Blake’s chest squeezed, and he glanced at Paradise. “But we’d have to sell the property.”
“Yes, but you’d be able to buy more property outright and build it out to your specs. A discovery like this changes everything.”
“I’m not sure Mom would want to sell and move. It’s not like packing up a household and moving a few miles way. We’re talking hundreds of wild animals. The construction at the new place boggles the mind to think about.”
“True, but I’ve heard you complain about outdated buildings and security features. You could have state-of-the-art everything.” Hez’s blue eyes flashed with enthusiasm until he winced and touched his head. “I need to not get so excited, but it’s hard when I think about what this means for Aunt Jenna and the boys. You, too, of course, but I worry about her.”
“I’ll tell her, but Mom’s idea of the expedient road is to wait on God, and I have a feeling this won’t be any different. The Almighty himself might have to speak in an audible voice before she’d sell the place. I could be wrong, but we’ll see.”
Hez’s color waned by the moment, and Blake took Paradise’s hand. “Savannah would skin us alive if she saw you out of bed. If we want to live, we’d better let you rest.”
“I might need a nap.” Hez gave a half smile.
Blake might need a nap before he told his mom about this.
Hez’s bombshell rattled Paradise. She couldn’t imagine leaving this place now. “I can fix a salad.” The sounds of cartoons playing on TV came faintly from the living room. Blake’s deep voice explained the history of the old Popeye cartoons to his little brothers. He hadn’t told Jenna about the rare earth yet, but Paradise planned to.
“Blake did it. It’s in the fridge.” Jenna set a pan of lasagna on the counter. “So what did Jane say about Adams being here opening the gates?”
The breather of another topic appealed to Paradise as well. She stayed close to the oven to be able to check the breadsticks in another couple of minutes. “She doesn’t have jurisdiction here, so she can only ask for information. She’s going to check with Rod about the investigation. Greene was there for hours with his same innuendos and sneers. I didn’t want to call him, but we had no choice.” She hadn’t dared to tell Blake what she wanted to do, but Jenna might understand. “I thought about going to see Adams myself.”
Jenna set down the stack of plates in her hands. “Paradise,that would be so hard. Have you talked to him since you left here?”
“I haven’t seen him since CPS removed me from his house. Well, at least in person. Seeing his face on the video shook me.”
“He was trespassing on our property, and that’s likely the least of his crimes. If he unlocked the gate, it’s likely he also shot Ivy with the tranquilizer gun. What would you gain by talking to him?”
Paradise shrugged. “Closure maybe. I’m not sure why I want to talk to him.”
“Have you been able to find out anything about him since he left town?”
“Blake thought he and his wife broke up, but if that’s true, they must have gotten back together. They’re both listed as owners of a house in Birmingham.”
Jenna touched Paradise’s hand. “I hear the fear in your voice. I know you hoped never to face him again.”
“I don’t want to now, but I think the shock might shake some truth out of him that he wouldn’t tell anyone else.”
“I’m sure he thought no one had seen him.”
Paradise checked the breadsticks, which were golden brown and perfect. She opened the oven and put them on top of the stove. She’d skipped lunch, and the yeasty-garlicky odor made her mouth water.
Blake had suggested she tell Jenna the news about the rare earth. He didn’t want it to apply pressure to his mom. “Jenna, Hez dropped some news. There are minerals under your land, something called rare earth, and they’re worth a lot of money.”
“I’ve never heard of rare earth.” She listened to Paradise’s abbreviated explanation and what it could mean for The Sanctuary. “I’m not sure I believe it.”
“Hez thought you’d be excited,” Paradise said.
Jenna added more oregano to the sauce. “I don’t know what to think. If it’s incredibly valuable, The Sanctuary will be saved for generations. But we’d have to move to get it. There are a lot of things to consider.”
Paradise handed her the salt. “I know you’re very attached to this place—I am too—but there are large tracts of land you could buy and develop for the animals if you needed to. You’d have the money to build from scratch.”
Jenna’s gaze went out the window toward the buildings in the distance. “Hank and I built this together. I don’t know if I could leave it.”
“I’ll bet Frank would help you find the right property if it became necessary. You two have been seeing each other a little while now. It seems to be going well.”
Jenna’s cheeks reddened. “I enjoy being with Frank, but I feel guilty about it sometimes. I loved Hank so much.”
“You’re still young, Jenna. Hank would want you to have a happy, fulfilled life.”
