Chapter 165: Mapping the Future

Bayoán's POV

The moment Lola declared her intention, as sad as it was, we all started feeling little by little the painful reality of being in a heavy conflict with somebody that you really love. I should know better than anyone... Nina wasn't the only prideful one. I was full of pride and stubbornness, too. But the moment she sued for peace between us it's like it all washed away! I'm sure we're going to get an trist here and there because all siblings do either way, but at least it won't be that pain that Lola shared with everyone that will live forever in our Bond, ensuring that we don't repeat the same mistake and that future generations try to stop conflict immediately between each other. But that's really the only thing that will change in the family.

Before we went back to the Dinning Hall to eat, Lola went up to her brother and mother and hugged them and told them that she loved them and that that was the end of that. Even then she asked forgiveness for the decision she made, but she took the perfect opportunity to ensure the stability of the family. She has always been one of the most emotionally stable of all of us, besides Maco, and has always worked to keep that emotional stability within our dysfunctional family, that's why she made this hard choice. Umbros and Tía look a little sick, and that is to be expected, it's not like Lola injected poison into either of them or us... It's more like a shadow memory, a potential deja vu to remind anyone of the bad experience of how it feels. It is a very VALUABLE gift she has given! Her heart has always been beautiful.

Nina barely ever cooked Dad's or mine favorite foods, but she is trying so hard to fix her mess and I'm going to try to be her main supporter... I owe her that much. The last time we had a meal like this as a family it was weeks before the blast, and for this Nina has prepared an immense feast! She even picked a few avocados from the many fruit trees in the backyard and Nía chopped them up into slices so that everyone can take as many as they want.

"Hey Amelia, you were trying to say something about a better solution earlier? What do you propose?" Talia never misses anything, her eyes and ears are always alert.

"Thank the Goddess you reminded me! I was already forgetting about it myself!"

"That would be The Fog... stupid Fog!" Freya says the face full of disdain, Ura and Izzy started nodding solemnly. Morgana never got it, the Goddess has a special deal with Witches! But she's healing fast, witches heal faster than humans but not nearly as fast as us and we still have no idea how to name our son. Originally we wanted to honor Abuelo, but we already have an Urayoán and I refuse my kid like him! We'll figure it out

"Ok, yeah it's cool. I know." Duh! She's a doctor!

"Well It just so happens that we also found your Tío Ayato's diaries. While your mother wanted to invigorate this house, since she knew she had no claim over the Real estate, your Tío Ayato had his eyes on an hacienda in the Batey District in the mountains, that the Guerrero family has been trying to sell for a while. Maco and I saw pictures of it and it looks... Well... pretty BIG and is sustained by a mango farm, Ayato wanted to grow breadfruit as well. And in her diary Kiskeya mentioned that she didn't want to cause Orocobix any problems with his family knowing that he would vouch for them to have it, she didn't like that idea. Even though she doesn't specify what she means, both entries in each diary occurred the same day, making us believe that it was related to the same event. Apparently your father believed it was owed to you all. That the fact that they were lying to you was absolute disrespect! But he didn't want to betray your mother's secret. I thought that since we intend on confronting Orocobix anyway and since Ayato and Kiskeya aren't among us, we could move forward with an offer, do you guys think that would be pushing it?" I remember Dad telling me something about it once when I was very young, but then it was never talked about again.

"Wait?! Hacienda Florencia? Yeah that was their mango farm. They're much more invested on Hacienda Lobo Azul in the Ciboney District since they get more income from their coconut farm there." Nina points out.

"Coconut farm? Seriously?! There's a coconut farm here? I have never heard of such a thing! I gotta see that!" Adam tried his best to beat Ura at the video game... It was a good try though. The only who comes close to beating Ura is Maco, and he programmed some of those games!

"There are coconut farms all over the world! Especially in South Asia, but yeah we LOVE coconuts! We have a ton of dishes and drinks that contain it especially desserts! Nina knows how to make several types of coconut rice! Alberto thought her and he knows them ALL, right Mami?" Talia takes a soft jab at Tía to awaken her a bit ... She's is still in a daze, she's one of the strongest people I know, she'll get through this. We REALLY would never discard their bones, but Maco was sure that the threat would work. Just the THOUGHT of it terrifies me!

"Si mija, he knows them all." Sigh. Dad would be pissed at us if he saw her like that! I can just imagine him yelling: "CRÍA CUERVOS PARA QUE TE SAQUEN LOS OJOS!" (Raise crows so they can peck your eyes out!). He would say it ALL. THE. TIME. Ugh! I fucking hate crows too! Shit! They all know anyway that I'm afraid of birds!

"BIRDS! Nina! That's why I'm fucking afraid of birds! We saw that movie together! That's what started it!" Everyone looks extremely surprised because of my outburst and now I am absolutely regretting it! And she burst out laughing! Actually all of them started laughing...

