Page 8 of Oleander

“Wow,” whispered Cam with a frown. “That’s incredible.”

“You only know the half of it,” said Jill. “Her estate was worth approximately eighty-eight point nine million dollars.”

“No way,” said Roderick shaking his head. “No way! Look at that house. That is not the house of a multi-millionaire. That’s a woman that saved money and lived a frugal life. There’s no way she had that much money.”

“Honey, her money was made from her investments. She held almost twenty-percent of the shares for Burton Drilling, an offshore drilling company. She’d invested in all kinds of companies over the years, mostly companies started by her former students. She literally invested in them and their futures.”

“This is crazy,” he said shaking his head in disbelief. “Why live out here? Why not buy something beautiful and live in the city, close to friends?”

“Rod, brother, she chose to live out here so she could remain hidden from all the busy, chaotic craziness of the city. This was her peace,” said Hex.

“Then who would kill her? Who would do this to someone so generous, so loving and giving?” he asked.

“That’s what we’re going to find out,” said Luke.

“There’s one more thing,” said Sira. “She did leave five-million dollars to one person.”

“You said she left it to three charities,” said Rod with an expression of confusion. Jill nodded and stepped closer, bracing for impact.

“She left the bulk to three charities. Her home and five-million was left to you.”

Rod stepped back, nearly tripping and falling. He was a good-sized man. Six-feet-one, two-hundred pounds of lean muscle. His eyes filled with tears, his lips trembling like a child who had been scolded.

“No,” he whispered. “I-I can’t take it. I won’t take it.”

“You will,” growled Eric. “You will not disrespect Ms. Martin and her wishes. She cared for you and the fact that you took time out of your day to spend time with her spoke volumes about the kind of man you are.”

“I agree,” said Mike watching his friend, tears freely rolling down his cheeks now. “You were kind to her, Rod. Kind when the rest of the world was looking the other way.”

“Rod, honey,” said Sira reaching for his hand, “you can choose to give away the money and sell the house if you want. We’ll help you do that. But do you really think that’s what she wanted? She changed her will just a few weeks ago. You left an impression on her that quickly.”

“I have no idea what to do with that kind of money,” he said shaking his head.

“We can help you with that,” said Jill. “We’ll have Jean and the financial team come by the station and discuss investment options, trust funds, anything you want. Do you have children? Siblings?”

“No and no,” he said shaking his head. “I was raised by my grandmother and she passed while I was serving. It’s just me.”

“Well, that’s the first thing we’re going to ensure.” He stared at Jill. “If people find out about this, you’re going to have women knocking on your door claiming that you’re the father of their child, lost cousins, people who want help, all of it. We’ll make sure this is kept under wraps.”

“Thank you,” he said shaking his head. “I didn’t even think about that. But what about her? Can I pay for her burial?”

“Honey, she already took care of all of it,” smiled Sira. “She was a woman who got things done.”

“Rod? Why don’t you take a few days and decide what you’re going to do,” said Mike. “We can survive without you for a while. If you want to sell the house…”

“No,” he said suddenly holding his hand up. “No, Mike. I’m not selling this house. She left it to me, it’s close to the station, and I’ve got wonderful memories with her here.” Mike smiled at him.

“Good man,” he smiled. “She’d be proud of you.”

“I’ll take a few days to move my things here. I know she’d want her clothes and jewelry to be donated to a shelter. If I find things that look to be heirlooms, can you send someone to take a look?”

“Honey, we’ll help with whatever you need,” said Jill.

“Okay,” he nodded. “Mike? Give me a few days to get this settled. When I’m done, I’ll be coming to see you, Luke.”

“Me?” asked Luke.

“Yes, sir. I’m hunting this killer.”