Mom laughs. “Well, now. Theyaregood for that, aren’t they? I’ll have to bake some extra cookies for them. We do like them. They’re always so friendly and helpful to us.”
Leo’s told me he heard from his former co-workers that they absolutely fuckingloveguarding my parents because of how Mom insists on cooking and baking for them. I have Jordan send the detail a payment every week, from my own pocket, so the agents can buy extra groceries for Mom to replace what she spends on cooking for them.
“I’m sure they’d love that, ma’am,” Leo says. “They’re good folks. Half of them I trained or worked with myself.”
Mom plays with my tie. “You used to hate wearing a tie. You never could tie it properly, no matter how many times I showed you.”
Leo chuckles. “He still can’t, ma’am.”
“Mom,” she says. “Call us Mom and Dad, Leo. Please.”
She looks to him, then back to me. “Are you happy?” But she asks it quietly, honestly, not with any snark in her tone.
I nod. “I’m finally at peace, Mom. I’m happy, and I’m at peace. This is the happiest I’ve felt in a long time. And in four years I’m a private citizen again.”
“I do have an idea I’d like to float past you,” Leo says.
We all turn.
I sense that this isn’t an idea that just came to Leo. “Elliot still hasn’t picked a location for his presidential library.” He meets my gaze. “We could buy their property, the entire property, and build it on the far southwest corner. The foundation will pay fair market value. Then it can lease the rest back to your parents for a dollar a year.”
I’m…stunned.
It’s perfect. I know the foundation set up to build it has already amassed quite the war chest in preparation for finding a location and beginning construction.
I turn to Dad and Mom, who are now looking at each other. “Could we?” I ask. “Would youpleaselet me do that for you? That’s the perfect solution. Then you can stay and farm, or retire if you want to and live there. You could even lease out the fields to someone else. Or experiment with different crops. And the property will stay in the family forever, just like you always wanted. Even longer, because the library will literally outlive all of us.”
That Dad hasn’t outright killed the discussion tells me maybe he’s seriously considering it.
“We wouldn’t have to move?” Mom asks.
“No,” Leo says. “We only need a few acres for the actual building and parking. That corner is closest to the highway. It would keep traffic off the side roads, plus it’d bring tourists into the area and help generate income in town. Your neighbors’ property values would go up. And you’ll never have to worry about a mortgage again. Everyone would benefit from this arrangement.”
They look at each other again. “You did say you wished there was a way to hang on to it,” Mom says to Dad. “And we always talked about traveling.”
“Youcouldtravel,” I say, eager to talk them into this now that Leo’s suggested it. “You have worked your asses off all your lives. Isn’t it time to enjoy it for a change?”
“And when you do decide to retire,” Leo says, “we can turn the rest of the property into a nature preserve and recreation area people will enjoy for years to come. Or we could even lease some of it to the state university for agricultural research, sustainable farming methods, things like that. So not only would it be preserved and helping wildlife, it’d be contributing to science and helping other farmers.”
Dad scratches the back of his head. “How much money are we talking, exactly?” he asks Leo.
“Five million,” Leo says.
Yep. Iknewhe’d already have the figures before suggesting it. I make a mental note to ask him how long he’s been working on that plan.
Both Mom and Dad gasp.
“Fivemilliondollars?” she whispers, as if afraid to say it any louder. “But the property’s only worth $700,000 with the house and barn!”
“Yes,” he says, “because the library will, obviously, add to the property’s value. And, in addition, the library foundation will agree to pay off all outstanding mortgages. Obviously, the foundation will also pay all property taxes, insurance—all of that. We can even work it into the sales agreement that the foundation will pay for repairs, renovations, and improvements to your home for as long as you choose to live there. And that you have the right to farm the fields, or lease them out, and keep any income they make, for as long as you choose to. That way, in the future, they can turn your home into a museum that adds to the library.”
Mom blinks back tears. “Really?”
Leo nods. “Really. We can take care of you for the rest of your lives and the property will stay in the family. It’ll officially belong to the foundation but it won’t be sold or developed. They’ll be the caretakers of it in perpetuity.”
Mom grabs Dad’s hand. “Please, Oliver. Let’s do it. Your arthritis has been getting so bad lately. You were already worried how we’re going to make ends meet this year.”
“What about Stella?” Dad asks after thinking about it for a moment. “What about leaving some of it to her?”
