Life on Another Planet Ch. 23-27

"I'm no financial whiz, Eve. I need someone I can trust and who will protect what I have. I don't need to double my money in a couple of years. I just want it to be around for a long time," Jesse assured her.

"Well, Lachie Kilgore is with Bower-Palmer, and they have been around a very long time. I can give you his card and you can contact him if you're interested."

"Thanks, Eve. I'll do that. I'm sure your estate is easily larger than mine, so if you trust him, then I'd be silly not to at least talk to him."

"You'll probably have to cut through his Scottish brogue, but he's a good man and you'll find you like him," she smiled.

"I'm sure I will. I'm still having trouble getting over this happening to me. It's like winning the lottery."

"Yes, I guess it would seem like that," she agreed.

Monday, October 1, 2012 10am

"May I speak to Mr. Kilgore, please," Jesse said to the receptionist.

"Mr. Kilgore is not in the office at present. Can I have him contact you?" the woman asked.

"Yes please. My name is Jesse Peterson and I can be reached at 777-555-2980."

"Can I tell Mr. Kilgore what the call is about?"

"Yes, his name was given to me for some investment advice. I was hoping I could meet with him."

"Of course. I'll have him call you as soon as possible."

"Thank you," Jesse said, ending the call on his cell phone.

Mr. Kilgore returned Jesse's call at one that afternoon. Eve wasn't kidding about his accent. It was as thick as winter porridge.

"Ye' called aboot some advice, laddie."

"Yes sir. Doctor Eve Mikeska suggested I contact you regarding your handling my investments. I've come into an inheritance and I want to make sure I guard it properly. She said you would give me good advice."

"Aye ... and how is the lovely lassie?" he asked.

"She's fine. She asked me to say hello for her."

"Aye. I'm prood tae be her advisor. Now, would ye like to meet and discuss what I can dae for ye?"

"Yes, Sir. It would be best if we met at your office, I think. I would like to keep this private. Eve has a boyfriend and I know she doesn't want to share all her financial information with him yet. It's just a precaution, you see."

"Aye, aye. She's a guid thinker that Eve. When de ya think we cuid meet?"

"I work at a bookstore in the afternoon, so morning would be better," Jesse said.

"Guid," he said immediately. "Ah'm at ma best in the mornin' after ma tea. Would nine o'clock tomorrow suit ye?"

"That would be perfect. I have your address and I can walk to there from the apartment. So ... nine tomorrow at your office then?"

"Aye ... I'll be there. Bring any paper ye might ha aboot your inheritance. The more information the better, laddie."

"Yes sir, I'll do that. See you tomorrow," Jesse said, ending the call.

Jesse was relieved that it was that simple to get some advice. The inheritance was sitting waiting for him to direct it. He was excited at the prospect of having so much money available to him, yet cautious that he wouldn't use it recklessly. One purchase was brewing in the back of his mind already. It would be something special and meaningful to him.

Tuesday, October 2, 2012 9am

Jesse appeared at the reception desk of Bower-Palmer on the stroke of nine.

"My name is Jesse Peterson and Mr. Kilgore is expecting me," Jesse said to the young, attractive receptionist.

"Thank you, Mr. Peterson," she said with a smile and an interested eye.

She picked up the phone and punched in three digits. "Mr. Peterson is here for his appointment, Lachie." She listened for a moment then hung up.

"Mr. Kilgore will be right with you," she smiled again. The handsome young man was interesting. If he was looking for financial advice, he could be quite wealthy. That made him even more interesting.

"Can I get you a coffee, Mr. Peterson?" she asked.

"No thanks, I've had my quota for the day," he smiled in return.

She was very attractive and he guessed not much older than himself. But time wasn't on his side as a very big older man appeared from the rear of the area and walked toward him. Jesse was surprised to see him wearing a kilt, rather than trousers. He almost laughed, but caught himself in time, stepping toward the gentleman.

"Ye must be Jesse Peterson then," he said. "Lachie Kilgore at yur serrvice," he said, holding out his hand.

The handshake was firm and friendly and Jesse took an immediate liking to the man.

"Nice to meet you, Mr. Kilgore," Jesse said.

