Predator

“Great. Do you know when it’s going to be read?”

“Uh, I don’t know if it’s like the movies where everyone sits in a lawyer’s office and hears all the allocations read aloud.”

“So how does it work?”

“I’m not positive, but if I were to guess, I’d say his lawyers along with the executor go over the provisions one by one. Then they are supposed to carry out the wishes of the deceased.”

“What happens if they don’t carry out the wishes?”

“If you think that someone deliberately took assets that were allocated to you, you can sue, I suppose.”

“Sounds very messy.”

“It probably is.”

She took out a tube of ChapStick and coated her lips. “So how will I know if I get any money?”

“Are you expecting money from Penny’s will?”

“No, not me personally. Mr. Penny did say he intended to support Global Earth after he died.”

Decker took out a notebook. “He said those specific words to you?” She was staring at the notebook. “Do you mind? Memory isn’t what it used to be.”

“No, sure, go ahead.”

“Did he say how he intended to support the sanctuary?”

She shook her head no. “I didn’t ask him. I thought it was greedy and ghoulish to get into specifics. It’s not about me, Lieutenant. I live in a one-bedroom apartment that’s as spare as the trailer. But I do care about the animals. Ever since Fern died, I’ve been trying single-handedly to carry on the legacy.” A tear rolled down her cheek. “I miss Fern. She was an incredible woman. No one could possibly do what she did.”

“She died a while back, didn’t she?”

She swiped her cheek with her sleeve. “Three years ago. She was the backbone of this place. If Mr. Penny hadn’t come along, we might have folded.”

“How’d you meet Mr. Penny?”

“He found us.” She rubbed her toes. “Now that you’re here in person, I’ll tell you what I knew about Mr. Penny and the tiger. He had inherited the cub from an exotic animal importer who wound up in jail. I never got the whole story. What I do know is that he was going to donate the cub to us. That didn’t happen right away, and I guess after a while, he grew attached to her. I kept telling him that a tiger wasn’t always going to be a cub. I tried to let him know that she was going to grow up to be a very large and dangerous animal. And he kept on saying that he knew that and he’d eventually give her up. One day, he called up and asked me to come to his apartment. I thought that this meant he was ready to let her go.”

She shrugged.

“Instead we talked for a long time with the tiger in the room. At the conclusion of our conversation, he whipped out his checkbook and gave us fifty thousand dollars. I should have reported him, but I was stunned by his generosity. And … we really needed the money.”

“I see.”

“I’m sure you’re making assumptions, but it wasn’t just about money. Tiki is an unusually calm cat. She’s gentle once you gain her trust. And she really did seem bonded to the old guy.”

“I’m sure she was.”

Vignette swallowed hard. “Did she hurt him in any way after he died?”

“Actually, no she didn’t.”

The woman was visibly relieved. “See? That’s Tiki. The two of them were exceptionally close. I know it was stupid to let it slide. But it came from a deep love between Hobart and Tiki and a firm commitment to this place.”

“What would happen to the animals if the place closed down?”

“I don’t want to think about that.” She set her boots atop the heater. “Are you warm enough? Would you like some coffee? It’s only instant, but it might warm you up.”

“Sure, I’ll take a cup.”

Padding around in her socks, she took down two mugs and filled them with hot water. Then she added a heaping tablespoon of instant coffee and doused it with milk before Decker could tell her that he drank his java black. “Thanks.”

“You’re welcome.” She sat down. “So you don’t know anything about the will?”

“No, I really don’t.” The woman looked dispirited. Decker pressed on. “I’d like to know what would happen to the animals if the place closed down.”

She shook her head. “I’d like to think that a zoo or a circus would pick them up. But the truth is that some of these animals are so inbred that zoos wouldn’t have any use for them. Zoos need wild stock to prevent inherited diseases. Lots of these animals were bred by for-profit dealers. The majority of the animals are too unpredictable for circuses and zoos, but they’ve lost their instincts to exist in the wilds.”

Decker nodded, and she continued.

“If we couldn’t find another sanctuary, the majority of the animals here would have to be put down.”

“Sad.”

“That’s why Mr. Penny was so important to us. When he saw what we were doing, he became a major supporter.”

“He visited here?”

“Yes, he did.”

“He was very reclusive. How’d you manage to get him out here?”

“It took a lot of cajoling, but I got him here several years ago. I wanted him to know what his fifty thousand dollars was doing. He seemed pleased. Then, a month later, I got a check for six figures. I nearly fell off my chair. We have other supporters, but he was the biggest contributor. His money gave us slack so we didn’t have to constantly fund-raise.”

“Do you have a professional fund-raiser?”

“Good God, no. Most of our help are volunteers. Like Everett James, the gentleman that you met. On top of helping with the animals, he helps us with our accounting. We can’t afford a big staff like a zoo or anything.”

“How many paid employees does Global Earth actually have?”

“Full-time, it’s only me. The costs come from feeding and maintaining the animals, state licenses, vet services, all that kind of stuff. I started off volunteering. Then, after Fern died and they offered me a junior position, I jumped at it. Allan was made president. Then after he left for Alaska, they were going to close the place down. I couldn’t let that happen without a fight. So I took over with a salary of twenty thousand a year—barely enough to pay for my car, food, and rent. A short time later, I got the call from Mr. Penny. It was like manna from heaven.”

The walkie-talkie on her belt suddenly belched out static. “Excuse me.” She took out the squawk box. “Hi, Vern, what’s up?” Static over the line. Vignette said, “I’ll be right there.” She signed off, slipped on her hiking boots, and began lacing them up. “One of our grizzlies isn’t eating. Want to come with me and see what we do?”

“That would be … interesting.”

Vignette slipped some supplies into the pockets of her jacket. “Never met a grizzly before?”

“Nope.” Decker managed a weak smile. “An encounter with a grizzly never made it to my bucket list.”