"WHOA! WHAT?! Damn it! I spilled my wine! What on EARTH are you talking about you freak! Birds?! We all know you're afraid of birds?!" Do they seriously all know? Everyone and their mate is laughing. I look to my right and Morgana can't stop laughing. Ugh!

"Baby are you having a nervous breakdown right now? Please let me know if you do so I can leave you with Daniella before going back home. I hate it when you start freaking out! That was REALLY SUDDEN where did that come from?" My 'adorable' mate has been the full boss of me in her ENTIRE LONG pregnancy and now she has a stronger hold... Although, it was really sexy fucking her like that.

"I just remembered that Nina made me watch the birds when we were kids and that's why I'm afraid of birds!" Damn right!

"Um, Bayoán... YOU were the one who took that movie from Dad's room and it was you who put it on so that we could watch it. Babushka caught us and was so angry that we were watching a human movie and in English of all things! Nina and I were just older and faster so you're the one that got the bad beating from her!" Maco points out and they laugh harder. Seriously? I was the one who took it? If it was Babushka who caught me I must have not even been 4 years old! Awe man... They're going to OBLITERATE me! I swear sometimes I can't keep my own mouth shut!

"I remember her from your memories Chèri, she was angry that you were watching a scary movie?" If only!

"Ha! Nah! Human scary movies are ADORABLE! She was angry at the fact that we were watching a HUMAN-made movie and that it wasn't in Russian! Papi you don't understand! She would whack us every single time we would even DARE talk to her in Spanish or even mispronounce a single word in Russian. She wasn't right in the head don't you understand?! She was a 6 ft tall Gamma with an eye patch speaking Russian 24/7 who had been experimented on in a concentration camp! She was always smoking a blunt, absolutely ALWAYS! I learned my best curse words from that woman! She was scarier than any of those supposedly scary human movies!" For HELLA sure.

"What's a babushka?" ADAM, DUDE! I don't want to remember that memory!

"It's Russian for grandmother." Ura gives the straight answer, cool. Cool.

"Whoa, your grandmother was in a concentration camp?!" Awe man.

"Baby we really don't like talking about that part, I'll take you downstairs later, we'll find her diaries so that you can read them. It's about time you download Russian to your brain, one more step to be a spy!" Umbros is looking a bit better even though his voice is still weak.

"Wait a minute... you THINK I made you afraid of birds?!" Damn it!

"My bad Nina, I'm putting the pieces together, remember I was younger! I DO remember Babushka kicking my ass! I think maybe that's why I'm afraid of birds..." DAMN IT! I'm going to have to talk to Tatiana I can't be the pack Beta and be afraid of birds! Especially now that Izzy HAS a pet bird! Thanks a LOT Kayden! And that's one fucking creepy bird, I'm going to have to talk to Moira and ask her where the hell did she get that THING! She reminds me of when Babushka used to go to Changó's altar and would feed the chango birds that would flock to it. After Abuelo saved her, she became VERY devout to him.

She claimed that Adelola had shown herself to her and would have conversations in surprisingly, Adelola's favorite language to speak which was patois. Her father, Adetoke's parents were born in Xaymaca, now called Jamaica. Some of the other slaves remembered being from The Akan people, MOST couldn't even say where their ancestors were from anymore since the colonizers had changed so many names in they're native continent. By that time many slaves would be shown a map of Africa and couldn't pinpoint where they were from... They had never seen Africa, especially from above! This is not the first time in our history where we all wear a matching tattoo. Back then the pack was tattooed with a Fawodhodie,  it was an indicator to the Africans that a person marked with it could help. They knew this symbol of freedom and emancipation.
From the expression: 'ene obre na enam.' Literal translation: "Independence comes with its responsibilities." In many cases if they found one of us they would ask sanctuary for us to steal them. There was a big boom in our pack in that moment of African humans, many of them found their mates among us and the human gene is no match for the wolf one. Every single match will create a wolf.

Adelola's grandparents spoke to her and her siblings ONLY in patois meaning 'local or regional dialect' in FRENCH, basically like sticking it to the British! Adelola's grandmother, Abioye or Doña Alondra Bankole, had great influence over her and her sister. She was the one who educated Adelola in the ways of Changó and The Orishas. She would explain that all Creole languages were a reflection of the enslaved TENACITY. The slaves DARED adopt a language that was entirely foreign and constructed a hybridized language that could have better aided THEIR need to communicate with each other. Language is like a double-edged sword, it imprisoned and it was also a vehicle of rebellion for the enslaved. Tuning in closely to the various language patterns and varieties throughout the Caribbean ANYBODY could hear and feel AFRICA! Adelola could speak, Spanish, Taíno, Yoruba, Patois, French, Antillean Creole, English and Portuguese. She was the daughter of a princess after all!

