Total pages in book: 131
Estimated words: 131387 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 657(@200wpm)___ 526(@250wpm)___ 438(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 131387 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 657(@200wpm)___ 526(@250wpm)___ 438(@300wpm)
She looked down to Hutch’s feet then to him with a worried expression on her cute face.
And she gave him her treatment plan.
“You should ask Miz Mabel to kiss it better.”
He smiled at her. “Good idea. I will, sweetheart. She’s good at that.”
“Now, can I have a puppy?” she pressed.
He was saved from answering that time when Tonks showed, yodeled at her, licked her ear, then raced away.
After trilling a giggle, Emma raced after her.
Stormy reached the neck of his beer out.
Hutch met it.
They clinked.
“Who’s ready for chili?” Nadia shouted.
He heard racing feet and first Ledger’s “Me!” then Viggo’s, “Me!” and finally Liam’s, “Me!”
Stormy moved to a chair.
Mabel brought Hutch a bowl. She went back to the kitchen and brought Stormy a bowl. Finally, she returned with her own bowl, carefully lifting his legs (he helped) so she could sit and put them over her lap before she started shoving chili covered in cheese with a hefty dollop of sour cream and sprinkled green onions in her sweet mouth.
He twisted his neck to look at Storm.
Stormy said the only thing there was to say.
On a smile, he said, “Yeah.”
FORTY
The Summary
Mabel
As you could probably tell, small town or no, things were always hopping in Misted Pines.
Since there’s a lot, allow me to sum it up.
The specialist surgeon from Seattle prevailed, and Lars Enstrom did not lose his leg.
However, there was quite a bit of muscle and tendon that couldn’t be saved.
He walked again, though the journey to that in a prison hospital I was sure wasn’t all that fun.
But forevermore, he’d ambulate with a significantly pronounced limp.
This did not bother me.
He shot our dog.
He got what was coming.
He, Heath Burress and their boys got slapped with drug trafficking, criminal trespass, attempted murder, kidnapping, unlawful imprisonment, forgery, criminal conspiracy, fraud, lumber poaching and animal cruelty charges.
All of them tried to cop pleas to reduce their sentences.
The evidence was so strong, neither prosecutor dealing with their cases were having it.
Thus, they had trials in both federal and local courts.
Hutch nor I went to even a day of either of them, except the ones where we were called as witnesses (and we only did our thing, then we left).
But two different juries found them guilty of everything, except kidnapping.
As such, they were going to spend a very long time first in federal prison, then they’d be transferred to do their time in a state prison.
After learning the results, Hutch nor I kept in touch with any of that.
Because really…
Once we knew they got what they deserved, they weren’t worth the headspace.
So we didn’t give it to them.
Taylor Martin and Samantha Schrier were also charged with drug trafficking, kidnapping, unlawful imprisonment, forgery, criminal conspiracy and fraud.
They had a better result with their plea bargaining, seeing as both women chucked loyalty to their men to save their own asses (and give their children at least one parent who wasn’t in prison for decades), and sat as witnesses for the prosecution.
They pled guilty to conspiracy to the drug trafficking and unlawful imprisonment charges.
They both did time.
But not nearly as much of it.
Nor, going along with that wicked game, as much as they deserved.
The True Believers of the mission of The Lion and The Lamb didn’t fare so well either.
It seemed they all came to grips with the elaborate scam that had been perpetrated on them, and for whatever their reasons—contrition, hope their women would soften to them and return, or the fact it was the godly thing to do—they all pled guilty to unlawful imprisonment and lumber poaching.
Regardless that they took responsibility for their stupidity and saved the court time and resources, on the day of their sentencing, the judge wasn’t feeling all that generous.
Or perhaps it was the length of time this went on and the result of the depth of these men’s stupidity on the women who loved and trusted them.
He threw out what was agreed during plea bargaining and sentenced them all to the maximum of five years and a ten-thousand-dollar fine each.
So, for the same amount of time they kept those women there (give or take), they, too, were going to enjoy their years without liberty (as the judge explained).
We learned about what the judge said from Harry. Hutch nor I went to that either.
For the same reasons.
Lars Enstrom and Heath Burress never explained why they came after Hutch that night.
Though, I noted it that way because Cade Bohannan had a few things to say about it, and part of those things was that it wasn’t me they were after.
It was Hutch.
That “thrill” my man had been talking about was that Cade theorized Enstrom, along with Burress, was some kind of adrenaline junkie, except one who walked on the dark side.
Once Hutch got on their radar, Cade figured who he was, how he was, and what he was started digging under their skin. It was bound to come to a head-to-head battle because the challenge of taking on a Navy SEAL was something they simply couldn’t walk away from.