by Madyson Grey
Before too long, however, Rafael said it was time to head for home. They still had a long drive, so they wended their way back to the car.
Lena had supper ready when they got there, thanks to Victoria calling her to let her know when they’d be home. She had pulled out all the stops and had prepared a lovely dinner of steak, baked potatoes, green beans, salad, and a fat chocolate cake for dessert.
When Victoria walked into the kitchen to see what Lena was doing, she sniffed the air appreciatively and said, “I’m sure glad that my mama is such a great cook.”
With that, she gave Lena a careful one-armed squeeze, as Lena was pouring milk into three glasses, and she didn’t want to make her spill.
“Aw, pshaw,” Lena said with an embarrassed grin.
Chapter Three
After supper, Victoria helped Lena clean up the kitchen. The dishes went into the dishwasher, and the few leftovers were stowed away in the fridge. On his way to the family room, Rafael told the women to please come to the family room as soon as they were through in the kitchen.
“I’d like to talk about what we can do with this land we just bought,” he said as soon as the women were settled comfortably.
Rafael had a notepad and a pen, indicating that he was ready to jot down any and all the ideas any of them could come up with that were possibilities for developing that land into something other than more housing projects or shopping malls. The one rule he and Victoria had already agreed upon is that there would be a bare minimum of buildings erected on the property, and those would only be built if they were vital to the operations of what else would be put there.
“So, I’m ready for suggestions,” Rafael said. “From you, too, Lena.”
“I’ve already got down here nature trail, botanical gardens, zip line, and small-scale train,” he said. “What else can we think of?”
“What about building half a dozen tree houses that kids could play in?” Victoria asked.
“That would be cool, except for the liability issue,” Rafael said. “If a kid falls and gets hurt or killed, we’d be sued big time.”
“Oh, yeah, I didn’t think about that,” she said. “What about making the parents sign statements saying that they wouldn’t sue us? Our liability insurance could cover the cost of the medical treatment, but they wouldn’t be able to sue for more.”
“I’m not sure that would work,” Rafael said. “I’ve heard that those things don’t hold up in court.”
“Do you have any ideas?” Victoria asked Lena.
“Well, I do have one,” Lena said hesitantly. “But you might think it’s silly. I don’t know if kids these days would like it.”
“What is it? Tell us?” Rafael urged.
“I thought of building a barn, a cute red barn just like in pictures, and then getting some farm animals and having a petting zoo,” Lena said. “So many kids are raised in the city and never get to see farm animals. You could have some calves, lambs, goats, ducks, chickens, a horse or donkey, maybe even a pig or two.”
“I like that idea,” Victoria said.
“Me, too,” Rafael said. “I’ve still never been to a real farm. We’d have to hire someone who knows about animals and could take care of them.”
“It would be fun to have live demonstrations of milking a cow or a goat, give pony rides, and let the kids throw grain to the ducks and chickens,” Victoria said, getting into the idea.
“Maybe you could even build a replica of an old farmhouse and have people come in to demonstrate old time homemaking skills such as soap-making, canning, doing laundry on a washboard, spinning yarn from wool from the sheep you would have, and gardening,” Lena said.
“A pioneer farm,” Victoria said. “That’s a smashing idea, I think. What do you think, babe?” she asked Rafael.
“I think it has distinct possibilities,” he said. “We’d just have to hire people to do all that stuff because I sure don’t have a clue how to do any of it. I don’t even know which end of a cow the milk comes from.”
The three of them chuckled at his exaggeration. Rafael started writing notes as fast as he could, putting down everything they had all just talked about.
“It’s gonna cost a lot,” Lena said, always conscious of finances.
“That it will,” Rafael agreed. “But we can charge admission and recoup some of the operational costs.”
He quickly scribbled some more on his notepad and then announced, “If we were to raise the rent on each of our tenants in all of our buildings just twenty-five dollars a month, we’d have an extra $67,800 per month. I know for a fact that your dad hasn’t raised rent in over five years. So I think we could do it without causing an uproar. Especially only raising it twenty-five dollars a month. That’s peanuts to what they’re all paying.
“Then we could put that money towards developing the property,” Victoria said. “That along with whatever other funds we have available.”
“That’s the thought,” Rafael agreed. “So, what do you think? You want to proceed?”
“I think we should,” Victoria said. “I think it’s a great idea.”
“Could I offer just one more thought?” Lena asked timidly.
“Of course you can,” Rafael said.
“I’d like to see you offer some kind of discounted or free entrance days to underprivileged children,” she said. “Maybe you could work with the foster care program to have foster child days, or with homeless shelters to bring homeless kids or families out here. Stuff like that.”
“That’s a wonderful idea, Mama,” Victoria said. “Every child should have the opportunity to enjoy a place such as we are planning, regardless of their family’s ability to pay. We’ll work on that aspect along with everything else.”
