Wronged (Book 1) Read online

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  In a quaint courtyard cafe on Rue Royale, Louis met Daniel Comeaux, a gray-haired gentleman who had been a friend of his father’s for many years. Louis had met the man only in social settings, but today he met him for lunch with the express purpose of doing busi­ness with him.

  “Louis, you’re looking well. How’s your father?” Mr. Comeaux asked as he sat watching Louis from across the table.

  “He’s well, thank you.”

  “I haven’t spoken with him much since I shut down the mill and moved to New Orleans. I don’t get to spend much time with him anymore.”

  “He still says you handled his sugarcane better than any mill he’s ever used before or since,” Louis re­sponded.

  The gentleman smiled contentedly. “When you enjoy what you do, you hope the people you’re working for reap the benefits.”

  “Papa always did,” Louis replied.

  “And the plantation? It’s doing well?” Daniel asked.

  “Yes, my brother is more or less in charge, with my father overseeing things. They had a record crop last year,” Louis informed him.

  “Splendid. I guess you’ve heard that I’m retiring and trying to sell the mill. It’s way past time for me to retire. I think I’ve earned some time to spend with my grandsons and my wife. I’m going to do some traveling and just enjoy life for a while.”

  “Yes, my father mentioned your decision not to reopen the mill. That’s why I wanted to meet with you. Have you sold your business yet?”

  The man looked at Louis puzzled. ‘‘No. Why?”

  “I’m interested in buying your company.”

  “But I thought you were a partner in Cuvier Shipping.”

  “I am. But with your business I could tie in with my family’s plantation and help not only them, but their neighbors, just as you’ve been doing for years.”

  The man gazed at Louis, sizing him up. “Does your father know you want to do this?”

  Not wanting to disappoint his father if he were unable to buy the business, Louis had decided not to tell his father until the deal was complete.

  “No. Before I left home, he tried to convince me to stay at home and work on the plantation. He kept telling me there was plenty of work, but I didn’t want to be my brother’s lackey.”

  The man chuckled. “You were much younger then.” Louis grinned. “Yes. Now I see this as an opportunity to work with my brother and father again. But I want to do it on my terms.”

  “That’s understandable.” The man picked up his wine glass and sipped from it “Do you have the capital to finance the business?”

  Stalling for time, Louis picked up his own wine glass and sipped. The alcohol soothed its way down his throat “I own half of Cuvier Shipping and I intend to sell the business as quickly as possible. That’s where my capital will come from.”

  The man laughed. “Don’t you think you’re going to have a hard time selling now that Jean has not one but three women going after his money?”

  “No, according to law only the first wife owns part of the business. The other two received nothing.”

  “Damn! Didn’t they know about the other women?”

  Louis shook his head. “Apparently not. It seems Jean kept them in different cities. The day he died was the day they found out about one another.”

  “Damn shame.” Daniel shook his head. “Couldn’t you borrow the money from your father? I’m sure he’d be happy to help you.”

  “Probably. But I’m thirty-five years old and I want to do this without my father’s help. Call it my foolish pride, but I don’t want his money,” Louis said, the memory of his father telling him he wouldn’t amount to anything still vibrated through his head even after all these years. “In fact, I would appreciate your not saying anything to my father about our conversation.”

  Daniel nodded and sat his wine glass back down on the table. “Okay, let’s meet with my lawyer and we can draw up the specifics of the sale. In the meantime, I’ll give you several months to sell Cuvier Shipping.”

  Louis smiled and held out his hand. “It’s a deal.”

  The older man glanced at his hand. “You’re sure this is what you want and that you’ll be able to sell the shipping company?”

  “There won’t be any problem selling Cuvier Ship­ping,” Louis said, thinking of how Marian would probably jump at the chance to sell the business and bring in money to replenish the family coffers.

  The older man shook his hand and then lifted his wine glass. “Here’s to a quick sale of Cuvier Shipping.”