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Hugh finally looked at me, and when he spoke, his voice was far softer. “Kid, I know you loved that land. I know you spent a lot of time there, and I’m sorry I had to sell it. I don’t feel great about it. I wish I hadn’t had to.”
I wanted to scream and cry. I wanted to tell him how unfair this was. I wanted to be mad.
But I could imagine myself in that same position. It was far too easy.
“I get it.” My voice was small. “If I wasn’t using the grant, I’d be in the same position.”
“You’ve used it?”
“Most of us have.”
“Let me give you some advice then. Money doesn’t flow forever.”
“Will you be okay now that you sold that land?”
“I think so, as long as I’m careful. No more overpaying people for electrical work.” He scoffed and rolled his eyes.
“And you’re sure you know nothing about who bought it?”
“I don’t know. They paid me pretty well for the land.”
“Is it to the owner of the STM grant?”
“I wouldn’t have sold it to those idiots.”
This meant nothing good for the town. “And you’re sure you’re not lying just to get me off your back or throw me off the trail?”
“Jade, come on. You’re barking up the wrong tree here. I think you’re barking up the wrong tree in general. This town is up each other’s asses at all given points. There’s absolutely no way that someone could be here and we don’t know about it.”
I looked away, my eyes squeezing shut. The worst part was knowing he was right.
“I’m sorry,” Hugh said. “I don’t mean to be rude to you. I think it’s just my default.”
“You’re saying what I probably need to hear.”
“There’s a better way for me to go about it. I’m sure there was a better way for me to go about getting money too. But I don’t trust someone I can’t meet in person.”
“Can we trust the person you sold the land to?”
Hugh paused and looked away. “I think you need to solve a different mystery now.”
That was all the answer I needed. He obviously felt he could trust them more than the STM grant, who hid behind smoke and mirrors, but this person didn’t mean anything good for us.
It felt so wrong to give up on the grant, but I’d not gotten anywhere in all this time. The one person I thought could be the owner was just like the rest of us.
“I guess I should hope that I win the lottery and I’m able to buy it from them.”
Hugh huffed. “Yeah, right.”
“A girl can dream.”
He stared at me. I was so sure he was going to give me a lecture on my wishful thinking. Instead, he nodded. “Keep dreaming, Jade. You’re the last of us with that kind of hope. Maybe one day it’ll do us some good.”
30
GABRIEL
Strawberry Springs Neighborhood Watch
