Chapter 4
JACOB
James arranged for us to take my yacht across to the island today, so here I am.
The sky above us is screaming with seagulls.
Immediately, I’m glad that I don’t have any food because the most annoying thing about being at the beach is when seagulls swoop at you and try to steal your fries or ice cream.
They don’t seem interested in me at all, though.
Why would they be when there are fishing boats docking, their nets brimming full of the morning’s catch?
“Welcome to paradise,” says James, sweeping his arms wide open. I grunt in response. “Did you not drink enough coffee this morning?” he asks, cocking an eyebrow.
I glare back. “Very funny. But now that you mention it, I could go for another cup.” I don’t function well without enough caffeine in my system.
“That can probably be arranged. Doesn’t every town have a coffee shop?” James says.
I grunt in response to that too.
I brought a couple of lawyers with me to see what they think about drawing up eviction notices.
As we all make our way into the port, the wooden boards creaking under our feet, we look around, breathing in the salty air, the distinct odor of fish hitting us.
Less than pleasant, but it is good to see this place bustling with life.
It makes it seem like something out of a TV show, one of those with cardboard actors and the same boring, repetitive plots over and over again about how wonderful life is in such a tiny, idyllic place.
I hate stories like that. I especially hate them surrounded by smelly fish. Whatever. When I live here, I won’t be down on the docks at any time of the day.
When. Not if. The certainty of the thought takes me by surprise.
This place is beautiful. I already knew that. But I hadn’t expected to like it quite so much. Not enough to fall in love the second I set my eyes on it. Now that feels like something out of a sappy TV show.
But it is beautiful here.
We reach the end of the boardwalk, and I look back across the sea.
The smoky towers of LA are just about visible in the distance, looming over us like a reminder that we can’t escape its pull.
Part of me misses the bustling streets of the best city on earth already, but not a single one of these common country folk have come up to me or ogled me.
That’s more refreshing than anything else. Maybe I do like this place enough to live here forever.
“Come on,” says James. “I’ve arranged for us to meet with the town mayor. We’ll take a walk through the town on the way so you can really get a feel for the place.”
“Great,” I mutter. I really can’t be bothered to sit through a presentation on why this town is the best town in the whole world and why I should give them all lots and lots of money, but I have to be polite.
After all, if I’m going to win these yokel locals over, I’m going to have to put on my best smile. That’s the kind of thing they’ll be expecting.
I could really do with another coffee.
We wander through the town and veer along a main street so that James can give me a sense of the island’s local flavor. I don’t bother arguing with him, even though this is the last thing I want to do.
Once he’s got his mind set on something like this, it’s impossible to change it. And he really wants to show this place off.
The main street is narrow and quaint, the road winding vaguely up a hill, shops lining either side. There are hardly any cars here. I guess these people all get their steps in every day walking everywhere.
Most people ignore us, but some hesitate and glare suspiciously, trying to decide if we’re trustworthy outsiders or not.
With every step I find myself caring less and less about their opinions.
Not that I did that much anyway. I had thought I might find this excursion uncomfortable, but all I can think about now is living here. Making it my paradise.
It doesn’t help the way they gawk at us like they’ve never seen four men in suits before.
All of the people here are wearing incredibly casual outfits: shorts, T-shirts, summer dresses.
If any of these people work, there can’t be a dress code.
For the fishermen, I suppose that makes sense.
After all, you don’t want to have your best suit stinking like that, but what about all these shopkeepers and townsfolk? What do they even do all day?
There can’t be enough to do here for them all to be knickknack shop owners or hippie painters. I hate people like this.
James leans over and hisses at me, “You know it might help if you smile a little.”
I glare back at him, baring my teeth in some approximation of a smile. “How quickly can we get rid of all these people?” I mutter. “They’re freaking me out.”
“Be nice,” James hisses back. “Remember, we’re here to win them over, not insult them.”
A pout is my only response.
Despite the gawking, though, I am getting a sense of the town. It’s not hard to imagine having the place to myself. To imagine the tranquility of my self-imposed isolation.
Without all of these people here, it would be peaceful. I think I would allow a few to stay, for the atmosphere. Their bustling around is charming in a way, though I’m not a fan of the way some of them stick their noses up at me and stare at me like I’m some blight upon their great town.
If I’m being charitable, I can’t say I blame them. After all, I am planning to have them all evicted.
The faintest flash of guilt washes over me, and I shake my head to push it away. This plan won’t work if I turn soft. If I want an island to myself, I can’t allow sentiment to get in the way. It’s like running a business. Sometimes you have to make the hard decision and the sacrifice to get ahead.
“Excuse me,” I say to a passing local, flagging her down.
She almost stumbles as she falters to a stop. “Never seen you around here before,” she says, narrowing her eyes.