The woman spoke 9 damn languages, yet the one she enjoyed speaking the most was the Patois of her parents and Taíno to Imotonex. And even Alexandra's steel bended to Adelola's will, she was no one to tell her how to speak in HER own house! She told her that if she did not speak patois she can pack up her bags and leave! Alexandra didn't dare challenge Adelola's spirit, she learned patois but it was only to Adelola who she spoke it to. It's a pretty strong flex for a ghost!

"Adam ask Umbros to take you! It's fun to let your wolf loose and the scent is heavily! Anyway, Hacienda Florencia is their original ancestral home Em. Because they were such a BIG family then, way more than now, their Patriarch decided to save even more to build that massive estate. I guess we really need to get better acquainted with their family history, I do remember the fact that they had TWO ships in which they plundered since they were such a large family and mostly were Alphas, they would raid the Indian Sea and the Pacific, right? That's why great great grandfather wanted to get that other ship right? Anyway, the problem is because of their attachment to that Hacienda they're asking for a RIDICULOUS price for it and it needs A LOT of work! Hmmm, it DOES has amazing pools that even go through the buildings and make indoor albercas... I would have to go again to take a look, the last time I saw it even the mango trees were not in the best of shape. Breadfruit? It's location definitely is ideal for both crops... Do you know if Dad made an offer?" This is definitely were Nina shines!

I can see her thinking about ALL it's possibilities and the costs involved, no matter how bad things got between us, I always accepted that she is EXTREMELY talented.

"If I'm not mistaken they used to grow yuca and malanga, too... always a good crop. Sigh, I would have to see it and itemize everything that needs to be repaired, replaced, renewed and I would have to go with Geraldo so that he can give me his own professional opinion with regards to the cost to revive the agricultural aspect of it, the whole point would be to have a property that can pay for itself. That's a massive project, and if they're not willing to negotiate the price of it, it's just going to keep running down making it not worth buying, that would be a pitty. Do you think our new Abuelo can actually help us get a deal? Tony tells me that Elder Juan is a though motherfucker... Damn, we even have a great grandfather who's alive! This is so BIZARRE, right?" She's got a point. I originally thought that was the main reason why Dad didn't go ahead with his plan to buy it, but it was Mom all the time.

We could buy it NO PROBLEM, even with the current price but if we have to put a load of money into it, it's really not worth it. Nina is not wrong by saying that to have a property of that size is not really worth it if it can't even pay for itself! And now I realized why Amelia was thinking about it when we were talking earlier, Ishaan's family is pretty big! I already spoke with Izzy and told her that there was no way that we could REALLY house them here COMFORTABLY. If we do have Hacienda Florencia, ALL of them can move in and we still would have to employ people! This is not just one building it is several on many acres of land, she can see it and is trying to avoid a money pit...

"Oh my Goddesses! Nina your TOTALLY right! We have a great grandfather! That IS BIZARRE... Yeah, I barely remember going there once BEFORE going to Avalon! In my mind it's a little EXTREME... Well I guess it would, we see things bigger than they are when we're kids. Bayo did he ever mention this? Nina can you please link me what you remember of it? Bayo, Víctor already spoke with Tatiana to start helping you with your bird problem... Get it together Beta, the bird stays!" Damn it, I'm letting this go because I can tell she's totally BAKED! The WHOLE Circle crew is baked! I learned a long time ago that it wasn't even worth dealing with them when their like this. I usually like smoking by myself or with Morgana after duty, they'll all just start laughing and you won't get anywhere.

"I'm sending you ALL the last that I remember, I haven't been there in years! That was my second semester of architecture." Usually the old homes as well as The Fort receive visitors when the school that wants their students to see the architecture or design or the history of the structure asks the family permission. That's why Maco asked for Mengele's cell to be left intact, it's one of Abuelo's legacies. When schools teach that not even WE are immune to human wars, they usually show them the cell where that piece of shit was, they read the diaries of the doctors who experimented on him as well as watch Alex's interview when he explained everything that was done to his parents and Babushka and shows his own inmate tattoo, he also decided never to remove it and his oldest son Ivan even had it tattooed himself: WF505633, I think the first number meant which camp they were in and the second two digits were for the age and the last three were for the family group or were they found them. I have to check that out again. They also visit all the places where we broke him to nothing.

"It does look pretty run down! Oh wow! The ocean! It can be seen from here I mean there, I mean from this altitude! Oh you know what I mean! The scent of mangoes is intense! You don't think this has potential Nina?" We look over at the stoned expert, usually Kappas are not that gifted with mathematics, but in Nina's case she is! That's what makes her one of the best architects in the island. And her use of the golden ratio is always incredibly impressive!