“There’s been a lot of protesting, and your father has had a change of heart.”
That was something Mallory never thought she would hear. Her father was all about the bottom line. There must’ve been some reason it wasn’t lucrative anymore.
“I’m sorry it didn’t turn out the way you’d hoped. But it will be good to see you.” Even though she had enjoyed her freedom, she was surprised to realize she really had missed them—her mother more, but hey, she’d like a hug from her dad too.
“You guys are okay, right? The protesters didn’t hurt you? No one has threatened your life or anything, have they?”
“There have been no violent threats to us,” her mother said. “We’re all right.”
“Except for that moron threateningyou.Now that we know you’re okay, we’re fine.”
“So, what were the protests like?”
Her father groaned. “It wasn’t like at home, where people peacefully march and carry signs. The equipment has been sabotaged. People have managed to get through the gates and argue with the workers until they quit, but that chief coming to us and telling us there was a curse on you… Well, that was the last straw.”
He cared.Her father actually cared about her. She wasn’t surprised about his ability to power through equipment and employee problems. That’s what he did. What he’d always done. But a threat to her safety stopped him. “So, are you going to take a break and go back later to finish?”
“No, honey. We’re just coming home,” her mother said.
“I’m getting too old for this shit. When I was a young man, I would’ve taken this as a challenge, but I’m getting older now. If they don’t want us here, we’ll leave them to their backward ways. I could’ve brought jobs, education, commerce…”
“Some people don’t want that,” Mallory said, knowing her honesty might upset him. “I imagine the native people around there have lived without Western ways for centuries. They might not even understand what you’re trying to do.”
Her father just sighed.
“Your father has plenty of options back at home. We just have to handle a few last details here, and soon, we’ll be packing.”
Mallory thought that her mother was probably relieved. She hadn’t been thrilled with the idea of living in the jungle for months. Her father had supposedly built some kind of structure for them, not just a tent. But she was used to the finer things. Her mother hadn’t been a socialite, but she was from a wealthy family. How she wound up falling for her blue-collar dad was still a mystery.
“Oh, I should let you guys know, I have a serious boyfriend. His name is Dante Fierro, and he’s a firefighter.”
“Oh! That’s great, honey,” her mother said. “Is he good to you?”
“Of course he’s good to her,” her father said. “It’s a new relationship. She won’t see his bad side for a few more months.”
“I don’t think he has a bad side,” Mallory said.
“Ha. We’ll see about that.”
“You never know,” her mother said. “Sometimes people surprise you.”
“Are you talking about me?”
Mallory could picture the smile on his face as he teased her mom and vice versa.
“Well, let’s just say you surprised a lot of people. My parents in particular.”
He laughed.
“We can talk more about that later. We just called to find out if you were all right,” her dad said. “Now I’m going to go and say a few words to the employees who stuck by me.”
“We miss you,” her mother said.
“I miss you too. When do you think you’ll be back?”
“I’d say by the end of the week. There isn’t a lot of packing to do since we never accumulated very much. I was able to cancel most of my interior design orders.”
“Well, let me know if you want a ride from the airport.”