I put on my best smile. “My name is Jacob Ford. I’m a businessman in the city.”
“Oh, another one of you,” she mutters, almost disinterested. “If you’re trying to develop the land, don’t bother.”
“Quite the opposite.” I smile despite my sinking heart. “I’m looking to buy the island.”
“And I’m looking to buy the moon,” she scoffs.
“I’m being serious,” I say, my smile falling away.
“Are you now?” She raises both eyebrows. “And what are we going to get out of the deal?”
“Well, we’re still looking to put together compensation packages, but we would offer a sizeable sum to all the residents here.”
“Compensation? What’re you going to do to us all?”
I take a deep breath. Her green eyes blaze as she stares deep into mine.
I feel my soul wilting just a little. I’m charming.
I can do this. The sales pitch. “We will be asking all residents to leave their homes. But we will give everyone ample time to prepare, and as I said, exceedingly good compensation. We will help you relocate and make sure you and your family never want for anything again.”
“We’d have to leave the island?” She frowns.
I nod. “That would be the condition, yes.”
“You must be out of your mind.” She spares a single second to sneer at me, then turns and walks away before I can say anything else.
I turn to James and the lawyers. “Was that a good interaction or a bad one?”
They shrug. “Hard to tell with folks like this,” says James. “They’re always so opinionated.”
I grimace and flag someone else down, a young man with a baby in a stroller. “Hello, there.” I smile at the baby. “Aren’t you the cutest thing?”
James shoots me a What the hell are you doing kind of look like he thinks this is totally out of character for me. In truth, I like babies. I think I want one eventually, but I’m not aching for it. But neither do I have that disdain that many of my peers do about the idea of having a family.
I wouldn’t admit to them that having someone to rely on sounds nice. Being with the woman I love on my island paradise. Now that’s a scenario I could get behind.
“Hello, sir,” says the man, his accent thick. “Can we help you?”
“If you could. We’re here to do a quick poll of all the local residents.”
“A poll?”
I bite my tongue to stop myself from saying, What are you, a parrot? “Yes,” I continue. “My name is Jacob, and I’m looking to buy the island.”
The man’s eyes boggle at me. “The whole island? That must cost a fortune.” He chuckles nervously.
“It would, but I’m a very successful businessman. I would be able to afford to not only buy the land but also give everyone here a very generous compensation package.”
“You’re evicting us?” He gasps.
“No, not yet,” I say, suddenly feeling like I’m playing with fire and getting burned. “And not for certain. This is why we’re doing research.”
“There’s going to be some people unhappy about that,” he says, shaking his head, his eyes focusing out into the distance like he’s lost in his own world.
“And yourself?” I ask, wishing this guy would get to the point.
The guy’s face crumples as he considers his options. “You’d help with the relocation?” he asks slowly, uncertainly.
“Of course.” I’m sure he thinks I’m lying, but I’m not. I’m not a complete monster. I’m going to ask all of these people to leave their homes. The least I can do is help set them up somewhere else.
Not only that, but it breeds a good relationship between us if they associate me with being “the guy who helped us find our dream homes in LA” rather than “the guy who spent a hell of a lot of money trying to kick us out.” That’s better for everyone.
“We would consider it,” he says finally. “I would have to talk it through with my wife, of course. But moving somewhere bigger… with better schools… it’s tempting.”
“Well, here’s my card. If you have any questions or ideas, get in touch.” I hand it to him and he takes it, squeezing it tight between his fingers like it’s something precious, or a bomb.
“Okay. Great. Thank you.” He looks down at the business card, then at my face, squinting. I grit my teeth, waiting for the Hang on, I know you, don’t I? routine that I usually get.
But he doesn’t. Instead, he thanks me again and moves on with his day.
“See,” I say, turning to James when the guy wanders out of earshot. “I haven’t lost it.”
“One down, a few hundred more to go,” James says with an unconvinced look on his face.
He’s right. This is going to be a long day.
But if one guy can agree to my proposal, then they all can.
I feel confident about that now. After all, everyone has a price, whether they want to admit it or not.
There’s something that everyone here wants.
It won’t be the same thing, but every single one of these people will have a breaking point. My job is to find it.
And I need to find it fast, because every second I spend here on this island, the more I fall in love with it and the more I want it.
Havenridge is beautiful. Everywhere we’ve gone, I’ve heard the ocean rushing onto the shore.
And nature. We’re surrounded by birds and mammals like I haven’t heard in years, like I’ve forgotten animals existed.
And when I think of having this place to myself, nobody there to bother me, nobody there to annoy me… it’s perfect.
It’s been perfect this whole time. Nobody’s stopped me. Nobody’s recognized me. It’s a peace like I haven’t known in years. It’s perfect, and I want to keep it forever.