“Make it three,” she said.
I grabbed the beers and sat them on the table. Gertie pulled the casserole out of the oven and put it in the middle of the table next to a basket of French bread. I grabbed plates and we all dug in.
“Okay,” I said after downing a big bite of the incredibly awesome casserole. “I think the first thing we need to do is cover everything we know about the Bishops. Every time we get into something, their personal lives matter. So give me the skinny.”
“Gail is a local girl,” Gertie said. “Her parents retired and moved to Arizona. It’s supposed to be better for arthritis, I think. Gail bought their house from them and still lives there today. She runs a charity in New Orleans that helps the homeless and the disabled acquire jobs and housing. I’ve made donations but never been to their office. My understanding is that it’s a fairly decent-sized outfit.”
Ida Belle nodded. “Twenty full-time employees, is what I heard. They get grant money from the federal government and the state, and of course, there’s the usual list of private donors and events to raise money. Gail is—was very clever with money and the paperwork for grants and such. I worry that they’ll have a hard time finding someone to run the organization as well as she did.”
“What about her and Nolan?” I asked. “High school sweethearts?”
“Gail and Nolan met two years ago at one of the charity events she hosted,” Gertie said.
“Was she married before?” I asked.
“Yes. That one was her high school sweetheart,” Gertie said. “And a big mistake. That boy was always trouble, but Gail thought she could save him. You know how some teen girls can be.”
I didn’t have any idea how teen girls could be, but I figured I’d take Gertie’s word for it. She had years of teaching experience to back up her opinion.
“It was just when she was a teen,” Ida Belle said. “She had a few more unfortunate attempted rescues later on before she finally threw in the towel. We figured she’d decided to give it up until she met Nolan.”
“Was Nolan born unable to walk or was that some sort of accident?” I asked.
“Nolan was already in the wheelchair when Gail met him,” Gertie said. “I believe it was the result of a car accident a few years before.”
“Drunk driver,” Ida Belle said. “Not Nolan. The other guy.”
“Yes, that’s it,” Gertie said. “Anyway, Nolan volunteered to speak at group meetings about learning to live in the wheelchair and the transitions one had to make both professionally and personally.”
“So he wasn’t dependent on Gail?” I asked.
“Not completely,” Ida Belle said. “He’s an editor or proofer…business papers, I think, or maybe law briefs. He’s told me about it before, but I confess that the topic bored me completely so I tuned him out. Anyway, I think before the accident, he worked in corporate America in some similar capacity. But the editing or whatever, he could do at home, so it was a better option than commuting each day, although it’s probably considerably less money. I think the work is contract, so not always available.”
“What about physically?” I asked. “I assume he was living alone before he married Gail?”
“He was living in an apartment in New Orleans,” Gertie said. “I think he had some sort of aide that came to help him with things several times a week. But I remember him saying that he had tried to become independent quickly because there hadn’t been much insurance money and he couldn’t afford to continue the service once it was gone.”
“So he got a settlement from the wreck, but medical bills and the health aide probably ate it up quickly,” I said.
“Probably so,” Gertie said. “It does seem that everything to do with health care is so expensive these days. Anyway, Gail told me once that he was quite capable in most areas. They modified her home to accommodate the wheelchair and that helped tremendously. The only problem was his strength. Ever since the accident, he had bouts of fatigue and she said he couldn’t lift himself when those happened.”
“So he can’t live completely independently, at least not all of the time,” I said, and sighed. “That sucks.”
Ida Belle nodded. “Just when his life had reached a new normal, another tragedy throws him back into a tailspin. He’s more capable now, of course, since more time has passed, but it’s still a huge blow.”
“Did Gail have money?” I asked.
“Not to speak of,” Ida Belle said. “Her parents are still alive and live on a small retirement. Gail spent most of her savings buying their home. She was a frugal woman but I don’t think she drew a large salary.”