Chapter 18 - Breaking GroundNovember arrived with crisp morning frosts and clear blue skies, signaling the official start of construction on the new Bennett-Moretti family home.
Unlike the sprawling, fortress-like mansion with its high walls and guarded gates, the new residence was being built on a quiet, open plot of land twenty miles north of the city, overlooking a rolling green valley and a pristine private lake.
On a chilly Friday afternoon, a sleek black SUV parked near the construction site, and the three of us stepped out onto the freshly graded earth.
Hard-hatted construction workers nodded respectfully as Alejandro led Mama and me across the concrete foundation slab that had just been poured.
“Here,” Alejandro said, stopping near the center of the open floor plan and handing Mama a set of silver-plated architectural compasses. “This is where the main living room will be. Massive windows facing south, a stone fireplace, and an open kitchen where you can actually see the sunset.”
Mama looked down at the blueprints spread across a temporary wooden trestle table, her eyes shining with quiet wonder. “It’s breathtaking, Alejandro. It doesn't look like a fortress at all... it looks entirely open.”
“Because we don't need walls to keep things out anymore,” Alejandro said softly, wrapping an arm gently around her waist. He looked down at me, a playful spark dancing in his dark eyes. “And right up there, on the second-floor turret, we’re installing a heavy-duty, professional-grade brass telescope for a certain four-year-old astronomer.”
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“Yay!” I cheered, dancing around the concrete slab with Barnaby clutched tightly in my hand.
I looked up at my mother and at the man who had once been a terrifying phantom of the underworld. They were smiling at each other with a deep, unbreakable warmth. The dark, windowless basement was a million miles away.
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