"Aye ... it's Lachie, laddie," he said, handing him a business card. "Come wi' me and we'll hae a wee chat," he said, leading the way to the hallway in the rear of the reception area. He led Jesse to a very nice, well appointed meeting room with a large mahogany table and eight comfortable chairs. Kilgore pulled one out for Jesse near the end and then seated himself at the end of the table.

"Tell me aboot yersel', Jesse," he said, his voice strong and friendly.

Jesse explained that he had come into an inheritance from his grandparents and wanted to protect it. He passed the summary sheet of the investments across the table to Kilgore and waited while he had a chance to review it. Jesse could see him nod and make the odd sound as he perused the pages.

"Aye, well, Lad, this is a fine portfolio indeed," Lachie said as he leaned back in his chair. "If I may, Jesse, I might offer a wee observation. This portfolio is set up fer someone of my age ... or aulder. It wud be a guid group fer someone retired ... or planning to retire. Ye being a lad yet, it might be a wee bit conservative. Y' have many a year ahead of ye. We cud luke at some things that might be more for y' future. Dae ye ken, Jesse?"

"Yes, I understand. But I don't want to take too much risk, Sir. Can we make it work both ways?"

"Aye, we can," Lachie smiled. "If I may, a copy of this wud help. I'll pit a wee proposal together for ye, and we can talk again."

"Good, I'd appreciate that. There are a couple of things I wanted to ask you about."

"Aye?" Lachie said.

"Uhhm, I may want to make some purchases. I was thinking of buying an apartment ... or even maybe a house. I want to continue to get my education, so that will require some funds. And, I want to buy a car ... but not just any car."

Lachie nodded, but looked at Jesse carefully. "Apartments and houses be gud investments, Lad. Cars ... well ... most times they are not. What did ye have in mind?"

"I want to buy an Austin Healey 3000. My ... grandfather had one," Jesse said, quickly changing his father's status. "It was a wonderful car and I'd like one to remember him by."

Lachie leaned back with a smile. "Ye luv the auld yins, dae yea?"

"Well, that old one at least. I've been looking on the Internet and they are worth far more than my ... grandfather paid back then. Maybe it isn't such a bad investment," Jesse grinned.

Lachie nodded. "Aye, I've a E type m'sel'. A treat for m'sel'," he laughed.

"Coupe or roadster?" Jesse asked.

"Coupe, tan leather, dark green, wire wheels. She's a beauty, Jesse."

Jesse nodded. "If it wasn't for my grandfathers car, well, I might be looking for an E Jag myself. So ... you don't think that's too terrible an idea?"

Lachie was shaking his head. "It willna break ye, Lad. But mind ye now, not so many of these treats, ye hear," he warned, then laughed.

"I hear you," Jesse nodded.

"Was there more?" Lachie asked.

"Uhhm, just something personal. I noticed you were wearing a kilt. Is that usual for you?"

Lachlann Kilgore laughed aloud at the question. "I'll let ye in on a wee secret, laddie. I wear the tartan for the new clients. We Scots are famous for guardin' the treasury, so it gies the new folks some confidence," he finished with another hearty laugh.

Jesse couldn't help but laugh along with him. He had the impression he was in good hands.

"Let's get a copy of this for my records and I'll put a wee proposal t'gether for ye. I shud ha' somethin' for ye by weeks end."

"That's great. Thanks Mr. Kilgore," Jesse said with a smile.

"It's Lachie, Jesse. If we be workin' t'gether with the big sums, we shud be on close terms."

"Okay, Lachie. I'll look forward to your suggestions. Thanks for seeing me so promptly."

"Yer welcome, Jesse. Please be sayin' hello tae the good Doctor Mikeska. She's a special lassie."

"Will do, and thanks again."

~*~

"Well, how did you get along with Lachie?" Eve asked with a grin.

"Great. He's quite a character. I wondered if some of it wasn't an act for the new boy. Anyway, he's going to look over what's already in the portfolio and make some suggestions. He said he thought it was more appropriate for someone who was retired than someone as young as me. He thought we could add some items that were more long term investments, so if you trust him, then I'm not going to argue with his choices."

"I do trust him, Jesse. You're right, he is a character, but a delightful one. He's very successful and well known in the investment community. You're in safe hands with him, and you can be sure he'll grow your account carefully. He'll want to meet with you at least twice a year to go over your portfolio and make suggestions if he thinks you can improve it. He stays right on top of each of his client's investments, so you won't feel he's just sitting back and doing nothing to earn his fees."

