Blood From a Stone (18 page)

T
hou
g
h
he
’
d
en
j
o
y
ed
t
he
lif
e
of
a
l
and
ba
r
on
’
s
son du
ri
ng
h
i
s
da
y
s
as
a
h
u
m
an, none of
t
hat
m
a
tt
e
r
ed
once
t
he
C
han
g
e
t
ook
h
i
m  and
he
’
d
Aw
a
k
ened
t
o
fi
nd
h
i
s
f
a
m
il
y
dead
and
g
one,
w
it
h
no
w
ay
t
o
l
ay
c
l
a
i
m
t
o
any
of
w
hat
shou
l
d
ha
v
e
been
h
i
s.
H
ow on
ea
rt
h cou
l
d
he
ha
v
e
r
ea
p
pea
r
ed,
ha
v
i
ng not
a
g
ed,
c
l
a
i
m
i
ng
t
o
be
t
he
l
ong
l
ost
son
of
L
o
r
d
Ch
a
rl
e
s B
e
ll
m
a
i
ne
and
n
o
t
be hau
l
ed a
w
ay
t
o
t
he
g
a
l
l
o
w
s
or
bu
r
ned at
t
he s
t
a
k
e?
N
ot
t
hat
he
’
d
ha
v
e
m
i
nded
so
m
uch,
but
back
t
hen,
he hadn
’
t
l
ea
r
ned
a
l
l
t
he
i
m
p
li
ca
ti
ons
of
h
i
s
cu
r
se,
i
nc
l
ud
i
ng
t
he pa
r
t
about
not
be
i
ng
ab
l
e
t
o
d
i
e.

A
nd
so,
a
ft
er
so
m
e
ha
r
d
k
noc
k
s
he
’
d
l
ea
r
ned
how
t
o
m
a
k
e
h
i
s
w
ay
via his
w
i
t
s….
l
ess o
ft
en
t
h
r
ou
g
h
tr
ue
l
a
bo
r
,
and
m
o
r
e
o
ft
en
by
w
i
nn
i
ng
l
a
r
g
e su
m
s
of
g
o
l
d at
g
a
m
b
li
n
g
…
a
nd so
m
e
ti
m
es
a
littl
e
h
i
g
h
w
ay
r
obbe
r
y
i
n
past
cen
t
u
ri
es.
N
o
m
a
tt
er
t
he
m
eans,
he
w
as
now a
v
e
r
y
w
ea
lt
hy
m
an
due
t
o so
m
e s
m
a
r
t
m
o
v
es on h
i
s pa
r
t
i
n
t
a
k
i
ng  up
w
it
h
an
a
n
ti
ques
dea
l
er
t
w
o 
Aw
a
k
en
i
n
g
s
a
g
o,
t
h
r
ou
g
h
w
hom
he
so
l
d
so
m
e
of
h
i
s
o
l
dest
co
i
ns
and
j
e
w
e
lr
y
t
o co
ll
ec
t
o
r
s
w
ho
’
d
pa
i
d
he
ft
y p
ri
ces
f
or
t
he
r
a
r
e,
o
n
e
of
a
k
i
nd p
i
eces.
A
nd
on
t
op
of
a
l
l
t
ha
t
,
he
s
til
l
had so
m
e
c
o
i
ns
and p
i
eces
t
hat
w
ou
l
d
be
p
ri
c
e
l
ess
i
n
t
he
m
a
r
k
et
of
t
h
i
s cen
t
u
r
y
. Money
w
as
not
a
p
r
o
b
l
e
m
.
H
o
w
e
v
e
r
,
m
a
k
i
ng  su
r
e
i
t
w
as bu
ri
ed
i
n
a
sa
f
e
p
l
ace
so
he
cou
l
d
g
et
aho
l
d
of
i
t
w
hen
he
w
o
k
e up
w
as
.

Y
eah,
he cou
l
d ha
v
e opened sa
f
e depos
i
t
boxes and such,
but
i
t
w
as
already a royal pain in the ass just getting together enough paperwork for a drivers license and any other identification and paperwork he’d need to survive, much less showing up at a bank to get access to an account that hadn’t been touched in
fifty years with no explanation
, and no relatives they could call to check if they had questions
.
             
F
u
r
th
e
r
m
o
r
e,
w
hat
i
f
f
or
so
m
e
r
eason
t
he
bank c
l
osed,
chan
g
ed
l
oca
ti
on
or na
m
e?
H
ow
w
ou
l
d
he
fi
nd
it
?
H
e
f
e
l
t
i
t
w
as
sa
f
er
t
o
j
ust
bu
r
y
t
he
bonds,
m
oney and
any o
t
her
co
l
l
ec
ti
b
l
es
i
n
l
ead-
p
l
a
t
ed
fir
ep
r
oof
boxes
i
n
a
p
l
ace
w
he
r
e
no
one
w
ou
l
d
t
ouch
it
.
L
i
k
e
a graveyard
.
Who
,
a
ft
er
a
ll
,
w
ou
l
d
ri
sk
f
e
l
ony
cha
r
g
es
t
o
d
i
s
t
u
r
b
t
he
r
e
m
a
i
ns
of
t
he
dead?
L
i
k
e
l
y
no
one,
except h
i
m
se
lf
…a
lr
eady
w
o
r
se
o
f
f
t
han  dead  an
y
w
ay
by
h
i
s
o
w
n es
ti
m
a
ti
on.
A
nd
so,
as
a
l
w
a
y
s
he
w
ou
l
d
g
o cash
i
n h
i
s bonds and
g
et
p
l
en
t
y of
cu
rr
en
tl
y da
t
ed
m
oney
t
o
g
e
t
her
t
o
spend du
ri
ng h
i
s
Aw
a
k
en
i
n
g
,
and
t
hen
buy up
m
o
r
e
bonds
and s
t
ash
m
o
r
e
cash
be
f
o
r
e
t
he
C
han
g
e
ca
m
e
f
or
h
i
m
t
he
next
t
i
m
e a
r
ound.