the newspaper office. As it was Saturday, no one else was
there and she had to unlock the doors and turn on the lights
herself. She puttered around the empty building waiting for
him to arrive, and just when she was about ready to give up,
she noticed a new shiny black pickup, with its sales stickers
still intact, park out in front of the office. And out sauntered
Rick. She bit her lip and prayed for grace. This wouldn't be
easy.
After settling into her office, she turned on her tape
recorder and began. "Mr. Westerly told me that you all
signed the sale papers for his property last week, and the sale
is final. Is that correct?"
"Yep. We're past the five-day rescission deadline too." He
folded his arms across his chest and leaned back in the chair.
"So it's all finished and done now."
Maggie glanced toward her window. "Is that a new truck
out there?"
He grinned. "Well, a developer's got to look prosperous,
if you know what I mean, plus it'll be a tax deduction. We've
already ordered some magnetic signs to put on the doors of
our trucks, and our name is TS Development. Personally, I
wasn't sure if we should be spending too much money just
yet, but as Greg says, it takes money to make money."
"Yes, that brings me to another question, if I may. Where
did you and Greg come up with enough money to purchase
Westerly's land?"
He laughed. "Ever heard of a thing called a loan?"
"I see. And regarding the selling price-do you feel that
you offered Mr. Westerly fair market value for his land?"
This made Rick laugh again. "Maggie, this is business."
She looked intently at him, searching for any sign of con-
science. "I'm sorry, Rick, Mr. Westerly gave me the impres-
sion that you were his friend."
Rick's face grew cloudy, but he said nothing.
Looking for You All My Life37
"I did a little research yesterday and learned that
according to local real estate values, the Westerly property
Lwas worth about twice what you and Greg paid Mr. West-
erly for it."
His brows lifted. "That much, eh? Well, thanks for that
information. Might be helpful down the line."
Maggie tried to contain the hostility that now bubbled
within her. Turning her gaze downward to her notepad, she
continued, "And does Mr. Westerly know of your plans to
develop his property?"
"Look," his eyes narrowed. "I know what you're getting
at, but the fact is Arnold coyld do with his property as he
wished when it was his property. But it's no longer his prop-
erty now."
"When do you plan to start developing the land?"
"Just as soon as possible. You know what they say, time