"That's good to know. I'll be interested to see what he suggests. He said he might have something to show me by the end of the week."

Jesse looked at the business card and saw Lachlan M Kilgore, Senior Partner as his title. That gave him even more confidence that his assets were in good hands.

Chapter 25 A Change in the Weather

Saturday, October 6, 2012 7am

Jesse stared out the apartment window at the dreary early morning scene. The wind was blowing the rain onto the living room windows. He'd been awake since before six o'clock, having heard what he assumed was Kirsten leaving for the university ice rink. She was a month into her second season with the T-Birds. He'd seen so little of her lately. She'd been to the Team Canada camp, but he had no idea if she'd been selected or not. The fact that she was back practicing and playing with the T-Birds indicated to him that she had probably not made the team. That would have been no surprise, since she was only beginning her second year of competitive hockey.

He'd talked to Candice on the phone twice and was pleased that she was recovering, although slowly with the big cast on her leg that would remain there until November first at the earliest. Her shoulder and ribs were healing well, and she was able to do some physiotherapy on her arms, but until the big cast on her left leg was removed, she was still bound to the wheelchair, or very short distances on crutches.

She sounded like she was in fairly good humour considering her being confined largely to her parents' home, but could hear her mentioning Pete more often as her helper. That didn't come as a surprise, but it was still disappointing that he had almost unlimited access to her, while Jesse was three hundred miles away. He wondered what to do about their relationship. In his mind, it was over, but until Candice told him so, he held out faint hope that it might not be.

Mica got his helicopter ride at the end of September and was allowed to bring Tony Birani along with him. They took off from the South Airport business flight center and Kent gave the boys the royal treatment with a flight west to the Gulf Islands, then north to the Comox Glacier, before crossing eastward to Whistler, then down the coast back to the airport. They were gone for well over an hour and the two couldn't stop talking about everything they had seen, including a couple of cruise ships and some whales in Georgia Strait.

Kent was becoming a regular for dinner when he wasn't on duty, and Jesse could see the relationship between him and Eve was getting closer. He began to think it was time to talk to Eve about him moving on. He was financially secure now, and could do pretty much anything he set his mind to. The projections Lachie had shown him for his proposed investment portfolio would produce over eighty thousand dollars in dividends each year. He emphasized that this was a conservative estimate and could easily yield over a hundred thousand. That alone stunned Jesse.

Lachie Kilgore had set up a cash reserve that could be used either for purchasing new stocks or bonds, or as a way to supplement Jesse's cash supply. His advisor proposed a line of credit from a major bank of a quarter million dollars as a maximum. The interest rate would be prime plus one percent, a very low lending rate. Jesse struggled with the idea of having such a large amount at his fingertips, but Lachie cautioned him that because he had it available, he didn't have to use it. In fact, Jesse was genuinely nervous about having so much money at his disposal. He would be super careful about how he used it.

Those were the thoughts going through Jesse's mind as he stared out the window that miserable Saturday morning. The more he thought about it, the more he realized that the Austin Healey was a poor choice of vehicle. He couldn't see himself driving it to Whistler in the winter, or rowing his way through the rush hour traffic that now nearly paralyzed Vancouver and the surrounding districts. No, something more practical was a better choice.

In addition, he was studiously examining the Internet listings for apartments. He gulped when he saw the monthly rental costs for a two bedroom apartment in False Creek. Two thousand dollars per month seemed like a staggering price for a one thousand square foot apartment. On top of that, a parking space was extra. However, it did have many features that he wanted, and the fact was ... he could afford it. Was this a good place to consider, if only for a couple of years? He had to admit, he really liked living in the area. For a guy who was brought up in a suburban home with grass and trees, it surprised him how easily he adapted to living in the downtown.

And now the question returned once more to his future. What was he going to do with his new life? With all the luxuries that he could now afford, he knew he still needed to work. Not for the money as much as for the sense that he was doing something worthwhile for himself and others. The burning question was what would that "something" be?

He'd postponed his morning coffee, knowing that he intended to do his workout before breakfast. Now was as good a time as any. The place would be empty on a Saturday morning, so he'd be able to use any of the equipment he chose. He grabbed his key card and a towel and headed for the elevator down to the second floor.

