Page 11 of Dan

“I know,” said Matthew. “Let’s try it on a small scale. The southernmost tip of our property lies between two small islands. We’ve shored those up over the years, raising them to help prevent permanent loss of the land. Let’s see if your little experiment will work.”

“Are you serious? This will take years to build,” she said, staring at the man.

“No. It will be much faster than that. It’s my land. I won’t need anyone’s permission. We have hundreds of men available to work if we need them and an entire engineering team at one of our businesses.”

“I can’t believe this,” she said, walking toward Matthew. “You’re going to help prove my theory. You’re going to help me save hundreds of thousands of people and thousands, if not millions, of acres of land.” Matthew laughed as she hugged him.

“Let’s start with our little islands and see what happens. But I know a good thing when I hear it, and this is a good thing. If this works, we can expand it around our entire property. Belle Fleur will never have to worry about flooding again, and neither will the people who live here.”

“I just can’t believe you’re actually going to trust me,” said Finley. Matthew tilted his head, placing a weathered hand along her cheek.

“Child, there is no reason in the world I wouldn’t trust someone as brilliant as you. What you’ve discovered is a way to help preserve the land I love, and I would spend any amount of money to do that. Especially when the land I love contains the people I cherish.”

Finley shook her head, still in disbelief. Looking up at them all, she finally spoke with tears in her eyes.

“Who are you people?”

CHAPTER SEVEN

“Let’s take a walk in the gardens,” said Dan, guiding her outside. With a firm hand on her back, he led her to the blooming gardens with their beautiful fragrances and colors. Plants and shrubs were in full bloom, lending a fairytale book scene to the lush landscape. The warm spring breeze was welcomed after the cooler temperatures and rain recently.

“This is the most unusual garden I’ve ever seen,” said Finley. “The plants are extraordinary.”

“Yes,” smiled Dan. “My great-grandmother, Irene, is responsible for all of this. Our ancestors planted this when they built the house, and she’s taken on the role of head gardener and passed it along to my Aunt Claudette now.”

“It’s positively fascinating. Some of these plants shouldn’t exist,” said Finley, examining one of the large leaves of a plant. Dan had no idea what it was called or why it shouldn’t exist, but seeing her pleased with the gardens made his heart swell.

“Finley, you asked who we were in the meeting room.” She nodded as he led her to one of the cold stone benches. Taking a seat, she felt tiny next to his large body.

“Could you sit as well? You’re already much, much larger than I am, and if you’re standing and I’m sitting, it’s even a bigger difference.”

“Of course,” he smiled. “I’m sorry. It wasn’t my intention to make you feel small.”

“You can’t make me feel small,” she frowned. “I am small.” Dan chuckled, shaking his head.

“Right. Of course. Back to who we are. Are you familiar with Special Forces in the military?”

“The United States military has a number of Special Forces groups,” she recited robotically. “They can include, but are not limited to, the 10thSpecial Forces Group, Army Rangers, Marine Recon, Navy SEALs, Air Force Special Tactics, Army Green Berets, Army Night Stalkers, Delta Force, and MARSOC. They are the best trained in the world.”

“That is the basic definition, yes,” chuckled Dan, rubbing the back of his neck. “I was a Navy SEAL. So was my grandfather, Wilson. My other grandfather, Antoine, was an Army Ranger. So were all of his brothers. All the men you see here were Special Forces. Many of the women served for the government in the capacity of the FBI, CIA, or other operations.

“My grandfather and a man by the name of Nine Dougall formed the premier security agency in the world. Over time, it grew to include everything you see here. This community of people is here to ensure their safety and to be able to continue to serve the public in the only way we know how.”

“So, you continue to provide security services?” she asked.

“In a manner of speaking, yes. We take on contracts through the government or other entities when they need support or assistance that regular troops cannot provide.”

“Why wouldn’t they be able to provide support?” she asked innocently.

“Sometimes the mission might be controversial or dangerous to the extent that it’s too much for the government to take on. That’s when they call us. We can get in, get out, and no one will know who was there.”

“But doesn’t that put you in danger?”

“Yes,” he nodded. “It does, but we’re used to that. I’ve spent most of my adult life being in danger in one way or another. So were my father and grandfathers. My uncles, friends, everyone here. We believe in serving our nation, even when our time is done.”

“It’s incredibly admirable,” she said, staring up at him. “I wasn’t quite so patriotic. I only wanted to prevent flooding and loss of land and life.”

“I think that’s admirable as well,” smiled Dan.

---