Page 19 of Massive Size Lumberjack

10

Braden

Ifeel terrible for my beautiful girl. Gracie looks more than hurt. She looks utterly shaken, like her whole world has been turned upside down.

“Did you suspect?” I growl, taking in the curvy girl’s stunned features. “Was there anything that gave it away?”

She shakes her head at first, but then nods.

“I’ve wondered about my family’s finances over the years,” she confesses in a low tone. “We don’t have much. I mean, I’m just one person minding the fields, and you saw the operation. I don’t have farming tools, or even machinery! The crops are exposed during all seasons, and we had a bad harvest come in about two years ago. But neither Jim nor Robbie seemed nervous. They acted like nothing was wrong and this must be why.”

“Yes, it’s because of the meth,” I growl, brows lowered. “Chief Roscoe suspected your family was cooking, but Fairview PD was never able come up with any concrete evidence. They never found where Rob and Jim manufactured the shit until just recently, after we rescued you. They finally forced the location out of your brother in the interrogation room. It’s way out in a trailer in the woods. No one could have found it because it was so well-hidden.”

Grace shakes her head, tears rising in her eyes again.

“Robbie and Jim are meth dealers,” she whispers. “My brother and dad literally manufacture and sell illegal drugs.”

I pause because the one-two punch is coming.

“And your family uses too,” I say in a low tone, trying to let her down slow. “Rob and Jim look like shit because they’re indulging in their own product. You saw them: the sores, the gaunt faces, the stench that surrounds them. Those are the ravages of meth use. You don’t get like that from smoking pot.”

Gracie is completely still, her lower lip trembling.

“You’re right,” she whispers. “No one gets that strung out from 420. Especially not from my pot because my varietals just aren’t that powerful. It’s definitely meth. But I still don’t get it. Why did they blow up my cabin? Why did they burn my fields? They didn’t have to torch what we had if it was legit!”

I take a deep breath because this isn’t just a one-two punch. This is a knock-out blow that’s going to break Gracie’s heart.

“Sweetheart, Jim and Rob could feel the cops drawing close. The Fairview PD isn’t going to let a meth lab go, no matter how small. So your father and brother were looking to pin the blameon you. They staged your cabin like a meth lab before blowing it up, and burning the surrounding areas. They were going to claim thatyouwere the meth dealer, operating illegally from a hidden location halfway up the mountain.Youwere going to go to jail, and take the fall for them.”

“What?” Gracie gasps, her face going as white as a sheet. “Me? But everyone knows that I’m a farmer! I don’t do drugs!”

“Yes, but your brother and father were framing you,” I repeat in a low voice. “You were going to take the fall, while they stayed out of jail while continuing to indulge their habit. Hell, they’d probably continue to cook and sell, seeing that the police had a bust under their belt. You know, quotas and all.”

“Me?” Gracie whispers again, her eyes pooling with tears. “I can’t believe it. This is total and utter betrayal.”

Unable to help myself, I pull her soft curves into my lap while holding her tight with strong arms.

“It is an incredible betrayal by those closest to you in the world,” I murmur into her soft blonde hair. “I’m sorry, sweetheart. If I could make it better, I would. I can’t imagine how you must feel just now.”

Gracie breaks down totally then, hiding her face in my chest while her shoulders shudder with sobs. My heart squeezes painfully because I love this woman and can’t bear to see her like this. But after a few minutes, she lifts her face to me, tear-stained and delicate.

“But how did you get involved, Braden? I mean, how did you convince law enforcement to confront Rob and Jim? Why did Chief Briscoe even let you come with him on the raid? It was apolice matter, so I’m surprised they didn’t have all sorts of red tape keeping civilians out.”

Oh shit. This is where the pedal hits the metal. I take a deep breath because this is my make-it-or-break-it moment. I have to tell the truth, and I’m not sure if Gracie will forgive me when she finds out that almost everything I’ve shared about my identity is a lie.

“That’s a good question,” I begin in a low voice. “The fact is that Iamyour neighbor.”

She blinks.

“Right, because you inherited your cabin from your grandparents a couple years ago. You’re here in Fairview relaxing because you’ve been so busy with work as a journeyman lumberjack.”

“Sort of. Well no, not exactly,” I amend.

Grace stares at me, her expression confused.

“What do you mean ‘not exactly’? That’s exactly what you told me.”

I sigh because here comes the hard part.

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