Chapter 39
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Derek
T he late afternoon sun casts a warm, golden light over the orchard as I make my way down the row of trees, the soft crunch of fallen leaves and apples underfoot. The workers are out, plucking the last of the apples from the branches, their laughter and voices floating on the breeze. It’s always a bittersweet time of year—harvest winding down, the fields growing quiet, and the anticipation of winter. My mind drifts as I walk, trying to push aside the thoughts of everything going wrong in my life right now.
I’m rounding the edge of the orchard when I see a figure walking toward me—Teddy. I sigh, not quite ready to deal with whatever he wants to talk about. I don’t have the energy for more drama.
He raises a hand in greeting, and when he’s close enough, he looks me in the eye. “Hey, Derek. Got a minute?”
“I’m busy, Teddy,” I say, crossing my arms and glancing away.
He shakes his head, looking almost disappointed. “Yeah, I figured you’d say that.” He reaches into his jacket and pulls out a manila envelope, holding it out toward me.
I shake my head and turn to continue walking down the row of apple trees.
“I’m sure you’re here because of your sister. You can’t intervene every time we have a fight. We’ll work this out. We just need time.”
“Work it out? She said you broke up with her.”
“No, I told her I needed a break and to take space so we could think. She kicked me out of her house,” I say on one long breath.
“She’s reactive sometimes,” he says with a sad smile. “I think her last boyfriend did a number on her. To be fair, we told her that she needed to give you a little grace. I think the two of you need to talk.”
“We will. I really…I should have taken a breath in the midst of it all. I really said some stupid things. I accused her of dating me to get back at Sharon. I don’t know why I said it. It was so stupid.”
“It was pretty stupid, but I think we’re allowed to say stupid things in the heat of the moment. What’s important is that you apologize and show her that you didn’t mean it. You especially need to show her that you won’t jump down her throat every time she brings something up like this.”
I blow out a breath, knowing he’s right. I haven’t shown her that I handle things very well so far. I shut her out and got incredibly rude with the stuff about Casey and after the fire. I need to show her that I’m a safe space.
He reaches out and puts his hand on my arm. I turn around as he pushes the envelope into my chest. “Here. Open it and read through it when you get the chance.”
“What’s this?” I ask, taking it reluctantly.
“It’s important,” he says, his voice steady. “There’s a company—Oakmont Holdings. They’re trying to finalize a contract with Sharon’s parents, which Sharon started. The contract from a few years ago is in there. I got it from city hall. The building permits…It’s all in there. She planned on selling the orchard to them before she passed, Derek. Oakmont and the Livesays are moving forward with the sale without you knowing, and if they succeed, you’re out. They’ll evict you.”
“They can’t evict me.”
“It’s happening. Amber came to you because she cares about you and your kids. She was honest about what she found, and you were too damn stubborn to see it.”
“Amber…” I grapple with what he’s saying. “I know that Sharon wasn’t perfect, but this is all too much.”
“I get that, but you need to figure it out really fast. You’re throwing away the best damn thing that’s ever happened to you.”
“Before Sharon died, she had everything changed around so that the land was in our name. The Livesays can’t evict me because the land isn’t theirs. I couldn’t understand why Sharon did that without my knowledge even though my signature is on the paperwork. Now…now I think it makes sense. I think she did that so that all of the profits from the sale would come to us, and they wouldn’t get any of it.”
“Did you know?”
“Mike told me a few weeks ago. I didn’t sleep last night. I…was running everything through my head, trying to make sense of it. I get that all of this would make sense to Amber or anyone who knew Sharon a long time ago, but I’m blindsided that she went behind my back about anything.”
I scrub my face with my hands. I’m sick to my stomach about all of it: Sharon’s betrayal, me being completely in the dark, and the way I treated Amber. I need to make things right, but I don’t know how.
“You need to go through that envelope, take some time to process, and then go to Amber and apologize. Make this right.”
“Was Sharon really that horrible to Amber?” I ask quickly.
I know that in the world of teenage girls, things might not always be how one person perceives them. I remember Sharon once telling me that she was bullied in school, so it’s hard for me to wrap my head around all of it.
“Yeah. Honestly, I don’t know how my sister withstood it all without snapping. Sharon put a lot of people through hell. It was like…it was like she couldn’t handle if anyone got attention over her. She spread so many lies about Amber, stole boyfriends…there are a lot more, but they’re not my stories to tell. I know…I know that’s not who you knew, and she wasn’t that person to you and the kids, but she was like that to a lot of people in town.”
“Why didn’t you ever say anything?”
“It never came up, but again, she wasn’t that way with you and the kids.”
I let out a long sigh. How could Sharon be one way with us and another way with other people? It doesn’t make sense. I’m angry that I didn’t know. I’m pissed that she could have ever treated Amber in such a horrible way.
I don’t think I’ve helped matters by the way I’ve acted. Amber probably thinks I’m exactly like Sharon.
That thought sends a wave of guilt right through me. I need to fix this.
I nod, and he turns on his heel and leaves. I blow out my breath before I walk up to the house. I go in and sit down at the kitchen table.
I know that I need to apologize to Amber, but I also know that I’m reeling from everything thrown at me. I’m upset about all of it. I thought I knew Sharon. If she could betray me like this, couldn’t Amber do the same?
Slowly, I look down at the envelope in my hands. It’s just a few pieces of paper, some words and numbers. But somehow, it feels like it’s holding the weight of the world.
I open the envelope and see the building permits for my land. I see the contract signed and dated by Sharon on the day she died. My signature was supposed to be next to it, but it was left blank.
This has to be fabricated.
I call Mike.
“Mike, it’s Derek.”
“Hey, I was just about to call you.”
“Did you find out anything about the Livesays?”
“I did. Are you able to come in today?”
“We can’t do this over the phone?”
“No, it’s probably best we do it in the office. There’s a lot going on, and it’s easier for you to see all of it rather than try to wrap your brain around it over the phone,” Mike tells me. “I’ve got an opening in an hour if you want to swing through before you grab the kids from school.”
“Okay, I guess I’ll see you then.” I sigh before hanging up the phone.
What could possibly be going on that he couldn’t tell me over the phone?