Super Detective in the Fictional World - Chapter 474
Chapter 474 Don’t Go Too Far
A moment later, Luke got up with a strange expression. “Okay, Selina, feed him the rest.”
When he said that, Dollar wagged its tail even harder.
Narrowing his eyes, Luke stepped back and observed Dollar.
It buried its big head in the food bowl again and enjoyed the extra food from its young master.
Luke and Selina spent the rest of the day at the ranch.
It was rare for Luke to come by, and Drax was already preparing a deluxe barbecue.
Mario, Selina’s father, dropped by as well. He said hello to Luke and then checked on Dollar.
He knew that his daughter cherished this old dog that had grown up with her.
But looking at Dollar bouncing around, Mario marveled, “He’s very… energetic, more than usual. He doesn’t look like he’s sick.”
Luke was helping Drax prepare the barbecue at the outdoor grill. At Mario’s words, he simply shrugged while Selina was blank-faced.
In the evening, Luke and Selina returned home with barbecue leftovers.
They hadn’t been to the ranch in so long and Drax had been so happy that he cooked a lot.
The old man simply had them take the food home for their families to enjoy as well.
Luke dropped Selina home first and gave her most of the leftovers.
She had a big family who could take care of the meat easily.
In Luke’s family, Robert was the only one with an especially good appetite. Catherine and Claire weren’t fanatical about meat, and Joseph couldn’t have a lot of meat because of his poor digestive system. It was enough for Luke to bring back a little as a small token.
“Keep an eye on Dollar. Call me if anything happens,” Luke reminded Selina.
Selina stared at him blankly. “Is he really sick?” Her voice wavered a little.
Luke shook his head. “No, he should be fine; just keep an eye out.”
He’s way too fine! Luke secretly added in his heart as he drove away.
He took out the barbecue meat at home. Unsurprisingly, nobody was too excited.
They had just finished dinner, and the two women and the kid just had a bit of the meat.
Robert and Luke were thus the only two who happily had the meat over beers as they watched a football game on TV.
Luke asked about the FBI’s search for a fugitive, and it turned out that Robert really did receive a notification.
It was a lone fugitive, however, and assistance from the police in town wasn’t required. As an old, unambitious sheriff, Robert decisively washed his hands clean of the matter.
While nothing major happened in the small town, they often had to take care of petty problems at various ranches and farms. It wasn’t busy, but it was very time-consuming; wrangling with ranch and farm owners under the hot sun for almost an hour was a common occurrence.
Robert thus wasn’t interested in deploying his men to search the mountains, which would be dangerous and unrewarding.
Luke wasn’t surprised.
Those two FBI agents did look legit. He was simply confirming it out of habit in case anything happened at his grandpa’s ranch.
Taking advantage of this opportunity, Luke suggested, “What do you think about getting grandpa to sell his ranch, or hiring someone to help with management, so that he won’t be so tired?”
Robert didn’t agree. “Drax is a man who can’t sit around. The thing he despises most in life is lazy bums. Do you know why he didn’t object to me and Catherine being together back then? It was only because he saw how diligent I was when I ran a farm back then. Best you don’t bring this up with him. He pampers you, but he definitely won’t be nice to you about it.”
Speechless for a moment, Luke then said, “It’s not like I’m telling him to stop doing anything; I just want him to slow down a little since he’s almost seventy.”
Narrowing his eyes at Luke, Robert pondered for a moment before he said in a low voice, “I heard that Mario is planning to buy a small ranch.”
Luke was stunned. “Is he…” He was going to say, “Is he rich enough?” but then swallowed the words.
After investing two hundred thousand in his company, Selina still had about four hundred thousand left.
Her family had always been careful about money and should have some savings. If they pooled the money together, it wasn’t impossible for them to buy a farm as a family enterprise.
Thinking for a moment, Luke said, “But their money wouldn’t be enough to buy grandpa’s ranch, right?”
Robert laughed. “What are you thinking? Mario wants to buy the ranch next to your grandpa’s property. He wants your grandpa to have a share in it.”
“Wouldn’t that make grandpa busier?” Luke didn’t understand.
Robert chuckled. “Then why don’t you suggest he find someone good at managing a ranch to run Mario’s ranch?”
Luke thought for a moment. “Are you saying that if grandpa wants to take a break, he can hand his own ranch over to this person to handle?”
Robert patted his shoulder. “You said it, not me.”
Luke: “…”
So this was the trap.
Robert wasn’t afraid of Drax. In fact, this big, rough man was very proud of what he had accomplished.
He had even saved up for Luke and Claire’s college funds himself without asking for Drax’s help.
Even if Drax kept saying that he could cover Luke’s college fees, Robert never took him up on it.
Thus, he didn’t want to stick his nose into his father-in-law’s business when it came to the ranch, and he didn’t want Catherine to get involved either.
Luke, on the other hand, was Drax’s biological grandson; it would be fine if he was the one who spoke up.
Of course, Claire and Joseph were also Drax’s biological grandkids, but they clearly weren’t equipped to persuade this stubborn old man.
Robert felt that Luke was the only one who would have a way to convince Drax that old fogey.
Luke rubbed his chin and mulled for a moment. “Do you have someone in mind for the position?”
Selina’s father definitely wasn’t an option. While the man had been a farmhand for more than ten years and was diligent and earnest, he wasn’t really supervisor material.Robert shrugged. “If you think this plan can work, tell Drax to find one himself. He’s always been interested in ‘expanding his territory.”
Luke sweated. Wasn’t his grandpa a little too energetic? He was even more hardworking than Luke himself.
“Then I’ll find time to give grandpa a call,” said Luke.
Robert asked, “You’re not going to see him in person?”
Luke sighed. “There are still things to consider before this can be finalized. I don’t think I can get it done during this break.”
Robert patted his forehead. “Fine, you’re always this meticulous.”
Done discussing this matter, he hesitated for a moment before saying in a low voice, “Everything alright in Los Angeles?” Luke shrugged. “Same old. It’s actually pretty much the same as in Houston. I’m not in the DEA. You don’t have to worry about me.”
Robert scoffed, “Don’t try to fool me, brat… Don’t go too far.”
