Chapter 15 - Madeline
“That sounds great, Mom,” I say, staring at the ceiling as I cradle my cell phone on my shoulder. “I wish I could have come.”
“Your father is looking better already. Bianca has had the most wonderful time here! The weather is fantastic.”
“That’s great,” I repeat, tracing the line where the wall meets the ceiling with my eyes. I know my mother is calling me to make me feel guilty for not going to Miami with them, but I refuse to give in. “Can I talk to Dad?”
“Sure,” she says. “He’s right here.”
“Hi, Mads,” my father’s deep voice comes on over the phone. I smile and sit up.
“Hey Dad. How are you feeling?”
“Oh you know,” he says vaguely. “Getting old. How’s work?”
I shake my head and grin. He always brings things back to work. “It’s okay. We’re having a hard time getting the townspeople on board with the project.”
“Do you believe in it?”
His question surprises me, and I stand up before answering. I run my fingers through my hair and pace back and forth in my hotel room. I take a deep breath.
“Yeah, I do,” I say. “It’s a beautiful part of the world, and it’ll bring a lot of tourism and jobs to the area. It’ll be a huge injection of money into the town.”
My father chuckles. “Mads,” he starts. “I’ve run companies my whole life. You don’t have to feed me that bullshit. Do you believe in the project?”
I take a deep breath. I wish I was with him right now, resting my head on his shoulder. He’s always been there to guide me whenever I needed it.
“I’m not sure,” I finally admit. “I thought I was. I mean, it’s the biggest project that I’ve ever worked on. I’m the lead environmental engineer and it’s a clear step forward in my career. But the other day, one of the guys in town showed me the forest that we’ll be building in and -” I stop talking, not sure what I want to tell my dad. Should I tell him about Aiden? What is there to tell? I take a deep breath. “I don’t know, Dad, it’s so beautiful out here. It seems like a shame to build a big old hotel in the middle of it.”
My father makes a noise and I can almost picture him nodding slowly. He strokes his chin when he’s mulling over a problem, and I imagine that’s what he’s doing right now.
“There’s one thing I’ve learned in all my years, Madeline,” he says. “You have to stay true to yourself.” My chest tightens and I’m not sure how to respond. I’m not even really sure what he’s trying to tell me. I hear him take a deep wheezing breath and he continues.
“I’ve always been proud of you, Mads. Going off on your own and pursuing the environmental degree – I’ve always respected that in you. You and I are very similar.”
My heart squeezes some more, and the corners of my eyes start to prickle with tears. I nod and try to swallow. “Thanks, Dad,” I croak.
“I mean it. Obviously I would have liked you to come work for me and take over the company, but you need to find your own way. If this project isn’t what you thought it was, then you need to be true to yourself.”
I nod and keep pacing back and forth. “I don’t know, Dad. It’s hard to tell.”
“Give it a bit more time. You’ve just mobilized to site a few days ago, and construction hasn’t truly started. Keep talking to the townspeople, and keep following your instincts. You won’t be far off.”
“Thanks Dad,” I reply. Before he can answer, I hear him cough violently on the other end of the line. I frown, holding the phone to my ear as I wait for him to quiet down. It seems to take forever for his breathing to return to normal. I hear my mother fussing in the background and my dad finally speaks again.
“I better go now, Mads. Take care.”
“Love you,” I say. My chest feels like it’s squeezing harder than ever before.
“Love you too, kiddo.” We hang up the phone and I hold it to my heart, letting the tears fall down my cheeks. I sit on the edge of my bed and mull over his words.
I’ve always thought of my father as the career man, the company man, the CEO. He’s always put work first, even when I wished he would pay more attention to me and my sister. But now, he’s telling me to follow my heart. He’s telling me to listen to my instincts and to do what I think is best.
He’s telling me he respects me, and that he’s proud of me.
The tears are falling fast now and my cheeks are completely wet. I thought my father was disappointed in me and that he thought my career was going nowhere. To hear him say those words makes me feel like I’m floating, but knowing that he’s sick makes the whole conversation bittersweet.
I take a deep breath and flop backwards on the bed. Aiden Clarke’s face appears in my mind. I think of the way he looks at the forest, the way he reveres the mountains. He worships these lands, and he thinks the hotel is a bad idea.
Maybe that’s all the convincing I need? Maybe I should just listen to him and let myself be convinced that this hotel is not the right thing to do. But where would that leave me? I’d have to leave my job and everything I’ve worked for. I’ve always thought environmental engineering was the way forward for me, and for the first time I’m starting to think it might not be true.
As these thoughts are swirling in my head, my computer dings with a new email. I stand up and frown as I look at the screen.
My applications to the federal and state governments have been approved. The Department of Environmental Conservation has given the green light for the construction of the project. Within seconds, another email from Barry comes through. He congratulates me and sets the date for project mobilization in three weeks. All the planning and preparation that our team has been doing is now set in motion.
The construction of the Hotel at Lang Creek is going full-steam ahead.