have been so proud of you,” Mindy says, pulling my attention back to her. “A big-time mathematician at the university.”
“I’m not that big time,” I say. At the rate I’m going, I’ll never solve my theorem.
“Oh, don’t be modest,” she says with a dismissive wave.
“She wouldn’t be happy about you selling the place, though,” Ralph says frankly, his voice deep and gruff from age. Way to get right to the point, Ralph.
I exhale slowly and rub the knot at the base of my neck. “I know. She left it to Mom, but she wants it sold.” They both nod, like they understand that. That gives me pause, and my brain switches direction. “Why did mom hate this place?” I ask. The two exchange a quick look, and my muscles tighten. “What?” I ask.
Mindy takes my hand. “Your mother was young when Hooked was established. She saw what it did to jobs, our economy.”
“We had some tough times back then,” Ralph adds.
“She never liked the company that cared about the bottom line over the safety of their men, but with jobs scarce in the community, she ended up working for them during her summer breaks.”
I nod. “Gram wasn’t a fan of Hooked, either,” I say but I’m not telling them something they don’t already know.
“But that didn’t stop young Linda from falling in love with the CEO,” Mindy says. “She didn’t know who he was at first—she’d met him outside of work—and he charmed her. He was far too old for her, though. She thought he was different, that he cared about others, but one day, she discovered he was using her for insider information about the real state of the plant processing floor, so he could streamline, cut jobs, and increase his profit. Once he did that, he up and left, never to look back again. He didn’t care about her, or the people who worked on the boats. All he cared about was the company’s bottom line.”
“You’re kidding me?”
Mindy makes a tsking sound. “She was practically picking out a wedding dress, and he broke her heart.”
“After that she wanted nothing to do with Hooked, or this place,” Ralph adds.
Appalled, I shake my head. “She never told me that story.” When she left here, perhaps she wanted to leave those horrible memories behind as well. “What was his name?” I ask out of curiosity.
“William Lancaster,” Ralph says. “His sons are just as cold. Steer clear of them.”
“I’ll remember that.” I pause and say, “Mom and Gram didn’t seem to get along that well, but she never really talked about it.”
Mindy gives a nod of her head. “Your grandmother didn’t want your mother dating William. They fought about it constantly. Margaret warned her and tried to keep them apart. Maybe she didn’t go about it the right way, but she only had Linda’s best interests at heart. Linda was a stubborn one back then. It caused a great deal of rife between the two, and when Margaret ended up being right, I think Linda was embarrassed. I always hoped they’d put it all behind them before…”
She lets her words trail off, but she doesn’t need to finish for me to understand. My heart aches as I think about the wasted years, the loss between mother and daughter. At least she didn’t keep me from Gram. Although I really wish she would have had a funeral for her. I’m glad she was buried with Granddad, though. I still need to go to the cemetery. I’ve driven by a couple of times but can’t seem to cross the iron gates.
“Let’s eat, shall we,” Mindy says like she wants a change of subject. I open my menu and decide on a big hamburger, but my heart hurts for my mother. To think the men on the boats worked so hard, yet management cared so little about them. Those guys put their lives at risk every day. I have full respect for them. I’m sure Nate knows how I feel about what he does.