney was right, I didn't want to think of my mom dying
anytime soon. Then again, I hadn't thought my dad would die so young, either. I
glanced at my mom and saw her nod.
"We
will deal with that very soon, Mister Bowman," she stated. "Can you
tell me what's going to happen now?" She shook her head. "Frank's passing
was extremely unexpected. I don't even know if I have access to some of his
accounts. We were joint account holders at the bank, and I know that both our
signatures are on the deed for the ranch when it was handed down to us, but I'm not sure about any
acquisitions he's made in the past… well, the past ten or fifteen years, I
guess."
I glanced
at Mom, and then at Tammy, who offered a slight shake of her head. Over her
shoulder, I saw Cameron frown.
"You
mean Mom might have some difficulty with any business dealings that have to do
with the ranch?" Cameron questioned.
The
attorney shrugged. “Probably not, at least not right now. There is documentation regarding the ranch finances, separate from the will,
which like I said, leaves all of his monetary assets - and debts - to you,
Missus Sanderson." He cleared his throat, glanced down at the papers before
him, and continued rather hesitantly. "However, I regret to inform you
that the ranch has been struggling for the past few years—"
"Exactly
what do you mean by struggling?” I broke in.
"To
be blunt, it's in the red," the attorney stated, studying the figures on
the paper. He glanced up. "I'll be giving you a copy of everything I have.
To be honest, the ranch is in dire straits—"
Mom
gasped, and I glanced over to see her face drain of color. Julie and Tammy
seemed just as shocked, and Shane pushed himself away from the wall where he
leaned, a look of confusion on his face.
"What?"
Cameron asked, a frown darkening his features. "You mean to tell me the
ranch is close to going belly up?"
He glanced
at Shane, the girls, and my mom, then back at the lawyer, his expression one of
intense surprise. He had not looked at me.
The
attorney nodded. "Unfortunately. According to the
bank note, property taxes have only been partially paid in the past few years.
The debts accrued by the ranch, for feed, livestock, and equipment have far
surpassed the profits—"
I sat
stunned. Dad was in trouble and hadn't told anyone. "How much debt?" I asked. The attorney glanced at
Mom, the girls, and then at me.
"Close
to one hundred thousand," he said quietly.
Mom let
out a soft wail of despair and both Julie and Tammy grew wide-eyed with shock.
Shane and Cameron exchanged glances and it became quickly obvious that I wasn't
the only one who had been left in the dark. "Foreclosure proceedings
haven't begun, have they?" I asked.
"Not
yet," Bowman said. "But if some of this debt isn’t repaid back by the
end of the month, the bank may very well press for foreclosure. What I need to
talk to Missus Sanderson about is the possibility of filing for bankruptcy—"
"The
Rocking S has been in the family since the early 1930s!" Cameron burst
out. "No one is selling a damn thing, and no one is filing for
bankruptcy." He moved toward the
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