Chapter 23
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Taft had to be behind the diverted lumber.
“Nothing else makes sense,” Ben told Logan as they left the lumberyard.
“I agree. Still, Taft was clever if he did. Everyone knows this place is the only choice for the volume Will ordered. That means he had to put someone on the payroll here or he had someone steal into the lumberyard and make up a new invoice with Braden Springs and the illegible phone number. One that looked real enough to the people filling the order.”
“Stinks all around,” Ben ground out as they walked to their vehicles.
The manager had produced the invoice for Ben and Logan, clearly suggesting Will had spoken the wrong town name over the phone.
Seemed impossible. Of course, the person who’d taken the order said he would have written down the exact address as it was given.
Logan had pointed out how odd it would be for someone not to know where they lived.
They’d only gotten a shrug with a “Maybe he was having a bad day and was confused.”
Horseshit. The only item Ben had argued was why Will’s phone number hadn’t been legible, resulting in them not calling him. The manager hadn’t had a good answer for that, saying they'd delivered a lot of orders and that drivers had done the best they could.
Ben had pointed out the insanity of delivering lumber to a location that flooded where no one was present to accept the order.
The manager had turned green but held firm.
They were paid to fulfill orders and ship them.
In the contract Will had signed, what happened after they delivered was not their fault.
Stalemate.
Ben wasn’t satisfied with any of it, but he knew the man wasn’t going to eat the mistake.
He’d told the manager they would hear from his lawyer.
Logan had taken a copy of the invoice and said he’d be back to talk to the driver as he was out on delivery.
They’d briefly talked to the order associate when the manager had called him to his dusty office.
How they could keep anything straight with the kind of half-assed file system, Ben would never know.
But he had bigger fish to fry. His brother was out a buttload of money, and now so was he, and they had a pretty smart cat playing at sabotage.
Ben opened his truck door and planted his boot on the running board. “You know how you get all itchy when you feel like a mountain lion is stalking you? That’s how I feel right now.”
Logan tugged the brim of his hat down. “Rightfully so. This here is a smart move. There’s no clear crime.
Just like the conversation Will sent me when he came onto your property, pretending to be lost. This time, we have a misunderstanding and diversion.
I’m not sure proving anything illegal is possible, but I’ll do what I can.
If Taft paid to have this done, he’d have paid well.
Well-paid people tend to keep their lips zipped. ”
“I know it.” Ben slammed his hand down on top of the truck. “I’m going to have to use our emergency funds to help Will. And dammit, the delivery fee from another lumberyard in the state will probably be double, because I’m not using this racket again for the next delivery.”
“Maybe your lawyer can shake some money out of these yahoos.” Logan pulled out his cell phone. “Excuse me a sec. I had a call-in concerning something else you’ll be interested in.”
Ben waited, but once Logan finished, he got a greasy feeling in his stomach as the man trudged over. “What has you frowning like you ate too many green apples?”
“Amber—”
His stomach dropped to the floor. “What did you find out?”
“I talked to the sheriff in Jackson Hole after her destruction of property to paper the file on this end for you. Only he’s been checking up on her whereabouts since he was worried about her drinking and driving.”
“Smart man. She’s one strike away from losing her license, not that it’s made her change her ways.”
“Forget about all that.” Logan tugged on his cowboy hat uncomfortably. “The local sheriff mentioned she’d been talking drunk about how she was going to rough up some girl who’d just gotten back from Scotland, one that had taken her husband and son from her.”
Ben cursed.
“He called me out of professional courtesy. Thought I’d know who that girl might be. Expected I’d want to warn her and keep an eye out for trouble.”
He’d been expecting Amber to raise hell over Hannah returning.
Why hadn’t it crossed his mind what she might do to Hannah?
“I’ll spread the word and bring up some ranch hands closer to her house.
If Amber is talking about actually physically harming someone other than me, then she’s on a real bender. ”
“Do you want to tell her father or shall I?” Logan asked, shaking his head.
Ben rubbed his forehead, suddenly exhausted. “You tell him.”
“Ben, part of me hopes she tries something. That way I can put her in jail.”
The very idea chilled him to the bone. “I’d hate to keep that kind of news from Cooper, but when it all comes down to it, I’d want Amber to come at me. Never Hannah.”
“You convince her to give you a second chance yet?” Logan asked, giving him a friendly shove.
“Will told me everyone in your family—Reba included—is trying to help. Maybe if I punch you, she could smear some of that magic salve on your boo-boo. My mama used to say the way to a man’s heart was by cooking him three square meals a day while the key to a woman’s was to give her the chance to take care of you. ”
Ben gave a rude snort. “I’d never want to disrespect anyone’s mama, but it’s a might more complicated. Women do want to feel useful, but it’s bigger than that. They need a purpose, but they like their independence and space.”
That was why he’d created the healing space for Hannah, promising himself it was only the beginning of what he could give her.
Yes, he needed to remind her of the good stuff, but he had to show her how he could support the things she’d been doing while they were apart too. He had to court the new Hannah.
Now Logan was telling him that she could suffer because of his mistakes. He wanted to pound something. I never would have thought we’d need to protect Hannah. What the hell.
As he said goodbye to Logan and drove back to the ranch, he could almost feel the storm coming.
Taft.
Amber.
Both intending harm toward everything he cared about.
Well, he’d fight them. With every ounce of his spirit.
Because no one would hurt Hannah or their plans for Wild Mountain.
No one.