worth your time and you deserve better. And fourth - well, never mind that. And fifth, I can cover for you at the shop sometimes when you need a break - all you have to do is ask." He stopped counting. "Does he even have a job now?"
" Mick? Who knows?" She sipped some water and popped a couple of the tablets. "But who cares? You're right about him. He was mean sometimes too, especially when he'd been drinkin'. I'm done with him." After a short silence she asked, "So what was the fourth thing? See, I'm not as wasted as you thought I was," she said with a wan smile.
"Oh, I forget. Nothing ."
" Oh no, you can't do that! I'm already bein' patient on the one thing, so y'all come on now, out with it!"
" Okay, okay," Ketch smiled. "Well, I was just going to say that wasn't all of the wine, I have more. But not tonight!" he added, putting his hands up in a stop sign. She laughed. "It's getting late, and you have things to do tomorrow, as I recall," he continued. "Allow me to show you to your quarters, mademoiselle." He rose and crooked an elbow for her. She laughed again and took it and they went inside.
She sat down hard on the guest bed. "You'd get tired of me if I stayed here too often," she said. "Yeah, I heard that part too." She hiccupped. "They all do, you know, sooner or later."
"Now, that's enough of that," Ketch said as he went off to get her a tailed dress shirt in lieu of a nightgown, which he had none of on hand. Go figure... The dog came in to check on her, then trotted back out and into Ketch's bedroom.
After he'd gotten her straightened away, Ketch retreated to his bedroom as well and prepared to retire for the night. The dog was already slumbering blissfully on his own overstuffed bed on the floor beside Ketch's bed.
As tired as he now was, he found he couldn't sleep. He rolled over and reached for his e-reader on the nightstand, hoping that might make him sleepy - but it didn't work, so after a while he put it away and sat up and thought. If he remembered correctly, he'd left his laptop on the table by the recliner in the living room, rather than on his desk in that extra bedroom as he usually did. He slipped his robe on and padded out there as quietly as he could, and found he was right.
He sat in the recliner in the dark and booted the laptop, and when it was ready he brought up a browser window and returned to a page he'd earlier bookmarked about eminent domain.
There were apparently lawyers who specialized in eminent domain cases. He supposed some might think him foolish for not retaining one, but he strongly suspected doing so would just be a waste of time and money. When people like Bob Ingram set their minds on something, especially in the 'good-old-boy' type of political climate he currently resided in, it was probably pretty much a done deal.
What if he tried to stall Ingram by contesting the proposed compensation? Ketch read that this tactic wouldn't delay the seizure, because North Carolina law allows a 'quick-take' procedure in which the recipient gets the title to the property as soon as all the papers are filed, even if there's a compensation issue to be resolved in court. So, he thought, when Ingram pushes the button, the title would probably transfer immediately. He could possibly stall by instead contesting the legality of the seizure - but if Ingram had friends in high places, as he surely must given what Ketch already knew, that wouldn't help either.
Ketch hadn't heard of anyone else trying to use these tactics around here - but as he'd noted earlier, he didn't know if any of them had had to go through the eminent domain process; in fact, based on what he'd heard from the Captain, it sounded like they'd all evidently caved and sold, and probably after consulting with their expensive and useless attorneys. He thought about asking around the neighborhood to see how others had fared, but he didn't know his neighbors very well - not because he was reclusive, but again, rather because most
" Mick? Who knows?" She sipped some water and popped a couple of the tablets. "But who cares? You're right about him. He was mean sometimes too, especially when he'd been drinkin'. I'm done with him." After a short silence she asked, "So what was the fourth thing? See, I'm not as wasted as you thought I was," she said with a wan smile.
"Oh, I forget. Nothing ."
" Oh no, you can't do that! I'm already bein' patient on the one thing, so y'all come on now, out with it!"
" Okay, okay," Ketch smiled. "Well, I was just going to say that wasn't all of the wine, I have more. But not tonight!" he added, putting his hands up in a stop sign. She laughed. "It's getting late, and you have things to do tomorrow, as I recall," he continued. "Allow me to show you to your quarters, mademoiselle." He rose and crooked an elbow for her. She laughed again and took it and they went inside.
She sat down hard on the guest bed. "You'd get tired of me if I stayed here too often," she said. "Yeah, I heard that part too." She hiccupped. "They all do, you know, sooner or later."
"Now, that's enough of that," Ketch said as he went off to get her a tailed dress shirt in lieu of a nightgown, which he had none of on hand. Go figure... The dog came in to check on her, then trotted back out and into Ketch's bedroom.
After he'd gotten her straightened away, Ketch retreated to his bedroom as well and prepared to retire for the night. The dog was already slumbering blissfully on his own overstuffed bed on the floor beside Ketch's bed.
As tired as he now was, he found he couldn't sleep. He rolled over and reached for his e-reader on the nightstand, hoping that might make him sleepy - but it didn't work, so after a while he put it away and sat up and thought. If he remembered correctly, he'd left his laptop on the table by the recliner in the living room, rather than on his desk in that extra bedroom as he usually did. He slipped his robe on and padded out there as quietly as he could, and found he was right.
He sat in the recliner in the dark and booted the laptop, and when it was ready he brought up a browser window and returned to a page he'd earlier bookmarked about eminent domain.
There were apparently lawyers who specialized in eminent domain cases. He supposed some might think him foolish for not retaining one, but he strongly suspected doing so would just be a waste of time and money. When people like Bob Ingram set their minds on something, especially in the 'good-old-boy' type of political climate he currently resided in, it was probably pretty much a done deal.
What if he tried to stall Ingram by contesting the proposed compensation? Ketch read that this tactic wouldn't delay the seizure, because North Carolina law allows a 'quick-take' procedure in which the recipient gets the title to the property as soon as all the papers are filed, even if there's a compensation issue to be resolved in court. So, he thought, when Ingram pushes the button, the title would probably transfer immediately. He could possibly stall by instead contesting the legality of the seizure - but if Ingram had friends in high places, as he surely must given what Ketch already knew, that wouldn't help either.
Ketch hadn't heard of anyone else trying to use these tactics around here - but as he'd noted earlier, he didn't know if any of them had had to go through the eminent domain process; in fact, based on what he'd heard from the Captain, it sounded like they'd all evidently caved and sold, and probably after consulting with their expensive and useless attorneys. He thought about asking around the neighborhood to see how others had fared, but he didn't know his neighbors very well - not because he was reclusive, but again, rather because most
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