It was almost lunch time when Rex arrived back at the ASPCA offices. He read through the half a dozen messages that waited in his inbox and cursed under his breath when he recognized his boss's signature on the last one. Tim Masters wanted to see him in his office the moment he got back. He sighed and headed to the large office at the end of the hallway. No use delaying the inevitable; it was just another of his grandfather's sage advice.
He inhaled deeply as he brought his fist up to the hard wood door. He could still smell her, lingering in his nostrils as much as she did in his mind. It was that which propelled him forward when the voice bid him, "Come in."
Tim Masters had never been his favorite person. With his freshly pressed suits that seemed out of place in a building with hundreds of animals, he was too much the polished politician for his liking. The man had never spent a day in the field, knew nothing of the neglect and abuse that the animals faced. Hell, Rex could not remember the last time he had seen the man in the holding pens, where the animals were kept awaiting adoption. No, this man got and kept his job because of one thing, his ability to raise money. And this time Rex was standing in his way. He did not relish this meeting.
"You wanted to see me, Mister Masters?"
"Yes, Mister Ranger," the formal introduction set Rex even more on edge. "I received a call from Marigold this morning. She told me about what happened in court yesterday." The man finally lifted his cold eyes from the computer screen, "Would you mind telling me since when does the ASPCA work with the defense on cases we are prosecuting?"
Rex met the man's stare directly, "Miss Riley is not the defense. She represents a third party in the case. The man's son, who claims rightful ownership of those horses. His father is contesting his wife's will that left the bulk of her estate to their son. It is likely that Mister Marshall's intent was to starve the animals so that his son could never take possession of his property."
"Yes, I knew all of that going into this court case. We all did. It has no baring on the case. If the younger Mister Marshall wanted to claim his property, he had the responsibility to insure that it was being properly cared for. What I want to know is what the hell came over you in that courtroom that you would deviate from our case and take up with the opposition?" Rex could see the red tint forming around the man's ears and hear the rise in voice.
"This was an unusual case from the beginning, Mister Masters, you know that. It is not every day that the ASPCA is called to one of the largest ranches in the state. The Marshalls trace their ancestry back to the Alamo, founding fathers of this state. And the value of those horses? We have never dealt with those kinds of assets."
Rex skirted the subject, knowing that was the true motivation for this man's concern, the loss of potential revenue from the auctioning of the horses. This man had never cared for the animals themselves, just his career, his ability to impress the board and move on to another higher paying and more prestigious job in a couple of years. It disgusted him, but he did all that he could to hide his feelings, to keep the conversation professional.
"Exactly, Mister Ranger, all the more reason that the ASPCA must do all that it can to protect the welfare of those animals. We cannot appear to favor the Marshalls because of their station in this community. And you saw for yourself the state of those animals, the intentional starvation imposed by Mister Marshall on the animals when every other animal on that ranch was well maintained with plenty of food and water," the man's hands rested on the top of his desk, his knuckles were turning white where they were laced together.
"Yes, but once more that had nothing to do with his son," Rex tried to keep his own anger under control. This man got under his skin on the best of days. The past two years working with him had been an exercise in control. But today, when he was already on edge, when the beast him in roared to claims its mate, when things were happening so fast that his brain could no longer process it, his patience with the self-centered bastard was hanging by the proverbial thread.
"And we are back to the point that we agreed with Marigold and the Prosecutor's Office before taking this case to court. That Thad Marshall had a legal obligation to monitor the care of the contested property while in the possession of his father. How has that changed, Mister Ranger?" Masters furrowed his brows as he stared at Rex.
Rex searched for an answer that would make sense, would appeal to this man and his agenda. He fell back onto the only one that he had been able to come up with during the long, sleepless night filled with images of her in his arms and bed.
"The ASPCA cannot insert itself into a civil matter of this magnitude. While those horses are animals and deserve all of the protection that we can offer them, they are also financial assets worth one point two million dollars, Mister Masters," which he knew was the heart of his boss's objection. Tim Masters wanted those horses for the center piece of the annual auction next month. Rex would bet that the man had even listed them in the brochure already.
He took a deep breath before he continued to plead his case under the intense stare of his superior, "Due to the nature of this case, it is likely to receive a lot of media attention, not just locally or even statewide, but nationally and perhaps internationally as well. We cannot have Mister Marshall or his attorney claiming that the ASPCA interfered and prematurely seized his property. It would do serious damage to our reputation and perhaps scare off some of our high profile donors."
There it was, his ultimate argument. He watched as the man's brows knit together in thought, his mouth scrunched up, his nose twitched. He waited. And waited. And waited as he allowed the man to play through the various scenarios in his mind.
"Yes, well, I will concede your point, Mister Ranger, but that did not give you the right to intercede on the woman's behalf without consulting me or Miss Clement."
Rex nodded, "I apologize." He kept it simple. The sooner he was finished with the man, the sooner he could focus upon more important things. Like her. His Mitawa Naya.
Tim Masters sighed and shook his head, "I'm assuming that you have a plan. That you and the woman are working out this compromise that you promised Judge Ortega? And I trust that you are looking out for the best interest of the animals."
Rex nodded, "Yes, sir, I am. Miss Riley, the younger Mister Marshall's attorney, has a small ranch just outside of Houston, in Waller County," he stumbled over the half truth. The few acres that the woman owned could hardly qualify for the term, but he did not want his supervisor knowing that.
"She runs a pony farm for special needs children in her spare time. And in her youth, she competed in barrel racing at the Livestock Show and Rodeo and won several Four H prizes. She has volunteered to care for the animals, under our close supervision, of course, until the civil matter comes to court. If the younger Mister Marshall wins the case then she has assured me that he will reimburse the ASPCA for any care they received while in our possession."
