Chapter 31
Chapter Thirty-One
Axel
The council chamber is full, every member present. The sides of the pavilion are open to the elements, looking across hillsides draped in green vegetation, the sea a blue smudge below. A cool breeze wafts across us, but things are getting heated.
“I think bringing a few more people to the island is a good thing,” says Rai, who runs the general store. “Surely one hotel is manageable? It might be good to see some new faces around here.”
I frown, glancing around the room.
This is it. My two weeks are up, and I’m no closer to a solution than I was at the previous meeting.
I just have to hope that the council sees things as I do, that letting my family build a resort hotel here is the worst possible thing for the island.
We’re seated in a circle, very democratic, all of us in high-backed wooden chairs set within a sunken circular section of floor.
A secretary sits at a long table by the wall, his fingers flashing as he types the minutes.
I catch Dom’s eye. He’s sitting across from me, and he’s not saying much, yet.
I don’t know much about him, apart from the fact he’s an incredible chef, but I do know he came here to get away from things, just like I did.
And that a hotel isn’t really going to be his thing.
The council is made up of a mix of expats and locals, twenty of us in total.
Some people own businesses while others, like Dom and me, run unofficial services.
It’s a good balance of ages and genders, which usually leads to decisions being made that are best for the island, rather than one faction or another.
But for some reason, we still cannot come to an agreement about the land, and my family’s bid.
I’ve already disavowed all association with it, as well as stated my opposition, but I try to keep quiet during these debates, aware that I could be seen to have bias. I’m not sure I can stay quiet tonight.
“What about the spring? And the temple there?” Wayan, an older man who has lived on the island his entire life, crosses his muscled arms, his grizzled face frowning.
“Surely we can come to some agreement with them? They buy the land, but we can still access the spring?” This is Indah, her dark hair a mass of wild spikes as though she ran here.
“Sure. Just push the meditation mats out of the way, step carefully between all the Botoxed beauties, and you’ll be sweet, mate.
That’s if there’s any water left in the pool, of course, once they bottle it to sell,” Dom drawls.
“I know these types of people, sorry Axel,” he nods to me.
“They’re all about the money. Sure they’ll build a fantastic-looking hotel, but letting them in just opens the door for them and their rich mates to come here and exploit the fuck out of us. ”
“I agree,” I say, grateful to Dom for giving me an opening to speak. “As you’re all well aware, I know these people, and I can tell you that you can try and make all the arrangements, agreements and rules you like with them. Once they have the land, they’ll do what they want with it.”
“But no one uses the cave anyway,” Indah says. “They all go to the hillside temple now. That place is too small and too old.” She shudders. “Gives me the creeps, to be honest. Perhaps it’s better if it’s opened up.”
“This is our heritage!” Wayan smacks one hand into the arm of his chair. “Have you forgotten such things, Indah? Is the promise of more money worth more than our ancestors?”
“I don’t think there should be a hotel there,” she snaps. “And I make enough at the bar as it is. All of you love a drink. I’m just saying, maybe it’s time to let go of the past.”
“And do what?” Dom shakes his head. “Sell the water? Offer guided tours? Let people trample through the pool, pick the ferns, maybe carve their names into the rock wall? You’ve got to be kidding yourself if you think that. Might as well build the fucking hotel if you’re going to do that.”
“The issue of preserving the cave aside, I think we haven’t really quite grasped how different things will be with a massive hotel on that land.
” I hold on to my temper with difficulty.
Losing it isn’t going to help things. “The amount of traffic, of people on the beach, the strain on the infrastructure. It will mean more businesses opening to service the guests, more bars, more restaurants.” I nod at Indah.
“More competition. We’ve worked hard to make this island work for us as it is.
To create a balanced, beautiful community.
We risk destroying that balance if this goes ahead. ”
“But why should we live in the past? Bali seems to be able to manage things just fine.” This is Mandy, from the artisan centre.
“Bali is a far larger island than this one,” I say.
“It has an international airport, for starters. And it has its own problems with tourism. It’s not always the golden goose it’s set out to be.
Do you think one hotel will be the end of it?
Once the Blackburghs have their foot in the door, it’ll mean more.
And this place could be changed beyond recognition. ”
“This is your family we’re talking about, right?” Wayan shifts in his chair, the wood creaking. “I still think you shouldn’t be involved in this discussion at all. How do we know you don’t have some other agenda? Maybe you want to buy the land and expand your own hotel.”
