Page 7 of Caught By the Lumberjack

"You should see the sections they replanted fifteen years ago," Margeurite continued. "Beautiful young forest now. And Vaughn's been using the timber sales to buy up land that those Clear Valley Logging vultures wanted to clear-cut."

The mental image I'd constructed of Vaughn Ridgeway—corporate villain in flannel—cracked around the edges.

"I... didn't know that," I admitted.

Walter smiled kindly. "Maybe there's a lot you don't know yet about our town. But that's why you’re here, isn't it?"

As they drove away, I stood looking at my protest signs with newfound uncertainty. What if I'd misjudged the situationentirely? What if Ridgeway Logging really was the model of sustainable forestry Vaughn had claimed?

"Stop it, Clementine," I muttered to myself. "You're falling for their PR. Tomorrow's tour will reveal the truth."

I remained at my post for another hour as the sky darkened ominously. The first fat raindrops began to fall just as I was folding up my camp chair. Within minutes, the sprinkle transformed into a deluge.

"Perfect timing," I sighed, hastily gathering my signs and tossing them into Dharma's back doors.

I scrambled into the driver's seat, dripping water everywhere. Dharma's windshield wipers—never her strongest feature—struggled against the torrential downpour. I turned the key in the ignition, and the familiar rumble of her engine greeted me.

"Let's get back to town before this gets worse," I told Ferdinand, carefully navigating the increasingly slick road.

I'd made it about half a mile when the first troubling sputter came from Dharma's engine. Then another.

"No, no, no," I pleaded, patting the dashboard. "Not now, girl."

The engine coughed, wheezed, and died altogether, leaving me stranded on a rapidly deteriorating dirt road as rain pounded the roof with increasing ferocity.

"Come on!" I tried the ignition again. The starter whined weakly, but the engine refused to catch.

I dropped my forehead against the steering wheel in defeat. The rain had transformed the dirt road into a muddy river, and the downpour showed no signs of letting up. Cell service in this area was spotty at best, nonexistent at worst.

"Well, Ferdinand," I said to my cactus companion, "looks like we're in for an adventure."

I was contemplating my limited options—wait out the storm, try to hike back to the main road, or perform an impromptu rain dance to appease whatever deity had clearly cursed me—when headlights cut through the gloom behind me.

A massive pickup truck pulled alongside Dharma, and through the rain-blurred windows, I made out an all-too-familiar silhouette.

The universe had a sick sense of humor.

Vaughn Ridgeway stepped out of his truck, immediately drenched by the downpour. He jogged to my window, which I reluctantly rolled down a few inches.

"Car trouble, Flower Child?" he shouted over the rain.

"It's temporary!" I called back. "She just needs a minute!"

Lightning split the sky, followed immediately by a crash of thunder that seemed to shake Dharma's frame.

"Yeah, I can see that working out great for you," Vaughn replied, rainwater dripping from his jaw. "Come on, get in my truck before you float away in this tie-dyed shoebox."

"I'm perfectly fine right here," I insisted, even as water began to seep through Dharma's less-than-watertight roof.

Another lightning strike, closer this time. The road behind us was now visibly washing out, transforming into a muddy stream.

Vaughn's expression shifted from irritation to genuine concern. "This isn't optional, Clementine. That road's about to become impassable. My cabin's ten minutes from here. You can wait out the storm, then I'll bring you back when it's safe."

A cold drop of rainwater hit the back of my neck, sliding down my spine. Dharma's interior was growing danker by the second.

"Fine," I conceded, grabbing my backpack and Ferdinand. "But I'm coming back for Dharma as soon as the rain stops."

"Wouldn't dream of separating you from your psychedelic chariot," Vaughn muttered, holding the passenger door of his truck open for me.

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