Jesse was surprised to see a light coming through the glass panel on the door to the exercise area. Perhaps someone forgot to turn it off last night. He pulled the door open and was surprised to see Kirsten on the treadmill, walking quite slowly. He dropped his towel on the bench along the wall and walked toward her. She must have noticed him because she turned and looked at him.

Jesse was shocked at her appearance. She seemed wan and tired, with dark circles under her eyes. There was no smile of greeting or any acknowledgement. Something was wrong and he knew it immediately.

"Good morning, Kirsten. How are you?" he asked as if by rote.

"Hello Jesse," she said, not turning toward him.

"Kirsten, are you all right? You look very pale ... very tired," he said, standing beside the machine.

She shrugged. "I will be better later on. I am just a little slow this morning," she finally volunteered.

Jesse looked around and couldn't see her usually present water bottle.

"Can I get you some cold water?" he asked.

She didn't respond immediately, but after a few moments she nodded.

Jesse went to the dispenser and filled a paper cup and took it to her. She had stopped the machine and stepped off it, waiting for him. He handed her the cup and looked at her carefully.

"You don't look good, Kirsten. Are you feeling ill?"

She shook her head. "Just tired."

Come and sit over here with me," he said.

She surprised him and didn't resist, but followed him to a padded lifting bench and sat with him.

"I haven't seen you in a long time," Jesse said. "I don't remember you ever looking as tired as this. Have you seen a doctor?"

She nodded. "Yes, she ran some blood tests and I am a bit anaemic, so I have to take some vitamin pills to correct that. I will be better in two weeks."

"How did you get so run down?" he asked.

She shrugged. "I suppose it was the combination of playing hockey and studying at night and then the tryout camp last summer. Now, I am back playing and studying. I had little time off this summer. I was not sleeping well after the Team Canada camp and I think that led to the problem."

"I'm not surprised. You push yourself very hard. You work very hard at your fitness and your studies ever since I've known you. Maybe you need a vacation," he suggested.

She turned to him with a weak smile. "I wish I could, Jesse, but I am back in school and I will be playing hockey when I get past this anaemia. Right now, I am trying not to lose my conditioning."

"Do your parents know about your condition?"

"Yes. I am supposed to take it easy, but I can almost feel my body getting soft."

Jesse snorted and suppressed a laugh. "That's not entirely a bad thing, you know."

That brought about a smile from her, and she leaned toward him and bumped her shoulder against his.

"You know what you should do," Jesse offered, "You should go back to bed and get some sleep. That will do you more good than anything."

Again she smiled. "Okay, doctor Jesse. I think you are right. I have no energy this morning. I am not supposed to be here anyway, so I suppose it was a bad idea."

"Come on, I'll go with you," he volunteered.

"You do not need to do that," she protested.

"I know ... but I want to," he smiled, helping her up and leading her to the door. The ride up on the elevator was in silence as was the walked to her apartment door.

She turned to him, smiled, and kissed him gently on the lips. "Thank you, Jesse. It is good to see you again. I have missed you," she said before turning and entering her home.

If there was one thing that could energize Jesse, it was kiss from Kirsten. He headed back to the elevator and the exercise room with a renewed sense of vitality. Somehow, this workout was going to be much easier than usual.

Sunday, October 7, 2012 11:45am

Jesse was watching the clouds break up and the sun beginning to make an intermittent appearance in the sky. He wouldn't have thought it possible a few hours ago, but it looked like it was going to be a pretty nice afternoon after yesterday's storm had passed. He was considering taking a bike ride when there was a knock on his door. It could only be a neighbour he thought as he went to the door. When he opened it and saw Kirsten standing there, he smiled. One look told him she looked much fresher than she had early yesterday morning.

"Hi, Kirsten ... come in."

Again, a relaxed smile and a bit more colour in her face gave him some confidence she was feeling much livelier as well.

"You look much better than you did yesterday. Did you get some sleep?"

"Yes ... thank you. I feel better too. I wanted to thank you for being there for me. I was not feeling very happy and you were so kind to me."

Jesse smiled. "The rest has done you good. Are you hungry? I can make some lunch. Your parents are at the store, I imagine."

"Yes, weekends in October are always very busy. Hockey season is underway and skiing is not far away, so they are quite busy. I should be there, but Mama won't let me. I am supposed to be at home, doing nothing. I am not very good at doing nothing," she smiled softly.