“I do not have a hotel.” I try not to grit my teeth. “I have a collection of cabins that I let out to friends, and friends of friends. I don’t charge much, if anything. You know that.”
“I do know that,” Wayan says, his expression disapproving. “But what I don’t know, Axel Blackburgh, is your real motivation. Isn’t it true you have one of the world’s most famous surfers, who also happens to be a well-known influencer, staying with you right now?”
Jade. Just the thought of her calms me, enough to temper my immediate response. I pause, taking a breath before I snap.
“I do. But, and not that it’s any of your business, she’s not staying here in any sort of official capacity.
People come to the island for a lot of reasons.
You only have to check her social media to know that she’s not here for anything apart from a break.
And the fewer people who know she’s here, the better.
” I glance at Indah, who has her head down.
“Enough!” There’s a clap as Sulastri, the council chair, brings her hands together. “We cannot, it seems, come to any sort of agreement on this. The Blackburghs have asked us to get back to them by the end of the month with a decision, which means we have just over a week.”
Just over a week. My stomach drops. Time is slipping away from me.
“Therefore,” Sulastri continues, “I’m making the call. We go to silent vote. And the decision, however it lands, is final.”
Shit. A silent vote. This is where we each write our decision on a piece of paper and place it in a sealed box, the idea being that, because it’s anonymous, we can vote freely without being judged or swayed by anyone else.
I can only hope there are enough people in here who feel the way I do.
Wayan and Dom definitely don’t want to sell.
I’d put my money on Sulastri, too. But everyone else is pretty much an unknown quantity, apart from Indah. I have no idea how this will fall.
I can only hope I’ve done enough.
An hour or so later I’m back on my scooter, heading downhill through the gathering dusk.
Faint golden lights gleam among the deep green jungle, the ocean shimmering with shades of lilac and blue as the skies turn towards night.
I try to imagine a huge hotel on the point, with its noise and people and buildings, encroaching on the pristine shoreline.
I hate everything about the idea, not least the fact that my family is involved.
It’s why I bought the land on the peninsula from them, giving up most of my trust fund to do so.
That was the deal they brokered, anyway.
Even though they knew it wasn’t big enough to build a huge resort, they still screwed me down for nearly every cent I had.
Which is how I know they’ll do it again, given the chance.
But I’ve never regretted my choice to save the land from being overdeveloped.
I knew a huge hotel was wrong for this place back then, just as I do now.
And as I park the scooter in the shadow of the jungle, as I take the winding path beneath the trees towards my home, I know in my heart it was the right decision.
I head for the ocean side of the house, hoping Jade might be there.
She loves to sit on the veranda, watching the waves roll in.
I need her, I realise. I want the peace I can find in her arms. She told me she’d help me, and I believe in her.
I also have to believe in the council, that they’ll do the right thing.
As I round the corner of the house, all my troubled thoughts leave me.
Candles glimmer, little pools of golden light among deep purple shadows, some on the floor, others on the small side tables.
And lying on the sofa, gazing out to sea, is Jade.
She lifts her head when I come around the corner, then stretches, like a cat.
Holy shit.
She’s wearing a lacy crochet dress, the weave loose enough to show me that there’s nothing underneath it, her rosy-pink nipples straining at the top. She smiles when she sees me looking, reaching out one graceful arm.
I pull my shirt over my head, drop my trousers, and walk towards her.
She smells like flowers, her mouth hot against mine as I lean into her kiss, my hands already exploring her curves, pulling up the hem of her dress.
I drop to my knees before her, wanting to worship this woman the way she deserves. She opens her thighs, an invitation.
I accept, bending my head, trailing my tongue down her, tasting her wetness as though it’s the sweetest nectar.
I suck on her clit until she’s writhing and gasping, lick her down to her opening, fuck her with my tongue.
She cries out, shuddering against me as she comes, all heat and wetness, none of the tension I felt the first time I did this.
I kiss up her stomach, squeeze her nipples through the crochet dress, pulling down the neckline to take them in my mouth.
Her hands reach for me, guiding my cock to where she wants it to be.
I slip my tongue in her mouth as I slide inside her, joining us, a perfect circle of desire.
I thrust into her, over and over, as her sighs mingle with those of the ocean and I know something.
This woman is my home. She is my solace, my shelter after the storm. As long as we’re together, everything will be all right.