Cash nodded, his throat tight. “He’d already left town. They said they’d do what they could.”
Uncle Gabe nodded again, as serious as ever. Cash couldn’t seem to look at him, and he relied only on his peripheral vision to get the cues he needed.
“Hey, I just want you to know that none of this is your fault,” Uncle Gabe said, ducking his head. He wore acowboy hat today too, and with his head down, he created a smaller pocket for Cash to exist in.
Cash sure didn’t feel like he wasn’t to blame, but he nodded anyway, his throat tight and his anger at himself skyrocketing again. He hated feeling stupid, and he honestly thought he’d left a lot of that behind when he joined the rodeo and didn’t have to take math classes anymore.
“I just feel dumb,” he told Uncle Gabe.
“Which is perfectly reasonable, but I don’t think things are as bad as you think they are.”
Cash finally looked up at him. “You don’t think so?”
“Well, you still have quite a bit of money in the bank,” Uncle Gabe said, tapping the folder. “So he took some money, and he split town.”
“Yes,” Cash said.
“How much do you think?”
“Well, I originally told you twenty thousand,” he said. “But I think it’s closer to fifty.”
“That’s quite the hit,” Uncle Gabe said. “I’m not gonna lie. I would be upset too.” He put his hand on Cash’s forearm, which drew Cash’s gaze up to his. “But it’s okay. We can get you back on track. And it’s a great lesson to learn this young in life.”
Cash swallowed and nodded. “I really appreciate your help, Uncle Gabe.”
“Of course. Now that I’ve got your bank account number, I can set up some withdrawals for investments, as well as create a personal account for you, where we’ll start to pay you as an employee of your business.”
Cash nodded. “That should help with the taxes, right?”
“Not this year,” Uncle Gabe said. “But we’ll get your business set up and registered with the state of Wyoming. We’ll get the bank accounts cleaned up, and we’ll get payroll started in January. So I think that’s what we need to go over the most—how much money you need to live every month.”
Cash swallowed once again, finding himself coming up short and fighting the feelings of inadequacy. He managed to pay his bills every month just fine. “I did a little budget,” he said. “Daddy sent me a sheet.”
“Yep, he said he would.”
Cash texted on his phone. “I did it digitally. Can I just show it to you?”
It took Cash a minute or two to get over to the budget sheet he’d done a few weeks ago when he’d first learned of his money manager’s theft. He’d kept it to himself for a couple of days, and then he’d called his father and told him everything. Daddy had given him good advice, like what to document, how to call the police in a non-emergency situation, and then he’d said that Cash should work with Gabe to manage his money. He should invest now because he wouldn’t be able to be a bull rider forever.
Cash had seen his own father go through multiple surgeries and literally put his life on the line for his career. He loved the rodeo, but he knew he wouldn’t be able to do it forever, so he’d swallowed his pride and made another phone call to the police and then another to the Teton County Sheriff’s Department.
He’d talked to Belle about what the detectives might do, soHarry and Belle knew about the theft as well. Harry, too, had recommended Uncle Gabe for money and wealth management, and Gabe had been on the phone with Cash almost daily in the past ten days, outlining the things that Cash should do to live a financially stress-free life.
He hated being beholden to thinking and worrying about money. He made far too much to have to do that. Setting up a business that would be able to be used for investments, shelter him from certain taxes, and pay him like an employee had been an excellent solution for Cash. He couldn’t say he really understood all of it, but he trusted Uncle Gabe would not lead him astray.
They chatted through the details Uncle Gabe needed to know, and since his uncle was a no-nonsense lawyer with plenty on his plate already, the meeting finished before Cash heard his father’s footsteps coming downstairs.
“Thank you so much, Uncle Gabe,” he said. He got to his feet at the same time his uncle did and clapped him on the back, his gratitude overflowing. “Thank you so, so much.”
“It’s my pleasure, son,” Gabe said. He stepped back and held onto Cash’s shoulders, looking him straight in the face. “Listen, don’t let this derail you, okay? We all make mistakes, and there’s no reason to beat yourself up over them for very long.”
“I told him the same thing,” Daddy said, appearing around the corner.
“You’re a good boy, Cash. Don’t let one little mistake defineyou.”
“I’m working through it.” Cash really was, but things weren’t always as easy as he’d like them to be.
“Where should we send Uncle Mav for lunch?” Daddy asked.
