Chapter 24 Linc
LINC
The next two weeks proved two things to me.
One—the fact that I thought I couldn’t love Sunny more was wrong.
The more I got to know this Sunny—the calm, sweet, vibrant woman she had become—the harder I fell.
Gone were the days of hiding and of fear.
I could touch her, kiss her anytime I wanted.
Show her my affection. Accept hers. I loved her independent streak, the way she handled herself with her business, and all the people that involved.
I was proud to stand beside her on the weekends, making coffee, stealing cookies, gorging on biscuits.
I wasn’t too proud to clear tables, help take out the trash, or do anything that made her life a little easier.
And I was well rewarded for it.
Which led to my second discovery. Leaving her behind was simply not an option.
We had a brief discussion about me returning to Toronto, coming back on weekends.
It sounded like a good idea until we decided on our future.
I kissed her in the early morning dawn and headed into Toronto, comforted by the fact that I would see her in a few days.
But by three a.m. on the third night of not being able to sleep, I knew I was fucked.
Without Sunny beside me, I couldn’t rest. And even with Abby in the office, I couldn’t concentrate, and neither could Abby.
I didn’t even wait, driving back in the middle of the night.
I left Abby a message, and by the morning, we were both back in Mission Cove, and neither of us planned on leaving for any great length of time.
The apartment over Sunny’s was now Abby’s.
I’d planned to rent a hotel room for the sake of appearance, but Sunny had laughed and called me old-fashioned.
She was right. No one cared, and I was happier with her.
Abby felt safe in Mission Cove. Carl was back in jail and her mother had disappeared, but knowing Abby was among friends who would watch out for her when I wasn’t around gave me a sense of comfort I never thought I would get from the town of Mission Cove.
Abby and Michael were growing closer, and we hoped they were able to help each other heal.
Another odd thing happened. As more people discovered who I was, there was no censure, no looks of dislike or distancing.
I was surprised at the number of hugs I received, the welcome from people still living here that I used to know.
Even odder, not a single person offered condolences on my father’s passing.
Many of them spoke of my mother, and I was grateful to hear so many wonderful stories.
It felt good to know her memory would live on here while my father’s terrible legacy died off, a mere whisper of the past. When they discovered the house was being taken down, there was a lot of excitement and curiosity about what would replace it.
I kept my mouth shut, waiting for the final drawings to take to the town council on both matters.
I wasn’t shocked when the mayor dropped in and told me he expected there to be no problem with my proposals.
I had sat with him and his wife and laid out my plans, then left, allowing them to talk in private.
They were both smart enough to know what my ideas meant for their little town.
The economic implications were staggering.
I expected zero pushback. It was a good feeling though, to be able to go forward without using anything but my ideas and plans.
I didn’t have to drop any veiled threats or use the past. My future was in my hands, and I was in control—nobody else. It felt right.
I sat in the sun out back of the bakery.
Sunny had shown me the wide cement wall that ran along the edge of the property.
She had a ladder propped against it and often sat with her back against the even higher wall beside it while she did work on her computer and enjoyed the sun, she explained.
I had taken advantage of it a few times, using the privacy to make calls and arrangements I didn’t want her to know about.
It also provided me with an unobstructed view of the house on the hill.
I watched as people went in and out. Trucks pulled up, filled, and left.
The final purge of my father’s things. Luckily, thanks to Sunny, I now had everything of my mother’s.
It was she who pointed out the heavy copper pots in the back of the cupboards in the kitchen.
The delicate china gathering dust in the bottom of the dining room hutch.
The crystal I never remembered being used.
“Your mother would have chosen these things, Linc. Not your father. You should have them. They were part of her.”
They were all now safe, along with some other items Sunny unearthed. I was grateful she had a better eye than mine to spot them.
Knowing how my father would have raged seeing people traipse through his house, taking his things—for free—as if they were worthless, gave me a great deal of satisfaction.
I didn’t try to deny that it pleased me.
And the bottom line was many of the items would benefit the community.
The dining room table would have a family sit around it and make memories.
Children would jump on the beds and run on the carpets.
Each family or individual was given a number and a limit, and it appeared to be going well.
I bit back my grin. With Abby and Ned in charge, I had no doubt it would remain so.
“Hey.” Sunny’s head appeared beside me.
“Hi.”
She looked worried. “You okay?” She indicated the hill. “Is that upsetting you?”
I patted my legs. “Get up here.”
I helped her settle, then wrapped my arms around her. “No, it’s very cleansing. I know all those things will be used. Maybe loved. It actually gives me some peace.”
She leaned into me, her shoulders relaxing. “Good.” She played with my fingers. “What about next week?”
“Sunny, that is going to be a banner day for me.”
She peeked up at me. “Are you sure you really want to…blow it up?”
I chuckled. “I wish I could blow it up. Watch it explode and scatter for miles. But sadly, that is illegal and dangerous. When they hit the switch, it will implode—almost sink into itself. I watched a lot of the videos—it’s fascinating.
A building is there one moment, and when the dust clears, it’s a flattened pile of debris they’ll truck away.
” I pressed a kiss to her head. “And I get to push the button.”
Her voice was low. “And then what?”
“Hey.”
I waited until she turned her head and met my eyes.
“Then it’s done, Sunny. My past will be exactly where it needs to be—in the past. My father will no longer have any part of my thoughts.
” I slid a hand under her chin, angling her face up to mine.
“I have a whole new life to live—with you. I plan on living the hell out of it. You with me?”