“This isn’t going to happen overnight,” Rafael cautioned. “I’ll have to go to the City and get permits for what we want to do. We’ll have to have an architect draw up plans for the farmhouse and barn, and any other buildings we decide we need. We’ll probably have to tie into city utilities, although I’d like to look into drilling a couple of wells out there. We’ll have to hire someone who knows how to lay track for a miniature train, and a botanist, or several, to create the flower gardens. This will be a major undertaking, not just a weekend project.”
“That’s for sure,” Victoria agreed. “We’re going to have to be very organized, and start by outlining just exactly what we intend to do, and how we intend to accomplish it. Not the least of which is what do we plan to name this place? I think you’ll have to have some kind of name to put on all the permit applications, won’t you?”
“At least a corporation name,” Rafael said. “I don’t know about the DBA name.”
“DBA? What’s that?” Victoria asked.
“Doing Business As,” Rafael said.
“Oh.”
Rafael and Victoria talked until bedtime about their plans and dreams for their new theme park. Lena excused herself early on and went downstairs to her suite. She had just enough time to get in a nice swim before it got too late.
The following Thursday, Victoria and Rafael met with Doug Bush at Victoria’s childhood home, so that Doug could take pictures of the place, inside and out, and look it over so he would be able to promote it intelligently.
It felt weird to Victoria to go back there and see the place so totally empty. She felt a little more nostalgic about the place than she expected to. As soon as they drove in the gate, they realized that they would have to hire a lawn care service to keep up the grounds until it sold. In the excitement of moving, learning about Lena being Victoria’s mom, and beginning to make plans for the undeveloped property, mowing the lawns at the old place had simply slipped their minds.
Doug Bush took lots of photos, took copious notes, and asked a multitude of questions. An hour later, he was finally satisfied that he had all the information he needed to be able to advertise the estate for sale.
Friday morning on the way to their first building inspection, Rafa
el told Victoria that he would like to invite his mom over for dinner to show her their new home.
“That’s a great idea,” Victoria said enthusiastically. “I’m ashamed that I didn’t think of it sooner, but we’ve been so busy.”
“I know,” Rafael said. “I thought of it when we were first moving in and planned to have her over as soon as we got settled, but the days have just gone by and now it’s been a week and a half already.”
“Let’s have her over tomorrow,” Victoria suggested. “When we stop you can call her and invite her. Tell her to bring a swim suit and we can swim in the pool, too, if she’d like.”
After Rafael received his mom’s joyful acceptance, Victoria called Lena to let her know, and ask her if she’d help Victoria prepare dinner.
“Of course I’ll help, honey,” Lena said. “Be glad to. Do you know yet what you want to have?”
“No, not yet,” Victoria admitted. “Haven’t had time to think about it. When I figure it out, I’ll call and let you know.
“And by the way,” she added before Lena could hang up, “would you like to invite your parents over for dinner sometime soon? My grandparents. Wow! I’d love to have them over and learn all about my heritage. Oh! Do they know?”
“Yes, they know,” Lena said. “I told them when it happened. It wasn’t like I could hide it from them.”
Saturday morning was a busy time. Victoria cleaned house like a madwoman, and Lena cooked up a storm in the kitchen. After consulting Rafael as to his mother’s food likes and dislikes, they had settled on having lasagna, salad, and garlic bread, with blueberry pie and ice cream for dessert.
Manuela Rivera drove in the driveway right about one o’clock, half an hour before the designated dinner time. Victoria wanted her to come in, see the house, and relax a bit before sitting down to eat.
Manuela was nearly overwhelmed by the house, the furnishings, and the pool and patio. She had never been inside such a luxurious home before. To think that her baby boy was living in this house just blew her away.
Over dinner, Rafael asked her if she would like to move over into one of the two houses that were now on the property belonging to him.
“Oh, son, I don’t know,” Manuela said hesitantly. “I’ve lived in my little house for six years now, and I’ve made friends in the neighborhood. I know my way around from there and can go to the grocery store or the shopping mall without getting lost. If I moved over here, I wouldn’t know anyone, and there aren’t any close neighbors to that house.
“I appreciate the offer, but I think I’ll just stay where I’m at for now,” she said. “Besides, when Mateo gets out of jail, he wouldn’t know where to find me.”
“That might be a good thing,” Rafael muttered.
“Rafael! He’s your brother! And he’s my son, too,” Manuel remonstrated with her younger son.
“I know, but look at the way he’s treated you—stealing from you, bringing stolen goods into your house, mooching off you. It’d serve him right if he couldn’t find you when he gets out,” Rafael said.
“I sure don’t want him around my house, breaking in and stealing our stuff again,” he said firmly.
He still hadn’t forgiven Mateo for breaking into Victoria’s house while they were on their honeymoon, or for the way he had treated their mother.
“I understand how you must feel,” Manuela said, “but I can’t turn my back on my son. And besides, maybe he will have changed by the time he gets out in a couple of years. You should go to visit him with me sometime, Rafael.”
“Well, maybe sometime,” Rafael said grudgingly.
A while after they had eaten, they all went out to take a swim in the pool. Manuela had had to go out and buy a swimsuit, as she hadn’t had one in years, or any need for one. But she enjoyed herself so much that afternoon that she planned to come over to swim as often as she could.
