“No, sir. But how do you know I haven't checked my bank account?”
Lachlan smirked. “Because if you had, you might think that I was an incredibly generous man. I am, but not generous enough to give you a deposit in the sum of four million dollars.”
Kyle felt his eyes damn near bug out of his head. “What? I don't understand.”
Gina spoke up. “Mind if I take over for a minute, Lachlan?”
“Show’s all yours, Gina.”
Gina nodded her thanks to Lach. “Thank you. Kyle, when you requested for Nashville to look in on a man named Richard Muir, he brought that request to Costello and me. And I got a lead. Richard Muir set off all sorts of bells that my friends had set up. For the past year, he has been scouting large attractive tracts of land in the western and southwestern US for a group of people that my friends have been keeping track of now for about five years. This group has access to untold wealth, power, and influence that the world has not seen since the era of the robber barons. Actually, they make the robber barons look like street corner con artists.”
Gina pushed off from the wall and started to pace. “They come from all industries, all countries, all nationalities. Some still call themselves Americans even though none of them pay allegiance to any sovereign nation. They believe themselves to be above such backward and provincial ideas, though they aren’t hesitant to use a country’s political system to get their way, as we have seen with Bennett. Some of them come from very old family money, others are brand new upstarts, some in the tech field while others are entrepreneurs who've made fortunes selling their goods online. There are investors who backed them and made their fortunes that way.
“What they all have in common is that they are doomsday preppers. They don't believe in unlimited resources. They understand that this planet is finite, that we are currently living in a fishbowl that isn’t getting any cleaner anytime soon. And they believe that they deserve the last of the planet’s resources at any cost. And, they won’t be satisfied until they have complete control of every person on this planet. They've been buying up all kinds of land, not just in the US but around the world. Bolt holes, places where they can live off the grid if need be, but close enough to cities so that they don't have to give up pizza deliveries and wine bars just yet. That's only one of their games. And that's the game we're going to focus on right here today.”
Kyle raised his hand, feeling like a little kid in school. “What does this have to do with the four million in my bank account?”
“Well, it appears that the group gave Muir until January first to secure all of the properties in that area just outside of Lyons. You’ll see a map in your packets once we get to that. Arden and the Sanders were the last two holdouts. If they didn't sell, the group was pulling out of the area completely, leaving Rick Muir high and dry and in debt, since he’d spent a good portion of his advance on big boy toys, bad investments, and cocaine. Not to mention that he had let down some very important, very powerful people, and that's never a good idea. He'd grown desperate, desperate enough to attempt murder. And if not for you, Kyle, he would have succeeded. Believe me, these people are no strangers to murdering anyone who gets in their way. But, they are not stupid. They want to stay on the down-low as much as possible. Rick Muir was fucking that up for them.
“My friends picked up chatter saying that Muir had contacted the group and told them about you. He had a plan to frame you for arson and two or three murders. Being that he was using cocaine, he probably wasn't thinking his plan through too clearly and they knew it. They also knew that they already had a problem with you, Kyle. Once they figured out you were connected to Watchdog.
“So, they gave Muir the green light to do his thing. They assured him that they would drop enough money into your account from an untraceable source to make it look as though you’d been paid to be a hitman. With the story of your dismissal from the military, I'm afraid hardly anyone would bat an eye at that bullshit story about a disgruntled member of the military becoming a gun for hire.
“But what Muir didn't realize is that his powerful friends decided to cut bait and get rid of him too. The deposits were easily traced back to Muir’s various accounts. It looks like Muir figured out their plan a little too late. He panicked, and we had the events of last night unfold.
“Without you there, Kyle, Walter Sanders would have lost his life in a horrible, horrible tragedy. Arden would have lost her business and her reputation, not to mention she would have been devastated I imagine.”
“Mr. Sanders is like a second father,” Kyle said. This would have destroyed her.”
Gina nodded. “Not surprising. So, these three people have you to thank. My friends also want to thank you, Kyle. One in particular, though I can’t name him. Yet. But he’ll be in touch with you sooner rather than later, I’m sure. His very existence is damn near top-secret. But I can tell you he is one of the most amazing computer geniuses I have ever met. Because of the deposits, this group made to your account, this man was able to trace them past Muir’s false accounts, and because of that, we’re able to build a case against one of the members. Even as we speak, the noose is tightening around this bastard’s neck. He doesn't know it yet, and we pray that he won't until it's too late for him.
“We wouldn’t have been able to do this without you, Kyle.”
“Thanks, Gina,” Lachlan said. “Sadly, this has left you with a bit of a target on your back, son. We're working on ways to protect you, to misdirect everything and pin it all back on Muir, making it appear to be the coincidence that you actually were. No guarantees that this is going to work; these people are not stupid, and they are really, really paranoid.”
“What about Arden? I'm more concerned about her than I am about me.”
Gina smiled. “No surprise there.”
“Arden will be protected as well,” Lachlan said. “And so will her ranch. We have a proposal for you that may end up benefiting everyone.”
“What proposal is that, sir?”
Lachlan nodded at Gina.
“My friends would like to make some real estate purchases of their own. Now that we know this group is interested in Colorado—very interested, actually—we'd like to have our own little set-up there. Lyons is quite a pretty little town, and well-situated on the Front Range. The land around it is ideal for many different operations. This group, I have to say, has exquisite taste in real estate. But, since they are no longer interested in the Sanders ranch, or property belonging to a gentleman named Frank Miller, or a property owned by the now-deceased Rick Muir, my friends would like to have it for themselves.”
“What about Arden’s ranch? No one is going to take it from her.”
Gina smiled. “Exactly, no one is going to take it from her. But if my friends bought up all the land around her, she would be insulated and safe. And this is where your opportunity comes in, Kyle. But, it would require quite a life change for you.”
Lachlan spoke up. “I've got a proposition for you, too, Kyle. It goes right along with what Gina's friends have in mind. If everyone would open their packets, we’ll go over the details.
Kyle smiled as he opened the folder. He had a vague idea of what might be on the table. And depending on Arden, he might just take it.
A couple hours later, Kyle realized he’d had no idea at all, but the opportunity both excited and overwhelmed him. Yet, every person in the room was confident he was the man for the job.
“Can I have a word, sir? In private? You too, ma’am?”