Her answer was to pull my head down and kiss me. A kiss of love, promises, and the future. A kiss of yes.
That was all I needed.
Iwalked through the house with the foreman.
The house had been gutted down to the studs.
He explained in great depth about the wires and charges attached to all the exposed beams. How the charge would be relayed and the structure would crumble.
I stood in the vast space, knowing it was the last time I would be inside this building.
The last time anyone would be. It would be locked down tonight and be gone tomorrow.
Ned was beside me, frowning. “How do you know no one sneaks in before you, ah, hit the switch?”
Ed, the foreman, chuckled. “We do a final sweep today, and we have heat signals we check before the last call. The house is guarded all night.”
“Makes sense.”
I tried not to laugh. Ned still felt this was over the top, but I didn’t care. I clapped him on the shoulder. “Thinking of stashing a troublesome client in before the big bang, Ned?”
He eyed me with a frown. “I think your absence would not go unnoticed.”
That made me chuckle. Ed did too before turning serious. “We take every precaution. The perimeter, the building, who is allowed on site. Our measurements for the explosives are precise. Our safety record is perfect.”
“Good to know,” Ned mumbled.
“You should be here for the show.” I winked.
“I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”
Ed turned to answer his radio, and I faced Ned. “Really? I didn’t think you supported this.”
“When you first told me, no. But I’ve changed my mind.”
“May I ask why?”
“I know better than anyone what your father did to you. What he took from you. I was worried this would feed your hate—make it stronger. But I sense, I see, a change in you, Linc. I see the boy I met so long ago with your mother. I think you need to do this to close this chapter. This book. Start a new one.” He paused, lifting one eyebrow.
“With a pretty girl who makes the best biscuits I’ve ever tasted.
And who has given you back the one thing your father took from you that I feared you would never get back. ”
“What is that?” I asked quietly.
He put his hand on my shoulder. “The ability to love, Linc. I feared in your quest, you would forget your heart. You would become him. But you didn’t. Instead, you found yourself.”
“Sunny did that for me.”
He met my gaze. He knew my plans, all of them, and he was on board with me.
“Then let’s do this.”
It was a gloomy day. The skies overhead dark with rain, the air cooler than it had been. Sunny shivered beside me, and I tucked her closer. “This all feels very ominous,” she mumbled.
I chuckled. I personally thought my father was writhing in hell, screaming in rage and shaking his fist at me as he saw what was about to happen.
I hoped the devil gave him a front row seat.
We were far from the house, the hill blocked off and no one allowed to be close.
I knew the town was gathered below, watching in anticipation.
To the younger generation, it was simply something cool happening—something they would probably never see again in Mission Cove.
For others, today had a far more significant meaning.
None more than me.
Anticipation built within me, making my body shake. I hadn’t slept all night, up pacing—wanting, needing, this done. I had planned it for so long, and now that the day was here, I wanted it over. I wanted to move on with my life, my plans, and Sunny.
Beside me, Ned and Abby spoke together. Sunny clung to me, her fingers digging into my waist. I knew she was concerned about my emotional reaction when it happened, but I wasn’t worried.
I had waited too long for this moment.
Sunny had been in the house with Ed earlier, and I knew the drives were somewhere inside. She came out looking resolved and smiling, so I had slipped my hand around hers and squeezed, silently thanking her. She squeezed back, then I tucked her into my side, needing her close.
Ed approached, his entire crew with him. “All the checks are done, Linc. Cameras set up as you asked. Crew accounted for. No heat sources have suddenly appeared. We’re ready.”
“Excellent.”
“Ear protectors,” he yelled, and we all slipped them on our heads.
“Come with me.”
I held Sunny closer, needing her with me for this moment. We stood behind the huge electronic control unit, and Ed nodded. Horns blew, loudspeakers began the countdown. He flipped open the switch. He lifted one side of my ear covering. “When we hit one, you press this. Hard. Got it?”
I swallowed thickly. “Yes.”
Sunny’s breath stuttered, and I stepped forward but reached for her hand.
“It’s fine,” I murmured knowing she probably couldn’t hear me, but having to say it anyway.
I couldn’t hear the countdown due to the cans over my ears to protect against the sound of the implosion.
I held my finger over the button, the digit hovering in midair, watching as Ed counted down the numbers on his fingers.
At ten, my hand began to shake. By five, I was sweating. Adrenaline pumped through my body, making my head hum. Ed nodded in encouragement, and when the count hit one, I didn’t hesitate. I pressed down.
For a second or two, nothing happened. I stared dumbfounded, then it started. Explosions, one after another. The house shook, groaned, fought back, and then with a long, low scream, gave a lengthy shudder and crumbled inward.
Sunny jumped back, startled. I held her tight, watching as plumes of dust shot up as the building settled into the earth. It was exactly as I pictured. Looming one moment, gone the next.
The skies opened, torrents of rain falling, dissipating the dust. It was as if the heavens had decided they, too, wanted no reminder of the house drifting up their way.
That house that had caused me nothing but pain, held a lifetime of tears and sorrow within its walls, was gone.
“Good riddance, old man,” I hissed.
I looked down at Sunny. She gazed up at me with love. “Are you okay?” she mouthed.
I bent down and kissed her. “Yeah. Yeah, I am.”
“Good.”
I pulled off the ear protectors. “Let’s go home, Sunny. I need a biscuit.”
She pulled my arm close.
“Okay.”