The afternoon passed pleasantly and quickly, and after an evening snack of popcorn and fresh apples, Manuela took her leave, promising to come for another visit soon.
The next several weeks were filled with building inspections and crystalizing plans for the property. After much discussion and input from all three of them, they settled on a name for the theme park. It was to be Thornton Memorial Pioneer Farm and Botanical Gardens, or Thornton Park for short. The farm would be David’s Farm, and the gardens, Lena’s Gardens, in honor of Victoria’s parents. The miniature train would be called Rivera Railroad.
They were debating on having a small gift shop, and if they did, it would be Manuela’s Mercantile, for Rafael’s mother. That way all the parents would be honored.
Rafael busied himself with securing all the permits they would need to operate Thornton Park. It was a tedious process, but eventually everything came together and they could start the building process. He had to find and hire competent contractors and find builders who knew how to build a historically accurate house and barn.
In late October, Victoria got a Facebook message from her uncle Mac Smith.
Hi Victoria, it read.
We are planning a little trip up the coast to Oregon beginning next Saturday, and wondered if it would be all right if we stop to see you that afternoon. We can swing in off the 101 and spend an hour or two with you before continuing on up the coast, if it’s convenient. Let me know.
Uncle Mac
Victoria ran it by Rafael before answering just to make sure he hadn’t made other plans. He hadn’t, so Victoria shot a message right back.
Hi Uncle Mac,
We’d love to have you! Will you have dinner with us? I’m so excited to finally get to meet you in person!
See you soon,
Victoria
Within a few minutes, she had this reply.
“Dinner would be nice, but don’t go to any trouble for us. We’re looking forward to meeting you, too. See you Saturday.
When Victoria had learned the truth about who her biological mother really was, she had written to Mac Smith and told him, assuming it would mean that he wouldn’t be interested in further contact with her, since she wasn’t really Marian’s daughter. So she was pleasantly surprised when she got a message back telling her that it made no difference whatsoever.
Then he told her the surprising fact that he and Marian had both been adopted. That they weren’t even blood related to each other, much less to the parents who had raised them. Victoria wondered if the surprises would ever cease coming. Then she laughed to herself when she remembered that she had searched Mac’s photo for family resemblances to Marian, and had imagined there was some.
So, bottom line was, Marian had adopted Victoria, so that made her family, no matter who her biological mother was. They had continued their online correspondence just as if nothing had changed.
As this was already Thursday, there wasn’t much time to plan for Saturday. Victoria was so thankful that Lena was still with them, so far, because she relied heavily on her to help around the house. Victoria did some of the cleaning on weekends, but she knew that Lena did little things all week that kept the house in pristine condition.
Lena planned a nice fried chicken dinner, with mashed potatoes and gravy, peas, salad, and a coconut cream pie. They all agreed that a meal like that should please anyone.
With the aid of his GPS, Mac and Diane Smith pulled into the Rivera driveway shortly after noon on Saturday. Victoria came out the front door when she saw their car coming up the driveway. She was so eager to meet them, but was also a bit apprehensive.
The car stopped, and two people emerged from it. Mackensey Smith was a man of average height, maybe five feet nine inches, stocky but trim. Definitely not blood related to Marian Smith Thornton, who had been tall and willowy. Diane was short, maybe five feet two in her stockinged feet, with the build most women in their fifties get—filled out, but not what you could call fat.
Victoria went straight to Mac and he drew her into the bear hug that was his trademark. He was a very gregarious man. Diane was more
shy and reserved, but by the time dinner was served, Victoria knew she was one of the sweetest women she’d ever met.
They had a grand time getting to know one another. Victoria showed them the photo albums that contained photos of David and Marian from the time they were married, until the last ones either had had taken. Mac told stories of their childhood and showed Victoria an album that he had brought that was filled with photos of he and Marian from the time they were babies. There were also photos of the two older children, who, according to Mac, were also adopted.
Dinner was a success, with Mac and Diane praising Lena soundly for her delicious cooking. They were completely gracious with Lena and treated her just like family, also. Victoria marveled at how different Mac was from Marian. Different as night and day, she thought to herself. Mother was selfish and self-centered, cold and controlling. But Uncle Mac is so kind, funny, and big-hearted. I wish I could have grown up knowing him.
The afternoon passed all too quickly. Around five-thirty, Mac announced that they must be going. They had hotel reservations up the coast another sixty miles or so. Hugs were exchanged all around and Rafael and Victoria walked with Mac and Diane out to their car, where promises to visit again and more hugs were given before they got into their car and left.
Before they knew it, it was Thanksgiving week. They had mutually agreed to invite Rafael’s mom and Lena’s parents all to come for Thanksgiving dinner. Victoria had invited Mac and Diane, too, but they already had plans to be with their kids.
Rafael and Victoria were continuing with their inspections, having driven up to San Francisco to check out the three buildings up there that they owned. They had also spent considerable time on planning Thornton Park, and things were beginning to happen over on the neighboring acreage.